5th Anniversary

Today Clay and I are celebrating our 5th wedding anniversary!  I cannot believe that we have been married for FIVE years and together for over 10!

I have the best husband and he is an awesome dad. Life is not always perfect but we are conquering it together! I could not have asked for a better partner.

Happy Anniversary to us!

Will goes to his first VBS

I have gone to VBS all my life and loved every minute of it!  I knew when it came time for VBS at our church this year that I would have to take Will to experience some of it. He is too little to participate in a class so I took him the first three days to the opening worship rally.  During the worship rally they sing songs and watch a little video. 

Saddle Ridge Ranch.  The set was awesome!

The theme for this years VBS was based around a Ranch theme. The motto for the week was "Have Questions? Ask God!" and the bible verse was James 1:5: Now if any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives to all generously and without criticizing, and it will be given to him.

Will on the first night of VBS!

Will was a little cranky this week due to teething and napping issues, so not every moment was happy but I think he enjoyed it for the most part. He really wanted to go on the stage.  He settled for going up in the balcony and watching from there.

 I am glad that our family has such an awesome church family.  They all love Will and welcomed him to be a part of VBS even though he was technically "too young" to participate.

Clay came with us on Wednesday night.

I hope that through the years he will come to love going to VBS as much I as did as a kid.  VBS is such a wonderful ministry for children and it teaches them so much about Jesus and His love for us.

Will and Ashley!! 

Ashley did a wonderful job pulling everything together.  I am so thankful that she is serving our church so faithfully.  She has a heart for children and that shines through in everything she does!

Will and Beth. 

Also, the teachers and volunteers were fantastic! They did all that was asked of them and more!

Will "riding" the horse at Saddle Ridge Ranch.

15 Month Old Well Visit

Will had his 15 month well visit yesterday. 

Here are his stats:
Weight: 24 pounds, 1 ounce
Height: 30 1/2 inches
Head Circumference: 19 inches

Dr. R checked him out and everything looked great. He did have to get one shot that he wasn't to fond of.  He let out a little whimper but them he was fine.

Dr. R said he is meeting all the milestones for his age.  He has more than a six word vocabulary and he follows basic instructions.  He also knows how to brush his teeth and comb his hair. He can point out your eyes, nose, mouth, teeth, and ears.

Dr. R did not have any concerns about his development or growth.

The only thing we discussed in length was Will's eating habits.  The only "adult" foods he will eat are snack type foods (Cheerios, goldfish, and occasionally bananas and french fries). He also will not eat any type of meat.  Dr. R said he wasn't too concerned with this and that hopefully between now and 18 months old he will make the transition. Will is by no means starving.  Dr. R also said daycare could help with this situation since all the kids in his class eat the normal lunch they provide.  Hopefully watching his peers eat the "adult" food will encourage Will to do the same.  We will just keep offering him food and see what happens.

I am so thankful that Will is happy and healthy, and that he is thriving!

Fun Weekend

We had a fun, relaxing weekend at our house. We didn't have any plans so we just hung out and got out a few times.

Friday night we hung out at home, ate Carpenetti's pizza, and watched Valentine's Day.  The movie was cute and the food was GREAT!

Saturday, we decided it was time to get a our laundry and house under control.  We spent the morning sorting clothes and cleaning up.  Around lunch time we decided to head out to look for a nap mat for Will.  Uncle John joined us.  Our first stop was Target. Will tried on a hat.

I didn't find a nap mat but I did find some cute canvas bins to use for all of Will's toys.

We left Target and headed to eat at Chili's.  Lunch was good but by the time we were done eating Will was losing  his mind so we had to get out of there.  Apparently when we left lunch he decided he needed to take one of the crayons with him. We leave Chili's to head to Learning Express to resume the nap mat search.  We pull into the parking lot and I go to get Will out of his car seat and he has blue all over his face. In the 2 minutes we were in the car, HE ATE A BLUE CRAYON!!! I could have died! Not to mention, John was sitting in the backseat with him and didn't notice or stop him!!

We didn't find the nap mat, so we headed home to finish up our house work. Will tried on his new faux-crocs that his Auntie Lisa got him. He wore them the rest of the weekend.

Note: I just noticed that it looks like Winnie is trying to attack Will in this picture! Haha! She was just running behind him.

Sunday, we got up and went to church. We had lunch with my grandparents which is always fun.  After lunch, we went to Brookwood Mall to see the kick-off event for the Miss Alabama Pageant.  I have always loved watching pageants and this year, Robbin got me tickets to all the preliminary nights for Miss Alabama. I am so excited!

Sunday afternoon I headed over and visited with Leslie and little Jackson. This is the first time I have gone without Will and Ray wasn't home, so Leslie and I got to have some good girl talk and I got to snuggle with Jackson.  Leslie is hilarious and Jackson is so sweet!

We capped off the weekend with the start of VBS at our church.  Clay was at home watching the Auburn Baseball game so I took Will to the beginning part of VBS. They sing and dance so I thought he would enjoy it. I was wrong. He didn't have a good nap and he is teething so he was a bear!  We stayed for a little bit then I took him home.  He was obviously tired because he went to sleep sitting straight up drinking his milk!

It was a nice and relaxing weekend. I enjoyed it because this week is going to be busy-busy!!!

Memorial Day 2010 and Will's First Boat Ride

We spent Memorial Day weekend at the lake. Clay and I were both off Friday and Monday so it was a nice long weekend.

Will's first juice box!

I love our lake house and have spent so much time there growing up. I hope that Will will love it there as much as I do. 

Climbing stairs.

We had a great time hanging out with my extended family.  Will had fun playing, playing, and playing.  We spent so much time outside and it was just wonderful.  It wasn't too hot and it only rained a couple of times.

Julie, Clay, Hunter, Richard, and Will

Playing dominoes with Brandon.

We bought Will his first life jacket and he was able to go onto the pier and the boat. We went to the lake a couple of times last year but he was so small we never bought him a life jacket or took him on the boat.  This year was totally different.  Since he is so mobile,  he could go anywhere so we had to take some precautions. First, we had to put gates up on the porch so he couldn't get to the water without an adult.  Second, we had to get him a life jacket so he could go in the water and take boat rides.

Not so happy about the life jacket.

The life jacket was not a big hit at first, but the more and more we let him wear it, the more comfortable he was.  By the end of the weekend it didn't seem to bother him at all.

Getting his first skiing lesson so he can water ski like mommy and Uncle John!

Uncle John showing Will how to wakeboard.

I am so glad he is not scared of the water or the boat. He got to go on his first boat ride and he loved it! He would stand on the pier and watch everyone riding SeaDoos.  He would say "go, go, go" when he saw someone ride by the pier. He even went swimming in the lake for the first time.  He was so comfortable on the pier that I thought he was going to jump in the water a couple of times, so we had to keep a close eye on him. It was so much fun and I hope he enjoys going more and more!

First boat ride.

Helping Pop drive the boat.

Will did have a couple of not so great moments.  He didn't like it when people would go off the main porch to go to the pier or out into the yard.  He would scream and cry because he didn't want anyone doing something without him.  Every time Clay went anywhere he would cry. He loves his daddy!

Hanging with Julie on the SeaDoo.  (It was tied to the pier)

Swimming in the lake for the first time.

Overall, it was a wonderful weekend spending time with family and eating!  I am thankful that there are men and women who sacrifice their lives and time with their families, so that I am free to spend time with mine!

Playing Cards.  Richard, Brad, Aunt Ann, Clay, and Mom.

A Rough Week and A Family Dinner

This week has been really rough for me.  My emotions are all over the place.  After a year of Will being in daycare, I still struggle with being a working mom and being away from him all day.  There is more to it than just that, but I can't discuss that here.  It has just been rough and I am seeking to have peace with the entire situation.  I am praying that I am making the right decisions for Will and our family. 

On a brighter note, last night we had a family dinner with my parents, John, and Cousin Richard (we missed you Julie!).  We had baked spaghetti, salad, bread, and chocolate pie. It was a good, easy meal to prepare and everyone seemed to enjoy it.  I love family dinners and they just make me so happy.  It is so nice just to sit around with the people you love the most and have a good chat. There are no judgements being made and they are all genuinely interested in what you have to say.  I wish we did it more often! 

Of course, after dinner, Will entertained us until his bedtime.  He did one funny thing that I will share. He was carrying around one of the vacuum cleaner attachments and almost hit my mom with it, so she took it away.  She was sitting on the floor so she put it under her legs.  Will knew she had it but couldn't figure out what she had done with it, so he started looking for it. Mom was wearing capris that had little flaps on the back pockets. Will walks behind her, bends down, pulls up one of the flaps, and looks like he is searching for it.  It was so funny.  I guess he thought if he lifted that flap, he could lift her up and get his "toy".  It was hilarious.  Will always has a good time with my parents and I just love watching them with him.  It is such a joy!

So it has been a rough week, but nothing a little time spent with family can't cure!

15 months old

I know I haven't done a monthly post for Will since his birthday so I thought I would do one today.  In the future, I will most likely do them every couple of months.

Will and Tiger - 15 months old

It was difficult to get a picture of him and Tiger because 15 month olds are apparently too busy to sit and have their picture made.  This is best one I could get!

So much has changed with him. Will is such a joy at 15 months.  He is talking more and he understands alot of what we say. I just can't get enough of him. 

He has moved into a new class at daycare and I think the older kids are wearing him out because he is tired and fussy every day near bedtime.

Here is what Will is up to these days:

--He can say: dada, mama, Bop (Pop), dog, nana (banana), kitty, car, bottle, mil (milk), ball, ba-ball (baseball), doh (go), bite, and bye.  These are things he says on a consistent basis. He will try to say anything Clay and I say.
--He understands basic commands like "put ____ in the trash", "comb your hair", "brush your teeth", etc.
--Last week at the doctor's office he weighed 24 pounds
--He RUNS everywhere
--He loves his stuffed animals and he gives them hugs and kisses
--He can throw a ball
--He still loves to dance
--He smiles and claps for himself when we say "Good Job!"
--He has 8 teeth: 4 on the top, 2 on the bottom, and 2 molars.  His gums are swollen and more teeth are on their way.
--He sleeps through the night and if he wakes up, he puts himself back to sleep. Also, we don't have to rock him to sleep anymore.  It is sad for me and I still rock him some nights just for my benefit.
--He wears a size 4 diaper.
--He wears mostly 12 month clothes but he does fit into some 18 month stuff.
--His eating has difficult.  He pretty much refuses table food and would rather eat baby food.  He does eat Cheerios, Goldfish, some types of bread, and bananas, but all other table food he spits out. We are working on it and it is frustrating some times.

There is so much more but I can't think of it all because he changes everyday and does something new everyday.  He is such a sweet boy and Clay and I love him so much!

To see more pictures of Will and Tiger, you can go HERE.