Philip at Five

At five years old, Philip is:

Artistic

A builder

Imaginative

Funny

A good playmate and big brother

A nature lover


A perfectionist

Fast

He loves knights, superheroes, Legos, dinosaurs and race cars.

This year he finally stopped raiding the pantry and now tells me when Julia is trying to sneak food.

He always surprises me with his sweet side. If I do something special for him, or get him a surprise, he will often tell me out of the blue, "Thank you for doing that for me. I really love it!" He also very sweetly gives me and Julia compliments about stuff I wouldn't think a little boy would pick up on - like my hair or clothing. He doesn't say I love you much, but I cherish these little sweeties that he gives me.

Wish I could bottle that sweetness

Over the past year, Philip has grown more independent and confident.

For the first time, he is interested in picking his own clothes and (usually) gets changed independently.

Probably the biggest change in Philip over the past year has been his social development.

He started preschool and had a great time. Despite being very slow to warm up, I was proud of how he did at school. He participated in the things he felt comfortable with and tried new things throughout the year. I have a very stubborn little boy. He told us he was going to "be quiet" at school and he found a way to communicate with friends and teachers without using words. Now according to his teachers, he wasn't necessarily always quiet - he made lots of happy noises and laughed a lot, but he stuck to his guns about not speaking in the classroom.

Having a little guy that is so very slow to warm up has its challenges, but it also helps us to celebrate each small accomplishment. When he plays with a friend without us being by his side, raises his hand in response to a question at storytime, or nods when an adult asks him a question, Andy and I quietly celebrate. He is making lots of progress - the change in him over the past year has been wonderful to watch and I know he is on his way now!

Friendships are playing a bigger role in his life. I love that he calls his classmates and neighbors, "the friends." He is finally to the point that he will usually run off to play with his buddies during playdates without insisting that Andy or I go with him. He also wants to invite pretty much any kid we meet over to our house to play.

He has started talking to adults who he feels very comfortable with - mainly family members and a couple neighbors. At the beach this summer he was okay sitting at the dinner table with cousins, aunts and uncles, even when Andy and I were busy doing other things.

His temperament has changed a lot, too. This little guy definitely gave me a run for my money from the day he was born through the preschool years. As he progressed from the early 4's to the older 4's, he mellowed out and now he is usually a breeze to take care of. He still has his meltdowns, but much less frequently.

He has started to play independently. I am amazed at how quickly he transitioned from needing lots of hands-on attention and ideas for entertainment, to playing quietly and happily with his toys for long periods of time (15 minutes is considered long at this point). Sure makes my life easier!

His art skills really took off this year. He went from scribbling to making his first drawings, to coloring in the lines, to now making more elaborate drawings.  His teachers always complimented him on the time he took with his artwork. They said he did quite well and had a much longer attention-span for it than most boys his age. These days he loves to draw and color. He will happily spend an hour or two after school just doing artwork - it is amazing.

Philip loves to learn about dinosaurs. Each time we go to the library, he heads to the nonfiction section to pick up some books on dinosaurs. My library bag gets really full, really fast!

When I first found out I was having a boy, I was very nervous about how I would handle one. I grew up with just one older sister, so having a little boy was very foreign to me. I feel like as he has grown, we have hit all the major little boy interests. At one he loved balls, at two - cars, at three - construction equipment, at four - race cars, and at five - superheroes. I have loved going through all these stages with him and learning new things along the way. I'm sure I have much more to come. Little boys are so much fun and my little boy is perfect for our family!

Philip's 5-Year Old Birthday 21 Questions

1. How old are you? 5
2. What is your favorite color? Blue
3. What is your favorite toy? Space Guys
4. What do you like to learn about? Space
5. What is your favorite TV show? Rescue Bots
6. What is your favorite food? Stuffed Shells
7. What is your favorite game? Angry Birds
8. Where do you like to go? Abby & Izzy's house
9. What is your favorite animal? I like tigers.
10. What is your favorite song? Spiderman and Tumeni Notes
11. What is your favorite book? Dinosaurs
12. Who is your best friend? Abby & Izzy
13. What makes you happy? Spiderman and catching fishies
14. What do you like to do with your family? Play
15. What is your favorite thing to do outside? Run around
16. What is your favorite holiday? Halloween
17. What do you like to take to bed with you at night?  Bunnies
19. What was your favorite birthday gift? All of them
20. What do you think about before you fall to sleep at night? Dreams and stories
21. What do you want to be when you grow up? I don't want to be anything. I just want to be a person. I want to be a great biker.