Aiden; 5 1/2

Aiden is 5 1/2 today and most kids probably don't even recognize their half birthdays, but our numbers kid has been anticipating this day for a long time.  He'll ask his friends how old they are and if they say "5", Aiden will ask "Are you five and a half, or just five?"  Most of the time they give him a funny look.  He has been counting the days until he turns five and a half.

Aiden . . .

has really come out of his shell this past year.  Preschool was a great transition for him into Kindergarten.  Before, if there were other children (whom he didn't know) on a playground, he'd say, "there's too many people- I don't want to play".  Now he'll lead Ty to go play and sometimes even talk to another kid, usually to ask how old they are and then later tell me, "I saw a girl who was seven!"

has gotten better with eating.  He's not as picky but when I suggest something he doesn't like he'll say, "I'm not hungry for carrots, I'm hungry for chips".

only wants to take showers now and he likes to use Dadda's soap instead of the baby soap.

counts down the days for events he looks forward to constantly.  Example; "How many more days until I go to the lake with Dadda?"  or "How much more days until I'm 6 years old?"  Sometimes he really makes me think by asking, "How many more days until I can drive?"

is starting to be annoyed by Ty as a little brother.  He plays with him well most of the time, but other times wants to do more "big kid" activities and doesn't like for Ty to participate.

love to do math problems, usually in the car.  We do addition, subtraction and his favorite is "times" (multiplication).  He can multiply numbers 1 through 5 and 10's.  When I ask him, he'll be thinking and he'll say, "hmmm . . . let's see" and then blurt out the answer.

is currently struggling with recognizing lowercase letters "q, p, b, & d"  He gets them confused easily, but knows all his letter sounds.

still likes to crawl in my lap to cuddle even though he's half my size. :-)

loves his baby brother!  He is very gentle with him likes when Mark follows him around the house.  Aiden will encourage him saying "Come on Mark".  He hugs Mark everyday in the car when I pick him up from school.

can become easily frustrated when he initially doesn't do well at something; playing Wii, writing letters, hitting the baseball, etc.  We have to encourage a good attitude and to stick with it.

loves fire!  He always wants to watch Jeff light the grill and jumps up and down when there is fire around. 

still likes to pretend cook in his kitchen and help out in my kitchen by stirring something on the stove.

loves movies and when he is watching one, it's hard to get his attention away from it.  His favorite is "Wreck It Ralph"