Here we are again at that Big 5.0 milestone! Only this time it's our BABY Doll who has somehow turned into a big girl kindergartner overnight...
Cora's 5th year has been a bit of a wild ride, as her personality and independence has developed even further (though sometimes changes on the hourly...) and her dramatics have multiplied beyond anything we could have expected. It's been fun (yes it has, it really has!), and there have been some amazing milestones and sweet moments that are too numerous to recount here, but we're now looking toward her 6th year to give us that "Fantastic" Five. It's coming. I can feel it!
While her sass has not disappeared, we are finding ways to get a handle on it more quickly when the outbreaks occur (and the soap does still make appearances as needed). She still attempts that fake crying nonsense, even though she knows we won't fall for it. Our go-to with her these days is to just send her to her room when she gets ornery so that none of us (James included) have to deal with it. Not that this is a new development, but I still have to stop myself from giggling when she marches down there screaming and crying, and slams her door (well, as much as you can slam a door that has a safety-bumper at the top), only to get immersed in her dolls or books, then come out sweet-as-pie 5-10 minutes later, having completely forgotten that she was sent there for punishment...
Cora had a great school year and learned a lot (though the first half of the year, while she still had Ms. Kati, was far more productive than the past few months...), and while she truly does love school, she is REALLY loving summer vacation and Daycamp at the YMCA. She is a water baby through-and-through, and the opportunity to swim for 1-2 hours every single day is a dream come true for her (plus, she gets to swim after work with mama and daddy once or twice per week, as well as the weekends). Her hair is paying the price (not green thankfully, but dry and brittle, which is extra problematic for her already thin mane), but oh well. She's happy, we're happy. She is getting to play with new friends, including LOTS of little girls her age (Agape's summer school program was very small, and we know she was often bored or lonely being stuck with the "babies" most of the day there) and plenty of somewhat older kids (the main span seems to be ages 5-8 at our Daycamp - there is another at the Ver Beck location where more of the older kids go). She sees James every single day, and they play together of course, but it's nice that there are enough other children that they can each do their own thing and have some independence from each other (since this next school year will be VERY different for them, being in completely different classrooms all day long and perhaps not even overlapping for lunch time or recess - we don't know the schedule yet, but we were warned that they might not see each other much, since the kindergartners are a bit more secluded from the older kids at Southpark).
As far as their sister-brother relationship, it just continues to blossom. Yes, there are arguments, but for the most part, we are thrilled with their daily interactions and how well they play together. There is no doubt that they are each other's very best friend and confidant (the whispered secrets are becoming more numerous around the house lately, not that we can't still hear them... little kids and whispering...) Cora still likes to "mother" him - doing things for him and worrying over him and reminding him about what he is or isn't suppose to be doing, but he doesn't seem to mind. When she needs help opening a pack of gummies, he's her man. They have a good system going.
Cora is learning to read! She knows plenty of sight words, and has learned how to sound out pretty much anything else she comes across, as long as it doesn't have a tricky blend or silent letter (she's listened to James learn about long and short vowels, and while she still has a ways to go, she gets the concept). We have no doubt that we'll consider her a "reader" before kindergarten starts in August. We work with her each night at bedtime (taking turns with the kids, so they each get one-on-one time with a parent so we can really pay attention) and we see improvement each week!
She doesn't nap anymore. At all. UNLESS she falls asleep in the car unexpectedly. This is fine though, because they don't have nap time at Daycamp and she won't have nap time in kindergarten at Southpark next year (no idea why they did it for 5 and 6 year olds at Agape anyway...) She easily sleeps 10 hours a night (whereas she used to be a light sleeper, she now sleeps through the night without fail and usually sleeps in 30-60 minutes later than James in the morning, as long as he's quiet and stays in his room). Bedtime is still usually around 8:00 (or 8:30 if we're running late), and she isn't awake for 30-60 minutes talking to herself in the dark anymore - since we've been laying with the kids until they fall asleep (which we started doing for James' behavioral issues, but has benefited Cora equally), we know for a fact that she falls asleep more quickly now.
While her sass has not disappeared, we are finding ways to get a handle on it more quickly when the outbreaks occur (and the soap does still make appearances as needed). She still attempts that fake crying nonsense, even though she knows we won't fall for it. Our go-to with her these days is to just send her to her room when she gets ornery so that none of us (James included) have to deal with it. Not that this is a new development, but I still have to stop myself from giggling when she marches down there screaming and crying, and slams her door (well, as much as you can slam a door that has a safety-bumper at the top), only to get immersed in her dolls or books, then come out sweet-as-pie 5-10 minutes later, having completely forgotten that she was sent there for punishment...
Cora had a great school year and learned a lot (though the first half of the year, while she still had Ms. Kati, was far more productive than the past few months...), and while she truly does love school, she is REALLY loving summer vacation and Daycamp at the YMCA. She is a water baby through-and-through, and the opportunity to swim for 1-2 hours every single day is a dream come true for her (plus, she gets to swim after work with mama and daddy once or twice per week, as well as the weekends). Her hair is paying the price (not green thankfully, but dry and brittle, which is extra problematic for her already thin mane), but oh well. She's happy, we're happy. She is getting to play with new friends, including LOTS of little girls her age (Agape's summer school program was very small, and we know she was often bored or lonely being stuck with the "babies" most of the day there) and plenty of somewhat older kids (the main span seems to be ages 5-8 at our Daycamp - there is another at the Ver Beck location where more of the older kids go). She sees James every single day, and they play together of course, but it's nice that there are enough other children that they can each do their own thing and have some independence from each other (since this next school year will be VERY different for them, being in completely different classrooms all day long and perhaps not even overlapping for lunch time or recess - we don't know the schedule yet, but we were warned that they might not see each other much, since the kindergartners are a bit more secluded from the older kids at Southpark).
As far as their sister-brother relationship, it just continues to blossom. Yes, there are arguments, but for the most part, we are thrilled with their daily interactions and how well they play together. There is no doubt that they are each other's very best friend and confidant (the whispered secrets are becoming more numerous around the house lately, not that we can't still hear them... little kids and whispering...) Cora still likes to "mother" him - doing things for him and worrying over him and reminding him about what he is or isn't suppose to be doing, but he doesn't seem to mind. When she needs help opening a pack of gummies, he's her man. They have a good system going.
Cora is learning to read! She knows plenty of sight words, and has learned how to sound out pretty much anything else she comes across, as long as it doesn't have a tricky blend or silent letter (she's listened to James learn about long and short vowels, and while she still has a ways to go, she gets the concept). We have no doubt that we'll consider her a "reader" before kindergarten starts in August. We work with her each night at bedtime (taking turns with the kids, so they each get one-on-one time with a parent so we can really pay attention) and we see improvement each week!
She doesn't nap anymore. At all. UNLESS she falls asleep in the car unexpectedly. This is fine though, because they don't have nap time at Daycamp and she won't have nap time in kindergarten at Southpark next year (no idea why they did it for 5 and 6 year olds at Agape anyway...) She easily sleeps 10 hours a night (whereas she used to be a light sleeper, she now sleeps through the night without fail and usually sleeps in 30-60 minutes later than James in the morning, as long as he's quiet and stays in his room). Bedtime is still usually around 8:00 (or 8:30 if we're running late), and she isn't awake for 30-60 minutes talking to herself in the dark anymore - since we've been laying with the kids until they fall asleep (which we started doing for James' behavioral issues, but has benefited Cora equally), we know for a fact that she falls asleep more quickly now.
Her appetite is still large and predictable (feed her by certain hours of the day or pay the price!), and she still has the same favorite foods: pancakes!, fish (especially mahi mahi and tuna filets), potatoes/sweet potatoes, rice, bread w/ butter, chicken (depending how it's cooked - sometimes she fights us on it), turkey (only if it's from Thanksgiving or so thinly sliced it's "shaved", and best eaten in the shopping cart while fresh off the deli counter), broccoli, corn, peas, carrots (and rarely asparagus), apples and applesauce, cantaloupe, grapes, raspberries and blackberries, vanilla coconut milk, V8 and Fruitables juices, gummies, crackers, raisins, nuts (especially dry roasted peanuts and the ones she has to crack from their shells, plus pistachios and cashews), sunflower seeds, and cheese (mozzarella sticks and freshly shredded sharp cheddar with tortilla chips are her favorites). Rarely do we have to argue with her over dinner the way we do with James, which is surprising because she snacks between meals far more than he does.
5-Year-Old Favorites:
Movies: Little Mermaid, Book of Life, Frozen, Brave, The Lego Movie
TV shows: Wallykazam, Teen Titans, Octonauts
Toys: costumes, baby dolls, Barbie's, stuffed animals, puzzles, pegboards, Legos
Crafts: painting, coloring, chalkboard/sidewalk chalk, cutting and gluing/taping random things
5-Year-Old Stats:
39 lbs and 43.5"
She really is a fun little girl, full of personality and intelligence, always busy, always doing something creative or imaginative, and always wanting to help and be involved in whatever I'm doing. I love that! There is no better sidekick for mama than my little spitfire! Though there are tough moments with her most days (and in those moments I often have to remind myself that she's her morther's daughter...), the awesome far outweighs them, and we know we're blessed to have such a confident and independent kid. But turning 5 or not, and no matter how much independence she has, she'll always be our Baby Doll!
Happy Birthday sweetpea - we love you!
She really is a fun little girl, full of personality and intelligence, always busy, always doing something creative or imaginative, and always wanting to help and be involved in whatever I'm doing. I love that! There is no better sidekick for mama than my little spitfire! Though there are tough moments with her most days (and in those moments I often have to remind myself that she's her morther's daughter...), the awesome far outweighs them, and we know we're blessed to have such a confident and independent kid. But turning 5 or not, and no matter how much independence she has, she'll always be our Baby Doll!
Happy Birthday sweetpea - we love you!
4 comments:
Can't believe she is 5!! And can't believe that romper still fits. :)
Wow! Congratulations and hugs from all of us!
Wow! Congratulations and hugs from all of us!
Wow! Congratulations and hugs from all of us!
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