The Bear at 6.25 Years Old

A. His Schedule – Left to his own devices, he'd wake up at 8 a.m. or even later, and go to bed at 10:30 p.m. But he needs to wake at 7:15 a.m. for school, and his bedtime is 8:30 p.m.

B. His Size – He's wearing a mix of size 6 and size 7 clothes and he's wearing size 1 shoes.

C. His Personality – He's an empathetic, energetic child who loves to party.

D. His Favorite Things

• Colors: He likes bright colors like red and he likes "rainbow." He also likes Fortnite purple.
• Shows and Movies: He likes anything with the Avengers, particularly The Guardians of the Galaxy.
• Books: He can't quite grasp reading yet, but he likes learning about science, particularly rocks and gems.
• Toys and Play: Toy weapons, particulars Nerf Guns, which he collects.
• Art: He's a creative guy who loves creating art, especially if glitter is involved.
• Activities: He loves playing video games and watching YouTube videos of other people playing video games. Besides that, he likes playing outside.
• Time of Day: For all the energy that he exudes, he likes nighttime a lot.
• Bedding: He has a blanket with stars on it, and he still has his rainbow pillow.
• Clothing: Unlike his older brother, he cares a lot about how he looks and wants "cooler clothes." His newest item is sneakers with flames on them.
• Foods: Besides milk, he likes plain potato chips, meat, and raspberries.
• Animals: He still loves our dog and cat. I would say his favorite animal might be dragons. I asked him, and he said it's peacocks, because he "likes rainbow-colored birds"
• Heroes/Characters: The Hulk. I wish there was more Hulk merch.

E. Things He Does Not Like – Weirdly, none of my kids like pizza. Chocolate. Feeling excluded.

F. What He’s Thinking About – I think he worries about how he stacks up to others, which may be partly because he and his brother are so close in age. I know it bugs him that his older brother can read chapter books while he's struggling with even short words.

G. Surprises – I guess I am surprised at how quiet and "boring" it is every time he has a one-on-one sleepover with his grandma.

H. Best & Worst Things –

• The best thing(s): I get a kick out of how artistic he his, combining supplies in unusual and effective ways. I'm glad that at least one of the kids is into art like my mom.
• The worst thing(s): Emotional regulation is still challenging.

I. Family and Friends – I'm sad that some of his closest friends have drifted apart from us, either due to busy schedules on their end, or to them moving.

J. Parenting or What I’m Doing Differently – There's only so much space in our schedule. I wish I had the time to read to him one-on-one on a nightly basis. If we do it a couple of times a week, that's a win.

K. Milestones – Seeing him write his name on everything is pretty cute.