Soren is Five!

Soren has the last of the fall birthdays for the boys in our family and left his four-year-old "triplet" siblings behind by turning five. After watching his brothers and dad get attention, gifts and cake on their birthdays, it was finally his turn. He was so excited that he made his own birthday crown. 

Although Soren is five and headed to kindergarten next year, there's still so much little boy in him that makes my heart melt. We've never been co-sleepers, but one night Soren climbed into our bed for no reason and it was so comforting to roll over and feel him sleeping soundly next to me. He's an awesome cuddler! I could snuggle him all night (but am still thankful we upgraded to a king-size bed when we came home with Kiera and Matteo). He has a cute lisp and like a lot of kids his age, can't say the "r" sound, so "real" sounds like "weal". Sometimes the "l" sound is challenging, so Oliver sounds more like "Owiver".  And even though he's capable of getting himself dressed, he still wants me to dress him in the morning. He couldn't articulate why he wants me to do that, but when I suggested that perhaps it  made him feel loved and cared for, he solemnly nodded his head yes.

Pre-kindergarten is growing on Soren. He seemed lukewarm about the idea at first, but more and more, he reports that school was the best. Perhaps he needed to get used to the "rigor" that is Pre-K. Nina recounted the afternoon he came home from what must have been an exhausting day for him because he heaved a big sigh as he hung up his book bag and jacket. He turned to Nina and announced that Pre-K was so hard; it was like going to work. He wasn't trying to exaggerate or being whiny. In his mind it was the honest truth.

The good news is that all that hard work means Soren will be more than ready for kindergarten and to join his brother at the German school next year. He knows most of his letters and can count to at least 10. He loves being read to, but now that he's been listening to the chapter books we read to Oliver, he's at the point where he can follow along and is as interested as Oliver is. Oliver checks out a book in German each week at his school's library and although Soren doesn't understand German yet, he still listens intently when Nina or I read aloud in German.   

Like his once-fearful siblings, Soren pretty much gotten over his fear of dogs. Hurrah! Watson can still be a little much for him, but he's fine with Lulu, our neighbor's 90-pound Labradoodle.  He surprised us by asking if he could invite Ernie, a friend's elderly Beagle, to his birthday party.

It's convenient for Soren that he's not so afraid of dogs anymore because he enjoys playing with Paloma, whose dog is that previously mentioned large Labradoodle. Every afternoon he and Oliver beg us to let them go next door and ask if Paloma can play. Legos are still their main obsession, but Paloma also introduced them to Star Wars. 

Soren is currently wearing 4T pants and just moved into 5T shirts when the weather turned colder. For the time-being he has his wardrobe to himself, but by this winter when Matteo is predicted to outgrow his 3T pants, Soren will have to part with half his wardrobe.