This letter is a tad bit late – and it’s my entire fault. I was traveling for work on your actual birthday and then the holidays happened, and well, I just plain forgot until now. It doesn’t help I pretty much took a year off from updating the family blog as well.
Shortly after your birthday last year, we moved you from an in-home daycare to another structured pre-school setting. After the expected “settling-in” time period we know you and are sister need to adjust to new routines, you began to thrive. We were more than confident that you were ready to start TK this past Fall.
At the first quarter Parent/Teacher conference, Mrs. Tudor informed us that while technically you are a TKer you are doing Kindergarten work. At the time we reserved the right to decide whether you will move up to Frist Grade in March, but chose to keep you on the kindergarten curriculum and standards. We recently were leaning toward having you return to kindergarten next school year and even emailed Mrs. Tudor our reasoning along with some questions we had for her. She quickly asked to meet with us where she informed us that you need to go on to First Grade – you would be so bored doing kindergarten again. Your dad and I were very pleased and proud of you as we walked out of both those meetings.
You love riding the bus and going to the same school as your sister but you’ve also made some new friends on your own, which is wonderful to see. And now that you are at Pleasant Grove School, you get to participate in 4-H. We’ve got you signed up for baking (which I lead), arts & crafts, gardening and wildlife. Next year, we’ll likely get you involved with showing Pygmy Goats – we’ll see how it goes with your sister this year.
Last May you got to travel with me to Tucson. I was heading to Phoenix for work and we decided you and I could go out early so that you could spend a week with Grandma and Grandpa all by yourself. That weekend you also got to meet my Aunt Maryanne, my cousin Adam’s wife Amber and their daughter Stella who is just a few months younger than you. You two had a blast together and you still speak about Stella today. The best part is you get to see her again in April!
You and your sister are getting along much better than a year ago – so much so that you two share a bedroom now and London’s old room was turned into a playroom. This still doesn’t prevent the bedroom from being destroyed by clothes, blankets and all the toys & books you still bring back in there! And you two do still have squabbles from time to time and require alone time or 1:1 time with Mom & Dad.
Being strong-willed is a hallmark of your personality still. The tears when you don’t get your way have subsided some but not completely – especially when you are tired.
These days you are into Play-doh. Any time you can convince me, the play-doh comes out. You also enjoy coloring and painting, and your latest obsessions are LOL dolls – the IT toy of 2017 – and finally, Legos. It took your dad getting me a BB-8 Lego kit for Christmas to get you interested but now you are on a roll building every kit you have ever received.
You are still very good at playing on your own but prefer to have someone with you. McKenzie recently came over for a sleep over and the two of you could not get enough playing in. You two come up with some silly stories.
We love you!
