Updates on the roving photographer

We recently bought a new little digital camera that Beatrice loves to hold it while riding in the car and use to capture what fancies her inside and out.  I just downloaded it and found some images from around town and during a recent trip to Worcester, MA that made me smile.  Meanwhile, I've been meaning to write for a couple months now about some of the "latest and greatest" about Beatrice, so I'll intermingle those facts with her photographs.  

Her favorite color is now gray. She has learned what a "selfie" is and enjoys taking them.

Big news....DONE with pull-ups!  Even on vacation, even with varying bedtimes, etc. DONE! Naps are pretty much done too, unless we're in the car for long periods of time.

She is sleeping in, a bit anyway, some mornings until 7:30-8:00.  Huge change for this girl, and for me.

She's had a growth spurt, heading toward 40 lbs. and many pants are too short and shoes have been outgrown.

She has a new word in her vocabulary.  "No."  Said pretty instantly and calmly to many of my "requests."  Guess "6" is when she begins to spread her wings a bit.

But spread as she may, she's still a total Mama's Girl.  100%.  She told me the other day she wished I could grow more because then I could still hold her. (I still can, but walking while holding her is really hard).

She still has very different public and home personas, still appearing scared, shy, or aloof when first meeting new people/situations.

Her career choice has changed.  At 6.2, she wants to be "a swim teacher."  I reminded her she may want to actually learn to swim first before deciding, but that's a detail....

She has one very slightly wiggly tooth at the bottom, but none lost yet.  They are spacing out though so I know her jaw is growing.

She fights allergies pretty consistently and now takes Claritin every single morning.  She even asks for it if I forget, though she hates the taste of it. Without it she clears her throat a lot, gets hives from time to time, and has terribly watery eyes.  

We've been doing some house changes and we finally got rid of the changing table in the bathroom.  It is now a toy shelf in our new guest room/toy room, which is so wonderful to have. We've also moved 90% of her toys upstairs so our main floor looks very "adult."  Yesterday I looked around and felt sad.

Beatrice inherited a beautiful big old doll house from my aunt/godmother and she spends hours playing in it.  She talks like an Italian, in that she often tilts her head a lot and uses her hands and arms for emphasis. 

She's taken to saying "I love you."  A lot.  Generally it's the first thing out of her mouth in the morning.  Often it's followed by "like crazy cakes" or "miss Michelle Foronda!"

She'll ask for my hand and then squeeze it three times, once for each word of "I love you."  It's a tradition I had with my mom and taught it to Bea years ago but only now does she really initiate it.

She made up a new version of rock/paper/scissors.  It's called APPLE/BANANA/PEAR.  Apple is made with a tight fist, Banana is a flat outstretched hand, and for Pear you make a fist but then stick up your middle finger straight and tall.  It's Anthony's and my new favorite game.  We both always shoot PEAR for some reason.  Try it.  It's really, really fun.

She is a visual and kinesthetic learner, not auditory.  She loves watching My Little Pony episodes on You Tube and half the time they're in German or Spanish and she could care less.  She can tell you with amazing detail the plot of a story about a book she hasn't read a word of simply from the illustrations.

She's spending the week, 9-4 each day, at Audubon camp in Pomfret and having a blast.

Each day they hike 2-4 miles and tomorrow they're going on a field trip to the beach:

and, most significantly, at least to me, here is Bea reading as we arrived at camp yesterday  morning.  We've been reading every single day for at least 15 minutes and she has improved so, so, so much.  I am so proud of how hard she works at this skill which has not been easy for her at all.  Rock star!