Arin's Big Day

Arin turned four on Monday and we celebrated on Tuesday since that is the day that both Daddy and Uncle Todd were home from work.  We had a fun, busy day planned with four exciting activities for the four year old.

Activity number one:
Breakfast at McDonald's.  This rare treat was picked for two reason.  Arin loves pancakes (also a rare treat) and mama wanted her to burn off some of that four year old energy. 

Activity number two:
Bowling!  We signed up for the Kids Bowl Free program, which allows the kids to bowl two free games every weekday until the middle of September.  We also purchased the family pass, so we all had fun with this activity.  Since the kids were bowling with us, we used the bumpers and I bowled my highest game, even beating the guys! (I think it was mommy's big day too!!!)

Activity number three:
Indoor inflatable playground.  A HUGE hit!  Ella really liked this too, but she was getting very sleepy and asking for a nap.  Arin loved, loved, loved this place, especially the giant slide.  She also loved making friends, which she does so easily everywhere we go.

Activity number four:
Birthday party.  Arin was so excited about the party, which included all of Andrew's siblings (there's 7), some of their families, plus his parents and aunt.  As we sat down to eat pizza, fruit & veggies, Arin walked up to me and said "Thank you mommy for my birthday. I love it".  Aww, that melted my heart that she was so sweet and appreciative.  Later, she told me that she was so happy that her cousins were there.  She really had a great time and so did us adults who were able to just sit around and visit.  Since Andy's sister was flying back home the next day, it made it even more special that we were all able to spend her last day here together.

On a side note, Arin loves her party dress and wears it for just about every special occassion.  Here's a picture of her at her three year old birthday lunch.

And one at Ella's first birthday dinner.

She even wore the same dress when she was two and a half.  She's matured, but I'm not sure that she's grown a whole lot in the past couple of years.