Eva Turns Five

Eva is a big 5-year-old now.  I can hardly believe it!  We threw a horse-themed birthday party for her two days after getting back from San Diego.  The weather was perfect: one sunny day in the middle of two weeks of non-stop rain.  It was even warm enough for the kids to play in the sprinkler.    I made a simple cake with all of her tiny plastic horses posed on a green hill side under a blue sky. 

 

Turning five means that Eva will be going into Kindergarten this fall.  We’ve decided to take one year at a time when determining which learning environment would be best for the girls.  This year we’ll be homeschooling with My Father’s World.  I’ve had several friends use the curriculum and have been very impressed with it.  Not only does it engage all the senses and learning styles (visual, auditory and tactile), but the assignments are also designed to adapt to a range of ages and skill levels.  This means that I can include Amanda without having to try to find some way to occupy her or keep her out of the way.    It also means that I can take it up a notch for Eva if it seems she’s not being challenged enough.  

 

She’s more than ready.  I’ve been working with her using preschool booklets during Amanda’s nap several times a week, and she’s gotten to the point where she can spell and write people’s names if you help her sound it out.  “Mommy, how do you spell ‘Grandma’?”   “Guh,  Guh.  What makes a ‘guh’ sound? “   “G!” she exclaims proudly, and writes it down.  “What comes after ‘G’?”   And so it goes. 

 

Inspired by her friend Kasey (6), Eva has been determined not to wear training pants to bed anymore.   She voluntarily stopped bringing a sippy cup to bed, told us she doesn’t want to have a drink before bed, and proudly announces in the mornings, “I woke up dry!  I’m a big girl now!”

 

She still struggles with a few childhood fears, like an irrational terror of house flies, and worrying that everything from her bath toys to baby sister will get sucked down the drain in the tub, but she’s working to overcome those, as well.   Whenever I give Bethany a bath, Eva will warily peer over my shoulder and say, “The toy won’t go down the drain?  Can you show me?”  I’ll demonstrate that the toys won’t fit, and she’ll look relieved…for now.