Our Preschooler Turns Four!

Barely a week after her sister's 2nd birthday, our pre-schooler turned four. This was the first year that she seemed to understand the concept of a birthday. In fact, she asked for a few very specific gifts: a new tennis racket, some tennis balls, and roller skates. She also picked out her own cake:

 And just before bed on the eve of her fourth birthday, she requested pancakes. As I was all alone with the three girls on her actual birthday, I made two things ahead of time: the cake minus the icing, and the pancakes, which I froze.

On the morning of her birthday, we wished her a Happy Birthday.  She asked "how many years did I grow?", to which she herself proudly answered "1-2-3-4!".

 After a sweet breakfast of wholewheat pancakes topped with maple syrup, we decide to head outside to the local farmer's market. While still below 0, the weather was rapidly improving. The baby and toddler sat in the double stroller, while my pre-schooler walked next to me. The girls enjoyed some fresh croissants as a mid-morning snack while their younger sister slept soundly.

 On the way home, we stopped to play in the snow. It was a good thing they had thought to pack their shovels!

Back at home the rest of the day flew by. While my toddler slept, my four-year old enjoyed some arts and crafts. When Papa arrived home from work, he took care of the baby while the two older girls and I decorated the cake. Here is the final product...not quite like the photo, but our toddler was none-the-less pleased.

After dinner, she huffed and puffed and blew her candle out on the fourth attempt. The cones were in the way!

 Next up, they opened some gifts which they played with the rest of the evening.

And before bed, our pre-schooler asked "when will it be my birthday again?"