4 and a 1/2

Do you remember when you were a kid and a year seemed like forever?!?! I do. Can I just tell you that we LOVE half birthdays around here. Anything to add a little extra to an ordinary day.
I can hardly believe it but my little girl turned 4 and a 1/2 years old this week. We were super busy on the actual day so we celebrated the next day (love that she didn't have a clue we were a day off).
We filled the table with balloons the night before and the 1/2 birthday girl (and JA) were pretty excited to play with them in the morning.

For weeks now AL has been trying to earn a little Snow White and house we had purchased on clearance. She had a chart on the fridge she put stickers on when she did extra chores (unloading the dishwasher, hand washing dishes, dusting, etc) around the house as she worked towards it. She was one sticker away from reaching her goal so I surprised her with her toy. She was thrilled!
A while ago I had won a headband in a give away from my friends company MiaMum (check it out here). We went over to her house and AL had a great time picking out the "perfect" combination of flowers to have on her head band (it took a lot of convincing from her mother that some of her ideas were a little extreme ;). I love that all the flowers just snap on and off the band and can be added to a small clip as well! She came away with a couple cute head bands and we also bought some great Sassy Straps for the baby brother's pacifiers!
When we got home I had her sort Smarties by color to decorate her cake with a rainbow. (JA had a great time eating as his sister sorted)

I made a half cake (1 9inch round cake cut in half, stacked on top of each other) and laid out a pink arch or Smarties to have AL create a rainbow with. She had other ideas and thought it would make a better letter "A" and then soon after JA joined in the fun and the decorating was really in full random swing. They had the best time!

We spent the afternoon having lunch at Grandma's house and then playing with some pretty retro Barbies from when I was a kid! We took a trip over to the Dollar store so the birthday girl could get a container of beads. She spent some serious time creating beautiful necklaces when we got home.

After a dinner of her choice (plain bow tie pasta and fruit and raw veggies) we put 4 1/2 candles on the cake and sang Happy 1/2 Birthday!

The day was a success!

At 4 and a 1/2 years AL:
- continues to surprise me with how smart and inquisative she is getting
- refuses to wear jeans (only sweat pants, leggings and dresses for her)
- loves every minute of her gymnastics and swimming lessons
- loves preschool in a big way
- is very socialable and friendly with all the kids in her class
- is such a little Mother to JA (she always is quick to correct him when he is doing something wrong or quick to remind him to "use his words")
- can be a bit stubborn when it comes to practising her letter writing or drawing pictures. She can do it but this girl still loves to scribble, especially over top of her nice neat work (a bit of a wild spirit ;)
- LOVES her family and her puppy
- Loves to make a mess
- is the sweetest and most loving girl

We are so blessed to have her as part of our family!