Ella's Birthday!

Ella's birthday started out special! A PINK frosted {w/sprinkles) doughnut, on the Special Day plate, with a candle and all of us singing to her.

And then we had her close her eyes and wait for us to wheel out her new birthday present from Mommy & Daddy!! She was SOOOOOO excited!!! 

Later that day, after riding the bike in the house because it was raining ALL day, Ella chose Ruby's for her birthday dinner! Complete with a birthday sundae for the birthday girl!

She got 3 phone calls on her birthday to wish her a Happy Birthday!! Nana... then Auntie and her cousins... and then Papa! She felt so special! 

And a couple days later, she had her 4 year old well check-up with our favorite pediatrician! She was perfect and healthy!! She measured in at 42" and was 41 lbs. She's still up at the top of the charts! Maybe we've got a little model on our hands.

Here she is getting her hearing test and scored- PERFECT hearing! Hmmm.... so, I'm guessing she has selective hearing at home.

She also had her eye sight test and it was SO cute watching her, standing far back, covering each eye and reading off what she saw. Again, perfect vision.

It was finally a sunny day, so I decided to take the girls around the neighborhood for a walk and so that Ella could finally ride her bike, OUTDOORS. :) 

And, I just love this picture. Such a childhood moment.... oh, the simple things.

A week after she turned 4, she was ready to try out Thunder Mountain at Disneyland! I seriously thought she would flake after we got to the front of the line (and after waiting 40 minutes). But, here she is... at the front of the line and next on!!

Woohoo!!! She did it!! We were all SO proud of her!!! Such a brave moment for a very scared-of-everything type of girl. :)

The next week (yes....her birthday was about a 3 week process. Lucky kid) was her classroom birthday party. I was very excited about this because these were always the little things that I always looked forward to before I became a mommy. Making cupcakes and snacks and visiting the class, etc, etc. It was fun to see Ella in her classroom, with her little friends and see her on a totally different level. 

Because it was her special day, the teachers picked her to lead the prayer. Her little voice was so quiet, that hardly anybody could hear her. :)

When it's a birthday, the birthday kid gets to stand on the chair while the whole class sings to them. Ella told me earlier that morning that she was a bit worried and embarrassed for this part. haha!

4 years old means FOUR birthday SPANKINGS!

This picture makes me laugh because she's embarrassed, so she was trying to grab Ava (her "best friend"). And Ava was embarrassed, so she was laughing and holding Ella's hand. It was so funny because that is totally something I would have done..... ummmmm.....or, would do!! Yes, I still get embarrassed and have been known to just grab whoever is next to me. So, watch out! :)

Ella handing out the cupcakes.

Ummm.....someone's enjoying her cupcake!

And Ava will smile whenever she sees my camera. I love it!

The teacher invited me on the playground to take some more pics. Again, it was fun seeing Ella playing with the kids, swinging, riding the bikes, etc. She acted like I wasn't even there.

Got a quick second to snap their picture on the playground, but they didn't want to stop for longer than 3 seconds. :)

Here's Ella's classmates, all lined up to head back to the class (Ava isn't in here because she was the "counter." That was her class job for the day)

And I had to zoom in on Ella and Nolan (on her right) because I think she has a crush on him. Whenever his name gets mentioned, she tries to hide her smile and acts all funny. He always says hi to her and compliments her on her dresses. He's SO sweet!!

And a little circle/singing time before the day ended. It was a special day!!