- She is thriving at school! She doesn't like her teacher, Ms. Stoll, as much as Ms. Fierro, and I imagine it's because Ms. Stoll is a little more calm and serious than the sweet, friendly first-grade teacher Aiya loved. However, Aiya still likes her teacher. She received only positive remarks during parent-teacher conference last month and is rocking every subject! Her best subject is reading--her words per minute have excelled beyond the goal for 2nd graders so she's being encouraged to continue reading chapter books. Oddly, Aiya says she doesn't actually love reading. She's just good at it! But she loves when we read WITH her and to her. (Magic Treehouse is her current favorite.) Her favorite subject is still writing, which makes this mama pretty happy! She has a good social group at school, though no besties yet like her beloved Brooklyn Haymore who moved to Arizona two summers ago. She's never clicked with anyone like she has with cute Brooklyn. We've managed to see them a couple of times this year, and the reunion is adorable and emotional for Aiya.
- Aiya is trying new things! She put tumbling aside this year to try soccer, a skills class once a week that both boys are also doing. When Aiya first touched the soccer ball and ran after it, I was a little humorously judgmental about how uncoordinated she looked. Her long, skinny legs didn't seem to move naturally, and she struggled to even pass the ball, which involved her running off the field to me to cry because she couldn't do it. But, like everything else new that makes Aiya emotional, she kept trying. A few months in now, we are amazed at the growth in her skills and confidence! She attacks the ball now with a surprising amount of persistence and often scores a couple of goals every time the class scrimmages. She's quick and even bounces from her left to right foot when trying to defend or steal the ball. Natural intuition right there! Soccer makes her happy, and I'm excited to see her keep learning! It's Dan's favorite thing to watch the kids play soccer, and he makes sure each kid knows how proud and excited that makes him. Aiya is also trying singing lessons! A young girl in our ward is offering 30-45 minutes lessons once a week for $10 a session since it's a new venture for her. Aiya has a nice voice as far as I can tell, and I've already seen her confidence jump in just a couple of months in preparation for her first singing recital, which will be "Santa Claus is Coming to Town." So much cuteness.
- She's an amazing big sister to Eliana. She loves to carry her around and feed her and play with her, as long as Eliana is willing. Sometimes Aiya is too rough or insistent on "in your face" attention, and Eliana lets her know that with lots of whining and reaching for me. It hurts Aiya's feelings sometimes, but good for her to learn to simmer down a bit. With her brothers... it hit or miss. She's great at rallying the troops to play together outside or building forts or hide n seek, etc. But if they are doing their own thing, she has a hard time letting that go. There is also a daily dose of teasing and spazzy energy ignited per day--especially after school hours!
- She genuinely wants to be good. Lately she's been struggling with emotional outbursts and screaming "I hate you" at me when I send her to her room for a timeouts or saying, "You're dumb" or a slew of other words on our naughty list. However, she is very quick--within minutes--to feeling badly for what she's said or done, and hurries over with a tearful "Soorrry" and a hug. She gets really upset when we assume she's only sorry because she's in trouble or is being given a consequence. I worry sometimes about her self-esteem taking a hit because there are a lot of days when she gets in trouble all.day.long--or all night long on a school day. We are regularly having conversations at the end of the day about how it's ok to make mistakes, and how mistakes don't make you a bad person. It breaks my heart when she seems to think she can't change and will always make the same mistakes. Its also frustrating when it feels that way for me, too... but I do believe she's trying, and is genetically predisposed for hyper activity or impulsiveness. Something we're keeping an eye on. I do love our conversations at night in her bed. It's the best part of the day to connect with her one-on-one when she's calm and not so overly stimulated and distracted. She's just normal and sweet, smart, funny... truly fun to be with and willing to talk about her day.
- She's been attending Adam's Place this semester and loves it! I'm so happy she's been going. She's had a lot of emotional attachment to her angel brother Ty this year, with lots of random moments grieving him and how she can't be with him during her lifetime on earth. I feel sad for her, too, knowing she has such a long time to wait. We have deep, heartfelt conversations that are so tender in loving and painful ways, and I'm so grateful she feels so much for Ty. Sometimes I worry about how much she takes on though. Adam's Place has been a great resource for her to feel pride and happiness in sharing about him. I'm sure not everyone understands how it can be so emotional for her, but that's ok. I'm so happy she tells me how she's feeling.
- Her favorite foods are: crepes, raspberries and tons of whipped cream and syrup; pancakes; and orange chicken, nuggets. Veggie of choice: broccoli
- Favorite color is still pink. She's also still particular about her wardrobe. It needs to have lots of colors, though still namely pinks, blues, and purples.
- Favorite animal is a Unicorn and she believes they are real. It's even on her Santa list this year. "Real live Unicorn" and she's convinced Santa will bring it if he wants to. =)
We love our fun, energetic Aiya!
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