My Baby is 4 Years Old!!!

How in the world did we get so far so quickly??? It seems like I just woke up holding my tiny newborn girl-baby, and yet today she turned 4!

She came in to cuddle early this morning, and actually slept late for a change. Then Sammy came in, excited and anxious to give her the present he'd gotten for her (DVD of "Madagasgar 2"). So we got up, had breakfast, and started getting ready for the party.

Last night, the boys had vacuumed the living room and Sam had swept and mopped the kitchen (oh, if only I could hold that enthusiasm all the time!), so all I had to do was set up the food:



My neighbor and her daughter arrived early (thanks for the coffee!), and Sofia greeted them at the door with a signed and said "Happy!":



Sam kept watch out the window:



Then my friend Nancy arrived - she was the scheduled entertainment (and I was so glad to see her; back when I was pregnant with Sofia, Nancy had thrown a "baby seder" for us, which was another long story but very moving):



Other guests started to arrive, including Binny:


and Mandy:



We sat down in the living room to do some singing and dancing. Sofia wasn't too sure at first what to make of all of it:



but eventually she decided she liked the music.

We took a break for a quick craft (door hangers):
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Did some more singing, pin the nose on Elmo, more singing, and then Cake. I'd made gluten-free cupcakes, so they were safe for everyone (Cherrybrook Farms mix, which is also nut-free and dairy-free and egg-free). Sofia was excited when everyone started to sing to her:



Then she tucked in to her first cupcake (it took her 20 minutes to eat it!):


Meanwhile, the kids were all exploring all our toys, Sam and Shira (Binny's sister, same age as Sam) chased each other through the house , Micah played with some other siblings, and the grownups talked.

We opened her gifts:


And then it was time for people to go!

My back-up babysitter, A, arrived just at the end of the party, and the plan was for her to take the boys ice skating (turned out the public skating ended at 12, not 2 as their message stated, so they went to the arcade instead). I ran out of the house to give them one more hat..

... and Sofia locked me out! She managed to lock the screen door! Which I don't leave a key for, since we only lock it when we are IN the house!

I went over to my neighbor's house, called the Ashland Police, and a cruiser came right over, followed by 2 fire trucks! In the mean time, Miss Sofia kept helping herself to more cupcakes, bringing each one to the door to show us!

We eventually got in (I won't publish how, but I will be changing a few locks!), thanked the rescue heroes, and I settled Sofia in front of a movie while I cleaned up. I have to find A and the boys now, since Sam has an orthodontist checkup soon...

Whew!