Claire decided she wanted chocolate cake with chocolate frosting for her Birthday- much to Ben's excitement.
She also wanted waffles for dinner. I made waffles and an egg casserole as well, and Claire doesn't particularly like egg casserole, but I made it for the adults. Claire asked, "If I don't eat the casserole, do I not get chocolate cake?" I told her she could eat her Birthday cake on her Birthday even if she didn't eat the casserole. She breathed a sigh of relief.
Ben's parents came over to help celebrate. After dinner I asked Claire if she wanted presents or cake first. There was no hesitation, "PRESENTS!"
Here is what Claire is up to at the ripe old age of 5:
-Year 4 still saw lots of tantrums. Fewer than in year 3, but definitely still there. And year 5 has started strong on the tantrum front. She needs structure, down time, and one-on-one time with me, and it's hard for her to get that in the summer, so her tantrums increase.
-She does tantrum, but at the same time she can be so well behaved and so sweet. At church, for example, Ben is her primary teacher. Claire is the calm one in class! She actually sets the example for the others to follow in behaving well. I think it is because she is shy in crowds- she much prefers small group settings- and so she behaves well when others are around.
-She is still our skinny mini. She is still in the 15th percentile for weight and 50th for height. It might be because she hates to sit and eat. She would love it if she never had to eat meals and could just eat snacks all day long.
-She is very good at puzzles and takes coloring VERY seriously. If she draws something "wrong" (i.e., not up to her expectations) she has a complete meltdown. This can be very difficult for her parents.
-She is excited to learn her numbers and letters and I am sure will be reading soon. I just need to sit her down and teach her and she will take off with it.
-She and Audra can play for hours, and of course they can fight as well.
-Camille loves to pick on Claire. Especially if they are sitting next to each other in the car. Camille will pull her hair and hit her and do whatever she can to make Claire cry, and she is very successful at it. We try very hard to not have them sit next to each other.
-Claire loves Camille despite the torture. She always wants Camille hugs and to make Camille smile. She can be quite sweet with her.
-She is very healthy. She almost never gets sick.
Hopefully this year will see her mellow out and tantrum less. She is a good kid, we just need to figure her out and get her what she needs to be better able to control her emotions. I'm thinking we will sign her up for karate- that might be a good fit for her.
2 comments:
I always thought she sounded a little like Penny, but reading this, she actually sounds a little like Max - a little introvert perfectionist! I've read a few books about this, and it does help, but it's hard with the siblings.
What are the names of those books? I have found Claire most difficult to figure out. I feel like if I can "get" her, things will go so much better- but I just can't! It's driving all of us crazy!
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