THE EVANS FAMILY: Reece

REECE TURNS 6!!!

Our sweet Reecy-Pie is SIX! Wow! Where does the time go? It is so fun to watch him continue to grow from being a little kid to a school aged kid. We are very proud of and thankful for him in our lives.

At age 6, Reece is about 44 inches tall and weighs about 40 pounds. Reece sleeps on a bunk bed with Kade. Reece is on the top bunk and Kade is on the bottom bunk. They go to bed around 7:45 on a normal night. Reece is our early riser and usually wakes up between 5:30 - 6:30. Thankfully, he has grown in staying quiet so that Kade can sleep in a little longer. Reece still sleeps with a sleep mask and also still puts his arm up to his mouth to fall asleep or to soothe himself. Reece still does a quiet time most days. He is in half day Kindergarten this year at Mountain School.

Reece is a lot of things but energetic, silly, and a follower sum him up pretty well. Reece hardly stops running, jumping, climbing all day. He is constantly going from point A - point B as fast as he possibly can. He needs reminded often to be a little quieter and to slow down. Reece loves to make people laugh and is constantly saying and doing things to try and get a laugh or response out of others. And he loves to do what the people he loves are doing. He still isn't usually the one to come up with the game to play but he loves going along with what others are doing. We are, however, constantly challenging him to make his own choices based on his preferences instead of just choosing what his siblings or friends choose. Reece can be such a sweetheart and brings me flowers that he finds at least once a week. He often randomly says "I love you" or "You are the best Mommy/Daddy ever." But he also knows how to push everyone in the families buttons. He is the most common denominator when it comes to trouble between siblings.

Reece honestly loves running. He is very fast and runs around the house, around the back yard, or almost anywhere that we go. He still loves pushing the backyard dump truck around (often with Kade sitting inside) and he rides the Plasma car or the big firetruck toy back and forth in the hall over and over until Mom and Dad can't stand the loudness any more. Reece still loves being tickled and asks for it often but not daily anymore. He loves his friends and his friends seem to love being around him as well. Reece loves riding his bike and really enjoys all the little dirt hills and jumps that are found scattered around our neighborhood. Reece started playing soccer for the first time and loves that. He also started Cub Scouts as a Lion and is really excited about that. Reece loves camping and especially throwing things into the campfire. He loves going on trips such as Mexico, Legoland, and The Great Wolf Lodge. He really loves going fishing in Mexico in the kayaks and catching crabs in buckets. Reece loves going to Peter Piper Pizza for a date with Mom or Dad and playing all the games. He loves sledding and eating snow. Reece is a pretty good eater overall and some of his favorite foods are: chia pudding, banana, yogurt, almond butter, honey, and banana in a tortilla, grapes, sausage, pizza, macaroni and cheese, and hot dogs. His absolute favorite food is cereal which he eats almost every morning when given a choice.

As far as Reece's favorite games and toys go - one things is clearly at the top of the list. Reece LOVES Legos and does them almost every day. He mostly enjoys using the instruction books to build a set and then playing with that set that he built. It is amazing that a boy that runs around constantly can sit and focus on a Lego set for a few hours. Reece also plays with his construction trucks and Hot Wheels cars often as well. He likes playing Go Fish, Uno, Old Maid, Mexican Train Dominoes, Head Bands, and Sorry. Reece likes playing Hide and Seek as a whole family. He is starting to enjoy drawing a little more and often draws people, monster trucks, crabs, and police cars. Reece really likes using scrapbook punches to punch hearts, stars, and circles out of paper. He enjoys playing with his siblings as well. Besides pushing Kade around in the dump truck and riding vehicles up and down the hallway, Reece also likes playing "Naughty Baby" with Ember and Kade as well as tag or Sharks and Minnows outside in the grass. Reece likes hitting the t-ball over the fence into the green belt and also just digging in dirt. Reece also loves petting and saying "hi" to the new neighbors two cats and dog that are now living next door to us.

Reece is very sweet at helping us with things and volunteering to do chores when I need someone to help but he struggles with having a cheerful attitude when it comes to his chores. Reece also greatly dislikes thunder, lightening, and rain storms after we got caught in a gnarly storm this summer biking home from the park. He is very concerned if we are going to be outside and there are clouds forming. There are certain foods that he dislikes such as salad and chewy meats. Reece gets frustrated when Ember can do something that he cannot and when Kade is trying to touch or take something that he is playing with.

It is amazing how much kids are learning at this age. Reece now can identify, write, and say the sound for all the letters of the alphabet. He is beginning to read simple books and words such as Bob books with some assistance. Reece has always loved numbers and spent the free time at school the first few weeks writing out the numbers 1-1000 with a friend. He can do basic addition and subtraction. Reece learned how to swim this past year and is really loving that because he can also now go underwater and do an actual cannonball.

Reece is very different than Ember and Kade in so many ways and it is so fun to watch his unique qualities and attributes come out. He is maturing and growing academically but also in his emotional capabilities and his awareness of being kind to others. We are so proud of our big 6 year old and so excited to see what this year holds for him! We love you, Buddy!

Birthday Fun:

Reece got an extra special birthday because we were on vacation in California for it!!

We started off with breakfast at the hotel and Reece got to open a present from his Mima and Pappy that was there with us.

Then we headed to SeaWorld and spent the entire day there!