Let them be little....

So I can't help but think of the Lonestar song, "Let them be little" the last few days as Faith prepares for changes at school and the move to Kindergarten. Am I right to send her a year early or am I pushing too much and should just "let her be little"? I don't know.

Just let them be little. For they're only that way for a while. Give them hope, give them praise, give them love everyday. Let them cry, let them giggle. Let them sleep in the middle. Oh, just let them be little.

Little fish

Faith started swimming lesson yesterday; the first of it's kind. She was in a class with one other child which was really nice because she received so much attention. At first thought she said she wasn't going to blow bubbles in the water let alone go under water but she has proven herself to be very brave. Her teacher had her laying on her back and floating around the pool, hand walking the side of the pool, singing songs, popping up from the water, blowing bubbles, and so much more. Swimkids was definitely a good program to place her in as they already had her placed in the appropriate class before she even arrived. Today she does a lesson too all the way till next Thursday. No gymnastics this week as the gym is closed for cleaning. This is probably best as she would be tired from having both activities. What is even nicer was that I was able to take her to swimming lessons from school and not even have to clock out. Woo! hoo!

The little imagination

Faith's imagination is still quite active. When given a suggestion, like today, she just ran with it. We were playing with Winnie the Pooh and friends and I decided to make one of them get sick from the birthday cake. She took it even further and decided that he needed to go to the hospital. Then almost immediately after he was examined by My little Pony, Tigger's friends all came in sick also. Then all the stuffed animals were laying on the floor sick from food poisoning. Faith's brother was in there and she would not allow him to enter into the hospital area. So she picked him up and escorted him out of the hospital. He seemed pretty happy that he was finally allowed to leave. She had him blocked in for the longest time.

More cars?

Yes, three days later Faith has now learned to recognize the Lexus, BMW, Chevy, Acura, Toyota, and Honda. She is so funny. I can't believe that she loves this game so much. I can't drive down the street with her anymore without her shouting the names as we go along. We come to a stop sign, she watches the cars go by and shouts out the names. "Did you really just say Lexus, Faith?" I literally just spoke about the Lexus one time with her. I guess she is more like her Pa Pa than I realize. How many will she be able to learn? I guess the question is, How many can I teach her? So tomorrow will start another day of car shouting I guess.

FORD!

Faith has become aware of vehicles around her and has discovered the word FORD written on many vehicles. At first she was calling all 4X4 trucks FORDs but then I explained the significance of 4X4 and that it wasn't only on FORDs. She has her Pa Pa's blood in her. Now as we drive down the road she spots a FORD and she is shouting it from the back seat. If we are walking in the parking lot she spots and yells it out. But after realizing this was fun for her I decided to introduce her to the Chevy, Honda, and Toyota too. Now she has four vehicles that she looks for and when she doesn't know what type it is she is asking me to tell her so she can learn that one too. I wonder, is that how my dad learned his vehicle types when he was little? Maybe, but whatever interests her I just go with the flow. Today...naming vehicles. Tomorrow...maybe naming star constelations :-)

My little gymnaste

Yes, Faith has turned into a mini gymnaste. I love it when she asks me to help her and teach her. We have turned the living room into an all out gymnastics center. If I could only get a cheese mat I would be all set. Bars, mmmm, that is sort of hard to have in the front room but we use things around us to make a somewhat decent obstacle course. Eight weeks ago I put her in class and she could only do a small donkey kick and a jump over cartwheel. Now she down a cartwheel by kicking over the top and lands on her feet. She can do it on the floor now also. Her handstands are so high often she kicks herself right over. She backward rolls down a small incline and holds a chin up for 10 seconds. This girl is going to be a special little girl here. She tries her hardest. She aims to please. She does what she is asks and watches the big girls because she wants to be like them. Whenever she tries something new she always says that the big girls do it. I then have to explain that they have been doing it longer. No fear she has. Will be doing backhandsprings next year if she continues where she is going.

Ready for kindergarten

So since Faith has graduated from her PreK class and has went into summer fun I realize just how much she knows. She knows how to read clocks, count to one hundred, count by 5's and 10's. She recognizes all letters of the alphabet including their sounds. She recognizes blends such as "th", "sh", and "ch". She sounds words out and most of the time gets them right including if they are simple and don't follow the vowel rule. Her writing skills have improved tremendously. She is a great listener and follower of directions and really cares about learning and having fun. Last night we read "Countdown to kindergarten" and after that book she was so excited that kindergarten was going to start soon. However, once again, being a step ahead of other children I have immediately started thinking, what about the following year and where and what will she do. I know what I would like to do with her but it is convincing Bud that that is the best route for her. We will see what this year brings us and I will prepare for what is to come. Research, research, research.