Charlotte turns 5!

Charlotte had quite a few days of birthday fun this year! And we haven't even had her friend party yet! 

Mimi & Grandad came up on Monday to give her gifts to her and take her out for a special birthday lunch just the 3 of them. She pretty much thought that lunch was one of the best things ever! And, Sugar, Stewart and Cormac send her a box full of new bows and headbands that she's switched out and worn constantly. This "snowflake" headband is one of her favorites. 

She only had 2 requests for her birthday fun stuff -- lunch at the mall and a private tumbling lesson with Whitney. She's pretty easy to please. We met them and Charlotte had her favorite Chick Fil A and we tumbled and she had a blast!

Then we headed home for present time after picking the kids up from school. (Actually, we only picked up Madeleine. Harrison has had a fever for several days -- Matt took off and stayed home with him so I could take Charlotte out for some birthday fun. And, having her Daddy home that morning only added to the greatness of her day!). We'd decorated the night before and she'd woken up that morning to this...

She told our elf over and over during Christmas that she wanted him to come back for her birthday and he arrived with a little sign for her and balloons everywhere! So fun! I think Harrison thought it was pretty cool too!

She had only asked for a new stroller and some cheer shoes (aka white tennis shoes) for her birthday. We surprised her with some fun american girl toys and a cheer outfit for her AG doll too! And, she loved the gifts that Harrison and Madeleine picked out for her.

She is FIVE!

We had our usual Tuesday tumbling class that night and then she chose mexican food for dinner.

They bring you dessert and sing to you while you wear a big hat on your birthday.

After dinner it was time for cake! Charlotte isn't a big cake eater and so she wanted a cookie cake this year. We've never had one for our family cake before and it was really good! (and big!)

My girl is 5! So many fun, exciting things will happen this year at 5. I think she feels like turning 5 means you are a "big girl." She already acts like a big girl, but maybe that's the way it is when you have 2 older siblings.

At 5, Charlotte:
*is a fabulous eater. We often joke that she wouldn't want to eat something unhealthy. She is a super healthy eater. She loves salad, grapes, apples, yogurt, cheese, broccoli, carrots, chicken and turkey. She does like some sweets -- ice cream and skittles. :) She requests the same thing for lunch every single day -- cheese stick, yogurt, grapes, baked chips/veggie straws. Every day. It will be easy to pack her lunch next year. :)

*She is a great sleeper. Naps are a thing of the waaaaay past, but she sleeps a long time at night. However, she can also manage really, really well on not a lot of sleep. You can tell that she is good an asleep when she stops twitching and she twitches A LOT as she goes to sleep.

*She loves to tumble. Our house is pretty much one constant gymnastics routine. She has a gymnastics mat and she pulls it out and plays on it every single day. She can now do: backhandspring (on the trampoline/foam mat), front handspring, front walkover, back walkover, front limber, back bend, backbend and stand back up straight all on her mat. She can do a one handed cartwheel. And, she can do a roundoff back handspring on the tumble track at the gym with little help.

*She knows her letters and numbers and can count to 100 easily. She is so ready to go to kindergarten -- she will love it!

*She loves her baby dolls and her kitchen. She will get in the playroom and play dolls and cook for hours all by herself. I love to hear her in there talking to her babies and playing house with them. She is such a little mommy. She talk a lot about being a mommy when she grow up. I love this!

*She loves to sit and color and write and will sit at her table and do her "work." She brings her "work" with us each week when we volunteer at Harrison's school and is so good to sit by me for a couple of hours and work quietly. Again -- she will love kindergarten!

*She adores her brother and sister. She wants to do everything Madeleine does (which is sometimes a problem) and she loves to play with Harrison. Those 2 are a mess sometimes! All of our kids play really well together. This is something we have stressed and taught from the beginning and it is paying off now. :)

*She loves for us to read to her. She loves Bible Class and wants to be the first one each sunday at lunch to tell us about what she learned. She loves her teachers -- Bible Class & Rainbow School. We have been blessed with some wonderful people around her.