Kindergarten and ALMOST 6

Dearest Sweet Pea,
You area kindergartner! It's so wild! You LOVE your class at PS 130. It's an integrated classroom, which means there are two teachers and an aide and some of the kids have special educational plans. Some of the kids are still working on using their words instead of their bodies, but you take it in stride and have become so strong in advocating for yourself and establishing boundaries. You are an excellent communicator!

Also this fall you started a special ballet class at the Y that's a little more advanced and progressive. You work hard in class, no more games and fluttering around. You spend time at the barre and work on things until you get better. You LOVE it. There have been some times where it's gotten hard and you've said it's not fun anymore, but when asked if you want to go back, the answer is always an immediate YES

You also started Girl Scouts! You're officially a Daisy Scout and you also LOVE this. At your first meeting you made a friendship bracelet, learned the Girl Scout Law and Pledge and got to meet your fellow troopmates. Many of them go to your school, two are in your class now. And about half go to other schools, so it's a fun way to meet new people. You see your troopmates on the playground after school and it's so fun to watch you expand your friend circle so much. 

Proud Daisy!

You're learning to read in school and it's amazing to watch you blossom into a full on school-aged kid. The reading is come slowly and you get frustrated at times, but really day to day you grasp more and more. You read to your sister, which is the sweetest. She adores you, Sweet Pea, and you are so good to her. 

The summer of monkey bars

Dear Pea,
You are five and a half. You are obsessed with the monkey bars. You know which playgrounds have which ones and what types they have and decide how you want to spend your day: practicing a new skill or mastering one you already have down. You can do the rings, you can skip a bar, you can do the circular bars, you do the ones that are high...it's the summer of the monkey bars!

The Sweet Pea at FIVE

Dearest Pea,
You are FIVE years old. I thought I was done writing to you as your babyhood ended, but I think I'll still always want to sneak in some letters and stories every once in a while.

You have your first loose tooth! It's the left front bottom one and the adult tooth is already pushing up behind it. You are SO excited about the loose tooth and talk about the Tooth Fairy's impending visit daily. But not so excited that you want to tug or even wiggle aggressively. You just like knowing it's there, loose.

You are halfway through your year of public pre-k and you LOVE school. You adore your three teachers, all of whom adore you right back. The special treats you finagle for yourself never cease to amaze me: bracelets, tiaras, candy, special art projects...on and on. The girls in your class are sweet, but this has really been your first foray into complicated friendships. Sometimes someone wants to play with you, sometimes they want to play with someone else. Sometimes people say hurtful things. You seem to navigate it all well, but you really didn't admit to having any friends in school for almost a month. You weren't bothered by it; you just knew the difference between friends and acquaintances.

But what really astounds me about your five year old self is your role of big sister. You relish this. You adore being Lucy's big sister and adore Lucy. She will pull your hair, eat your toys, take me and Daddy's attention away from you for eons at a time and you NEVER lose it with her. You may get annoyed with me or Daddy, but you have never once said anything unkind or impatient with her. If she's crying, you try to cheer her up.  You still shatter our hearts, Sweet Pea, you are such a loving person.