Ella Grace {4 Years}

Dear Ella,

How the heck are you FOUR years old already?!?! I feel like Daddy and I were just rushing to the hospital to meet you last week! I can’t believe we are only a short year away from you being 5 (a whole hand!) and old enough for kindergarten!!! Someone hold me.

We are headed to the doctor next week for your big 4 year old check up. I’ve already prepped you, because getting shots are not your thing, and I’m pretty sure you’ll be getting at least 2 at this doctors visit. When you got your flu shot in the fall, you were completely traumatized and could barely walk on your “flu leg.” So I’m sure next week might just do you in. Fingers crossed we all survive! 

But anyway, you did go to the doctors last week because you were sick, and we discovered that you are almost 40 pounds and almost 40 inches tall! How perfect! You are wearing 4T clothes, and size 9 shoes. I’m starting to buy 5T clothes and size 10 shoes for the summer though because you are growing like a weed!

Sleeping at night is great with you! Some nights you will have a little party with all of your “guys” (stuffed animals!) in your bed, but 9 nights of out 10, you go right to sleep. You don’t come out of your room in the morning till your clock turns green at 7:30, but I know most mornings you are awake a little bit before then. But thank you for staying in your bed until 7:30!!! By some sort of miracle, you are still napping!!! You nap 2 hours a day...most of the time it’s really less than that, but I have that clock set for 2 hour naps, and you do not come out of your room until it turns green! Maybe 1 or 2 days a week you flat out do not sleep at all during naptime and just play in your room instead. But I’m fine with it as long as you're having “quiet rest time” and aren’t overly tired.

You are continuing to flourish at preschool and love it so much! I just had your parent teacher conference (which was hilarious to me that 1. They do this with 3 year olds, and 2. I am now on the other side of the table at these conferences now!) and your teacher had nothing but glowing remarks to say about you. You are kind and you share and play with everyone. It makes me so happy to know you are not a brat or a mean girl at school! You also know all 4 seasons and all the months of the year. Calendar is your favorite and we even have my old one from my classroom set up in your playroom. You can count up to 31 (maybe even higher but you just stop at 31 because I guess that’s how many days are in most months?). We are still working on writing your letters and cutting with scissors. Some letters are tricky for you (R, K, B) and you always want me to “make the dots” for you to trace over!

We are still riding full steam ahead on the Paw Patrol train, and you’ve even gotten Lucas hooked. You keep telling me when you turn 5, you want a Skye (that’s the pink one for all of you who aren’t Paw Patrol obsessed like we are over here) birthday party. Haha. We have 33 Paw Patrol episodes on our dvr and I’m terrified to delete any of them because you love watching every. single. episode. And every time we go to Target, we HAVE to go look at the Paw Patrol toys. You also still love Frozen and would move mountains to do anything that has to do with Anna and Elsa. 

Other favorite shows/characters/books include Peppa Pig, Shimmer and Shine, Moana, Curious George and your Princess book (our nightly devotional...you cannot go to sleep till we read the princess book)!

I’m not sure when this fairy tale will end, but you are still SO sweet to Lucas!!! You can get him to laugh like nobody else! You love to run behind his high chair and say “Found ya!” as many times as possible while he’s eating. And he thinks it’s hilarious. You guys play together pretty well, although sometimes you’ll tease him with a toy and then snatch it away from him...and he flips out. But I’d say for the other 90% of the time, you guys do a great job sharing with each other and not tackling/teasing/bothering each other!

You are so funny these days and you love to make people laugh! If you say something that you think is funny but I don’t laugh, you quickly tell me to “laugh, Mommy!” or sometimes a more subtle, “isn’t that so funny?!” You also always say “I am a hoot!” because, well, you are. The things you say, and the things you REMEMBER just blow my mind. I can tell you one thing about something one time and you will remember it months later. One thing you can’t seem to remember: don’t tell Daddy about the new clothes you get in the mail.... you LOOOOVE telling Daddy when you get new clothes in the mail. (We need to work on this, Ella!!! Some secrets are good!) 

Elle Belle, you just have the sweetest personality and we love watching it develop more everyday! You make friends wherever you go...you are going to be like that old lady who knows no strangers!! We couldn’t be more thankful for a healthy, happy, full of life little girl and we love you more than you know!!!