The Last Night of Hanukkah

Thanks to all of our family and friends for helping make our Hanukkah bright!

On the Sixth Night of Hannukah . . .

 Grandma Marcy and Aunt Rachel came to help us celebrate!

Chef Ari filled our bellies with lots of yummy latkes.

 Afterwards we played a game of dreidel. Hank especially enjoyed eating his loot of M&M's.

 Of course, no night of Hanukkah is complete without a gift.  Grandma got Hank an Elmo doll.

  "Momo" was a hit! 

 Little does Hank know, we still have two more nights to go!

The First Night of Hannukah

Tonight Hank got his Hannukah gift from Grandpa Eli.  

Hannukah's off to a great start!  Thanks, Grandpa!!

A Quick Trip to the Shoe Store

This was too cute not to share!

Early Hannukah Family Celebration

Today we got together with Aunt Rachel, Sierra and Ryder for an early Hannukah celebration.  The cousins exchanged gifts and Hank was excited to work on his new puzzle.

 Here's Ryder getting ready to play dreidel  . . . 

and Sierra playing dreidel with Ari.

What a great preview to Hannukah!

Hank at 22 months

22 months old and a fresh new haircut - gotta love it!

Grandma's Helper

Hank's always ready to wash Grandma Marcy's dishes - what a great helper!

A Day with the Dinosaurs

We went to the Museum of Nature and Science with our friends, Becki, Luke and Maria. 

 It was all about dinosaurs and Hank absolutely LOVED it! 

 We weren't allowed to take photos in the exhibit, but at the end, the museum volunteers took our group portrait - check it out . . .

http://www.flickr.com/photos/dmns_photo_booth/6466795453

Sliding Into Winter

Now that the snow is here, our house is quickly becoming an indoor playground.  Slide on, Hank!

Gobble Gobble!

It was a day full of Thanksgiving play at our house this year.  

Grandma Marcy, Aunt Rachel and cousins Sierra and Ryder were all here to celebrate.

Hank had a great time.  Sierra made Hank laugh all day!

                           

Happy Thanksgiving!

Paul's Here!

Mommy's friend of 13 years, Paul, came to visit for this past weekend.  Last time Paul visited, Hank was 15 months old and so much has changed. 

 Instead of chasing a crawler, Paul helped us chase a toddler.  He even taught Hank how to color in a coloring book.  Elmo was Hank's favorite character, of course.

 Thanks for spending the weekend with us and hopefully, we'll see you again soon!

The Great Bark Park

Today we went to the Lafayette Dog Park.  

There's nothing better than seeing smiles all around!

21 Months Old

Hank is all smiles at 21 months old!

Hank now loves to dance, especially to the Laurie Berkner Band.  Books and balls are also still favorites, as is pushing around strollers.  So far, Hank doesn't like the snow or any of the gear you must wear in order to play in it . . . hmm, maybe sledding will change his mind?

Hank's Second Halloween

Who says there aren't alligators in Colorado?

 Happy Halloween!

Annual Greenberg/Matz Pumpkin Carving!

It's Pumpkin Time!  

Check out the kids' creations . . . 

(from left to right: Sierra, Hank, Ryder)

This was Hank's first time participating in the Halloween festivities and you can tell that he definitely had fun! 

 

After the cousins finished their pumpkin creations, it was time for lunch and dessert.  

Ryder and Sierra helped prepare the cookies.  YUM!

During nap time, the adults got busy carving. 

 Here are the final results (left to right: Amanda, Rachel, Ari)

 Ah, Halloween Happiness!

Pumpkin Patch - Take Two

With so many pumpkin patch farms near us  and such perfect Fall weather, we just had to go to another farm.

This time Hank was interested in the pumpkins, especially sitting on them.

After the pumpkin patch, Hank had his first jumpy castle experience.

Yep - he loved it!

Pumpkin Patch Time

Hank explored everything at the pumpkin patch, except for the pumpkins!  

Here he is making the sign for horse.  It was cool for him to see a horse his size.

 

 Then it was off to see the chickens.  Hank kept saying "Bock, bock, bock, bock, bock."

 Hank ran around the hay bale maze. . . .

 and he stopped to admire the tractor.

 Finally, Hank was ready to sit in the wagon and go for a ride.

So much for the pumpkins!

The Final Cousins' Play Date in Nederland!

Cousins Sierra and Ryder will soon live close by, but in the meantime, we made one last trip to the mountains to play, play, play!  Even the car ride to the park was a blast . . . 

After the park, it was lunch, nap and more play.

We look forward to these kiddos continuing to build a lifetime of fun memories together.

Hank at 20 Months

At 20 months old, here's what's new with Hank . . . 

• He has a sign language vocabulary of over 40 signs.  Hank wants to know the sign for everything!
• He loves toys that he can push like strollers and carts.
• He's always on the lookout for planes, especially since he sees and hears at least 4-5 fly over our house each day.
• Hank is beginning to color.
• Hank can now open and close doors with levers - oh, boy!
• He can walk down a step without help (we still hold hands for multiple steps).

Days of Outdoor Fun

The last few days have been so beautiful that we've spent every day outside and taking in the Fall weather.  Now that Hank is getting sturdy on his feet, he's all about hiking!

On one hike near home, we were lucky to find some gorgeous trees going through their yearly color change.

 Then, the next day, we went to the Flat Irons in Boulder and found some more colorful trees.

 Last, but not least, someone else has been living it up on all these excursions . . . our first baby, Radar!!

September Cousins' Play Date in Nederland

What's a trip to Nederland without riding the carousel?  Hank could hardly contain his excitement . . .

 Hank took a second ride, and this time, Daddy joined him.  What a treat!

 Afterward, it was back to his cousin's house where Aunt Rachel put together a picnic lunch for the kids.

 It's so nice to watch Hank spend time playing with his cousins!!

Play and Learn at the Boulder JCC

For the past three weeks, Hank and Mommy have spent Fridays mornings at the Boulder JCC for a Play and Learn program.  Here Hank has been getting exposure to all the fun stuff he'll see and do at the preschool next August.

Besides playing the car and trains, Hank really digs the fun hats.  

After some free play, Hank gets to eat challah for snack. 

 Hank quickly learned to patiently wait for his yummy morning treat!

After snack, moms and kids head to the tumble room for more play followed by music with Leah. 

 Leah teaches us lots of fun Shabbat songs.

We're proud to see Hank grow and flourish at the PAL program!