5.5-years-old

Peyton is coming up on a milestone with Kindergarten starting on Tuesday so I thought it would be a good time for a little Peyton update!  This summer has been HARD! Boy do we have an independent and stubborn kid.  We've been battling with him...working on making good choices and having a better attitude.  I'm hoping it's all just a 5-year-old phase.  I think the lack of structure of school is part of the issue.  I know our sweet, kind boy is hiding under there somewhere.

On Tuesday Peyt starts ALL-day, EVERYday Kindergarten.  He is SO excited.  He's been counting down the sleeps until school starts.  He met his teacher last spring before school was out and he loves her.  Last night we went to back-to-school night and got a run down of the curriculum, etc for the year.  She is STRICT which I love!  No nonsense, but she also is very sweet. We are really excited for Peyton to start his school journey. 

Some things Peyton's been up to and into:

~He's all about ninjas.  He turns everything into a sword and loves to watch Ninjago.  Not my favorite but hey he's a boy.

~We've been working all summer on reading and he's doing awesome!  The deal we have is that however many books he reads to us before bed is the number of books we read to him.  He gets so excited when he finishes one with no help from us.

~He's made friends this summer with two sets of brothers in the neighborhood.  The five of them spend a ton of time together outside playing and riding bikes/scooters.  I have to drag him in for dinner some nights!

~He starts soccer league this fall.  He's been playing at the park with Aunt Marcia, who watches the kids during the day and she said he's got great control of the ball.  I know ZERO about soccer so maybe he can teach me a thing or two!

~He still loves legos, especially Ninjago legos.  His current reward for his goal (for behavior, reading goals) is a new Ninjago spinner...he's reached his reading goal but still working on behavior!

~I can tell Peyton has had a growth spurt again...none of his pants from spring fit, his feet are huge and he's totally thinned out.  He's a total bean pole.  He still eats pretty well and will eat almost anything but hasn't been eating as much. 

~This summer Peyton gave up napping.  I still think he could use a nap with how active he is all day during the summer, but I don't think he really needs it.  We do use Olivia's nap time as a quiet time for him.  He usually will watch a show or play legos quietly. 

~He still loves to help me in the kitchen, or help me clean.  I started using a homemade all-purpose cleaner (vinegar, water and lemon oil essential oil) and he asked to have his own special spray bottle filled with it.  He loves to wipe down the counters every day for me or polish windows.  Our favorite thing to whip up together lately has been guacamole...the 4 of us can't get enough of it! He loves to smash and peel the garlic and squeeeeeeeze the lime.  We started have him do some chores around the house.  He will take recycling out to garage to sort into the bins, vacuum (still likes it!), clean his room, fold towels and dust.  Most of the time he loves to help...sometimes not!

I can't believe our boy is growing up so fast...and we're excited for him to start school and grow even more.


We love our boy!