Seven

Clare has been telling everyone she sees (including the barista at Caribou and the cashier at Target) that her golden birthday is coming up. She is very excited about it being her golden birthday. I decorated our dining room and her room in gold decorations after she went to bed. She was pretty happy this morning, especially with her crown.

Her big treat for her golden birthday is that she is going to get her ears pierced. (Theoretically.) However, she has to wait for soccer to be over, so this milestone will not be taking place until late July.

Clare had a great year as a 6-year-old. She is still a very intense, somewhat fearful child, but each year that goes by she seems to learn to manage it better. (Although, did I write about the dog chasing her into the street while she was waiting for the bus? Keep your dogs on leashes, people!)

First grade has been a stellar school year for Clare. Reading is her best and favorite subject, but she is doing well in math as well. She is not patient with her writing. She brought home a book she had written, and the first few pages were written in a very neat hand. As I turned the pages, her writing became messier and messier. It was clear she had grown bored with the project. She is also interested in science, and I am thrilled about that. I know I've mentioned her wonderful teacher. She is learning a lot and has some nice friends.

Speaking of friends, her best friend in the entire world is Natalie. I hear about Natalie constantly. Her other good friend at school, Rainie, is sadly switching schools next year. Luckily, Natalie will still be there so the sky won't be falling too much.  Her other good friends are Elsie, Madeline, and Colin. She still enjoys spending time with her out-of-school friends Nora, Henry, James, Simon and Brendon. We'll see a lot of them this summer, I hope. (Totally a selfish hope, because their moms are some of my best friends.)

And then there's her brother. These two really do love each other and have fun together. They fight a lot, too, but I did with my siblings as well. I am looking forward to Clare being home this summer as a playmate for Christopher. She also adores her cousins Josie and Otto, and is my "Mother's Helper" when they are here. For that, she earns $1 in addition to her normal allowance. (She is still highly motivated by money.)

She has been taking piano lessons since August, and is doing really well with it. She has many pieces memorized and is learning difficult skills such as transposing a piece from one key into another. And she likes it, so that helps. She also did gymnastics, skating and is in the middle of soccer. She'll be taking tennis lessons this summer as well.

A few favorites: turquoise (pink has been demoted), pizza with black olives, ice cream, reading (we are on pause with Harry Potter; I am hoping to entice her with The Secret Garden), playing outside (especially riding her bike, swinging in the hammock, and going to the park), camping, playing with her American Girl dolls, Star Wars, Minecraft, swimming, doing a pretend cooking show while I am cooking dinner, screaming, movie night, watching TV, American Ninja Warrior, and playing the piano.

Dislikes: Food touching, frosting, pretty much everything I make for dinner, dogs, thunderstorms, being asked to do chores, putting on sunscreen.

She has expressed an interest in scouting, so we will be trying to find a Girl Scout troop for her. (Or perhaps she will join what was formally known as the Boy Scouts. This is interesting to me, because I feel like she could learn a lot more about the stuff she is interested in, but she is adamant that she do Girl Scouts. We shall see.) She also wants to try ballet again. It should be another busy year!

It is so fun watching Clare grow up. She is so like me in so many ways, but I think overall her brain works more like Ben's. She is logical and enjoys figuring out puzzles and building with Legos and doing science experiments. She wants to know how the world works. I believe I've mentioned how she "lawyers" us all the time. She will remember your exact words and throw them in your face. She has a great memory.  She is sweet, too, and likes to do things like make me breakfast in bed (it is usually dry toast and an apple, but it's the thought that counts) and make homemade cards for all of her friends and family. She enjoys crafts, and is better at doing them than I am.

She is still our little rule-follower, which is great. I can send her into the backyard with her brother and her cousin and know Clare will let me know if anything goes wrong. We all trust her on her own with the kids (obviously, she is way to young to be totally home alone with them).

Clare and I do well when it is just the two of us and she doesn't have to compete for my attention. We have long talks about all sorts of things. We clash, too, and I think a lot of it has to with my shock at her behavior when she acts her age. I have been trying to take a step back and remind myself that she is still a little kid.

I always feel like these posts fall short in describing the kids, but at least I have something recorded to remind myself what Clare was like at this age.

I am excited to see what this year will bring. Happy birthday to my best girl!