October 2014

Posted on May 30, 2015 by sarah

October was fantastic! Hank continued to enjoy school, violin and playing with his friends and cousins. The weather in Texas is always interesting and we ended up having rather summer-like weather for a good part of the month. Hank was especially pleased about this as it meant he got to enjoy some time playing in splash pads and visiting parks after school. So much fun!

Tyler and Sarah went on a winery tour with Sarah’s parents (Hank’s Grandma and Grandpa) and had a blast visiting various vineyards, tasting lots of wine and going to the famous OktoberFest in Fredericksburg. It was a lovely time and we purchased lots of delicoious wine.

Hank’s GG and Grandad (Tyler’s parents) came for a visit in October – twice! They came while Tyler and Sarah went to Fredericksburg and Hank had some early birthday fun with them, and then they came again later in the month with Hank’s cousins, Ainsley and Dalton for Hank’s birthday party (more on that in another post coming soon). As always, we had a great time visiting with them.

Our friend, Heather, came into town this month and we had a great time visiting TechShop with her. Hank was fascinated by the 3D printer and announced that we need to get one for our house so he can “make anything I want to!”. And he had a blast learning about electricity and decided he wanted to experiment with conductivity for his science fair project. Hank also began basketball this month and he absolutely loved it!

Lots of friends and family with birthdays in October so we had fun celebrating. Halloween was also this month. Hank decided he wanted to be a black widow spider so we worked together as a family to make his costume, which he loved! One of his friends, Ethan, had a Halloween-themed birthday party and Hank was thrilled to get to wear his Halloween costume more than once. He also decided he should have a pinata at his party since so many of his pals had them at thiers and they provided lots and lots of fun. At Ethan’s party, after all the children had several swings at the pinata, the hosts asked Tyler to help move things along so everyone could enjoy the candy. What can we say, pinatas are fun!

Hank visited Dr. Travis for his 6 year check up (!) and all is well – he’s healthy! Can you believe he’s alreayd 6 years old?! We took so many photos at his party that it will have its own entry next time we update the blog. For now, hHere are some photos of some of our other October fun in no particular order.

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September 2014

Posted on November 2, 2014 by sarah

September was a rather busy month for us as we made the adjustment to our new “school schedule”. Setting an alarm to make sure Hank is up by a certain time was certainly new for us. Preschool began at 9am, 2 days a week but Kindergarten begins at 7:45am every day so its been quite the adjustment and bed time is no longer negotiable on school nights. Still, while its been different, its also been very good.

Hank is thriving at school. He absolutely loves it! We had him take a break from Kung Fu lessons this month to help support his transition to a more full schedule (let’s face it, he just picked up a full time job! 35 hours of his week are now spoken for with school hours alone) but he’s continued with his violin lessons and has been enjoying learning some new songs. Hank really likes his Kindergarten teacher and has made several friends at school. He’s also been enjoying going to PE, Art and Music at school. When we ask him what his favorite thing about school is, his reply is usually “All of it!!!” We hope he feels this way about school for a very, very long time. 🙂 The weather has been typical of Texas this time of year, mostly warm and sunny with the occasional chilly rain storm. Since its been so warm out, Hank has enjoyed getting to play at splash pads with friends after school on a semi-regular basis which has been very fun for him.

Sarah met her class and the school year officially began for her preschool class this month. Things have been going very well there. Tyler went to China for work this month. All went well in China and he had a very safe trip. While Tyler was not in China for the Harvest Moon Festival (he got there a few days after the festival), the Asian American Cultural Center here in town hosted a Harvest Moon Festival celebration while Tyler was on his trip to China. Hank and Mommy had fun checking it out and enjoyed lots of traditional music and dancing. Since it is not only a Chinese holiday, there were a variety of Asian communities represented. Hank was both fascinated with and terrified by the taiko drummers from Japan but his favorite performances by far were a traditional Chinese dance done with a fan and a concert with traditional Chinese instruments. He was positively transfixed by a trio made up of pipa (like a lute), zheng (like a zither only with way more strings) and flute (very similar to Irish flute, no pads, only holes). It really was gorgeous.

Despite having a full month, we didn’t really take many photos. Here are a few we did manage to take and we’ll try harder next month to capture some of our adventures. 🙂

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Big Transitions

Posted on November 2, 2014 by sarah

August was a blast!

We were so blessed to have had some wonderful time with extended family this month before everyone’s schedules changed for the fall. We kicked off the month with a visit from Aunt Laura, Christopher and Megan. Hank had so much fun playing with his cousins! Right after Aunt Laura’s visit, we met up with Hank’s cousins Micah and Johanna (and their mom, Christiane) at the Mayborn Museum in Waco. We had a great time playing with them and exploring the museum together. GG and Grandad came to stay for a few days this month as well and we all loved that too! Hank had some special time with Grandma before she went back to work this month too.

We had a blast playing with friends and family this month – celebrating birthdays (Happy Birthday James! Welcome to the world Callen!) and accomplishments (Way to go on your black belt Uncle Amos!), enjoying splash pads and parks and bounce houses and museums and lazy days. It was a wonderful way to end our summer.

While this month was very fun, it was also very busy for us as our family had some big transitions. Hank continues to play violin but he changed teachers since Alexis is on maternity leave (she had her sweet baby boy on the 10th!!) and he’s really been enjoying working with his new teacher, Ms Allison. Sarah returned to the workforce and spent quite a bit of August in various trainings for her new job as a preschool teacher. Hank had a blast at Kinder Camp where he met his Kindergarten teacher and had a brief overview of a day in the life of a Kindergartener at his school. We said goodbye to Hank’s cousin, Tori, as she moved to Waco to begin college at Baylor. Tyler began prepping for another trip to China. Hank took a break from Kung Fu, Tyler and Sarah joined the PTA and Hank began elementary school. He is thrilled to be in Kindergarten and has really been enjoying school so far.

We have definitely entered a new season of life and there are sure to be many adventures in store! Here are some photos in no particular order of some of our August fun. Say hello to our new Kindergartener!!

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July 2014

Posted on August 12, 2014 by sarah

July simply flew by! We had an absolute blast hanging out with friends and family this month. Hank really enjoyed spending time with his cousins on July 4th. The kids had so much fun playing together and staying up past everyone’s bedtime to watch fireworks. We continued to enjoy the summer reading program at the library and took a little break from regular Kung Fu classes. Sarah and Tyler celebrated birthdays this month and we went to an anniversary party for our friends, Meredith and Carolyn’s special effects studio. Hank had fun visiting the studio and even got to check out some Hawg’s Blood, the line of blood Carolyn and Meredith produce for film. Hank said he prefered the original Hawg’s Blood to the thick and scabby…

Hank had a blast playing with James and Paul a bunch this month. With his cousins he determined that a garlic press makes an excellent playdough tool (but is very difficult to clean thoroughly), that snickerdoodles taste best with lots of cinnamon-sugar on them and almost everything is more fun with friends. At the end of the month, Hank had his last violin lesson for a while with his teacher, Alexis, who is going on maternity leave. Hank is excited to meet his new teacher in August. He said goodbye to one of his very good friends from preschool, Johnston, who moved with his family to Oklahoma. And he met a boy his age who just moved into our neighborhood. Hank was excited to learn that he and his new pal, Xavier, will be going to the same school in the fall.

Another very exciting thing that happened in July was Hank getting to go on a trip without Mom and Dad. He went to the cabin with his cousin, Ainsley, and his GG and Grandad. They called it “Camp GG & Grandad”. He and Ainsley had a terrific time. While he was gone, Tyler and Sarah went to New Orleans for a few days. They had a good time too. We’ll post photos from those two trips in another entry. For now, here are some of our photos from July adventures (in no particular order).

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June 2014

Posted on July 26, 2014 by sarah

We had so much fun in June!

Tori, Hank’s cousin, graduated from High School near the beginning of the month and we had a blast celebrating with her. Its crazy to think that one day, Hank will be where she is and one day, not so long ago, Tori was 5 and getting ready for kindergarten herself. We’re SO proud of her!

Hank got to do track and field in June. He absolutely loved it! We all had a great time at his very first track meet. Hank was excited to get to participate in so many events. He earned 5 ribbons by placing 3rd in the 100m and 200m, 4th in the 100m hurdles and 200m hurdles and 6th in the 400m. He participated in the long jump but didn’t place. We thought he did fairly well with that since he’d never had the opportunity to do the long jump until this track meet (his age group doesn’t usually participate in the long jump). We are so proud of him and he is so proud of himself, which is a good thing. Hank was pleased to discover one of his friends from Kung Fu, Katie, was also participating in the track meet. It was fun cheering on friends and sharing shade between events on a hot June day.

Hank continues to enjoy Kung Fu. He earned a stripe on his belt this month. We’re thrilled he was able to participate in (and pass) the testing because he had his very first asthma attack in over 2 years this month and with illness, etc. he missed several classes. It seems after Hank’s asthma attack, our family members took it in turns being ill so Hank missed a few violin lessons as well (his teacher is pregnant and we didn’t want to risk anything) but he had fun playing at home all the same. Sarah helped with a sweet baby shower for Alexis and Steven this month. It was beautiful, there was a great turnout and Alexis and Steven are closer to being prepared for their little one’s arrival.

We had fun participating in the summer reading program at the library. Hank is becoming an excellent reader and he’s had a blast reading, being read to, logging the books and earning cool prizes at the library. We’re so glad our library has a fun summer reading program and lots of great storytime and entertainment options. We also had fun watching several World Cup games. Tyler even had some of his co-workers over to watch and Hank had fun hanging out with all those guys. Hank enjoys spending time with our adult friends. He got to host a special movie club in June where he shared “The LEGO Movie” with some of his grown-up friends. Everyone had a good time.

The last week of June was vacation Bible school at our church. Hank had fun at “International Spy Academy” (the theme of the VBS), learning about being an agent of the One True God. Sarah had fun teaching the Bible verses with fun songs during VBS. There was a great turnout and it was really special for Hank to get to spend time with some of his friends from preschool, some neighbors, some friends from Sunday School, from a music class he took several years ago, etc. It was a nice melding of his worlds and all the kids had a great time.

Tyler and Hank closed out the month with a special “guys trip” to GG and Grandad’s house. They had an excellent time visiting with GG and Grandad and Hank’s cousins, Ainsley and Dalton and his Aunt Traci and Uncle Geoff. We are so blessed in our family! Since we were ill off and on throughout the month, we didn’t end up taking many photos this time around but here are a few from some of our adventures…

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Cabin Fun

Posted on July 25, 2014 by sarah

We kicked off our summer with a trip to the cabin. Immediately following Hank’s PreSchool graduation program, we loaded up the car and hit the road for the cabin. It was a really fun road trip that we broke up into two days. Hank had fun staying at a hotel the first night – its the only place he’s allowed to jump on the furniture and he loved getting to jump on the bed. When we got to the cabin, we had dinner in town with GG, Grandad and John and Cheryl (Hank’s honorary grandparents). It was a very nice “welcome to the cabin”!

We always have a great time at the cabin and this trip was no exception! We did lots of fishing with Grandad (Hank is quite good at casting!), archery, playing outside, nature walks, riding ATVs, feeding the deer and generally relaxing. Hank had a blast learning to use the blender at the cabin and made his favorite chocolate pudding for everyone. It was a big hit (so much so that we actually made it twice during our trip).

This trip has some special firsts for our family. It was our first time staying in the newly renovated cabin. We absolutely love the new loft and the balcony. It was wonderful to sit on the balcony at night and look at the stars. Hank loved getting to use the telescope from the balcony and we all loved being able to look out at such beautiful nature through all the gorgeous windows. Sarah enjoyed exercising in the new space with all its natural light and Hank and Tyler enjoyed playing video games there without disturbing anyone downstairs. Its a wonderful addition to the cabin.

We took our very first trek to Treasure Falls this trip. It was gorgeous and the hike was just right for Hank. We also welcomed Hank’s godparents, Alexis and Steven, to the cabin for the very first time. They stayed a few days during our trip and we all had a fabulous time together. Hank really enjoyed taking a nature walk and visiting our neighbors’ horses with Alexis and Steven. And he loved fishing with them. He was also very pleased that they liked his pudding. Together, we explored the Benedictine Abbey of Christ in the Desert – a place our family has passed many times (well, the 13 mile road that leads to the monastery anyway) and hadn’t ever visited before this trip. It was very peaceful there. While Alexis and Steven were visiting, they had a photo shoot with Tyler to commemorate this sweet, special time while they wait to meet their first child (Alexis is due in a few months). Tyler took some gorgeous photos of the very cute couple – we’re so blessed to have such great scenery to work with in Chama. And Hank had some special violin time with Alexis (who is also his violin teacher). He gave a beautiful concert for the deer, it was really sweet.

After Alexis and Steven left, Hank got to go on a very special 4-wheeling trip up the mountain with Grandad, John and Cheryl. Hank took his camera with him and snapped a few photos to show Mommy and GG, who stayed at the cabin to find the best home for GG’s latest furniture purchase (it went beautifully in the new loft). Despite being at the cabin with GG and Grandad a little over a week, as always when it came time to pack for home, the trip seemed far too short. We’re looking forward to next time! Here are some photos from our trip (we know there are quite a few, keep in mind they come from 3 different cameras).

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May 2014

Posted on July 14, 2014 by sarah

It was a beautiful May and we spent as much time as we could with friends and family. It was definitely an event-packed month for us! The weather was gorgeous, not too hot, not too rainy, so we visited several parks and splash pads with friends and Hank had a great time riding his bike and playing outside.

Hank’s spring violin recital was this month. He worked hard to prepare, even playing concerts for Daddy and Mommy and a few concerts for Caesar and the birds in our backyard. GG and Grandad came to visit that weekend. On the way to Hank’s recital, a sheet of MDF hit our vehicle. It was a good thing that Tyler was driving, he saw it coming and maneuvered the vehicle so even though the windshield shattered, the MDF hit us at an angle that did the least amount of damage (it was still really messy and scary though – everyone had glass on them). Hank went on to play his recital and recieved many compliments from the residents of the assisted living facility where the recital took place. It was really neat to have the violin students play for more than just their friends and family. After the recital, Hank refused to ride in the “cracked glass car” and happily, Grandma was at the recital and was more than happy to give Hank (and GG and Sarah) a ride home.

Our friends, Melissa and Matt got married in May. While Tyler and Sarah went to the wedding, Hank had fun with GG and Grandad at our house. The wedding was beautiful and we’re very happy for Matt and Melissa. As always, it was great to see so many of our “grown up” friends. Hank missed out on that fun, but he got to meet up with most of that crowd for dinner at one of our favorite Asian restaurants. Sadly, the restaurant closed in May. Happily, we were able to have one last, awesome dinner there with friends before the restaurant closed its doors for good (the owner said they plan to reopen somewhere else in a few years). We of course ordered all our favorite dishes there (salt & pepper shrimp, ginger scallion chicken, snow pea leaves, Chinese broccoli, etc.) and ate much more than we would have on an ordinary night for dinner.

We took Hank to the Mini Maker Faire and he had an absolute blast! It was so much fun watching him create things and learn how things worked and be excited about science and technology and creativity. He got to meet an R2-D2, Godzilla and a Dalek. He took several photos with his own camera and had fun introducing his pal, Halley, to R2-D2 and checking out K-9. He got to program a robot to draw a design he created, he built things, he explored and created and had an absolute blast. Hank still talks about the Maker Faire. It was deifinitely a lot of fun and we plan to go again next time the event takes place. Hank had his last few sport classes this month, ending with tee ball. He really enjoyed that. We went to a symphony concert at one of our local parks one evening in May. It was really fun to pick up a pizza and some drinks, and hang out outside listening to the symphony play favorite movie music composed by John Williams. It was also fun thinking of sharing those films with Hank some day when he’s ready (while he’s seen the original 3 Star Wars films, he’s never seen Jurassic Park or Raiders of the Lost Ark, etc.). The very next day, we had the joy of seeing Hank’s cousin, David, get baptized. David was baptized in a local lake and it was a really good day.

We had some fun celebrations in May too. Hank went to a pirate party to celebrate his friends, Miles and Carter’s (twins) birthday where he got to sgo on a treasure hunt and walk the plank. And Hank went to a really great water fun party to celebrate his cousin, Paul’s birthday. Hank loves to play on the slip and slide and in sprinkler and at Paul’s party, he got to play water balloon baseball, which was pretty cool.

The biggest celebration in May, Hank graduated PreSchool! There was a wonderful closing program at Hank’s preschool where Hank sang with his class and recieved an award for “outstanding friendship and best eater” (his teachers would tell me at least once a week how much they loved Hank’s healthy lunches – and that he actually ate them!). Hank’s cousins, James and Paul and Uncle Ben and Aunt Nancy came to the gradutation program – that was so special. The preschool presented Hank with his very own Bible. He was thrilled! Hank has a Bible story book, a preschool Bible and a Jesus storybook Bible, but he was really wanting a “real” Bible, with actual chapters and verses of his own and he was so pleased to recieve one at his graduation. Right after his graduation, we stopped at home, loaded up our car and hit the road for the cabin. We’ll have an entry all about our cabin trip with photos later. For now, here are some photos in no particular order from May. Enjoy!

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Zoo Visits and Egg Hunts

Posted on June 30, 2014 by sarah

April was jam packed with fun events and we were blessed to spend quite a lot of time with family and friends this month. Hank had a blast playing with friends and cousins throughout the month. We had beautiful Texas spring weather most of the month so we did our best to play outside as much as possible. The bluebonnets and indian paintbrush have been out in full force, the weather has been gorgeous and we’ve had the best time playing with friends at parks.

Since Hank enjoys the Cameron Park Zoo so much and the weather was so beautiful, we took a few trips to the zoo this month. We went with his cousins, James and Paul and his Aunt Nancy and had a wonderful day trip to Waco. We played at the zoo, had some lunch and then paid a visit to the Mayborn Museum (another of Hank’s favorite spots). It was a lot to do in one day, but somehow it worked beautifully and the boys had a great time! We took another trip to the Waco zoo with his friend, Ethan (and his mom, Hopie) and again the boys had a great time. After the zoo with Ethan, we took Ethan and his mom, Hopie to check out the Heritage Homestead. Like us, they really liked it there. Ethan was especially excited to check out the cheese shop there and Hank was thrilled to learn they had smoked gouda available for sale (they can only make it when there is no burn ban so its definitely a seasonal cheese here). We bought some to take home for Daddy.

We celebrated Grandma’s birthday with a big family dinner at a local restaurant. It was great to see so much of our family in one place and we have several funny photos from the event that didn’t make this blog entry due to excessive photo bombing from Uncle Josh and Uncle Ben (hilarious). It was a great time and the food was delicious! We also celebrated Easter this month. GG and Grandad came to visit us for Easter. Sarah helped out with the family service at church playing Mary, the mother of Jesus. She was nervous, but did a great job. Uncle Ben, Aunt Nancy, James and Paul joined us for church on Easter and we had a great brunch with them and GG and Grandad after the service. As it turned out, between preschool, playdates with friends, GG and Grandad’s visit and the Easter gathering with Sarah’s side of the family at Uncle Ben and Aunt Nancy’s house, Hank ended up having 4 egg hunts in 4 days. He loved every minute of each one and we got to ration out sweets for weeks afterward.

Hank has begun preparing for his violin recital in May. His teacher (and godmother!), Alexis, has been taking advantage of the gorgeous spring weather too by taking some of Hank’s lessons outside. He really enjoys playing his violin out in nature and has even played in our backyard for our dog, Caesar. Its been very cute. The Round Rock Symphony played a special outdoor concert and Hank got to see Alexis perform with the symphony outside. We love spring in Texas! In other big news this month, Hank had a belt test in Kung Fu and advanced to the blue stripe belt! He’s very excited with his accomplishment and his new belt. We’re very proud of him too!

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Welcome Spring!

Posted on June 29, 2014 by sarah

March was awesome. We kicked off the month with a visit from GG and Grandad and as always, we had a great time with them. While they were visiting, we bought Hank a new bike. He’d mostly been riding his tricycle because the bike GG & Grandad’s neighbor handed down to us never really worked properly (we’ve since learned that probably had mostly to do with the way the training wheels were attached, but its too small at this point anyway). Hank was thrilled to get to pick out his very own bike. He chose a red one with training wheels and was riding it around in the store before we took it home. He’s been riding it most days this month when it hasn’t been super cold and/or rainy/icy (ah, Texas weather). We took GG and Grandad to the rodeo while they were here and even though it turned bitterly cold and rainy while we were out at the rodeo, everyone had a wonderful time. Hank especially enjoyed watching the barrel racing but got rather nervous whenever the rodeo “clowns” (who were thankfully not really dressed as stereotypical clowns) antagonized the bulls to get them away from their fallen riders. Still, with GG, Grandad, Mommy, Daddy and cotton candy, he determined that “life is good” and we all had a great time.

The elementary school Hank will attend in the fall had something called “Kindergarten Round Up”, where we registered Hank for school and got a school tour focusing primarily on the Kindergarten wing. Hank was beside himself with glee literally dancing around while on the tour. We got to see a few classrooms (the kindergarteners were at lunch while we were there) and Hank was thrilled to get to see what a real kindergarten classroom looks like and imagined himself there. We cannot believe its already nearly time for elementary school! Still, it IS very exciting!

Hank went on a field trip with his preschool class to the library this month. He loves going on the field trips because he and his classmates get to ride in a school bus. He’s really been enjoying preschool and has made quite a few good friends there. We’ve had several playdates with his friends from preschool as well as his other friends and some of his cousins this month. Hank also continues to enjoy Kung Fu. He moved into the “big kids” class at the very end of last month and is adjusting to the faster pacing and larger class size. He really seems to enjoy it still and has risen to the challenges presented in the new-to-him format of the class. He had a belt test at the end of this month and he earned another stripe on his belt which means he will be eligible to test for the next belt level at his next test. Hank continues to have fun playing violin and loves going to his science class. This month was our last science class at the Nature Center. They will be spending the next several months preparing for thier summer programs and will not have the science classes again until the fall (at which time Hank will be in Kindergarten and won’t be participating in this program). It was a great class to end on, talking about wildlife. Hank had fun hiking and exploring nature with his class this month.

Its been a big month of celebrations for sure. We hosted two parties for our good friend, Melissa over the span of a weekend. One was a girls gathering at a local day spa and the other an engagement party for her and her fiance, Matt at our house. Hank got to spend the night with Grandpa and Grandma to accomodate Melissa’s wishes for a “kid-free party”. Both events were a success and Hank had a blast having a sleep over at Grandpa and Grandma’s house – his first sleepover with them ever. Hank is really looking forward to (and already planning) his next sleepover there. He has declared his next sleepover at Grandpa and Grandma’s house should involve a pancake breakfast. The very next weekend, Aunt Laura, Uncle Jon, Alyssa, Megan and Christopher came for a visit. We celebrated Megan’s birthday with a fun brunch at Grandma and Grandpa’s house and just a few hours later, there was a lovely baby shower for Aunt Shannon and Uncle Amos who are expecting a new son sometime next month. We celebrated Hank’s cousin, Mia’s birthday with a fun painting party at Aunt Shannon and Uncle Amos’ house. We really enjoyed getting to spend so much time with family this month!

On St. Patrick’s day, Sarah and Hank took Hank’s godfather, Patrick, to the Cameron Park Zoo. The zoo hosted a “green” event (it was St. Patrick’s Day after all) and there were all sorts of crafts to do and recycling things to explore. We had a fun time at the zoo and it was great to see all the animals. Patrick knew one of the elephants from her time at the Abilene zoo when he was a child. Her name is Tanya. He called to her and we were surprised to see her actually come over and raise her trunk for us. It was pretty cool. Later that week, Hank welcomed spring with a special playdate. He invited some of his friends over for a special “Celebrate Spring!” playdate. We made stepping stones, played outside, planted bulbs, decorated boxes to take our bulbs home in, had snacks and welcomed spring together. It was very fun and everyone had a great time.

We closed out the month with yet more fun. Tyler closed out the month with a special trip to play golf with Grandad, Hank closed out the month kicking off his sport class. He’s in a multi-sport class for several weeks and they began with soccer. He’ll do 2 weeks of soccer, 2 weeks of flag football and 2 weeks of baseball. He’s very excited about his class and had a great time on his very first day. Here are some photos from our crazy and wonderful March. Enjoy!

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February 2014

Posted on June 29, 2014 by sarah

February was fun, but kind of odd in the weather department. It went from feeling like spring to actual hard freezes several times, which made it difficult to plan outings. Still, Hank had a blast playing with several friends and some of his cousins this month. He continues to enjoy preschool and was swept up in all things valentine related at the beginning of the month. We blame preschool for that as its not really a “holiday” we tend to make a big deal of (or even really celebrate) at our house. But, this year, we did indeed celebrate with Hank. We made lots of hearts and Hank enjoyed repurposing the tops from various mineral water and beer bottles to create “glitter magnets” for his friends and loved ones. As crafts go, this one was a big hit with all the recipients and Hank enjoyed making them so much, we got James and Paul in on the fun when we hung out with them on valentine’s day.

Hank went to the movies in the theatre this month. We took him to see “The LEGO Movie” and he loved it. This was his third film to see in a movie theatre. He had a great time and we were glad the movie was enjoyable for everyone. Hank also visited his allergist (still good!) and an ENT in February. He had his first experience with an endoscope. He called it a “spaghetti camera” and was very brave through the whole process. Ultimately, the doctors decided against surgery to remove Hank’s tonsils and/or adenoids and have us continue to observe his nighttime breathing. So far, he’s snoring far less so we feel great about this decision.

A big highlight this month was Hank’s return to violin lessons. Last month he selected his new violin with his teacher, Alexis, but schedules did not align for lessons until the end of this month. Hank is thrilled to be back to playing violin Alexis was pleased with how much Hank retained despite not having played in nearly 9 months. Hank enjoyed playing with friends indoors on very cold days, playing outdoors on warmer days, visiting Pioneer Farm with his cousins, James and Paul, celebrating his friend, Johnston’s birthday (at a ninja party!), learning about states of matter in his science class at the Nature Center, visiting the Capital of Texas Zoo, having lunch from time to time with Daddy and some of his co-workers, having Pajama Day at school, getting his first pair of shoes with laces (we’re working on learning to tie them now), playing violin and visiting the Blanton Museum of Art with our friends, Lisa & Jamie.

Despite being a rather short month, this one was full of fun. Here are some photos in no particular order. Enjoy!

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