From PEOPLE Magazine Click to enlarge
Five months on the set of Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas rubbed off on Taylor Momsen. Soon after the film wrapped in February, Momsen, who plays Cindy Lou Who to Jim Carrey's green guy, penned her own verse in honor of Cheddar, her pet hamster: "They're cute and they're fun/ Don't cost much, almost free/ So come save a pet/ At the Humane So-ci-e-ty."

It's not quite Dr. Seuss, but at 7, Momsen has a lifetime to hone her rhymes. Indeed, she'd like to say she has fond memories of her career to date, including a Shake 'n Bake ad in which she starred at age 3 and roles on the now-defunct CBS shows Early Edition and Cosby. "But I don't remember what I did on set," she admits. "I do remember a playroom with puzzles and coloring books." Still, she seemed incredibly mature on the Grinch set, says director Ron Howard, whose smallest star once pointed out that he had cut a line of dialogue vital to the plot. "Nothing," he says, "ever fazed Taylor."

That may be because her parents, Michael, 45, a VP of an electronics company, and Colette, 36, a home-maker, have tried to keep priorities straight for Taylor and her sister Sloane, 3. For instance, if acting doesn't work out, she may have a backup career. "I like to pretend I'm a detective," she says. "Instead of Nancy Drew, I'm Taylor Drew."