Letter from Santa 2014

Peace on Earth 2014

Gingerbread Skyscraper

Continuing our tradition of making gingerbread houses, Will approached this year's model NYC-style, constructing an Empire State Building-inspired gingerbread skyscraper at the Skyscraper Museum!

Monday's Child

Uncle Kit, who shares Will's birthday, went Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon, Myanmar on November 17th to celebrate his birthday this year. He made a special celebration wish for Will's 6th Birthday at the "Monday Corner," remembering that Will was born on a Monday! Uncle Kit is wearing a longyi for his pants, which is the traditional Burmese attire. Note the six candles and six incense sticks as well.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO WILL AND UNCLE KIT!

Will's Birthday Poem 2014

Bowling Is My Kind of Game

Will's first bowling excursion with his buddy Robbie reminded us of one of his favorite songs, The Bowling Game:

"On a good day, I throw a few strikes
Making some spares that's what I like
Bowling is my kind of game

I ain't for the one, and two, and three and four
Five pins down the lane
With the boom and the bang, they hit the floor
And I throw the ball again..."

First Day of 1st Grade

Will started 1st Grade at East Side Elementary School (PS 267) around the corner from our new apartment. His teacher is named Ms. Calascibetta. A change in birthdate cutoffs from California meant that Will skipped Kindergarten! However, he settled in well and is enjoying meeting his new classmates, several of whom have fall birthdays just like him. We're proud of Will and excited about the year to come!

First Balto Sighting in Central Park

Breakfast with Grammy

Grammy joined Will for breakfast at the Yale Club, where we stayed while we were moving into our new apartment. The Yale Club also welcomes UVA alumni (aka Daddy), while we kept Grammy's Penn status on the down-low (though we hear that she once dated a very nice young man at Yale before setting her sites on Granddad!).

13 Miles!

Buddies

There's no better way to spend a Friday evening in Central Park than with old friends from Marin. Thanks for the good times, Anthony, Oscar and Zachary (and their parents!)

Camouflage

Will applied what he learned about camouflage during our visit to the Intrepid aircraft carrier museum to this drawing.

Chasing Fireflies

Will made this jar of fireflies at school, which reminded us of the very first time he saw fireflies this time last year, in Indiana.

Long Haul

Will biked 11 miles with Daddy today!

We discovered that Uncle Kit likes to go biking in a very similar outfit! He noted, "Aunt Heidy normally sits in the back seat of this bike, with the cover to protect her from sun and rain, but she stepped out to take the photo. Please let Will know that we always wear our helmets when we bike, and sometimes give offerings to the spirit house for extra luck." (He was right, Will asked about the helmet!)

Happy Memorial Day!

Blues at the Beach

We were thinking about venturing to Point Lookout, Long Island for our first New York beach adventure as a family. That the Blue Angels were flying at nearby Jones Beach sealed the deal. We discovered that Point Lookout is a hidden gem of a beach a mere hour away from the City. The home where we stayed came complete with a wagon, which Will deftly navigated the few blocks to the sand.











Will and Daddy built their biggest subway tunnel to date, this time incorporating multiple entrances.














The skies were gray on Day 1, but, undeterred, we brought a box lunch of softshell crab, stuffed clams and fresh fish to the shoreline to watch the Blues. Day 2 arrived with perfect weather, and we were treated to an amazing show right on the beach!

"Fat Albert" kicked off the show, flying directly overhead. Then came those Blues.

Here are some highlights from the show (along with some commentary from Will):

Look Mom, No Training Wheels!

Channeling His Inner Rachael Ray

Dear Tooth Fairy

The New American

Will's rendition of "The New American" livery.

Vernal Pools at Muscoot Farm

Will went hiking with Daddy, Grammy and Granddad at Muscoot Farm to explore the vernal pools of springtime. He got to touch a real frog, noting that he had to get his hands wet first to protect the frog.

United Nations

Will's school had a "spirit week" of sorts a few weeks ago and one day was a day to wear a jersey or colors of your favorite sports team.

Having chosen UVA over UNC, our conversation about it went like this:

Me: "Will, that Virginia shirt looks great on you! I like how you chose to wear it with your striped engineer pants!"

Will: "Yes, even my underwear matches! But you know, I still like UNC, too. It's just that...Virginia doesn't win as much as UNC so I think I should help them."

Then he paused, realizing the dig on his chosen team.

Will: "But, well, Virginia is winning more now."

Me: "Yes, Virginia is playing very well. I think it's great that you cheer for both teams. Even though I like UNC, it's okay if you are choosing Virginia today."

Will: "Weeelll, don't worry Mama, I'm still cheering for your team on the inside!"

A diplomat in the making. A visit to the UN seemed apropos.

St. Patrick's Day Parade

Big Leap

Will has really enjoyed gym class at preschool this spring, including flying through the air during this week's obstacle course. Hockey was a favorite gym class sport, while he also worked on his basketball moves both at school and at basketball class. Will also tried baseball this spring, too! For now, he thinks he's going to stick with basketball and tennis (and of course, skiing!).

First Tracks

Thunder Ridge was more of a hill (in fairness, the ridge is behind the camera!), but Will's first time out was a big success!