All good things come to an end - and so comes the end of Justin's Movers & Grovers class. We had so much fun playing with other babies his age and getting some time with just Mommy and Justin to play. We will be back in class soon - Sprouts here we come in the new year!
After the Patriots game, Jerald and the uncles met up with us in Sharon where we celebrated Hanukkah with the larger family group. We played dreidel, lit candles, opened presents and had yummy potato latkes and homemade apple sauce (made using Great-Grandma's recipe) as part of a great meal.
Since I don't get to do it for the boys, I had a great time buying dress-up clothes for Becca, as well as knitting her a purple boa. She looked adorable and very proud of herself once she got on her tiara and boa.
It was great celebrating with the whole crew. Thank you to everyone for Seth and Justin's presents and Happy Hanukkah!
From Jerald: Today I went with my brothers and Uncle Dave to the Patriots game. Fortunately, given that it was raining and cold, we had swanky box seats. The box had seating for more than 30, private bathrooms, free food, a full open bar, multiple television screens - and windows that opened right at the 50 yard line! Not your typical way to see a game (at least if your name isn't Kraft) but an amazing experience if you ever have the chance!
In addition to being a great way to watch the game, the Pats won - they didn't win pretty, but they pulled it out in the end. About 30 seconds after the picture below, they scored the key go-ahead touchdown.
A big thank you to Great Uncle Dave for getting the tickets and to Lauren and the boys for letting me go!
We had a really snowy trip to school this morning - but we made it in time for the food! Seth was so excited to see his friends, their parents and his teachers. It is just such a great feeling to see him so happy at school.
Seth and one of his teachers - Marcia!!!
We had a nice time eating breakfast then we headed off to music class. I have to be honest here, Seth was the star of the class. All the kids lined up to sing a song - the teacher gave the intro - and Seth was the only one singing. Eventually all the other kids joined in. And yes - I have video of it! Coming soon... 
We then went to the classroom where we had circle time and the kids gave us key chains they made for us. A really sweet morning! 
End of Seth's first session of gymnastics (only a partial session because we joined mid-semester trying to figure out Justin's nap schedule). It is a really fun class - the teacher Christine is a sweetheart and Seth loves her! He gets to take class with his friend Evan and jump, run, bounce, and be silly to his hearts content.
Aunt Sara and Uncle Josh's little one is due in two short weeks! For one last chance to chat and hang out with her friends Sara had a little tea party at her house. Josh cooked up a storm and I was so happy to be able to join in on the fun!!!
Last night we had our first real snowfall in Boston. This morning we headed to Ronak's for a playdate and the boys of course wanted to play outside. We bundled everyone up and they had fun shoveling and eating snow! On the way over, Seth said that the whole world was covered in snow. I explained to him that not every part of the world gets snow. For example, Great-Grandma and Great-Pa live in Florida where they never get snow. Seth thought that was very sad because snow is so much fun!
The boys finished their swim class this morning - and during the last class parents are allowed in to take pictures. With Jerald in the pool with Justin and Seth in the bigger kid class at the same time, I spent the half an hour running from each side of the pool to capture all the cuteness! Both boys seemed to really enjoy their classes.
Blowing bubbles...
floating on back...
Videos to come...
Today Seth was the Shabbat Helper at school. In the beginning of the year the families don't come in to watch - that will happen in the spring. So we heard how it went from Seth. He said he did a great job with the prayers and got to sit next to his teacher Marcia during circle and snack!
Weight = 22.3 lb 50th%
Length = 31 1/4 inches 90th%
very similar to Seth at 1 year except Seth was heavier - Justin feels much bigger!
Sometimes a parent will do anything for a nap. Justin took a short nap this morning but for various reasons refused to nap this afternoon. He was exhausted and grumpy so Seth, Justin and I got in the car (no worries - Seth was in his proper seat for this drive) and Justin was asleep within minutes. I drove back home, parked in front of our house, and Seth came in the front seat with me. We ate rice cakes, purple lollipops and colored while Justin snoozed in the back. Seth and I actually had a really nice time.
Back in Boston we headed to Nana's house today and got some great quality play time with Nana, Becca and Great-Gram!!! The boys had so much fun playing with Great-Gram and getting lots of much needed hugs and kisses in! Thanks for a fun and yummy pancake brunch!
We are now back home after a wonderful trip to NY. We were able to spend a lot of great time with Grandma and Pa and see some friends. We celebrated Grandma's birthday (Happy Birthday Grandma) with a lovely dinner out. Below is a picture of Justin eating most of my rice pudding for desert!
Thanks for a great visit. We had a lot of laughs with the new puppet theater. On our next visit I think it is coming back to Boston with us! 
We had an extra-special playdate this morning. Two of my oldest friends Debbie and Rebecca came to my parents house with their husbands and their adorable sons Dylan and Ben. It was great to catch up and see their boys. My parents were left shaking their heads and how fast time has gone. They said it was yesterday that Debbie, Rebecca and I were having sleepovers at their house - were has time gone?
We drove to New York tuesday afternoon to try to beat the traffic. It wasn't the easiest ride - but we are certain it would have been much worse if we waited. We fell right in to playing with Grandma and Pa and the boys definitely made themselves at home! We got to spend a lot of time with Uncle Joshy and we got to celebrate Grandma's birthday a little bit early.
The big event was thanksgiving of course. This is technically Justin's second thanksgiving - since he was born the week before - but he got his first taste of turkey and all the fixings this year!
Grandma cooked up a delicious storm - it was soooo yummy!
We have so much to be thankful for - our beautiful boys, our amazingly loving and supportive family and friends. Thanks to Grandma and Pa for hosting a delicious, fun and loving thanksgiving. We had a great time! A big hug to other family members we were not able to spend the holiday with. We love you all!
