Happy Birthday Girl

Parallel Play Miranda plays with Yoshi and Artie at her birthday party.

Yummy cupcake!
Pinkish-Red frosting
Who like’s cupcakes? "I do!!!"
Opening a gift from Josie
Cupcakes Revisited I
Cupcakes Revisited II
Cupcakes Revisited III
Cupcakes Revisited IV
Birthday girl with Meema
1 year old!!!
Heart Birthday Cake Mom is still learning how to pipe frosting.

“Happy birthday to you”
“You want some?”
“On second thought I’ll eat it myself”
“Here I am!” Wearing her mom-made birthday shirt

Present Time!

Two favorite gifts A cat from Grandpa and Cora and a stroller from Meema and PopPop.
Auntie Jodi and Uncle Jay tickle the birthday girl
Not cooperating for a picture with Grandpa

Poor Sick Natalie with PopPop I hope our kids won’t always be sick for each other’s birthday parties. Miranda had an ear infection and screamed through Natalie’s party, and Natalie had a fever for Miranda’s party.

Storytime with Grandma and Meema

Aunt Kary with Miranda and Daddy

Proud parents Of our big one-year-old!

The party went exceedingly well—I don’t think even one child shed a single tear! The kids had the whole gym to themselves and Schafer’s provided two instructors for eight 4-year-olds. They jumped, tumbled, and swung from the trapeze for an hour and a half while the parents got to chat and watch, then we went to Nino’s for pizza. In retrospect, I could have planned a couple of activities for the restaurant, but Nino’s had crayons and place mats for the kids to color. Everyone was well behaved, and only a little post-cupcake craziness ensued.

Here is a slideshow of the party highlights:

High-res pics can be found on flickr. Click here to view.

I’m not sure that I ever published Natalie’s 3-year stats, so here they are for comparison’s sake.
3 Years Old:
29 pounds (25%)
38.5 inches (75-90%)
4 Years Old:
34 pounds (30%)
41.75 inches (75%)

To us, the biggest indicator of Natalie’s growth is that she can now wrap her fingers around both sides of the end of our dining room table. All last year, Natalie would try and try to reach both sides at once, but was always a few inches short. Since we moved, we now keep the table against the wall, so she stopped trying at every meal, and Chris and I kinda forgot about it. Then one night, just after her 4th birthday, Natalie discovered that her fingers finally reached! She was so proud, as were we!

Reeeeeeaaaaaach!
I can do it now!

Natalie is 4!

December 7, 2010

Dear Natalie,

Today you are 4 years old! It seems impossible that 4 years have already passed since you were born, yet we can hardly remember life without you. This year has been full of some big changes for you—the birth of your little sister and moving from our house in New Jersey to an apartment in Brooklyn. Changes like these are enough to rattle most adults, so we are constantly impressed with how well you’ve handled becoming a big sister and moving to a big city. At the same time, we aren’t surprised. Even as a baby, you’ve always been extremely adaptable—as long as Mommy and Daddy were near, that is! The grace that you have displayed this year in the face of so many new challenges is remarkable.

You have big feelings and you show them boldly. The littlest thing can make you grin, giggle, or even dance—the joy you express is infectious and wonderful. This morning we made you a special birthday breakfast of waffles with pink whipped cream and sprinkles. The delight in your eyes over this simple pleasure is one of the reasons you add such light to our lives each day.
Whipped cream face
Mmmm, good!

People go out of their way to tell us how polite and sweet you are, and we couldn’t agree more. We hope that we’ve given you enough credit for this, even though we often remind you to use your “big girl voice.” You are a very loving big sister to Miranda, even when you get frustrated by her desire to play with whatever you’re playing with.

You love to sing, dance, and read. We just finished reading Charlotte’s Web—your first long chapter book. We weren’t sure that you were old enough for such a mature book, but you impressed us with your ability to pay attention even when there were no pictures and comprehend a sometimes very delicate plot. We realized that as a young vegetarian, you had no idea that people kill animals in order to eat them. At the end of the book, when Charlotte dies, you remarked that you wished that you had a friend like Charlotte to help you win an award so that you won’t ever have to die.

You have an amazing imagination and can entertain yourself for a very long time making up little stories with your dolls or stuffed animals. We love to watch you develop elaborate plots and act out the different parts. We can tell that you are eager to go to school next year, as many of your stories involve “friends” from your “pretend school.” You are getting ready for kindergarten next September by practicing reading and writing. You have sounded out lots of words and are beginning to recognize some simple words by sight. You can write most letters without assistance and enjoy learning how different words are spelled.

This year we got you a bike for your birthday. It was wonderful to watch you practice peddling and see the pride you felt when you got it. Although you’ve had a few falls, you’ve always gotten right back in the saddle. You’ve told us how much you’re looking forward to taking off your training wheels in the spring. It’s so much fun to walk next to you as you bike down the sidewalk in our new neighborhood, proudly ringing your bell!

4-year-old with birthday cake

We are so proud of our funny, smart, sweet, perceptive, hard-working, beautiful girl!

Love,
Mommy & Daddy

Here are pictures (and a video!!) of Natalie’s 3rd birthday, celebrating family-style!

All dressed and ready for her tiger friends to arrive:

With Auntie Jodi and Robert:

Natalie and her friends get to work making holiday picture frames:

Time to sing and eat tiger cupcakes!

Opening presents:

Clara gives baby sister Katie a kiss:

Auntie Jodi miraculously gets 6 toddlers to pose for a picture!

Daddy and Natalie relax after the party is over (Natalie decorated her forehead with stickers!):

Enjoy!

Natalie Ages Two – Three from nataliecaroline on Vimeo.

Natalie had her 2 year well-visit with Dr. Stephen on Friday. It felt strange to go from visits every 3 months to only every 6 months. We found out that Natalie is now:
26.5 pounds (50th percentile)
35.5 inches (90th percentile)
Amazingly, she did not cry, fuss, or even whine over getting her finger pricked or getting a shot!! Definitely a first.

Some new things since the last update:
Natalie learned the days of the week and months of the year.
She knows her last name, and that our first names are Amy and Chris.
Natalie has memorized nearly all of her books and likes to read to her dolls and stuffed animals.

Our favorite phrases this month:
“I better hurry!!!” (As she’s running to get somewhere.)
“Mommy, can I have more things to do, please?” (Completely unprompted. Isn’t two-years-old too young to be bored?)
“I feel the better now” (After putting ice on a wound.)

Here is the big two-year-old gearing up for the party in her made-by-mom birthday shirt:

Lots of pictures of the cookie painting:

Having fun and eating:

Polar bear cookies!

Opening presents: