Serious Kiddo at Age 8

A. His Schedule – Left to his own devices, he'd wake up at around 7 a.m. and go to bed at around 9:00 p.m., but his bedtime is 8:30 p.m.

B. His Size – He's wearing a mostly size 7 clothes and he's wearing size 1 shoes.

C. His Personality – He's a contemplative child. He is very gentle, patient, kind, and forgiving with his younger siblings.

D. His Favorite Things

• Colors: Blue.
• Shows and Movies: He likes watching other people play video games on YouTube.
• Books: He reads a lot. His favorite type of books is graphic novels (particularly humorous ones), but he also likes Pokémon guidebooks.
• Toys and Play: He barely plays with toys anymore. He likes playing Minecraft on his laptop.
• Art: He's not very into art, but he's still pretty good at getting his point across when he needs to create drawings to accompany his writing assignments. He enjoys working with clay though. He also likes crafts, like jewelry-making with Rainbow Bands.
• Activities: Besides the aforementioned video game playing, and watching other people play video games, he likes to read. He enjoys quiet activities like putting together a puzzle.
• Time of Day: I think he enjoys his afternoons at SACC (school-aged childcare) the most.
• Bedding: He has a blanket with stars on it that is just like his brother's, and a soft blue pillow.
• Clothing: He'll wear pretty much anything, but he has a preference for blue and for soft, cool clothing (e.g. shorts not pants, and cotton not denim).
• Foods: Besides milk, he likes raisin bread and American cheese.
• Animals: He still loves our dog, cat, and rabbit. He also likes Triceratops, sharks, and snakes.
• Heroes/Characters: Mewtwo from Pokémon.

E. Things He Does Not Like – Meat.

F. What He’s Thinking About – He thinks he can sense how animals are feeling. This year, he wants a Halloween-themed birthday celebration again.

G. Surprises – I'm a bit surprised that he's not more into art.

H. Best & Worst Things –

• The best thing(s): That he's a great big brother. That he plans well, such as budgeting for things he wants to purchase.
• The worst thing(s): He sometimes gets very hyped up, and then it's difficult to get him to wind back down.

I. Family and Friends – He has a few close friends at school, including a "girlfriend" that he always sits with. He really enjoys spending time with my mom – she is probably his favorite person to hang out with.

J. Parenting or What I’m Doing Differently – Honestly, I'm trying really hard to create good habits and rituals (e.g. "movie night") but it is so hard with a tiny house and so many people.

K. Milestones – He is above grade level in both reading and math. He devours reading material.