December was the month of museums I think. Hank really enjoys museums and we visited several (one of them twice) in December.
We had the opportunity to visit the Perot Museum of Nature and Science just a few days after its grand opening in Dallas. The building itself is remarkable, with an escalator on the outside of the building (enclosed in glass) overlooking angular rooftops outfitted with solar panels, rain capturing devices and even a few plants. We went with GG and Grandad. Hank had a blast and it was even a great place for adults (none of us were bored). Some of Hank’s favorite things about the museum were the hall of sports where he got to race a T-Rex and a cheetah, the children’s area where he learned a about pulleys, played with water, made a snowflake, played in snow, heard a story, and pretended to camp out, and the robots and vacuum/air tunnels. We spent the entire day there and Hank fell asleep in the car on the way home. It was a blast!
We also visited one of our favorites, the Mayborn Museum in Waco. This one we went to twice in December. Once with Grandad and once with some friends, Hank’s pal, Kadynce her parents (our friends), Jonathan and Kacie and her baby sister, Lydia (who slept most of the time). Hank had fun playing in the musical hall with Grandad and showing Kadynce all his favorite parts of the museum, including the historic village and the bubble and water room. After exploring the museum with Kadynce and her family, they showed us the bears on the Baylor campus. All these years of going to the Mayborn and we never knew there were actual, live bears on the Baylor campus. Hank had fun checking out the bears in their enclosure. It was a great trip!
Uncle Ben, Aunt Nancy, James and Paul came to visit from Florida and we went with them to the Memorial Museum on the UT campus in Austin. Hank really likes that museum because of the dinosaur bones and the meteorites they have on display. He also really enjoys the discovery drawers and the entire level full of taxidermy (everything from Bison to sea birds). Hank had a blast exploring the museum with his cousins, James and Paul and was SO pleased to get to play with them again. He really missed his cousins (we missed Ben and Nancy too)!
Hank has his very first violin recital at the beginning of the month. He was fantastic and had a great time playing his violin for everyone. He said he really liked when everyone clapped because it let him know they enjoyed his music. Tyler and I got to experience that parent nervousness for your child. You want them to do well and have fun but you’re not at all in control of the outcome of things. It was exhilarating for us watching Hank play for everyone – and having him do so well and have fun. Grandma, Grandpa, Patrick and Steven were there to support Hank with us. It was a great day!
This year, Hank also participated in the Christmas Program at church. He sang three songs along with the rest of the preschool Sunday school and it was adorable! Tyler tried to take video and of course when dealing with children, the outcome was less than Emmy worthy. But it was still a fun day and made an excellent memory.
Hank was thrilled about Christmas this year! He could hardly contain his excitement and had a blast opening each day’s bag on our Advent Calendar. Every day in December we did a fun activity or read a Christmas story. Hank watched “White Christmas” for the first time this year and loved it! We had lots of baking and cookie decorating in December. Hank decorated cookies at preschool, at friends’ houses, and even hosted a cookie decorating party with a few friends at our house. He also had fun decorating cookies with some of his cousins. Our friends, the Lavinder family, hosted a great event called Bags of Grace, filling bags with food for the homeless. Hank invited his friend JenJen to join us and she and her mom (our friend), WooYoung had a blast with our family filling bags with food for the homeless. While Hank and JenJen didn’t go downtown to help pass out the bags, they were happy “packing snacks for people who don’t have food or a house” (as Hank put it) and spending time together. It was a perfect service event for young 4 year olds to participate in. Together with the Lavinder family, friends and neighbors, we packed 200 bags!
December was a very full and busy month and we had a blast together as a family (and with extended family and friends). Here are some photos from December in no particular order. Christmas celebration photos in the next blog entry…
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