Sakura is 4!

Sakura had her birthday party on Saturday at Monkey Joe's, and it was a blast. Almost all of her little friends came to play, eat pinkalicious cupcakes and have Rita's ices. I unfortunately don't have pictures of the event because our camera crapped out on us stopped working for good this time. She received great presents, all of which she likes and has played with multiple times a day since the second we got home from the party. Her bed is crowded with all the new things she cannot bear to part with, even to sleep.
Sakura is such a special little girl. She is just so sweet, and cute, and beautiful, and funny, and smart, and.. I could go on and on. She is friends to everyone. Anyone who could even remotely be described as a kid is instantly her "friend," especially if they are at the playground. I've had several parents tell me their kid plays better with Sakura than other kids. I hope she is always that way. She is constantly in dresses. I think she has 3 pairs of pants/shorts at the moment, and about 15-20 dresses. The downstairs neighbors have told me they enjoy the fashion show they get from her at the playground every week. But she never lets a dress or fancy shoes slow her down. Consequently, her clothes are a little worse for the wear.
She is a great big sister. She is friends with her brother, even though they pick on each other. She always makes sure I include him in whatever she's doing - eating, bathing, sleeping, playing, whatever. Of course, she also shows him her toys and then yanks them away from him when he tries to grab one, with a loud "NO!" And sometimes when she tackles him, she squishes him a little too long or a little too hard. And we're still working on teaching her not to slam the doors so she won't accidentally smash his fingers (or head) in the door. I'm so glad they will have each other for our move. Sakura really needs to have a friend that will always come with her, and that friend is her little brother.
Sakura is trying very hard to grow up. She wants to go to school and she wants a bike and she wants to be free to run around without adult supervision. We love our precious little miracle girl and we sure are having fun watching her grow up.
(Oh, and I recently found this Silly Song that makes me think of our bedtime routine with Sakura almost every night. Enjoy!)