Happy New Year - שנה טובה ומתוקה

All dressed up, baby in tow, and ready to celebrate! Best wishes to all for a happy, healthy and wonderful year head, Us

Our Trip to the States, Part 2: Jersey Shore, Family Style

And onto the Jersey shore, where good ol' Bradley Beach served as the stomping grounds for all of Savta's grandkids (and big kids). Day in and day out we enjoyed beautiful beach (and pool) weather. And in between sand castles and running in waves, all the cousins played, drew, sang, danced, loved and laughed - and us parents got some nice QT on the porch after hours. It was truly a madhouse of fun in the sun with family.

Evie and Abel back from the beach

The girls sharing toys and playing together (really, it was very cute)

Playtime (or chaos, depending on your point of view :)

Ula shows off her head-standing skills as the oldest

Olive enjoys some porch-side creativity time

Tzofi relishes playtime with her cousins

And Uncle Harry demonstrates one of his patented moves (yes, it's the robot)

Trip to the States, Part 1: Out on the Island

So our August trip to the States was jampacked with excitement: New family, old friends, good times, lots of ice cream - and that was just the beginning out in Long Island.

The trip kicked off with a valiant effort to stave off Tzofi's jetlag. But the ocean-side park at West Meadow Beach failed to rally her attention. Sprinklers, swings, slides - no reaction. Ice cream? Zzzzz. She was really sleeping in this swing. Really.

A late afternoon stop with Dada to the Duck Pond though got her up and moving. Good times at Dada's favorite local haunts.

Day 2's excitement was a big welcome to Baby Joshua! Big hugs for Auntie Emily and Uncle John. And more grandparent-fun for Grandma and Grandpa. Hooray more toys for everyone!

Finally, our weekend adventure to the Riverhead Aquarium was a big hit - mayim (water), dagim (fish), penguins and more. Tzofi pointed,shouted with glee and dove right in. A first experience for her and fun for the rest of us.

Last Summer Days of her First Year at School

So we have much to catch up on - seems like every day Tzofi's showing off new words, skills and fun. So before we jump ahead, here's one more recap of some highlights from Tzofi's last days at school in August 2008.

Baking with blue playdough during Blue Week


Getting wet with yellow toys in the 'pool' during Yellow Week

Breaking out in song and dance

Looking supercute in Hawaiin red during Red Week

Tzofi's End-of-Year Party Blowout: The Best Party I've Been to in Years

Although Tzofi has just about another month left of school, the end-of-year extravaganza took place last week - and let me tell you, this was the best party I've been to in years. The whole room was transformed into an under the sea theme. Blue and white balloons and inner tubes decorated the ceiling. Walls were covered in murals with all sorts of fish and sea life. And in the center of it all: the pupper master, Efrat.

Leading an encore performance of 'The Little Fish' Efrat pulled out all the stops with an extravagant, interactive performance that had all the kids dancing, singing, pretending to swim, eat ice cream, put on hats and sunscreen, and even bury themselves in sand. There were songs, there was sun and there was imagination and great fun. And puppets. Lots of sea animal puppets singing to music the kids knew and loved.

Can't even tell you what a great time Tzofi had. Dancing in the sea. Rowing along with her friends. Digging in the sand. Eating her ice cream. Below are some pics of the fun. After the performance everyone ate breakfast together. Tzila read a poem about all the kids, how much they've grown and how much she'll miss those who aren't returning next year. Us parents were prepared with our own thank you wishes and presents. And the final hours were spent reminiscing about the year, playing with their new presents from Tzila (inner tubes and puzzles with their pictures), and going nuts with joy.

Tzofi's End-of-Year Party Blowout: The Pics

Dressed for Blue Day

We're still catching up on fun things from the past two months but in the meantime, check out Tzofi all dressed up in her blue Hawaiian outfit for 'blue day' at school. (If it isn't obvious it's the last day of the week in which they learn about a certain color. And on that day they do as much as they can in that color - from arts and crafts to even food and snacks!)