Maddi's Birthday...4 Years Old

After watching all the Birthday Madness around our house for a couple weeks, Maddi was patiently awaiting her big day. And when it came she was excited! It was a preschool day so she was excited to celebrate with her friends and she was going to Birthday party of friend from church (this worked out really well for me since we weren't planning any friend parties) :) She wanted her hair curled for the occasion so we had to take a few pictures.

I think it was a great day for her. She came home from the Birthday Party with new princess accessories, a mug full of candy, and ready to have her family party at home and open her own presents!

Getting to open a present from Grandma Tresa first thing in the morning!

Maddi requested a Minnie Mouse cake. I told her I would make a cake that looked like Minnie Mouse's Dress and she was happy with that.

Our cute little Maddi is 4!

I can't imagine our life without Maddi. She has added a lot of cuddly hugs, intelligence, laughter, creativity, imagination, accessories, danger, spice and love to our family. We love her strong sense of self, the deep love for the things and people that she chooses to love (we all feel lucky that we are on the list!), the way she challenges our parenting techniques daily reminding us in her quiet but firm way that each child is their own little person with their unique gifts, talents, strengths and spirit, and the way she is constantly surprising us with the new things we learn about her as she grows older.

Lately one of Maddi's favorite new found talents is Swimming! One of her Birthday presents was a new life jacket for the pool, however after about 2 trips to the pool we realized that she no longer needed the life jacket and can completely swim on her own. She doesn't paddle her arms at all, but instead just dives right under the water, kicks her legs, and moves like a mermaid until she reaches a wall. Absolutely NO FEAR! I guess all of her near drowning experiences in the pool last year have paid off. :)

We love you Maddi!