I cannot believe that Maddy is six years old. I distinctly remember being six and now that my own daughter is six, I'm in shock. Crazy to think how quickly six years have flown by and it really does feel like a she's passed a milestone now that she has to use both hands to show how old she is.
Maddy is really coming into her own this year. She really enjoys learning and is always asking questions about how things work or asking for clarification as she tries to put ideas and concepts together in her head. The other day as I was putting her to bed, she said to me, "Mama, I have a question..." In my head, I was thinking, "Here we go, she's trying to stall bedtime." Then she continues to ask me about what cats eat. I launch into a speech about the dietary needs of wild cats vs. house cats and she sits quietly listening to me go on. When I'm done she asks, "But I thought cats are mammals." I told her that yes they are mammals. "Well if they are mammals, don't they drink milk from the mamas?" Ooooohhhh, finally the lightbulb goes on for me. After quickly reminding her that she only had milk as a baby, I pointed out that kittens only have milk from the mother for a short period of time too. A smile spread across her face as though I had made the world right for her again and now she could go to sleep. That is Maddy right now, trying to piece it all together.
Another way that Maddy is trying to make her way in the world is through learning to do things that she perceives as 'grown up'. She is now reading fairly easily and she is really beginning to love reading. I LOVE our reading time during school. We do it everyday after lunch. Ethan is always home from preschool by then, and miraculously he loves to listen to his big sister read, so we just cuddle up on the couch and Maddy reads to us. She loves to be 'The One Who Can Read' and will read to him even when I'm busy. Another 'grown up' thing is tying her shoes. This fall when we were buying shoes for the kids for the season, we purposely bought Maddy shoes with laces. She was showing interest in learning to tie her laces last year and was somewhat able to do it, but without constant practice it would never improve. It's getting better, and takes less time, but what I'm most impressed with is her desire to keep pushing through even though it's extra work. Lastly, for her birthday we told her that we would be getting her a watch. It was kind of supposed to be a special, "You're a big girl" milestone gift. During school time I started to teach her to tell the time. There were quite a few steps like reading each of the hands separately and learning to count by fives, but just last week, she mastered it and today when she received her watch she was so proud that she started to announce the time. 9:05, 9:10, 9:15...Yes, it was a long morning!
Maddy is involved in a lot of after school activities this year and seeing her go off to them with such confidence makes me so happy. She is in her second year of Sparks (Girl Guides), choir, swimming, Mandarin and will start skating soon. It sounds like a lot but it's also nice for her to get out of the comfort of home and some of the lessons give her some experience of being "in school". She doesn't hesitate to go into unfamiliar situations and though she isn't totally outgoing to begin with, she does find her own way once she begins to feel comfortable. It's great to see her meet up with her friends in each of the different activities and then run off without so much of a backward glance.
For her birthday we celebrated with a low key party. Oma, Opa, Gong Gong and Po Po all came over to celebrate. I'm really enjoying these birthdays, much more of a chance to enjoy the moment and way less stress! :) We started with cake for tea, then presents and dinner to follow. Maddy let me decide on the type of cake to make for her, so we opted for cupcakes. I made 10 cupcakes, one for each person and just two left over, instead of our usual 'I can't eat anymore cake, just throw it out' debacle.
Happy 6th birthday Maddy, we love you so much and we are so proud of you! xoxo
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