Happy New Years Eve

 The last night of Chanukah and also the New Year!  We have so many blessings to be thankful for... what will this new year bring???

Happy Chanukah (again)

Another night of hosting Chanukah is a lot of work but we just had to celebrate with friends!  We changed up the menu with vegetarian chili and latkes (which was delicious) and had our largest game of dreidel...  we had 16 people play.    The kids had a blast and it was fun hosting!  I don't know when we will host an event again this large, so this will do for the rest of the year!  When is Chanukah in 2017???

Happy Chanukah

Happy Chanukah!  The tradition of the Smith-Shields celebration happened this year!  The kids had a great time playing with K and meeting his younger brother, K.  We enjoyed each other's company over matzo ball soup and yummy latkes!  When will we celebrate with them again???

Gingerbread house

The boys got to spend a little extra time with Uncle Zack today building their gingerbread house.  They each had a side to decorate and they had a lot of fun eating the treats.  When will we see Uncle Zack again???

Sing

The kids got to watch the movie, Sing, with Uncle Zack and Kelly Emo.  This was a great Christmas gift because the kids really wanted to see this movie.  Jawsh and I went to another show and saw Dr. Strange.  What movie will they want to see next???

Merry Christmas

The kids really enjoy spending Christmas together.  They are so happy to celebrate and sing songs in front of the family.  This year, Micah played the ukulele while Kaitlyn and Emma sang, "Jingle Bells," and Noah played the song "Sleigh Ride Holiday" on the piano.  The boys opened their gifts and received Nerf guns and bullets from "Santa Billy." My favorite part of the evening was when we played Pie Face Showdown.  What will Christmas bring next year???

Early gifts

In an untraditional move, Jawsh allowed the boys to open one Christmas/Chanukah gift of his choosing early.  With the barrage of toys, candy, and gifts, Jawsh wanted to make sure that these two gifts stood out.  He gifted each son one of his favorite books: The Hobbit for Noah and The Amazing Spiderman for Micah.  He also wrote a personal message to each one of them.  Do the boys know how lucky they are???

Dave and Busters

Today the boys spent some time with my partner teacher's kids at Dave and Busters.  They had a great time playing video games and eating lunch together.  They even got to order a glow in the dark soda pop!  Now that's special!  When will we see C and M again???

The Broad

We went back to the Broad on this rainy day. I was really surprised to see that there were still people waiting in line under umbrellas and felt so fortunate that we could just walk in with our reserved tickets.  The boys are so lucky to have this museum time with Jawsh because he knows so much about the artists.  Last time he explained the art of Basquiat and this time he explained the work of Roy Lichtenstein.  Then the boys sketched a bit in their journals and then we went to see the new Creature exhibit.  When will we visit again???

LACMA

Today I took the boys to LACMA.  They went to the Children's Gallery and painted.  We also spent some time looking at the Korean pottery through the ages.  It was a nice quiet afternoon at the museum.  When will we head back???

Good Dirt LA

Tonight we went to Good Dirt LA to support their first "Empty Bowls" charity event.  We purchased a few bowls handmade by a local potter with 100% of the proceeds going to feed the children in Ghana.  Our friend, K, made some beautiful bowls.  After purchasing the bowl, we filled them with delicious soups from Rainbow Acres.  It was a beautiful event.  Will they do it again next year???

Winter Concert (Yellow)

Noah's class sang two songs:  "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" made famous by Mary Poppins and "If You're Out There" by John Legend.  It was fun to watch and the kids sang beautifully.  I wonder what they will sing next year???

Winter Concert (Orange)

Micah's class sang two songs:  "Let's Go Fly A Kite" made famous by Mary Poppins and "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" by Judy Garland.  It was really beautiful listening to the kids sing these songs.  What they will sing next year???

Micah's fieldtrip

Today Jawsh chaperoned Micah on his field trip to the California Science Center.  They got to watch an IMAX movie and venture through the museum.  We feel like the boys are so lucky that we chaperone their field trips... but I have to wonder... do they feel that way???

Happy Birthday (again)

A birthday celebration is never complete until we celebrate with the cousins!  Noah had a delicious homemade cake made by Halmoni and the best present from his cousins: a Nerf gun.  I still can't believe Noah is 10 years old!  A decade goes by fast, doesn't it???

Hogwarts Party

Happy 10th Birthday to Noah!  In true Harry Potter fashion we had a Hogwarts slumber party complete with a Harry Potter scavenger hunt and Hagrid inspired birthday cake (misspellings and all).  What will he want to do for his birthday next year???

Happy Birthday Noah!

Noah is 10!  I can't believe how time has flown!  He wanted to eat one of his favorite desserts, Toffee Cake, at the Westside Tavern so Grandpa obliged!  Noah is just like his dad when it comes to desserts... he loves them!  What will Noah wish for???

Happy Thankgiving

Happy Thanksgiving!  We are so grateful that we could spend this holiday season in Bubbe's new home.  She baked Noah's favorite apple cake (because his birthday is tomorrow) and we got to spend time playing games, watching movies, and building puzzles with the family!  When will we come back to Reno???

Christmas Tree Lighting

Micah started playing the ukulele a few months ago and his teacher asked him to play at a Christmas Tree Lighting in El Segundo.  Micah played two songs, "Jingle Bells" and "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer" with another student.  Then he had a solo for "Hanukkah Oh Hanukkah."  He did a great job.  Will Micah want to participate in the school talent show???

Climbing trees

While the older brothers play their soccer games, the younger siblings find a tree to climb!  When will they be interested in watching their brothers play???