The last "real" post on this blog was from Thanksgiving 2015. So, as the clock ticks down the last few hours of 2016, I'm going to recap a year's worth of events and milestone in one, long post...
December 2015:
In December Marni performed in the White Bird Theater presentation of Wizard of Oz.
We celebrated Christmas in Karen and Glenn's new (but not yet renovated) home. And, since there really wasn't a kitchen there, Christmas dinner was at the Hawthorne Hotel.
Our next stop on Christmas break was Albany where we met up with the cousins. The kids strapped on skates and roller-skated at Guptill's Arena.
At Karen and Glenn's new house
Waiting to be seated at the Hawthorne House
Cousins in Albany
Skating at Guptill's
New Years Eve day from Battery Park City
January 2016:
We had cousin Tyler stay with us over New Years. We toured around the World Trade Center site and took in a showing of the new Star Wars movie.
In late January New York got hit by a big blizzard and the girls headed to Prospect Park for sledding.
Also... Stella had to create a video for Hebrew school in which she interviewed her family and asked what they would do if they were God. She did a great job!
At Star Wars
Sledding in Prospect Park
The blizzard
Stella being followed by the Abominable Snow Man
February 2016:
February was pretty quiet. The girls and I took a trip to Coney Island for some hot dogs at Nathan's. And I managed to capture Marni signing the song in the Volvo commercial that she had been signing for the past year.
Eating outdoors in February
Our favorite hot dog place
March 2016:
In March Marni performed in another White Bird Theater production. We also visited the Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum.
At the Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum
Marni just launched a nuke
White Bird
April 2016:
In April Marni celebrated her 10th birthday roller skating with friends in Prospect Park. Stella performed a monologue for the book The Outsiders for her MS51 class. Stella accompanied me to see the off-Broadway show, "Cagney". And we took the girls and two of their school friends (Baila and Andrea) to Kalahari Resort (indoor water park).
Stella at "Cagney"
Marni's b-day party
Stella at the MS51 "Outsiders" monologues
Stella at the MS51 "Outsiders" monologues
Baila, Marni, Andrea and Stella at Kalahari Resort
Kalahari Resort
May 2016:
In May Stella turned 12! She continued to practice her clarinet in order to be ready for her MS51 concert in June.
We visited the Metropolitan Museum of Art and attended Dani Saril's Bat Mitzvah.
And, as always, we headed up to Maine to open the cottage!
Stella's favorite artist at The Met
Just another day at the Shepard household
Heading off to the bat mitzvah
At the bat mitzvah
Lunch at my most favorite restaurant in the world!
Stella's first of 17 lobsters for 2016
Entertainment at The Cottage
Idiot
June 2016:
June was a busy month! Stella had her MS51 band concert and did a great job playing clarinet. She also had her birthday party at Pinot's Palette.
Marni performed in another White Bird production, and in the PS39 talent show, AND in the PS39 Dance Festival, AND played recorder in a PS39 philharmonic performance.
Stella headed off to the Catskills for her 2-night, 3-day 6th grade school trip to Ashokan Center. She loved it!
We also joined the Stefanoff/Imhoff gang and the Asanovics for our annual Rye Playland get-together.
MS51 band concert
White Bird
Two artists at Stella's Pinot's Pallet bday party
The annual Stefanoff/Imhoff, Asanovic, Shepard get-together at Rye Playland
Marni and Baila at the PS39 talent show
Off to Ashokan
PS39 dance festival
Last day of 4th grade for these besties
Last day of school sushi feast
July 2016:
The month started with a week at BAX summer camp and then a week at Textile Arts Center camp in Brooklyn.
The girls also took part in their first wedding and had a blast! Then they went to cousin Joel and Adriane's pool party.
Then... poof! We moved.
The move out to Verona took 12 long hours. The girls dropped by at the end of the day to see their new house. Over the next two weeks the girls had even more summer fun at MKA Star Camp in Montclair. Their friends from Brooklyn even came out for a day of fun at the Verona pool.
And on July 31st the fun moved up to Maine for a month.
Brooklyn camp girls
Joel and Adriane's pool party
Flower girls at a friend's wedding
Home sweet home
The new car
Exploring the river (more like a creek) next door
Verona Community Pool
Their new downstairs play area
First night in the new house
The Brooklyn girls come to visit
Brooklyn girls at the pool
Brooklyn at the pool
A gift from the Brooklyn girls
Celebrating my birthday in the new house
And we made it to Maine!
August 2016:
As always, August is Old Orchard Beach month. The Hoffman cousins and the Schwartz/Glovin cousins came to visit as did Nana and Papa and Karen and Glenn. And we made side trips to Chebeague Island and Acadia State Park.
The first walk on the beach
One of 17 lobsters that Stella ate in 2016
Yes, the kitties came with us too
Dinner with aunt Toots
Crabbing
Marni's favorite ice cream place (yuck)
On the ferry to Chebeague Island
Biking on Chebeague
Funtown USA
Digging a hole with the cousins
Taken from my flight up to Maine. Can you see The Cottage?
Chebeague
My fancy dinner partners at Chebeague
Four square
The annual lobster shirt photo
The annual jumping photo
Four square with the Schwartz/Glovin cousins
Acadia State Park
Acadia State Park
Acadia State Park
September 2016:
With summer over it was time for the girls to head to their new school. Luckily, in Verona middle school starts at the 5th grade. So Stella and Marni are in the same school for the next 2 years. We walked them over and some of the great teachers from the school helped each girl find their way.
Meanwhile, Marni's dream finally came true when we signed her up for recreational soccer. We bought her all the equipment and off she went to practice. She loved it! She even had a bunch of her Brooklyn friends come out to watch one of her first games. And I became a soccer dad. Stella signed up for group tennis lessons and had a great time learning how to play.
Later in the month the Stefanoff/Imhoff, Asanovic, and Shepard families got together for the annual apple picking adventure.
First day of school
Apple picking
Marni and her soccer team, the Wolves.
Brooklyn kids playing in the creek
October 2016:
October was filled with Marni soccer games and a very special wedding. And Halloween (which we don't seems to have any pictures of).
The wedding was Lisa and Ron's wedding and the girls (and I) were a part of the wedding party.
The Wolves' soccer season ended in October with a win and an end-of season ice cream party.
And we also had a visit from the Gluck family which included fun on a ropes course.
At Lisa and Ron's wedding
Rosh Hashanah at Lisa's
Meanwhile, the cats are loving their new home
Marni the goalie
Hanging in their room
More goalie Marni
Wolves girls exchanging phone numbers at the ice cream party
Ropes course with the Gluck twins
The Wolves at their final game
November 2016:
In November Nana and Papa, and Karen and Glenn came to see our new home. It was nice to finally show them around.
Marni participated in her school's Pumpkin Chunkin' project where teams design, build and then compete with their own pumpkin catapults.
Stella got her braces back on from her new New Jersey orthodontist.
And Thanksgiving was once again back in Old Orchard.
Fall at the Peckman River (next to the house)
Toots and Glenn come to visit
Stella joins Nana Bev after her 7th grade social (she liked it)
Guess who
First snowfall
Finally pitching in
New PJs
Pumpkin Chunkin'
Pumpkin Chunkin'
Thanksgiving at The Cottage
Marni was always stealing the dogs' bed
The chefs
Delicious Thanksgiving dinner
Stella's 17th and final lobster of 2016
This was a yawn, not a murder
Ice cream in New Jersey during their visit
December 2016:
In December I "christened" the house by having a holiday cocktail party. It was nice to have the house filled with friends.
We had our first substantial snowfall.
Stella went caroling with her Girl Scouts troop. I took Marni to Brooklyn to ice skate with Bess and then to a painting birthday party for Maya.
For the Xmas/Hanukkah break we went up to Massachusetts and spent time with Nana and Papa, and Karen and Glenn. When we returned from Mass. cousins Tyler and Delia came over to stay with us for 2 nights.
And at the end of the month the Hoffmans and the Shepards had a lot of fun at Medieval Times.
