All About You...at 5

Ryleigh Roo...
the baby of our family,
our caboose,
our little girl
who's somehow now 5 years old.
How did this happen so fast?
The days seem to whirl by so quickly right now.
I wish there was a way to freeze time a bit...
to stay in this stage for a while...
this stage where we don't have a newborn we're still
figuring out, or a toddler that needs to nap every few hours.
I think we're in that sweet spot of parenting,
and your dad and I are sure enjoying it. 
Here's a little bit about you at five:

You are such a sweet, loving child.
You are constantly handing out hugs,
giving kisses, sharing words of encouragement
and looking to snuggle.
Your teachers tell me that you're
one of the most loving little girls they've ever met,
and I don't doubt it.
You do not like people to be upset with you,
you are very sensitive
and you hate being left out of anything.
Your feelings can be hurt easily.
Luckily, you don't hold grudges and are always
looking for any reason to smile.

You are the baby of the family.

As such, we have probably babied you more than
we should have.
These days, we are working hard on acting like a
big girl, on being independent, on cleaning up your messes,
making your bed, putting your shoes and toys and clothes away,
just like a 5 year old.
Things sometimes take you a little while to master,
and in the past, we haven't really pushed you.
We've let you grow and learn and bloom in your own time.
No more, though, sweet girl because at five you
are really blossoming in all areas.

We are just amazed at your progress this year
in PreK.
We could not love your school one bit more.
Moving you to Reading Friends was such
a wonderful decision,
and we're thankful every day.
You know all your lowercase letters now,
your writing has improved so much these past
few months. You and your classmates have an
exceptional language arts teacher,
and her methods have you sounding out words
in your beginner books. 
We were at the doctor's office for a sick visit
recently, and you read several paragraphs from
"The Fat Cat Sat on the Mat" to me.
I was so amazed and impressed.

More than reading though,
I think it's your confidence that has grown the most.
You love going to school.
You have made so many sweet friends.
You love your teachers and everything you're
learning. You are constantly singing your Spanish songs,
and your "vowels" song or your "5 Senses" song.
You are a super chatty little girl,
and your vocabulary is filled with these wonderful adjectives.
To you, something isn't hard...it's difficult or challenging.
Something isn't good...it's amazing or incredible.
Lexi doesn't pester you...she antagonizes you.

You have an uncanny ability to watch a movie or show
and remember the lines verbatim.
Every once in a while you'll go to give us a high 5
and say, "slap it boss" just like in the movie Trolls.
Or you'll hear a new song one time and then shortly
after sing it in its entirety.
You are for sure an auditory learner and a musical child. 
You are also pretty funny.
Your words and phrases and expressions
always make us laugh.
Here's just one example,
while we were cooking up a storm on Thanksgiving
you commented, "Wow, this kitchen is messier than my sock drawer."
I have no idea where you come up with half of it,
but I absolutely love your sense of humor.
You are just a little sponge,
and it's really exciting to watch. 

You just learned how to ride a two wheeler,
and you're so proud to show off your new talent.
You are also mastering the monkey bars.
You can go all the way across at the Rockenbaugh playground.
Swinging is a new skill for you too,
and you hop up and start pumping every chance you get.
With your sister and daddy's help,
you are learning how to ice skate and roller skate...
you simply refuse to be left out.
You take gymnastics with Miss Chelsea,
and you'll be starting your very first tennis class this month.
You still adore horses - riding them, seeing them, feeding them,
reading about them.
I think it's because of horses that you

say you want to be a vet when you grow up. 

 You are really a joyful child -
probably about 90 percent of the time.
People are just drawn to you.
Lexi's friends always happily include you
in whatever it is they're playing,
babysitters are charmed by you,
your family can't help but spoil you with
attention and affection.
You are a delight.
Except those times when you're not...
and then we see your stubbornness - your
foot stomping, arms crossing, mouth pouting
stubbornness.
But like I said above,
it never lasts very long.

At age five, you love reading with your mom and dad.
Every few days you've selected a new book
as your very favorite.
You insist we leave them at the foot of your bed
when it's time to go to sleep. 
You love coloring flowers and rainbows and clouds.
You love writing your name and creating little
letters for your friends and classmates.
You are lightning quick when you run,
and boy do you love to run.
You thank us at bedtime for "filling your bucket".
You still sleep with the bathroom light on.
You have an amazing imagination
and can often be found talking to your barbie dolls
and your shopkins.
You make up these whole little scenes and can
play happily for quite a long time -
just you and your toys.
That being said, you are a people person
and always prefer being near us
and playing with us.
When you wake up in the morning,
you instantly come looking for the rest of the family.
You start every day with a giant smile,
and you don't want to miss out on a thing.

Your favorite movie right now is Trolls.
Your favorite song is "Roar" by Katy Perry.
Pink and turquoise are your favorite colors.
You love Rainbow Sherbert for dessert.
You really like watching Shimmer and Shine,
but as the second child, you're also already
a big fan of The Brady Bunch and Troop Beverly Hills.
You have started to have your first drop off playdates.
In fact, you request a playdate every.single.day.
Your favorite friend tends to be whoever you've seen
most recently,
though you really love Zoe, Brooke and Emery from school.
Harper is one of your besties, and 
Riggs remains your boyfriend at the current moment,
though you have a lot of little boy buddies in PreK
and in the neighborhood.

You still love playing dress up, and can often be found
in some sort of princess dress, tiara and high heel shoes.
You have very definite opinions when it comes to fashion.
A closet full of lovely dresses and today you wore
a ballet leotard and tutu to school complete with
turkey leggings from Thanksgiving.
As a second time mommy,
I've learned it's not worth arguing about if it makes you happy.

At age five,
you love having your grandparents visit.
You get so excited to have family
and friends here at the house.
You really want a dog, just like your sister.
You have a twinkle in your eyes,
and the sweetest smile I've every seen.
Your hair also holds curls amazingly well -
you will be thrilled about this as you get older. 
At age five, you are the perfect caboose
for our family,
and as daddy says, "we love you more."