Joshua turned six on Tuesday, September 18. We've celebrated each month of him growing up, so this is our 72nd celebration! He's changed so much from his early days of life, and I'm so thankful that God has allowed him to learn and grow into the young man that he is today!
First, I'd say that Joshua has a really sweet heart. He genuinely loves other kids and cares about their well-being. He's also perceptive about adults, too. I love to see his kindness and compassion toward others. In fact, the first time he ever "clipped up" at school (a new behavior chart in his classroom where children get to go up or down based on the choices they make), it was because he gave up a chair to another student. He said "Mason really wanted to sit where I was to be next to his friend. I didn't mind, so I let him sit there." It makes my heart glad to hear that he's making good choices and being nice to others!
I also think Joshua is super sharp, too. I read all the paperwork sent home by his teacher about reading, and it said that children at his age should be able to separate words into syllables. I hadn't even thought to teach him about syllables, and I was thinking about how to explain it. The paper gave the suggestion of clapping to words to separate them out. So, I started one day as we were driving by asking him how many syllables were in his name. My expectation was that he was going to ask what a syllable was, but instead, he answered "Josh-u-a, three!" I asked him many other words as we continued to drive, and he answered them all correctly. I guess I don't need to teach him that - they must have gone over it at school already, and he picked it up quickly!
Joshua has been sailing through the math homework he has to do for school each night, and his handwriting is improving with time. He can write relatively well and is starting to try to spell words on his own. One of his monthly calendar homework assignments asked "what was yesterday" on Sunday. He wrote by himself "Sadrday." I know it's not the correct spelling, but I was pretty impressed by his attempt.
He also is reading extremely well by himself, and I'm constantly surprised as his vocabulary is growing. I'll expect him to stumble over certain words that he'll say with ease. His first book he borrowed from the library was called "Bats at the Beach." The bats all go to the shore at night with their 'moon-tan lotion' and the entire book rhymes (which is always fun to read!). Joshua is getting better and better at rhyming words. When he can't think of anymore, he'll make up words with the ending sound. But, he'll tell me that's one of his own words, which I know is part of the learning process.
Joshua is doing both soccer and martial arts this fall. He's been doing very well at both. He's still learning, but I can see definite improvement from practice to practice and game to game. Most of all, I'm glad he's having fun and getting physical activity. I think all of these things together are boosting his self-esteem. He loves going to Universal, and he has made a ton of friends there. He'll recognize kids from his class or the other kindergarten class and call them by name. I always laugh that Joshua seems to have a ton of friends with his outgoing personality.
Joshua's latest thing that he's been doing is asking the meaning of words. With this growth in vocabulary (which is great!), Shawn and I have had a difficult time trying to explain the exact meaning of each and every word to him. There are some words that are hard to describe without using the word. So, at times we just put them in context and try to explain them that way. He has asked some pretty tough ones and then others that are relatively easy to explain using a synonym.
On Friday, September 21, Joshua had his 6-year well-check at 4 pm with Dr. Kernan. His stats were:
Weight: 42 lbs (26.58%)
Height: 3' 10" (60.6%)
Blood Pressure: 98/56
Pulse: 88
She said that he's growing beautifully. His weight other than one significant drop has stayed in the 20th percentile while his height has remained relatively consistent at between the 50th and 60th percentile. That gives him a nice lean BMI (body mass index) which is what they like to see for him. That is considered his "normal" and looks great from their perspective. We talked about his asthma, and she said that she would like to see him go on Flovent this winter rather than the Pulmacort since the Flovent is through an inhaler rather than the nebulizer. He's officially old enough to be using a regular inhaler all the time, and she said that more medication gets to the lungs through an inhaler than a nebulizer. He's getting SO big! I went and got all his prescriptions filled. He also got a flu shot while we were there, which he was not too thrilled about!
One last change worth noting at this age. His friends in our neighborhood have been asking him to come over and play. I have NO idea at what age I can let him go on his own to a friend's house. He has a little buddy down the street that plays outside often, and I don't always see the parents out. That child has older siblings, though. I know Joshua knows his boundaries, and yet I wonder if the parents truly want another little buddy hanging around. I see children wandering our neighborhood all the time. Many play very well together. Many even stop over at our house to play when we're out in the driveway. But, I'm always there and supervising. This is completely new territory to me. I'm not real comfortable yet with the idea of him going off to another house where I don't know the parents well or their expectations for children playing together with their children. I also don't want to be the overbearing strict parent who never lets their child do anything. We've discussed it together and agreed that next time we'll invite the friend to come here. Joshua still gets to play then and I can be there to watch. I'm still seeking wisdom on what's best for him! And I must say that we're very blessed to live in a development full of children who seem very nice and have parents who seem to care. I love that we have sidewalks and safe places for children to gather and have fun together.
With my oldest child comes new challenges and adventures! I'm loving experiencing the world through his eyes. I enjoy how much he loves school and how well he's doing. I praise God for his safety and his overall health. Please continue to pray for Joshua! Happy 6th birthday, my little buddy!
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