Ellie Turned 4!

Never fear, we celebrated on the appropriate day...just didn't get around to blogging  until now.  At any rate, ELLIE TURNED 4!  2 and a half months later, and that still sounds crazy to me!  We had a blast.  Ellie's birthday was on a Friday, a school day, and the day of the Mother's Day brunch at her preschool.

 What better to start off a birthday than Krispy Kreme doughnuts and a birthday crown made by your sister (Eve could hardly stand to keep it hidden until her birthday).  Then Ellie got bright pink cupcakes at school, performed for the Mother's Day program, and chose a special lunch at Zaxby's.

Friday evening we had a campfire birthday party at Grandma's and it was SO MUCH FUN!  Ellie is still very shy around crowds, so we kept it small and didn't even sing Happy Birthday.  There was a huge storm looming all afternoon and evening, but not a drop on the party.  It was a perfect night.

 We roasted hot dogs (Marco, John, Ellie, Lily, and Buck)

 Mae, Shannon, Elsie, Dave, and Buck

 Jake enjoyed checking out the jeep.

 The party quickly turned into placing bets of who would be the first one to fall in the creek.

 More quickly gathered...

 Ellie and her sweet friend Lily from preschool.  They are very special buddies.

 John is freakishly good at catching frogs, and caught several that night.

 Jake mostly at a lot, drank everyone's juice box, and then ate some more sugar.  It was a crazy party for him!  Of course he loved being in the woods too.

 At a campfire party, s'mores are a must.

 Lots of gooey fun!

 I suppose Eve was the first in the creek.  Buck lowered her in because she was just that messy!

 Hello Kitty cake, and a big high five instead of a song.  Perfect!

Everyone enjoyed helping to open presents as well.  It really was a super fun party, and just Ellie's pace.
Now for 4-year-old Ellie.  She weighed in at 40 pounds (83 percentile) and measured 39.5 in (46 percentile).  It's so hard to believe she's 4 because she is petite, and although she's trimmed down a ton, she still has those cute baby chubs on her fingers and in her cheeks.  She also still has a small sweet voice.  With all she's doing and learning, though, she's definitely 4.  She's still very shy, a totally different person at school than at home, but I'm starting to see tiny glances of her coming out of her shell a bit.  It's funny, her teacher mentioned one day that she is always quiet at school, but was extra quiet that day.  I asked if everything was OK, if she felt OK, if anything had made her sad.  She said she quietly and shyly said she was fine.  From the moment we got into the car, she didn't stop talking.  Night and day!  She is still just as funny as she always has been.  Her facial expressions, in particular her eyes, are hilarious!  She's started to be extra girly in the use of her accessories, the "little tea pot" stance (one hand on the hip and the other one out flapping around as she talks), and all the other ways she's following and copying Eve.  It's fun to see the two of them bond so well as sisters, and funny to see Ellie pick up on all the little girlie things.  She also has a very sweet bond with Jake, and they love to belly laugh together.  Ellie is still quick to whine when things don't go her way, and is quick to cry, but my thought is that she controls most of it in an effort to manipulate.  When it comes to cleaning, she's quite good at getting her siblings to do all the work for her.  Otherwise, Ellie is such a joy and always brings a good laugh.  She is so sweet and so funny, and we are just so blessed by having her in this zoo of a family!