THREE

Happy 3rd Birthday to my sweet Berkey Boo
Mom and Dad love you little man.

A Nativity Play

If you have nothing else to do, feel free to watch our Nativity Play.

Christmas Day

Berkeley did it! He was good enough to have Santa bring him lots of fun toys! Santa showed up sometime after midnight from what I can gather and brought Berke an awesome kitchen and Mickey Mouse Train. Berke was also excited to find the sweet peddle car his Papa Taft sent him. What a lucky kiddo.

Berkeley LOVES his new car and asks to take it with him whenever we leave the house. Sadly this is not a car that is easy to haul around town with us. He hasn't figured out how to peddle it yet, but his feet can reach; for now he is happy to sit in it while eating candy and playing with his Mickey Rocket Ship, another fun toy from Papa Taft.

Mr. McDuff was not left out of the fun on Christmas morning. This furry creature enjoys opening presents the most in our family. Too bad Berke was not willing to share his opening task like he was last year. Berke became very protective of his presents and would tattle on Mr. McDuff every time he tried to "help" Berke open a present; Berke would have NO help!

Berke kept asking for a Mickey Train and a Minnie Phone for Christmas. Gram came through with the Minnie phone; I think she bought it before he even asked for it. Grandmas sure do know how to spoil their grandchildren.

Christian had a nice Christmas, he scored a nice sweater, thermos, a new coat and some other good finds. He spoiled me this year with some beautiful sweaters from the LOFT and some new TOMs.

Behold, the beloved Mickey Train!

We have a Christmas tradition at our house, after opening our presents we partake of Grandma Taft's monkey bread along with some fruit salad, OJ and chocolate milk.
Delicious!

After opening, playing, eating and playing we all needed a nap.
Then we headed to our friends house to eat dinner and celebrate with them.

Berke sure does love RyRy.
Ryan made an yummy dinner of ratatouille, spinach pie and an amazing dessert.

We were happy to spend the evening with good friend. This may be our last big holiday celebration with them as they will be moving to Madison, WI in June. So sad!

Berkeley sort of stayed up until 10:45 p.m. that night; he was having so much fun playing with his toys I just couldn't put him to bed.
Thanks to all our wonderful family who sent wonderful gifts. We were spoiled as usual.

Here is a short video of Berke opening a present!

On the Eve of Christmas

The 5th Annual Gentry Christmas Eve Shin Dig was held at our home this year. It is hard to believe that we have been in Boston for 5 Christmas' in a row. Each year we have had a party and each year it gets a little better, this year I believe it was the best!

We had an amazing spread of food that consisted of a cheese ball and crackers, a vegetable platter, stuffed mushrooms, eggplant parm, home made mac and cheese, butternut squash risotto, pasta salad, green salad, rolls, gingerbread cake with caramel topping, chocolate cake, fudge and toffee. Not to mention lemon water and home made wassail.
The food was AWESOME!

We had a very fun crowd this year as well, and somehow managed to fit 23 bodies into our little two bedroom apartment. It seemed to work out just fine however and was nice that we could all spend this lovely holiday together.

Once everyone had a chance to fill their bellies, we put on a wonderful production of the nativity story. I wrote out a small program this year to make it flow a bit better. Ryan was the narrator and those who didn't have a part in the play were cast as heavenly angels that sang Christmas carols throughout the play. It turned out really nice and humorous. As the director I felt like I was herding cats at moments, but a Christmas memory was created and a laugh was had by all.

Amelia, Barret and baby "G" sus really played the parts of Mary, Joseph and Baby Jesus with the most professionalism. Outstanding performance really!

Here are the 3 little guys that got cast as the Shepherds, Quentin, Berkeley and Soren.
One of them refused to hold still for even one second of the play and chose dancing and running around as a better option, one of them refused to dress for the part, insisting that he was a modern day shepherd in today's clothing (this may or may not be the little boy who has to have his hands held down just to take this picture). The third little shepherd was TERRIFIED of his sheep (aka McDuff). So all of the Shepherds lacked a bit in one area, but overall did a great job and were a handsome little bunch!

Christian played the part of piano player, it came quite naturally to him.

Meet our Wise Men, Charlie, Presley (wise woman) and Noah. They were spot on making sure baby "G" sus got his gifts of a pine cone, a snowman box and a candy cane. They did an outstanding job.

Let us not forget Little Eloise as the "Star" of the show.
Look how brightly she shines!

After the big production there were more light hearted Christmas Songs sung around the piano; the adults sang and the kids had a dance party to the music.

It was a really fun and special night. We are lucky to be surrounded with so many wonderful people that we could spend the night with!

Little Berke side note:
Berke was more excited to play with his friends at the party than to have Santa come that night. He was thrilled to have some of his favorite friends at his house to play with.

When I was explaining that we would be celebrating Jesus Birthday at the party, he got really upset and said, "No! I want to celebrate my birthday!"
Our kid has some jealousy issues!

We hope you all had a wonderful Christmas, and were able to spend it with family and friends as well!

Happiest Place on Earth? I think YES!

We started planning our trip to Disney World in Florida about 9 months ago. I have wanted to go since we moved here and we finally decided it was time to go. We started saving Christian's piano student money and put it into our Disney World fund. We told Berkeley we were going to Mickey Mouse's House for months and he has been asking about it constantly!
We had been to Disney Land with the Gentry clan close to Christmas a few years ago and I decided that was the time to go because it is double the magic (not to mention in Florida the weather is in the 70's in December)!

After what seemed like waiting FOREVER, the morning finally came. Our flight left at 7 a.m. so we woke little Berke up at 5:00 a.m. I told him it was time to get up and asked him if he knew where we were going? In his tired little state, he got a huge smile on his face and whispered, Mickey Mouse House! I told him I had a surprise for him and showed him a new Minnie Mouse doll (something he has been asking for for at least 5 months). He looked at it, grabbed it and hugged it; quickly he grabbed Mickey and was the happiest lad of all time. He wouldn't let these two mice down and we ended up taking them all the way to Florida with us.
Here is the early morning shot.
(Seriously one of the cutest moments)

Our flight touched down at 10:30 a.m. and we headed straight to Disney World. We decided to go to the Animal Kingdom. There was saw a great Lion King Show, The Finding Nemo Musical (Berke is officially now OBSESSED with Finding Nemo), went on a Safari and saw lots of cool animals. We even ran into Mickey, Goofy and Pluto. Berke was excited but apprehensive of his bigger than life sized friends. After the first day he was giving hugs to all his friends and SO happy to see them all. He couldn't stop talking about all the characters he met (and still can't), it is pretty stinking cute.

The next day we got dressed in our Target (much cheaper) Mickey gear and headed to Cape May Cafe to have breakfast with Minnie, Goofy and Donald.

Berkeley enjoyed his Mickey Mouse waffles while watching the characters and waiting for them to get him. I am pretty sure this smile says it all. This kid was in HEAVEN!

His favorite gal pal Minnie. He would have taken his Minnie doll everywhere with him if I would have let him.

Donald!
Berke ran and gave him a hug which was a huge step for this shy little monkey.

After Breakfast we wen to the Magic Kingdom! We started off in Fantasy Land where Berke enjoyed the classic Dumbo ride, Peter Pan flight, spinning tea cups and he loved It's a Small World with all the music and dancing.

His favorite ride was the Buzz Lightyear ride. We had to go on that one twice.
Meeting Mickey and Minnie was a huge highlight. We went into their private studio and had some nice time with them. Berke gave them both hugs and was happy to finally be at Mickey's house. He didn't quite comprehend that Disney World was Mickey's house, her literally was looking for his clubhouse I think. I was able to talk him into this room being part of his house so he finally felt we had been to Mickey's house. Kids are so literal!

We had a great time watching the parades, meeting more friends and dancing along to the shows. We met up with a friend from Brandies who was gracious enough to let Christian and I go on a few "big kid" rides while she watched Berke as he napped.

We attended the very Mickey Christmas Party where they lit up the beautiful castle! There was an amazing parade, hot chocolate, cookies, we attended a dance party with Goofy and Pluto, and enjoyed some snow on a 70 degree night.

The next day we went to Epcot. Berke was just waking up from a nap as we arrived as you can see.
This was a cool place, but my least favorite of the parks to attend with a small child. It had a great Nemo ride that Berke loved, but it was designed more for the older crowd if you ask me.

We did manage to find Daisy at the park.
Afterwards I told Berke we had met everyone; Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Pluto, Donald and Daisy! Berke then said, but what about Chip and Dale. This kid doesn't forget anyone!

Wouldn't you know who was just around the corner right after he said that! These two chipmunks are the most adorable characters! They are so good with the kids. Berke was super excited to see them. He was so formal in his pictures, he cracks me up.

If I had a $1 for every time someone told me my kid looked like the kid in Jerry McGuire during this trip I would have at least $100 bucks.

Next day: Hollywood Studios
Such a cool place, but the crowd was CRAZY!! Until that day the crowds were very manageable and we never waited more than 10 minutes for any ride. Until Sunday at Hollywood Studios; apparently the kids were out of school and everyone had arrived for the holiday week. It was NUTS! We did manage to meet some great Pixar and Disney Jr. Characters but didn't wait for any rides that had a wait time of 120 minutes.
Berke did enjoy a fun show of Disney Jr. Playhouse. He even got pictures with Handy Manny and Jake the Pirate. He loved these two, even though the only time he watches Disney Jr. is when we are on vacation (the hotel or my parents have cable).

Lightning McQueen and Mater

We had such a fun vacation! Each day was long and full of fun. Seeing my little boy so happy and enjoying every minute made it all worth it. Twice during our time at Magic Kingdom he just randomly grabbed my face and said, "I love you Mommy!" and then kissed me.
I love this little boy so much!

I can see why they call this place the Happiest Place on Earth; Berke's face told that story oh too well.

It's a Wonderful Life

It has been Festive week as Christmas approaches. This week we had our ward Wreath Making Activity, Church Christmas Party, Church Christmas Program and watched Elf, Rudolph and Frosty (Claymation type). We've got spirit yes we do!

Friday Night we had our Church Christmas Party. We had a lovely dinner and Santa made a special appearance. My kid isn't gonna sit on Santa's lap without a bribe that is for sure. So we did a family picture with Santa and as before I had to tell Santa what Berkeley wanted (A Mickey Mouse Train and Minnie Mouse Toy), and give Berke a cookie afterward. We sort of got a smile out of the kid this time around. He even looked at Santa and shook his head that he would be good.

Things I love about Christmas this year:
1- Berkeley calls Christmas "Chrischris"
2-Berkeley loves Christmas music and when we are in the car he always yells to me, "LOUDA" so I can blast it in the car and he can dance in his car seat. His favorites are Jingle Bell Rock, Jingle Bells and Santa Clause is Coming to Town.
3-We started the Elf on the Shelf tradition this year. When I asked Berke what he wanted to name the Elf he said, "God." C and I had a good laugh about that. We finally decided on the name Isaak. He is sorta into Issak, mostly just finding where he is hiding. It has yet to work as a threat, so I was a bit sad about that.
4- I bought a new Christmas Album by Straight No Chaser, an A Capella group and I LOVE it and highly recommend it to those I love.

I also love Cambridge 1st Ward Wreath Making. It is my favorite tradition that our ward(church) does. Each year there is a lovely program, a nice soup and salad dinner and we make wreaths out of Christmas boughs.

This year the program was AMAZING. It had some really gorgeous music and a wonderful program. The program focus on Mary, Jesus' mother and what it must of been like her as the mother of Christ to have to give birth in a stable. Having given birth myself this hit home pretty strongly. The glorious birth of our Savior was in such a humble setting; it was a really powerful and spiritual experience that I am grateful for.

Berke also had his little pal Q over for a Christmas movie play date. The boys watched Rudolph and Frosty while eating popcorn, fruit snacks, sour patch kids and drinking apple juice. It was a pretty good night for these two kids. They loved the cartoons and I found myself wondering how Rudolph became so popular, because it really is pretty terrible. I do remember loving it as a child, so there must be something magical about it.

I really do love this time of year and all the magic it brings to me, my family and my home.
I hope everyone is enjoying their holidays too!

Weekends

Who doesn't love the weekend?
I love it cause it means I get to spend some quality time with my boys.
This weekend Christian was in Arizona surprising his family with a special visit.

Friday night I went out with some of gal pals to see the Nutcracker. I haven't seen it in nearly 8 years so it was time to see it again for sure. It was a very intimate show that was wonderful. The highlight was the little mice played by little kids that put a big smile on every one's face.
A special thanks to my friend Kate for watching Berke so I could attend. Berke loved that he got to play with his friend Soren; the entire next day he talked about how much fun he had with his little buddy.

Saturday we had play date at the Museum of Science with my friend from work Liegi and her little girl, Elizabeth.

****I am going to let you all in on the BEST kept secret around: If you have children, there is a website: www.amse.org. It is a great website where you can buy a family pass for a year for $40, which includes 2 adults and all your kiddos. This pass is good in all 50 states for various museums. In MA it is good for the Museum of Science, the Children's Museum and The Museum of Natural History at Harvard. We have also used it at the Children's Museum in Utah. So basically you can attend all these museums for $40 a year for your entire family!!! HELLO!! AWESOMENESS! So far we have been to the Science Museum at least 12 times, the Children's Museum twice and a few other places as we have traveled. It is great Christmas present, not to mention it is great for winter activities.....and it pays itself off in 1 or 2 visits depending on your family size! So there you have it. If you read my blog, you now have my Christmas gift to you!

I digress.
This is Berke man listening to the sea shell; he can hear the ocean.

He is totally a little Harry Potter here, talking with this cool orange snake. He told me the snake wants to get out.

Huge light bright with his pal Elizabeth. Later that day he told me Elizabeth was a cute girl; could he have his first crush?

This fun ball drop extravaganza has always been one of Berke favorite spots at the MoS. I could watch it for hours as well, it is really cool. Not to mention the window behind offers a great view of the Charles River.

Berke had a looooong 31/2 hour nap after this outing. I had to wake him from a dead sleep at 4:30 so we could go to a Christmas Party with our friends Megan, Christopher and Q.
These two are the best of buds, they had the best time together.

We had our first visit with Santa as well. I had to do a lot of talk through with Berke about this as he was TERRIFIED when Santa walked in. He agreed to sit on his lap if I would stay by his side, if I would tell Santa what he wanted and if I gave him a cookie afterward. So he sat on Santa's lap in pure fear; he wouldn't smile at all, but he also didn't cry. Not too shabby.

This kid is set on wanting a Mickey and Minnie Mouse train and I have had ZERO luck finding any such thing. Any tips?

Thanksgiving, NYC style

Thanksgiving 2011 was nothing short of SPECTACULAR!
We took a road trip to NYC with our pals Gloria and Stef to experience the
Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.
It was something we needed to get off our bucket list; since we didn't know if we'd be in the area after this summer, we decided to go for it.
We left Wednesday early evening and to our surprise and thrill, there was very LITTLE traffic.
We rented a small apartment in the East Village and enjoyed a fun weekend in the
BIG APPLE!

We dressed super warm and headed to the parade route at 6 a.m. The weather was perfect; it was in the 40's and with all my warm gear I was not cold in the slightest! Thanks to Nicole for my cool Birthday Hat and Gloria to my awesome birthday cowl. We had a good spot and were able to see the parade very well.

Berke really liked the big balloons, the rest he was semi interested in, unless it was the sesame street float.

Sponge Bob

Mickey Mouse, this was by far Berkeley's favorite balloon. He waved at Mickey and couldn't take his eyes off him. This kid loves Mickey!

The classic Kermit balloon whom you cant help but cheer for!

The parade was so amazing; it was surreal to see how giant those balloons are in person. I recommend everyone experiencing the parade live at least once.

Berke was passed out 90 seconds after the parade. The long night travel, the early rising and the excitement of the parade just wore the kid out. He really was a trooper.

We could have gone out and paid $60 a person for a traditional Thanksgiving dinner, but we opted for the $20 pizza instead. We were able to find a Jewish Bakery open, so we did get some pumpkin and pecan pie (which is the best part of the feast anyhow).

Black Friday we headed to Times Square to hit up Toys R Us and ride the Ferris Wheel inside.
Yes, I admit it, I put my kid on a leash (I apologize for judging all the parents with kids on leashes in the past). I knew B was gonna run around the toy store; I also knew that it was Black Friday at the Biggest Toy Store in the U.S. I had no choice but to put the kid on the leash and I can say now it was a good choice.
Berke was in TOY HEAVEN! He loved all the Cars stuff, Mickey Mouse stuff, Yo Gabba Gabba stuff, etc. etc. We waited in line and finally made it onto the Ferris Wheel.

We road the Mr. Potato Head Ferris Wheel car and Berke was on cloud 9!
It took B a total of 30 seconds to fall asleep once he hit the stroller after 3 hours in a toy store.

We then visited the 9/11 Memorial which was beautiful and humbling. The weight of the loss from that day is still heavy, but there is a peace in remembering these people who lost their life that tragic day.

From there we walked over the Brooklyn Bridge. So cool, such a great view of the city!

Here we all are, having a blast!

There was also lots of rough housing and pillow fights! Berke couldn't get enough of "pillow game" with aunt Stefy, he wanted to play it every night...all night long.

What a memorable trip to NYC. We had such a great time. NYC is not the easiest city to maneuver through with a small child, nor is it a quite place at any time of day, but it is a very fun place to visit.
Thanks G and Stefy for putting up with us, we had a fabulouso time!