The festivities, part 1

We celebrated Elena's actual birthday at home. Her requests for the day? Play in the "backyarden", pork chops for dinner, and brownies. :)

Since it was her golden birthday (she turned 4 on the 4th), Eric and I decorated the house with gold stars and a streamer "doorway", as Elena calls it, the night before. When Elena woke up in the morning, she was so excited! There was lots of sighing and "oh!'s" and "Mom, how did all of this get here?!" She was enchanted and ran up and gave me several of her super happy hugs. Eric and I chuckled at her. It could all sound fake, but that's really Elena. She really does live each day in a fairy tale. The sighing and twirls and thank yous were genuine, 100%, straight-up Elena.

A few of her gold stars

Loving her streamer "doorway"

Being pretty cute

I'm four!

Elena had a surprise visit from her friend, Diana (my visiting teaching companion :)), who dropped off a birthday present - the outfit below, which she immediately wanted to change into. :)

Then we headed outside to the "backyarden"...

After they'd had their fill, we loaded up some snacks and went on a long walk (in our AMAZING new double jogger - where has it been all my life?! Seriously, why did I not have a jogging stroller from day one - it is the bomb.com!) and soaked up the last of the sunshine before last week's SNOW! Elena discovered how much fun party stores are as we shopped for supplies for her friend birthday party on Saturday and then we stopped in for a birthday lunch at McDonalds. After she got a birthday sucker and a balloon in Robert's Crafts, she told me, "Mom! This is the BEST birthday!!! Thank you so much!" Pretty easy to please. :)

We came home and Elena and Lily took in Tangled while I got the pork chops and brownies ready. Eric had to get back to campus for a study group, so we interrupted dinner for Elena to blow out her candles and open up presents (hence why she's in a highchair :)).

We told Elena to make a wish before she blew out her candles and she said, "I love my mom and dad!" The concept went a little over her head, but it was incredibly sweet.

Presents! (thanks all!)

Since it was her golden birthday, she got four gifts from us for turning four: a new set of paints, a Princess and the Frog book, a special necklace from Disneyworld to remind her of her wish trip, and a set of prince dolls (so her princess dolls can stop having to marry eachother :)). We are on a student budget and so we cheated a bit - the book and necklace were gifts from way back in January when we went on her wish trip. In the hustle and bustle of getting back, Eric starting school, all of us being sick, etc., we completely forgot to give them to her. Once we remembered, we decided to save them for her Star Raising Party at MAW (a Princess and the Frog book was her original wish - silly girl), but then that got rescheduled and rescheduled and rescheduled and in the hustle and bustle of it finally happening, we forgot again. We wanted to give them at a special time and I finally remembered for her birthday!

Thanks to all who called, sent cards and gifts, and helped to make her birthday a special one! It is an exciting landmark - last birthday before the end of treatment! Hooray for being four!