Unicorns, rainbows and lots and lots of preschoolers

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"I am a big number now- not one, two or three but four. On my next birthday, I will be five. Then six, then seven, eight, nine, ten, and 11! Four is a big number, like 11." - Marit, age 4.
It is fair to say that most four year olds love parties, especially a birthday party where they are the center of attention. Usually we let the kids invite the number of kids that they are turning old plus their sibling and cousins. However, Marit has never had a proper birthday party where she invited any friends and so this year we decided to give her a proper birthday party. We picked the date and then she decided the theme: unicorns, rainbows and pajamas. I send the invites while she told me who she wanted to invite: Grandma, Grandpa, Mommy, Daddy, her brother Theo, and her cousins Evie and Josie. Luckily Grandma JoJo and Papa were babysitting over the weekend and brought her cousins up so they could celebrate her birthday and then we had a mid-week party with most of her Hidden Valley Preschool friends, her best friend Maya from Hartley Nature Preschool, and all of the neighbor girls in the cul-de-sac. She picked out the food: pizza and cupcakes. Next thing I knew, we had 18 preschoolers arrive at our house in their P.J.s ready for a party.

Getting ready for popcorn and a movie
Luckily Seth and I made it home from Mexico City 24 hours before and I was able to leave clinic on time and make it home just in time for the 5 P.M. party. Marit greeted all her guests with a special star unicorn wand and unicorn headband. The kids ran around and played for 20 minutes then we split the group in half to play a few games: pin the horn on the unicorn and the unicorn bean bag toss. The playroom was transformed into a far away fairy tale land and there were 18 wild unicorns roaming about. Theo kept score for the bean bag toss - each kid got to throw 4 bean bags (one red, yellow, green and blue) and earned 1 point if it landed on the board, 3 if it made it in the hole.  (Unicorn and rainbow decor and unicorn gift bags were acquired from Duluth Balloon Company, Target, Crate and Barrel, CVS and Amazon. Turns out unicorns are totally in right now.) Pintrest provided inspiration for the "Unicorn Poop" marshmallows and "Rainbow seeds" skittles treats. We completely forgot to set out the healthy food - a fruit tray and veggies - amidst the chaos. Oh well the skittles were a huge hit!
Party table
While we waited for the pizza to arrive, we opened presents. Theo did a good job letting Marit open her own presents. She got her first, second, third, fourth and fifth L.O.L. Surprise dolls and one L.O.L. Surprise Pet. She was beyond excited! I had no idea what these were but I had hear all about them (and so did Santa) from her Hidden Valley Preschool friends. She also enjoyed new Barbies, Lite bright, fairy garden, terrarium, shrink art kit, My Little Pony play-doh, Unicorn book, a new Elsa dress, P.J. Masks Owlette mask and a giant unicorn stuffed animal and unicorn night light. Theo and Marit made the chocolate cupcakes with chocolate frosting and the kids all licked the frosting off and left most of the cake (Do all kids do this?). Finally we sat all the kids down to watch My Little Pony Holiday Special and it became silent for 20 minutes. When 7 O'clock came around, all the little unicorn's parents arrived and the chaos subsided. She had a wonderful day and is already talking about her fifth birthday!
Getting ready for the party

Pin the horn on the unicorn

Opening presents

Opening presents


Happy Birthday to you! 

Silence at last!

Maya and Marit

Besties

Unicorns running around

Goodbye kiss from Mr. Johan. What a guy!



Marit at 4:
How old are you? I'm not telling you.
How old is mommy? I not know
How old is daddy? I not know...41 years old
Favorite thing to do? Go in Evie's swimming pool and my 2nd favorite thing is watching TV
Favorite color?  All the colors
Favorite food? Pasta, pizza and Mac and Cheese
What is something mommy always says to you? No
What is something daddy always says to you? No
What makes you happy? I not know
What makes you sad? I not know
What makes you feel silly? I not know
What advice would you give your parents? Do 10 jumping jacks
What do you think you'll be doing in 10 years? Going skiing
What do you love most about Theo? Playing with him
Who are your best friends? I not know
Where do you go to school? I not know any of them. Maybe Hartley Nature School and my old school Hidden Valley.
Name two things we should do this weekend. I not know. Maybe go skiing and sledding.
Height: 4 feet 7.5 inches (97th percentile)
Weight: 48.4 lbs. (75th percentile)

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