The Formidable Fours?

L celebrated her fourth birthday this weekend in style. On Friday she awoke to crepe paper hanging from her bedroom door and the ceiling in the kitchen. At preschool they sang to her and enjoyed some cookies with juice.

In the afternoon we invited over some of her friends for a Lego birthday party. We played games, decorated cookies, and ate pizza and cake. She received some pretty cool presents from her friends and had a really good time.

L wanted her Lego cake to be rainbow in the inside,
so this is what I made. Next time I will have to add more
dye to make the colors more vibrant.

L with all her friends eating pizza.

Blowing out her candles.
The Lego's are kind of lopsided, but it still
turned out kind of cute.

All the kids building stuff with the Lego's.
Below are the gifts she got from her friends.

Today Daddy made her eggs and toast for breakfast, as per her request. Then we played with her huge set of Lego's we gave her for her birthday. Daddy made an awesome castle zoo but Larkin destroyed it in seconds, as is her personality. She really enjoys tearing things apart.

We watched the movie Rio and then went out to Road House for her birthday dinner. They sang and gave her an ice cream sundae. We came home where she opened the rest of her gifts from bahmah, auntie, and us.

K wanted to buy her a gift so Daddy took her to the store
where she picked out this neat covered wagon cowboy set
and paid for it out of her own money jar. So sweet.

The tumultuous threes have reined in our house over the last year. L has become more and more willful, pushing way past boundaries and fighting for control. It's been hard since both of us are stubborn and fight to get what we want. She is a formidable foe:) I am hoping that this year things will improve, not just on her end but mine as well.
She has gotten better at walking away from me when she is mad and coming back when she is more calm. This has been a grand improvement. She is such a loving and sweet little girl more often than not and I catch glimpses at times of the woman she will become. She is a great helper and always interested in trying new things. Her speech has come a long way in this year and she can already write her name and all of her capital letters. She loves to count, sing songs, and play with her toys.
Her favorite toys right now are Strawberry Shortcake, My Little Ponies, and Lego's. She enjoys being read to by anyone, especially her sister. She also loves being outside. She is always wanting to go play at the park, even in the rain.
She has grown so much this year, (moving up three sizes!) and now wears the same size as her 6 year old sister. They look and act so much alike. At times they play so nicely together which is a big improvement. It's nice to hear them playing and laughing together, sometimes for as long as 30-45 minutes at a time before the fighting begins again. I hope that one day they will learn to manage their anger and get along better. I always wanted a sister, I can only hope one day they will be friends as well as sisters. I look forward to seeing how she grows and changes in the coming year. Happy Birthday, sweet girl!