FIVE YEARS OLD! (Zoya!.......LOTS of pictures!)

Tonight is the last night Zoya will go to bed as a 4 year old! I can't even believe tomorrow she'll be FIVE YEARS OLD!!!! She woke up yesterday thinking it was her birthday because she knew it was the day we were taking her on her birthday trip :) Upon waking, she exclaimed, "FIVE YEARS OLD! NO MORE FOUR!" She went on and on and I only caught "trip today! yah! zoo! yah! mama dada zoya special! birthday! cake!" She was sooo excited. Well apparently the excitement of the day wore her out because she fell asleep on the way out of town :) We decided to take her and JUST her on an overnight special birthday trip for some alone time with us. Uncle Bub and Aunt Corrine so kindly stayed at the house with Mila and Sofia!!! 

She kept looking at her shirt saying, "Yah! FIVE YEARS OLD!" 

Every zoo trip should have a carousel ride! This carousel was a little wimpier than the one at our local zoo, but Zoya didn't care! 

I love how her little hand looks on the back of Daddy's neck! 

She loved watching the baby elephant splash around! 

All 3 of the girls like to play with my hair like this and I think it's the sweetest! So glad Shawn got a picture! 

Where has the time gone?! My special girl! 

She's telling me she's FIVE YEARS OLD! (Shawn is trying to get gum off the bottom of his shoe!) 

Enjoying her lunch and all the attention from Mama and Daddy! (Shawn has now been working on that juice box for about an hour)

Seriously! Have you ever tried to get one of those tiny straws into those stupid juice pouches????!!! Zoya took this picture of her Daddy! 

Thoughtful....

Eyes of wonder! Love her reflection here :) Can't help but think about how thankful I am that she is getting to do all these things instead of living in a mental institution! 

The aquarium was her favorite part of the zoo!

Not sure if she could smile any bigger! 

Love her cheekie dimples! 

Tickle Break! 

Zoya's first (and probably only) taste of cotton candy! Hey! You only turn FIVE YEARS OLD once! 

She liked it a little....but not enough to eat much.....I'm proud of my kid who doesn't like cotton candy LOL! 

She was absolutely hysterical with these statues! She just kept trying to figure them out! 

"Hey buddy!" 

"Listen here girl! I don't know why you're ignoring me but I'd appreciate some feedback on your part!" 

Her shoes got stuck part way down the slide so Shawn had to go head first to help her HAHA! 

It was nearly 90 degrees so Zoya enjoyed splashing in the water in her cup holder! 

Waiting for the train! 

"Can it be? Is that the train coming???!!!" 

"Zoya's turn?" 

"Choo Choo!" 

Such a pretty girl! Growing up so fast!!! 

She's got a thing for silly faces lately ;) 

Love those big blue eyes!! 

HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY! 

Every almost-five-year-old loves a night in a hotel room! 

Some good old fashioned jumping on the bed! 

Swimming!!!!!!

Ready for Dinner! 

Silly Girl! 

This is where the night started getting a whole lot sillier! 

And sweeter! 

My all time favorite picture of Zoya! Hopefully she doesn't hate me for posting this when she is 16! 

That is some gooooooooood chocolate! 

A trip to the mall to burn off some of that sugar! 

Back to the hotel for a good night's sleep! (At least for Zoya!!!) 

Night Night sweet girl!!! Sweet Dreams! 

It was so very nice for Shawn and I to get some special time with Zoya. She enjoyed having our undivided attention, but I think she missed her sisters! She kept asking about what they were doing! I love how our little family was knit together so perfectly! I just love her to pieces and cannot fathom that tomorrow she will turn FIVE YEARS OLD! I have so many more emotional thoughts about this birthday for her, but I'll save them for tomorrow's post :) This girl KNOWS beyond a shadow of a doubt that she is loved and cherished and valued. It seems like I blinked and all of a sudden our scared, chubby, wide-eyed 22 month old turned into a big kid full of confidence, radiating love, and eager to squeeze the life out of each day!! The Lord CLEARLY knew what he was doing when he sent her to us! That is a fact! We needed her way more than she ever needed us! 

Happy-almost-fifth-birthday Zoo Zoo Bee!