She still adores her sister, although perhaps not with the blind devotion that she has exhibited in the past. Sometimes Nalin makes her mad and she's not afraid to let Nalin know it. Also, sometimes Aleena just wants to play by herself without Nalin. Still, they are together a lot. I hope that they stay close as they grow up.
Aleena finished preK and started Kindergarten this year. It was at the beginning of 2009 that she seemed to turn a corner in learning. She started picking things up a lot more quickly, and exhibited a lot more confidence. She kept up her momentum when Kindergarten this fall.
Aleena is learning to read using the same reading book that Tim used to teach Nalin and Jacob. We can do 2 or 3 pages at night at most because Aleena gets a little bored doing it. Still, she's getting a lot better lately.
In addition to "academics", Aleena does very well socially. She mostly plays with the girls in her class. Aleena's best friend is still McKayla. They went to school together two years ago at Magic Years, and have been "bff"s ever since. Aleena called it BEF for awhile, and I asked her if it meant McKayla had "big elephant feet". She didn't think it was as funny as I did. They always want to play together, so Yaow and McKayla's maid are always arranging play dates.
Aleena started swimming lessons last year, and she has really done well. She loves the water and her instructor often uses her as an example for other kids. We were surprised on our trip to Phangnga when she didn't want to snorkel because she was so comfortable in the water. Maybe it was because last time she went snorkeling she wasn't as good in the water. Fortunately, the guide took her out in the water at first. Soon she was snorkeling with Tim and having a great time.
This past year Aleena was also busy with other after school activities. Her dance class culminated in the end of the year recital. Her class performed the Hannah Montana song "The Best of Both Worlds." It was so cute to watch them perform.
Aleena started soccer for the first time this year. She enjoys herself, but doesn't take the game too seriously. Like Nalin was at her age, Aleena likes the social aspect of the game as much as the actual game itself. Its fun to watch her play.
Of course, Aleena did the family vacation trips. She visited Kanchanaburi, Phuket, Hong Kong, Singapore and other places. Its funny that Aleena visited more countries in 2009 than I visited in my first twenty or so years of life.
2010 will be another fun year watching Aleena grow up.
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