Eliana's 4th Birthday

Can you believe my little baby is a big four year old!  Eliana is growing up so fast!

Unfortunately I had to work on Eliana's birthday.  I think I was so concerned about working out my schedule for Christmas, that I wasn't paying any attention to January.  Eliana asked me several times if I could not work on her birthday, which really made me feel guilty.  However, I know she had a great day even though I was only there for the very end of it.  David was home from work by 2:30, so they spent the afternoon playing and decorating her chocolate birthday cake that I had made the night before.  Eliana helped with the chocolate icing, chocolate sprinkles, and requested an "E" and "W" written on the cake with the purple icing gel.  Isn't she so sweet?!  She wanted her birthday cake to be for William too.  And for his part, William has been singing "Feliz Cumpleanos" for days now. 

When I got home from work, Eliana was very excited to tell me about her cake and sprinkles.  She said that they saved me a piece, but "just one!"  David waited to give her her birthday present until I came home.  Eliana is in a really sweet age right now where she totally didn't expect a present but was so joyful to receive one.  We gave her an ice cream scooping set since one of the only things that compares with her love of chocolate is her love of ice cream.  I let Eliana stay up an extra 30 min after bedtime to play with her new toy since I got home so late.  We played together in her room where she served me the ice cream through the window of her cardboard box play house, like it was a drive through window!  When I finally said she had to go to bed, I did let her take the ice cream to bed with her, and I heard her playing with it for another 15 min in the dark after she had been tucked in.  I think she really enjoyed her 4th birthday!

The ice cream scoops stick together with magnets.

David has repeatedly told me that age 4 is the golden age - all of our problems with raising out little girl will be solved at age 4 when Eliana will be old enough to start to reason and understand things better.  One example of this is going to mass together.  Eliana has always been difficult to bring to church - she cries, throws herself on the floor, and tries to run away.  For the past couple of years, we have bee having her go to the nursery at our church instead of attending mass with us.  That has been a great way for David and me to be able to participate more fully in mass, but I do feel a little sad that we aren't all going ot mass together as a family.  Plus I always said that the nursery was a temporary solution and I was worried it would just make Eliana resent mass even more when she had to attend.  David kept insisting that Eliana would do better at mass once she was 4 - the golden age!  For Christmas, I bought Eliana a book about the mass.  It explained the parts of the mass step by step with lots of pictures and questions.  I like that particular book because of the questions - it made learning about the mass more interactive.  ("What is the name of your church?  What color is the priest's vestment? Can you find the tabernacle in your church?).

Eliana has been really interested in the book! We read it together and she was excited to answer the questions.  The last two times we have been to mass, we have brought the book and followed along with the pictures.  I will find a picture and tell her to watch for this to happen next, like the priest washing his hands.  Eliana will whisper (shout) in my ear when she sees it and excitedly point at the picture.  It seems like giving her tasks to do and a way to follow along with the mass has really helped.  These last two weeks have been the best experiences we have probably ever had with Eliana at church.  Perhaps David is right - age 4 is the best.  I don't know if this will keep working or if some of the novelty will wear off, but I am so proud of Eliana.  I have been praying fervently that Eliana will develop a love of the mass and will one day be excited to go instead of required.  If you have any ideas on how to help Eliana to love and understand the mass more, I would love to hear them.