Turning 5

 Hi Sidra,
You've just turned 5 years old!  Wow.  You just had an amazing birthday party that was arranged by your mom.  I've posted a lot of pictures this time because it was such a big day.  By the way, blog readers, you can get a better look at the pictures by clicking on them.

Let's do some stats first.  You are now 42½ inches tall so you'll be able to go on some rides that you were too short for last year, like at the state fair.  And you're up to a little over 40 pounds.  You've grown about an inch and a half in the last 6 months. 

Now, about this big party.  It was a Princess Party.  Two women came dressed as Belle and Cinderella.  They brought some dresses for you and your guests.  You eventually wore at least 5 dresses before finally settling on the pink one.  I thought that you looked best in the white one with gold sleeves but I recall that you asked me about any of them.  Some of your guests tried other dresses but most stuck with the one that they picked first.  Your sister stuck with the purple one that they gave her based on her response to the favorite color question. 

My favorite part of the party was when your guests arrived you went to greet them and invite them over to try on one or more of the dresses.  You were very good at greeting them and making them feel welcome.  They all got to meet Belle and Cinderella and join the charade. 

After all the guests arrived Belle directed some fun activities.  First, some magic was performed so that you and the guests could become real princesses and princes.  You sprinkled magic dust on each of your guests and then a chant was recited to complete their transformation.  You got to sprinkle the dust on your little sister which was a cute moment.  Then all the guests sprinkled the dust on you and you got the special wand as the guest of honor at the party.  Other activities before the 'tea party' were storytelling, musical pillows, and limbo dancing. 

The tea party was next.  You sat at the head of the table while Belle and Cinderella served you.  They brought popular kid foods- cheese and crackers, peanut butter sandwiches cut into the shape of  a crown.  In the tea cups was either lemonade or water.  Dessert was a nice cookie. 

Then Belle sat with you on the stage while you opened your gifts.  Cinderella kept track of which gift came from which guest.  You were quite gracious about the gifts and did well thanking each of your friends for their gifts.  We only had to remind you once to do that.  Best of all, you read most of the cards yourself! All the adults were quite impressed with you.   Belle only helped you when you needed it and there was only one card that you didn't try to read yourself. 

There was also a "graduation" ceremony where each prince and princess was introduced and given a certificate.  I can't remember if that occurred before or after the tea party.


Belle asked everyone to take off their dresses before having birthday cake.  She said she could deal with most stains but cakes were tough to get out.  The guests sang happy birthday to you and you blew out the candles.  No one asked you what you wished for. 

I know you had a great time at this party and your mom raved about it being one of the best days ever.  She believes that because she was the one who made this happen and she saw what a good time you had.  I confess that I still prefer the "Paper Bag Princess" to any Disney Princess and the subterfuge required to make you believe the Princesses were real made me uncomfortable.  I got in trouble with your mom a few days before the party because I said something that could have revealed the truth to you if you were listening carefully.  I hadn't realized that she was telling you it would actually be Belle attending the party.  Another parent at the party told me I should lighten up and not worry about it because it's only for fun and your obsession about princesses is only a phase.  I suppose, but if you ask me a direct question I'm going to tell you the truth. 

Some other fun stuff happened yesterday.  You had two Skype calls from your uncles.  One even came from Israel.  In that one you turned the tables on your Aunt Jane.  She said "Sidra, do you want to know something funny, it's almost 8 o'clock at night here in Israel."  You said, "Ok, you can tell me the joke now."  We all had a good laugh about that.  Your Grandma and Grandpa came to our house for the day and to see your party.  I'm not sure if they had a good time at the party but they enjoyed spending time with you throughout the day. 

One of the pictures in the post is not a party shot.  It's your drawing of our family.  I asked you to draw it because I posted one about a year ago and I wanted to see what would be different in the new one, how your drawings have progressed.  I'll probably ask you to do it again next year. 

There's one more thing I want to tell you about.  Some Facebook users may have seen this already but I wanted to mention it here, too.  A couple of weeks ago you said to me, "I would never unlove you daddy."  It's certainly an endearing phrase and I'm sure you believe that and I want to believe it, too.  But I know that there are some challenging years ahead for both of us.  I know that kids commonly seek distance from their parents during the teen years and that's it's probably truer for fathers of girls than for the moms.  So, I guess I'm saying that I'm making a record of it in case I need it in a future argument.  Additionally, it's interesting the way that you phrased it, acknowledging that it's possible to stop loving.  It seems emotionally precocious.

So, you're 5.  It's seems to get better by the minute.  I'll keep you posted, 
Love, Aba

Certificate

Sidra's Family Drawing

Gift Opening with Belle

True Belle of the Ball

New Robe from Uncle Ben

Dress Up from Brookline Cousins

Skype Call from Israel

Curtsey

Shira Caught with a hat

Princess  Shira

Princess Esa

Prince JoJo

Princess Rachel

Prince Logan

Princess Megan

Awaiting Tea

Table decorations

Head of the Table

Queen and her Court

Gift Opening with Belle

Beautiful Princess

Esa gets some fairy sparkle

Little Sis

Checking with Mom

Belle's instructions

Turning Sis into a Princess

Follow the Yellow Brick Road

Hi Sidra,

Posing with Glenda

Funny Face

Smiling at home

Before the Curtain

With Dorothy

I just wanted to tell you about our date last night.  Your mom suggested that we go to a production of the Wizard of OZ.  You decided you should wear your "Dorothy" dress that was your Halloween costume from 2010.  We decked you out with a basket to carry "Toto" and some red sparkly shoes.  To complete the get up your mom did your hair in pig tails.

You were a big hit in the lobby before and after the show and during intermission.  One lady suggested that you should be up on stage with the cast.  You told her that "Somewhere Over the rainbow" were the only words to "Over the Rainbow" that you knew.  You said you didn't know the rest of the song.  You even made an impression on a woman working at Burgerville where we stopped on the way home.  We ended up telling her about the whole evening.

We had a great time watching and you knew the plot very well because we had watched the movie the night before.  We wondered if my favorite song of the movie would even make it in the stage production.  It did, and we learned that it is called the "March of the Winkies."  It's marching music used by the soldiers (winkies) of the Wicked Witch.  It's what is played while the Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Lion follow the soldiers into the castle after ambushing three winkies.

You said you didn't have a favorite song, although you do like to sing "Over the Rainbow."  We've actually sang it enough so that even your little sis tries to sing it sometimes.

We got to meet the cast after the show!  I knew there was going to be that opportunity at this particular performance.  I hadn't purchased the tickets for that because I thought it was lame that there would be a charge for it.  We had been to other kid's shows and they hadn't charged for this.  But the promoter explained before the opening curtain that it was really a donation to Ronald McDonald house, so I relented and made a donation.  You got autographs from the actors who played Scarecrow, Tin Man, Dorothy and Glenda.  You said your favorite was Glenda, because her dress was prettier than Dorothy's.  You weren't too interested in the Lion but flat out refused to go anywhere near the Wicked Witch.

I wasn't going to include the picture of you doing the "funny face" but you wanted it in. 
You've got a big birthday coming up, and I will talk more about how you've been growing up after that big day.
Love, aba

End of Summer

Hi Sidra,

Flower girl, Old North Church over your shoulder

Kite flying on the beach at Newport

So why I am I saying 'end of summer' in late October?  I've been slacking, of course!  It's been way too long since the last post.  In any case I wanted to thank you for such a wonderful summer.  I think I did the same thing a year ago but it bears repeating.  We had a good time together on our leisurely summer days and your sister was a great playmate.

You took part in a couple of extended projects this summer.  First was the summer reading program through the local public library.  In the winter they have story time but I'm working then and can't take you.  In the summer there are other cool weekly events that are educational.  This year they were held in the park because the library is being remodeled.  Some of the performers were:  a band called the 'Alphabeticians,' a family(dad, son, daughter did magic, mom did sound) magic act, a puppeteer, and a 'Mad Scientist.'  The reading program was a little tough for you/us, as we had to read to you(since you weren't really able to read on your own) for 20 minute periods to get a sticker.  We got all the stickers done but didn't turn in your sheet.  I think the prizes we missed by not doing so weren't that great which is why we didn't follow through.

With Cousin Rachel at State Fair

Another project you did was through the Oregon Parks Department.  You had a checklist of things to do, mostly outdoors.  Some of them were:  catch a fish, hike on a trail, sleep under the stars, dip your feet in the ocean, and go on a boat ride.  We had a lot of fun making sure we did all of the things on the list.  We hiked a few trails- the Salmon River Trail, Zig Zag Falls trail, and short nature trail at Wildwood park.  You caught four fish at a fish farm between here and Mt. Hood.  We camped for one night (next year we'll stay longer) at Timothy Lake.  We also took the kayak there and had a brief boat ride on the lake.  It was short because all four of us were packed in the kayak and I was the only one who could paddle.  The wind was starting to pick up and make it a sketchy proposition.  I think you really enjoyed the campsite and will be looking forward to going there again.  You got to dip your feet in the ocean just before school started in the fall.  We went to Newport and flew your kite there on the beach.  We also got to visit some tide pools at low tide and see starfish, sea anemone and urchins.

In one of the videos you are on a bike ride with me around the neighborhood.  This was a frequent event in the summer, a twilight ride at the close of the day, just hanging out and enjoying each others company.  This video is from one of the last rides of the summer.
You have become a really great big sister.  You are able to distract and entertain your little sis when she gets a fussy.  Sometimes your mom prompts you but once recently you recognized the need for it and began singing for Shira.  We were in the car and mom and I had to be out of the car for a few minutes and you started to sing without any prompt.  When I came back we both sang and comforted Shira.  Later that night at bedtime I told you how proud I was of you because of that.  You remembered and said something like "I could see she was going to get fussy and as I thought of singing my eyes brightened and I just did it."
This fall you were on your first soccer team.  It's been very hard to watch you do this.  I know that you are the youngest and nearly the smallest kid on the team and that has a lot to do with how you play.  But you are without question the worst player on the team.  I didn't expect this because you are physically gifted and I know you could play better than you do.  Sometimes, your lousy play can be chalked up to distraction.  You're just not that focused on the task.  But it boils down to this:  you won't challenge any player for possession of the ball.  And that's a central characteristic of any successful player.  The funny thing is, you'll let an opponent take the ball from right in front of you and to right the goal yet be disappointed when the opponents score these uncontested goals.  It's perplexing. 
Your coaches have been extremely patient with you.  They've done a great job of helping you be part of the game when there isn't someone trying to get the ball from you.  Like at the beginning of play when the ball needs to be kicked from the center circle or a goal kick when after the ball has gone over the end line.
You are getting to be quite the reader.  We've been trading the reading with you at bedtime.  We read some and you read some.  Tonight was your first read of Hop on Pop.  We've read it you many times and some of it I'm sure you did from memory but you did pretty well.  We haven't read it for quite a while, though, and I was going to read it but you said you wanted to.  You did very well.  Near the end of the book there are some words that are bigger and you needed some help but mostly you did it on your own.

Another huge event for you was your cousin Sara's wedding.  You had the honor of being a flower girl and you were great.  You're seen here at the wedding in your beautiful dress.  It was a long day for you and your sis (and your parents) but you had a good time dancing and eating dessert.

What a Pair!

Hi Sidra,

Today was a weird day with some ups and downs.  When I got home from my early bike ride your mom said that Shira had a fever.  So, I was sort of expecting it to be a really tough day.  In the end, it was pretty challenging as her fever worsened.  However, the two of you treated me this morning to possibly my proudest and most overwhelming moment as your father.
After the two of you had had a little breakfast you eased into what is our lazy morning routine.  Typically Shira will play with her speller (it is a hand me down from you) or look at books and you will look at some books or play some make believe scenario with dolls or toy kitchen stuff.  This time usually gives me a few minutes to relax with the paper or try to work some magic on my word game opponents.
This morning took a new twist.  It was remarkable that Shira wasn't in a fouler mood, given her illness. In any case she brought you one of her small books (again a hand me down from you, from a set of tiny board books that your uncle Ben gave you) with the obvious notion that you read it to her.  And you did it!  It was a purely spontaneous incident.  I did nothing to provoke this.  But the two of you repeated the process a couple of times so I was able to catch two videos of it.
This was like a dream come true.  We've always hoped that you two would get along well and have tried to enhance that possibility.  But I know that siblings don't always get along well and can actually be at each others throats.  This is a good sign that will make a good pair.  Add to that the fact that you are 4 and a half and you sister is not yet two and here you are sharing literary entertainment.  For the next hour I had a hard time turning back the tears. Like your uncle Ben says, I was blown away.

One of the videos is a phone video and the sound might not be that good.  The other one was done with a better camera but you'll probably have to listen close anyway cause you were reading with a pretty soft voice.

Bike Racing

Hi Sidra,

This post is mostly for me to make an admission of guilt that some people might find silly.  First I should admit that I have the beginnings of 'little league parent syndrome' with regards to your athletic accomplishments.  I have to admit that I will live vicariously through your sports careers and whatever shows on the outside will be the result of intense pride on the inside.  I hope that I don't get in your way or guide unwisely because of my exuberance.  

Some readers may have wondered about this summers Bike Derby.  It was your third one and you had won the other two.  This time you were 5th and that surprised your mom and I.  You can see in the video what happened.  You were 2nd among those not using training wheels and the first girl without training wheels.  But the fault lies with me.  

Earlier in the summer your mom tried to convince me to convince you to get on the bigger bike that was waiting for you.  I opposed the move because I felt you were comfortable with the smaller bike because you could easily put your feet down almost like you did on the runner bike.  She said your legs weren't stretching out enough at the bottom of the pedal stroke.  She was right.

We succeeded in convincing you to try the big one about a week after the bike derby.  With the slightly longer cranks and taller wheels you can see the difference in speed just by watching the videos.  I think you would have given that boy a run for his money if we'd tried the big machine sooner.  

All in all, you were ok with your result.  That's good because you can't expect to win everything, no matter how good you are. 
I showed you some video of "kiddie cross" races and you seem interested in that.  We are thinking about taking you to one of those in the fall.  

The picture here is from our trip to the zoo with friends Oscar (boy) and Shayla (mom).  You were feeding the Lorakeets some nectar.  It's usually one of the funnest parts of a Zoo trip.

Apologies to readers about the placement of the videos and picture.  I'm just not geeky enough to get them aligned.  It looks fine on the composition page but totally different when published.

Love, Aba

Artistry

Hi Sidra,

This post is mainly to show off some of  your artwork  You have some skills in this area.  Some of the pictures shown here show some of your needlework that came home from school.  You are pretty good at it and very proud of your skills.  Your mom hung them on the wall while I was away.  When I came home the two of you were showing them off to me and you said "You should put that on my blog, dad."  You also did a still life drawing of a vase of flowers.   We were pretty astounded at the quality of the work.  It seems light years ahead of what you did just six months ago.

I think you know what the blog is because you hear your mom and I talking about it and I have showed it to you in order to show you which videos and pictures are on it.  After you said that my mind did a fast forward to the day when you want your own chronicle of your exploits and thoughts.  That will be ok but I'm keeping this one.  It has taken a lot of energy and thought to bring these stories on line but I've relished each contribution.

I should explain that the flowers in the vase is your still life subject for your drawing.  I am pretty amazed that you can do that at 4½ years old.  

The bike derby is next week!

Love, aba

Weekend Vacation

Hi Sidra,

Rolling the Sunriver Trails

We just had a quick weekend at Sunriver.  The weather wasn't very good but we had a good time anyway.  In spite of snow falling and snow on the deck of the pool you still got in three good swim sessions.  The water was warmer than the air but not that warm.  You spent some time learning some things from your mom and made some good advances on your swimming skill.

We also went to the High Desert Museum in search of your favorite raptor, the world's fastest creature, the Peregrine Falcon.  We really enjoyed our visit and if your sister was a little older we could have stayed there for several hours.  We did find some interesting exhibits and saw some other animals but not the falcon.  We didn't know until we got there that it would be performing in a show.  But you had to go on a hike to where the show was and you had to be there at the right time and it just didn't come together for us.  You handled it really well,  I think I whined about it more than you did.  I hope we will be able to return there with better information and see the falcon perform.  It has become your favorite from watching PBS kids Wild Kratts show.

Two skinned knees

We also got to go on a little ride on the bike paths at Sunriver.  It was the first time we got to go out together and just enjoy the ride without having to stress about cars and safety.  As you can see from the picture and video it wasn't very warm but we got to cruise along and look at ducks and geese and an otter and a dalmatian. 

The other picture is of your skinned up knees.  That happened a few weeks ago.  It was one of the few nice spring days we've had.  I was under the car changing the oil and sat up just as you were running down the sidewalk from the neighbor's house.  I was just thinking what a joyous moment it was as you ran along with your hair flying up behind you. Then I saw your shoe catch a crack in the sidewalk and how your bare knees were your next earthbound contact.  In an instant the joy had disappeared.  I scooped you up and brought you in the house for first aid.  The picture was taken a couple of days later.  It was about a week before you were back to normal.

You have a big event coming up this week.  Your tumbling class at school will be performing at the school open house.  Your mom will be the coach.  You and your class mates have been working hard to get ready for the performance.

Love,

aba

Young Frankenstien

Hi Sidra,

Well maybe the title to the post is a bit of an exaggeration. You haven't actually been trying to make a monster but you have been doing some scientific experiments and learning a lot about science.

I guess the first of these exploits was your science project for school. You did a little demonstration for your classmates. You didn't exactly create the experiment but you performed it for them and explained to them what was happening. The activity was one that was in one of your National Geographic For Kids magazines. It is called the Dancing Raisins. Your mom says that you are the only kid your age that did one for the class. The others who did a project were all older. We didn't get to see you do it at school so we had you demonstrate for us at home for the video. The vinegar and baking soda react to make carbon dioxide bubbles which stick to the raisins and carry them to the surface. There the bubbles open up and the raisins return to the bottom.

Your mom got you a pop up book showing some other fun experiments we could do. The first one we tried is similar to the dancing raisins because it uses vinegar and baking soda, too. It's a volcano. We put the bottle containing the liquid inside a box folded to look like a mountain. And we used food coloring to make the 'lava' look red. We tried to video that also but on our first attempt we used a bottle that was too big causing our 'eruption' to be too small. On the second take you put the baking soda in while I had my back turned and wasn't ready with the camera. You say it was bigger and redder than the first try but we don't have pictures of it.

You have an interest in the solar system, too. You learned some things about it at school and I've heard you say that the earth goes around the sun and the seasons happen because the earth is tilted either towards or away from the sun. So your mom got you big puzzle of the solar system. You are posing with it in one of the pictures here. We put the puzzle together and then in an odd combination of your interests you bring out your Barbies and they have a solar system party. As always, I'm allowed to use one of the boy dolls. In this case I have made the Beast a comet rider while one of the Barbies is attempting to surf the Milky Way.

On Passover you exchanged your interest in the Afikomen for a solar system gift. It was a set of the planets to hang from the ceiling. They glow in the dark. I hung them in your room as if the overhead light was the sun. I doubt the light is the right size, but the planets are all proportionally distant from the rim of the light fixture. In order to make it authentic and have the inner four planets to appear on different orbits Neptune and Pluto are out in the hall. One of the pictures here shows the inner 5 planets.

You pick up some of your scientific rhetoric from a PBS show you watch online. It's called Wild Krats and you're a little smitten with a couple of the regular cast members. While eating lunch last week you mentioned something about 'arm regeneration.' I questioned you and learned it was in reference to Octopi. My parents were here last night for dinner and we asked you what it meant. You said "When a predator bites off one of the Octopus' tentacles then it grows back."

I don't really have an explanation for the picture of you on the exercise bike. I guess you're just being acrobatic. The picture of you and your mom was taken at your front row seats at the Go Dog Go performance.

Love, aba

Checking In

Hi Sidra,

The last post was too long ago and it's time for an update. It's not like you haven't been doing anything. We haven't got as much video on you as your little sis lately. It's not that you're not interesting it's just that she's been doing things she's never done more often than you have lately. One thing that you've been able to do is to show a wider range of emotions in your facial expressions. We did a little photo session with you showing off that skill. You aren't really selling the mean look in these shots. You seem to be having too much fun to wipe the smile off. Your mom actually wants to get you in an acting class to help you expose that talent.

One of the pictures shows a current version of how you write your name. You're getting pretty good but you still will sometimes do the S backwards. In the other we had an unexpected snow event this past week and you had your first tandem sled ride with your sister. The video is just a little dancing you did to Kidz Bop yesterday. It doesn't really hold a candle to what you did at the state fair last summer.

An interesting story about you is a what we did last weekend. The weather was bad and we were getting weary of being cooped up in the house. Mom was up at the mountain doing some snowboarding so it was me and you two girls. I devised a short trip to do some errands and made the last stop the local McDonalds. Having a meal there was not on the agenda. We went so you two could play in the indoor play area there. You have grown out of needing to have me come with you up into the tubes and down the slide. That's good because I needed to stay with your sister who's not big enough to go up in the tubes. You went right in and began doing lap after lap on the slide. In the process you met Isabella who told me she was almost 5 and was would have been willing to be Shira's babysitter if you hadn't distracted her. Soon, you had a group of 4 'girly girls' as you called them. I could hear you most of the time chatting and playing with your little posse who took up your 'girly girl' label without blinking. The play area for the under 3 toddlers was a little crowded and Shira was a little intimidated by the kids who were bigger and faster than her so she wasn't having a terrific time. When it came time to leave you handled it very well. You didn't whine about it but insisted on saying goodbye to your new pals. So, you yelled up the tubes "Bye Girly Girls, I have to go." Isabella's mom was nearby and got a pretty good laugh about that.

We've decided not to push skiing for you this winter. You haven't shown that much interest in it and it seems like the long trip up to the mountain puts some pressure on us to get something good out of it. Ice skating is a good alternative since it requires comfort in 'gliding' the same way skiing does. There is an ice rink in Portland but that seems like a big trip, too. In Gresham there is Skate World, a roller rink.

We've gone to Skate World a couple of times with mixed results. The first time I approached it the way I would if I were going alone or with an adult. Let's get in there and get our skates on and start skating! Bad idea. I realized after that we should have gone in and watched for a while and maybe get skates after we'd seen everything and checked out the best place to put them on. So the first time you had a meltdown and fell and hit your cheek on a bench in the off rink area. It ended with you saying you wanted to go home and me saying we could go then if you promised to come back another time.

One of the pictures here is related to the Skate World Saga. You were doing some drawing and coloring and wanted company. You convinced me to draw. So I drew you with skates on and the speaker playing music. You looked at it and said, "You need to draw you next to me." So I added myself. Then you said "you need to draw the bench that I fell on" so I added that. Some of you will recognize the Red Sox shirt I was wearing.

The next time we went to the rink we did the slow approach. We went in and watched skaters for a while, looked at the DJs booth, noticed the air hockey and other arcade games and saw a girl about your age dressed as a princess, wearing a tiarra. You were the one who suggested we get our skates and the one who suggested we go off the carpet and on to the rink. We only did one short stint on the rink from one exit to the next but there were no tears so it was an improvement.

Recently your school had a special day on the 100th day of school. You were supposed to bring 100 of something. We got you a little spiral notebook with 100 pages in it. I numbered the pages and also 100 little round stickers. Then you went through each page and put the matching sticker on each page. The 100th day was also a day of tumbling and teacher Carol (your mom) had the students line up and count 100 steps around the gym.

Sometimes I write words on your easel and have you read them. Usually I choose a group of words that rhyme and have three letters. Sometimes it's sight words. I have been trying a few four letter words that rhyme with the smaller ones and have a blended sound at the beginning. You're getting much better at that.

We had some interesting conversations about what you remember a while ago. I remember writing here that I thought you were getting to the point where you would remember significant things the rest of your life. But we talked about a couple of things I thought you might remember and you didn't. It surprised me because you have a really good memory. The topic that came up was horses and I told you that you had ridden one and you didn't know anything about it. So I showed you some pictures and a video and you watched them as if it had never happened. The same with the time you steered the big cruise boat your mom and I had an anniversary dinner on. Both of those events happened within a month of each other and you were a little more than 2½ then.




Love, Aba