What to do with Six

He sort of drove me crazy yesterday. He's been slacking on picking up. Poor Seven does most of the work. I finally got some sense into him last night. Seven cleaned half the room. I told Six he had ten minutes to get it picked up or he was losing money from his jar. After complaining, the timer was started and what do you know, the boy can do it! He's been taking forever to get dressed and complete any task. The tally mark situation worked for awhile. It still works with Four. She will do anything to avoid a tally mark. Six doesn't seem to mind if he gets one and has to do two good things to get it removed. Not a big deal to him.
He's such a character. His name means laughter, you wouldn't believe how many times he is the one in the group that makes us laugh. This morning, I went into the boy room. They were all playing Lego's. I said good morning and they all repeated it to me, except for Six. He sounded like a news anchor, with much enthusiasm.
I am so proud of him and reading lately. March was reading month and they kept track of how much they read. He's missed only two days the entire month. He has taken the initiative and has wanted to read every day. Yesterday, he was on Skype with Baby Orchid, reading to her. I almost questioned his book, it was about mummies and skeletons. Didn't phase her one bit, even made her giggle when he showed her the pictures.
Six is an original, we'll keep him around. He can be such a sweetie, and yet such a challenge. It's all about balance, learning and realizing when to push or let go. He's grown up so much in the last 3 years. When we moved here, you had to watch out. Those were the most challenging years with him by far. School has done wonders. He is also the one who shows the most attention to the baby belly. He always remembers to say good night and give it a kiss. This is repeated when he gets on the bus as well. What a guy. He'll make a great big brother, again. I think the age distance might work out to my advantage this time around.