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Happy #4!

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Four just happens to be my favorite number, so I've really been looking forward to this birthday for Ava.  That, and it means that we're out of the horrible three stage.  It's not like there's a magic switch that happens on the 4th birthday to make Ava behave better, but at least when I say, "Why are you acting like this?!  You're a BIG girl now!" I can really get behind my words!

Since we had so much going on in June, I didn't feel up to planning a big birthday celebration for Ava.  I figure that once she gets into school next year, we'll have plenty of chances to really do it up for her!  Plus, we had been back from Colorado less than two days when her birthday rolled around, so honestly, I didn't even have time to manage a big event for her.  And she was okay with it!  It was a hot, sunny evening...we had family there, great cake and cool ice cream, and gifts!  Overall, it was exactly the low-key birthday I was hoping for.

We ended up getting her a bunch of artsy items, plus a few educational toys...and then the big gift was her bike.  Scott parked the bike on the other side of my car, and then asked Ava to get him a beer from the fridge (on that side of the garage.)  She was already dolled up in ALL of her bike gear (gifts) so once she saw it, she was ready to hop on and go!

And she was pretty excited!  Somehow, she managed to tip it over in the first five minutes, and she was struggling a bit with the pedal motion (she does fine on her tricycle), but after a few adjustments, we made it a bit easier for her to ride.  I think we need to start going on daily rides to build up her confidence, plus that's a great family activity we can all do together.  In fact, I think we're going to go out for a bit tonight!

Lots of little gifts to open...


Pajamas are so fancy nowadays...at least they were a decent price at the Disney Store!


So happy with her new wings!


Ava still hasn't mastered the jump rope yet, but I give her an A for effort!


ALL dressed up/protected...but she doesn't know why yet!


So happy to get on that bike and go!


There's even room for Dolly to sit in the princess carriage basket in front.


Getting tired of all of the pics...and I'm not sure why we didn't take off her helmet for cake and ice cream!


That last one just wouldn't blow out!


Getting ready to go out again!


She was pointing out the chains to me, telling me that's what made the bike work.  It would appear that Tinkerbell has worn off on her a bit!


Later that week, we headed over to Grandma Deb and Grandpa Whitey's house to celebrate Kaposia Days.  The first event was the annual parade.  Ava managed to collect a ton of candy, and we even saw a few new floats...they had a dance school in the parade, so I need to call to get Ava signed up for classes.  She's pretty excited to get to dance around.  And I'm excited that she'll get to dance with other little girls in the area.

Setting up for a great view!


A plane! I couldn't believe it when a plane came down the street...


Grandma Deb and Ava dancing for the SSP cheer squad.


After such a long week, it's no wonder she fell asleep right in the middle of reading.  And we LOVE Pinkalicious!


Update on the house: we've had four showings in the last three weeks.  We've received really positive feedback on how cute the house is...it's just a little more pricey than other homes in the area.  We're just not ready to drop the price yet, especially since we know how much money we've put into all of the updates!  Please send positive thoughts our way - it would be great to be able to move before she starts school next fall!

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