Our Family

The Blessing

2012-02-03T15:06:00.000-06:00

Last Saturday, our church had a Parent's Night Out event where they served us dinner and we got to hear a wonderful speaker named Dr. Knight.

Dr. Knight spoke on blessing our children and how interceding on his children's behalf had strengthened his relationship with them and with God.

He started out by defining what a blessing was. He said that it is when God does something for you that you can't do for yourself. He then went on to say that we need to focus more on our blessings and what God has done for us. He challenged everyone to start praising God for His blessing instead of asking for something from God.

The main focus was how as parents we need to bless our children by praying to God to do things for them that they can't do for themselves. That really hit home. Will is so little and he doesn't understand that he needs so many things (spiritually, emotionally, and physically) and that Clay and I can't always provide those things for him, but God can. Dr. Knight also said that every time we bless our children, we are telling them we love them, we are affirming thing and we are telling them that they have value. I want so badly for Will to know that he is so loved and valued!

Finally, Dr. Knight told us the blessing he prays over his children. It is so simple but so powerful.

Dear God - bless this child, protect this child, keep this child pure, keep this child safe, in Jesus' name. Amen

Picking Flowers

2012-02-02T14:59:00.000-06:00

The same afternoon that Clay was working on our plumbing issue, Will was out in the yard playing. I was sitting at the kitchen table working and he came in with flowers he had picked. It was so sweet! He was so proud of himself and I was blown away. I love this boy so much!!

Drawing

2012-02-01T14:43:00.000-06:00

Will has been really into drawing faces recently.

He told me this was "Daddy and Will with crazy hair":

Daddy on the left, Will on the right

Hilarious

2012-01-31T08:48:00.000-06:00

Recently we had some issues with our septic tank...BOO!!! That's not hilarious, but two instances during our "issues" Will was super funny.

We weren't sure what was going on with the plumbing, so Clay went under the house to see if there was any evidence of an issue. Will was confused about where Clay went and he wanted to "talk to daddy". Without prompting he picked up the hose pipe and screamed "daddy" into it and then held it up to hear Clay's response. I about peed my pants! HILARIOUS!

Then because of plumbing issues we couldn't use our front bathroom one night, so Will got to bathe in the kitchen sink. He is a little big now, but it did the trick. He told me to take his picture because daddy will think this is silly. He was right. It was pretty silly!!

Love these funny moments!

Pictures from my phone

2012-01-20T08:45:00.000-06:00

Will loves wearing these goggles in the car!

This was the day we went to visit Santa at Bass Pro Shops. As you know, Will didn't want to see Santa, but he did spend 10 minutes "driving" this boat!

This Pop and Will playing the acorn game. The game consists of Will getting acorns out of the back of Pop's truck and then throwing them at Pop. Ha! Also, Will calls them "A-cerns". Pretty much the funniest thing ever!

This is a picture I took that Will wanted me to send to Kristen. He wanted Kristen to see his "Lightnin' Queen flippers".

Will and Bailey Claire. He loves talking to her. She is the sweetest baby!

Will and Gavin

2012-01-19T08:45:00.000-06:00

Yesterday afternoon, I took Will over to Gavin's house to play.

Every house we passed, Will would ask "is that Gavin's house?" He was so happy when we finally got there.

The boys love playing together and I love their little friendship.

After playing, they had a little snack.

It wasn't two minutes after we left, and Will wanted to know when he could see Gavin again. Normally, I would tell him that we would plan another playdate again soon, but Gavin and Will see each other everyday at daycare! So my answer was "you will see him tomorrow and next time he can come play at our house!"

Love these two boys!

John is 26!!

2012-01-17T08:26:00.000-06:00

John turned 26 on Saturday and we celebrated at my parent's house!

Will was so excited to go to "John's Birthday" and give him his gift. On the way over to my parent's house, Will kept saying "John gonna love this present" and "this is John's favorite present". So funny.

As soon as we walked in the door, Will wanted John to open his gift!

Will got John some birthday hats, bead necklaces, 3 dinosaurs, a paddle ball game, and a card. Thankfully, John loved his gift. (Side note: I really love that our family and friends are so gracious when accepting Will's gifts. We know that the gifts aren't necessarily what they would want, but Will gets so excited to pick the gifts out and he really takes his time picking things he thinks the recipients will like.)

Then John did this with the birthday hats:

Then Will did this:

Such funny boys!

Mom made a delicious dinner. We had lasagna roll-ups, chicken alfredo, salad and bread. We finished it all off with brownies, ice cream, and cupcakes!

After dinner, we played Mad Gabs and Quelf. Then that all stopped because Miss America was on!!! We all sat around and watched the pageant. I am sure that is exactly what John wanted to do for his birthday! HAHA!

And here is a picture Will took:

I am thankful for John and the role he plays in our life. I hope you had a great birthday, brother!!

Watching Jordan play Basketball

2012-01-13T15:39:00.000-06:00

Last night, we went to watch Jordan play basketball. He plays on a team with his work.

Will thought this was awesome. He kept asking if Jordan played for UAB.

Will enjoyed the game except for the loud buzzer.

Now he wants to know when Jordan plays again. He can't wait to go to another game!

Bath Paints

2012-01-10T13:34:00.000-06:00

Kristen got Will some body bath paints for Christmas. She got him green and purple. He has so much fun with them. Every time we go to take a bath, he will cover his body with the paints and then we wash them off. It's the little things in life!

Will, Winnie, and the Tractor

2012-01-06T08:28:00.000-06:00

Will loves the tractor he got for Christmas. It has been nice weather the last couple of days so he has been able to get out and drive it around in the afternoons.

This boy cracks me up. He has decided that Winnie "loves" riding in the tractor too.

I am not sure that Winnie actually "loves" riding in the tractor. She is such a good dog and is so good with Will. The fact that she tolerates this kind of stuff is amazing. She rode in the back of that tractor for 30 minutes.

Oh the adventures of a boy and his dog!

Will's First UAB Basketball Game

2012-01-01T15:09:00.001-06:00

Will loves basketball! We play all the time at home and he will even watch it on tv. Jordan is a huge UAB fan so Will is a big UAB fan. We have been talking for a while about taking Will to a game but just weren't sure when to do it. New Year's Eve, UAB was scheduled to play Alabama A&M. We figured it was the perfect game to go to since it was a holiday.

Will was so excited and couldn't wait to see Blaze.

He did really good during the game. He would even get up and dance when they playing music.

At one point, Blaze came up into the stands to see the kids. Will flipped out at first, but then he saw us all giving Blaze high-fives so he finally do too.

When the Blazers win, the players will come up into the student section after the game. We were sitting right behind the student section so I took Will down there to give the players high-fives for winning. That was his favorite part of the whole day. He talked all night and the next day about how he got to give the players high-fives. He was a happy boy!

Happy NEW Year!

2012-01-01T10:19:00.000-06:00

It is 2012! Wow!

We celebrated the new year at Kristen and Jordan's house.

Here is the one picture I took. It was after midnight and we were tired.

I can't wait to see what 2012 brings. God has blessed us so much with a great family and awesome friends, and I am so excited to spend 2012 with them.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Christmas Day 2011

2011-12-26T14:54:00.000-06:00

We had a wonderful Christmas. We were so blessed to get to be with our families and stay in our PJs ALL DAY! We got some pretty great gifts too, and we are super thankful! Will is at a great age and that made the day even more fun!

I took so many pictures so I just going to post some with comments.

Christmas Breakfast with Mom, Dad, John, Pawpaw and Shirley

Opening presents.

Will loved opening his gifts. I am pretty sure I could have just wrapped empty boxes and he would have had just as much fun.

Mom got a new coffee maker!

This is such a wonderful memory for me.

My parents got Will this race track. I love it so much because every year growing up, my brother got some sort of race track. He and my dad would immediately put it together and play for hours. Now Will gets to experience that with my dad and John. Love it!

Our little family!

Uncle John

Pop and Mawmaw

Rock Star!

Clay and Mom making coffee. They both got the same coffee maker, so they couldn't resist making their first cup of coffee.

Pawpaw and BomBom came over around lunch time. Will was so excited to see them!

And he was really excited about his NEW TRACTOR!

We did learn why two-year-olds aren't allowed to have a driver's license.

But Will was under Pawpaw's watchful eye. So he learned quickly how to stop, go and back up.

This was Will's favorite gift of the day! When he opened this gift he audibly gasped. It was so funny and cute. Definitely something I will remember for a long time.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!

Santa Claus is coming to town!

2011-12-25T16:38:00.000-06:00

This year, Will was very aware of Santa and knew he brought presents to nice little boys and girls. Clay and I weren't sure how to handle the whole Santa situation and I had really put it out of my mind because I was so torn on the subject.

The Santa back story:
Multiple times before Christmas, we would ask Will if he wanted to go see Santa. He always would say no.   Then at his school party, Santa came to pass out present and Will flipped out!

One day my mom and I decided we would take Will to Bass Pro Shop to see how he would react if he saw Santa there. It didn't turn out well. We walked around at first and looked at all the activities they had going on. Once I felt Will was in a happy mood, we went over to where they had Santa's workshop. Will didn't see Santa at first so things were going smoothly.   I didn't want to wait in the line because I wasn't sure of what his reaction would be, so I took him around the side so he could see the other kids talking to Santa and getting their pictures made. As soon as he saw Santa, he freaked out. He was crying and seemed genuinely scared, so we left.

For the next few days after that, we would ask him if Santa was going to bring him presents. This was his response: "Santa bring me presents, but he don't come in our house." Then sometimes he would ask us not to left Santa come in the house while we were sleeping. I felt so bad because I didn't' want him to be scared but I wasn't going to traumatize him either.

Anytime anyone would ask him what Santa was going to bring him, the answer was always "a green fishing pole."

We had no set Santa plans until my parents and John came to the house this morning.  We had a Christmas miracle occurring, Will was still asleep.

When Will got up, Pop told him that there was a gift on the front porch. And guess what?!?! Santa left Will a green fishing pole!

I have never seen Will so happy. Thanks to Santa for the green fishing pole and for leaving it on the front porch! :)

Merry Christmas!!!

2011-12-25T07:00:00.000-06:00

And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord.

Luke 2:8-11

MERRY CHRISTMAS

FROM OUR FAMILY TO YOURS!

Pop's Birthday and Christmas Eve

2011-12-24T23:00:00.000-06:00

Christmas Eve is Pop's birthday! It is my favorite part of the holidays. I love getting to celebrate my Dad's birthday and spend time with my family. This is the one family tradition that has always been the same and is non-negotiable.

Mom made a delicious dinner. I love when she cooks a big meal. She always makes every one's favorite dishes and we eat until we can't move.

After dinner, we had homemade red velvet cake and Dad opened his gifts and cards. Of course, Will always is right in the middle of things when he hears the words: cake and presents!

I have the best dad in the entire world and I am so thankful for him!

Once, we cleaned up the food, Mom wanted me to get a picture of Will in front of their tree. Pictures and two-year-olds are a challenge.

Soon it was time to head home and get to bed so we would be ready for Christmas morning. We got our pajamas on and then Clay read the Christmas Story from Luke 2. Afterwards, we decided to let Will open one present.

He was thrilled with his Lightning McQueen slippers. He even wore them to bed!

Merry Christmas!

ReRe and Scooter's House

2011-12-23T22:51:00.000-06:00

We just got home from eating dinner at ReRe and Scooter's house. They invited over for dinner and we exchanged presents.

Will is always happy when I tell him we are going to see ReRe and Scooter. I think it's because they let him do whatever he wants. They are like another set of grandparents for Will. Of course, Kristen and Jordan were there too!

Will was all over the place and was acting super nutty. He is so funny sometimes but it makes me tired. Ha!

Will got a personalized Lightning McQueen book, Lightning McQueen PJs, a TowMater shirt, and a car. He was so excited!

Clay and I got the funniest and best gift. We got a poster sized picture of Will. When I opened it, I just laughed. It is one of my favorite things ever.

I am so thankful to have friends that are like family. ReRe, Scooter, Kristen, and Jordan are such blessings in our lives!

Clay's Birthday

2011-12-22T21:46:00.000-06:00

Clay turned 33 today!! We had a great time celebrating him on his day.

Will and I made cupcakes. Will was so excited to make daddy cupcakes. He helped me put the icing on and he did all the sprinkles.

Then we let Clay open a few gifts and his birthday cards.

To officially celebrate, we went out to dinner at Logan's with family and friends. I could kick myself for forgetting my camera, but Mom, Dad, Dan, Celia, John, Kristen, Jordan, Ashley, Paul and Shelley joining us for dinner.

It was a fun night celebrating. I am so thankful for Clay. He is a wonderful husband and awesome daddy. Will and I could not ask for more!! We love you!

Mawmaw's Family Christmas

2011-12-19T11:25:00.000-06:00

Sunday, we spent the day in Wedowee. It was time for Christmas with Clay's Mawmaw and the family.

There were a lot of presents under this little tree!

Before opening presents, we had a great lunch. Mawmaw makes the BEST dressing! I could seriously eat it at every meal. And Kim's creamed corn is a must! I love the food so much.

After we stuff ourselves, it was time for presents!!! Will was so excited. I think Mawmaw bought him evertyhing she saw in the store. He was so happy and after he would finish opening one present, he would say "I need another one!" He got so many great things from everyone!

Once all the presents were open, it was time to play! Uncle Gray is always willing to help Will play with his new toys.

Mawmaw got everyone yo-yos and Will loved watching Kody and Uncle Al.

Then the rest of the time we were there, Will was outside. I think at some point he had every single person play with him outside. He and Uncle Al even picked up some pinecones!

And Will, Kody, and Uncle Ray played soccer.

Will had a great day and it was so fun to see him so happy. He talked about Uncle Al, Kody, and Uncle Ray all night! I love that everyone is willing to spend time with him.

It's always wonderful to spend the day in Wedowee. It's definitely our family's hone away from home.

Pawpaw's Family Christmas

2011-12-19T09:24:00.002-06:00

We had a weekend full of family events. Our first was Christmas lunch with my Pawpaw and mom's side of the family on Saturday. We had 30 people so we had it at our church so everyone would have a place to sit!

It was so fun getting to see everyone and catching up. Because there are so many of us, we don't do gifts anymore, but people still brought Will a few!

Here are the guys. I am sure this table was up to no good.

Curt, John, Richard, Clay, Hunter and Brad

And the annual Cousin picture:

Top: Brad, John, Richard, Curt

Bottom: Amanda, Rendee, Hunter

We were missing Phillip and Michelle. :(

And my Pawpaw's Great-Grandkids:

Cameron, Brandon, Ashley and Will

Me and Rendee: Cousins and Life-Long Friends!

It was a great day spent with family! My mom planned the whole thing and did a wonderful job. We were also excited that Pam and Murray were able to come and be with us!

Clay's Child

2011-12-16T08:55:00.000-06:00

Will has been extra silly lately. When he acts super goofy, I always tell him that he gets that from his daddy!

Two recent examples:

In the bathtub a couple of nights ago:

And at his school's Christmas party yesterday:

I don't know what I am going to do with this silly boy!!

Will's School Christmas Party

2011-12-15T21:23:00.000-06:00

I took off today so that I could be at Will's Christmas Party at school. I was really excited that my work schedule allowed for me to be there. What I wasn't expecting was for my child to act the way he did. He wasn't bad, but he definitely had some noteworthy moments.

We started the morning off with a meltdown. I asked if he could smile so I could take his picture. Two of his little classmates came up and started saying "cheese"! It was so cute until Will started crying because he didn't want his friends to say cheese to me.

Then it was time to get a class picture. This is the only shot I got with all 10 of them. Taking a picture of t10 two- and three-year-olds is not an easy task.

Next it was time for Christmas Carols. They brought all the classes in one room and Mr. Mark lead them in singing a couple of songs. My child acted like a complete goof-ball!!

After they finished singing, we headed back to their classroom for a Christmas snack! It was so fun to watch them all eat. None of them liked the same things. Some of them ate all their food, some barely ate at all.

Santa came and brought each child a toy. This is where Will's picture with Santa would be but that picture doesn't exist because Will was too busy screaming, crying, and trying to climb up the side of my body.

Even though, he wasn't a Santa fan, he still got a gift. His favorite -- Tow Mater!!!

I tried to get a good picture of Will and his best bud, Gavin. Gavin got a train from Santa.

Once we got home, we went through his goodie bags. He got a lot of candy and some books from his little friends. He also showed me the two ornaments he made in class earlier in the week. He was very proud.

It was such a fun thing to get to do with Will and I hope that in the years to come Clay and I will always be able to participate in his class parties!

New Christmas PJs

2011-12-14T08:34:00.000-06:00

Will picked out these Christmas PJs this past weekend while we were out shopping. He couldn't wait for me to wash them so he could wear them to bed.

We haven't bought footie PJs for him in a while because we had hoped that he would be using the potty by now, but seeing him in the PJs reminded me of how little he used to be. He is growing up fast so it is nice to have a reminder sometimes that he is still a little boy.

Christmas Parade 2011

2011-12-12T09:15:00.000-06:00

Saturday was our town's annual Christmas parade. Will LOVES parades and was really excited about going. We got there early so we had to wait about 20 minutes before the parade got to where we were sitting.

It was so cold. So cold that Clay was wearing an actual jacket. If you know Clay then you know that is was freezing for him to have on pants AND a jacket.

Will loved watching the band and floats, and of course, his favorite part was getting candy.

We love going to the parade every year and it is so fun to live in a small town.

Hanging of the Green

2011-12-06T19:58:00.000-06:00

Sunday night we had a "Hanging of the Green" service at church. This was the first year we have ever done this. It was a very different service than anything I have been a part of before.

Different church members had different tasks throughout the service. We would sing songs and people would decorate specific parts of the church. Then our staff members would read about the different things that the people were doing and their significance.

After about 45 minutes, the entire sanctuary was decorated. It was a great way to kick-off the Christmas season!

Christmas Treats

2011-12-05T12:44:00.002-06:00

Saturday, Kristen and Jordan invited us to their house for "Soup Night". We branched out and made a new soup that we haven't made before. We made White Chicken Chili. It was really good, but we will make some adjustments next time. I have to give Clay the credit because he picked it out and did 99% of the work.

We also decided to make some Christmas treats! I saw both these on some other mom blogs and thought it looked easy enough. It was super easy and delicious.

We made chocolate and vanilla dipped marshmallows and pretzels. Yummy!

Will helped by eating sprinkles and left over chocolate.

I love cooking with Clay and Will!

Happy December

2011-12-01T07:00:00.004-06:00

I am so excited for December. It's my favorite time of the year. We get to spend lots of time with our family and friends and enjoy one another.

I am so happy to be with my little family.

And, I am so excited to get to see Christmas through the eyes of this little boy.

He is so fun at this age and everything is amazing to him!

Happy December and Merry Christmas!!

Iron Bowl Weekend

2011-11-28T20:22:00.000-06:00

We were so excited about the Iron Bowl this year. We had a hotel to stay at and Will came with us.

Will talked about "going to Auburn" for days. He was so excited. He loves Auburn and he loves football!

Friday, we spent the day walking around downtown and getting ready for our tailgate on Saturday. We did some shopping and went to Toomer's Corner.

Saturday, was the big GAME! I was glad that it wasn't too cold. Our tailgate was crazy. We had 6 tents, 4 tvs, 40 friends, and lots of food!

ESPN's GameDay was there so we walked over to see it. I don't think Will had any clue what was going on. But he got some free sunglasses and Cheez-its so he was a happy camper.

It was also an exciting day because Will was going to the game with us. The last time I went to the Iron Bowl was 2007, so I was so happy to be able to go and take Will with me. Not very many two-year-olds can say they have been to an Iron Bowl.

Will did great in the game. He loved the band and the football team. He also kept an eye out for Aubie at all times. The highlight of his day was when he saw Aubie dressed as Superman!

I prayed that Will would not have a meltdown during the game, and he didn't. We spend the 2nd quarter on the concourse eating popcorn and then at the end of the 3rd quarter, Will took a little nap in my lap. Who would have thought he could sleep with all that noise.

The outcome was not what we would have wanted, but we were so proud of our team and we were excited to make a wonderful family memory.

Sunday, we got up and headed home. With Thanksgiving and the Iron bowl, it was a long couple of days but we got to be together and that is all that matters.

WAR EAGLE!!

Thanksgiving 2011

2011-11-25T10:45:00.000-06:00

Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good;

his love endures forever.

1 Chronicles 16:34

As usual, Thanksgiving was busy for us.

We started out Wednesday night at Dan and Celia’s house for dinner. Kate, Gray, Joyce and Brent joined us as well. We had yummy spaghetti and a delicious spice cake. Will provided the entertainment and it was a great night.

Thursday morning, we were up with the sun and hit the ground running. Our first stop was Roanoke. We went to Shawn and Greg’s house to see them and visit with that side of Clay’s family.

After our morning visit with them, we headed to Wedowee for lunch with Clay’s Mawmaw. It was a beautiful day and Will loved getting to run around outside.

We spent some time riding on the 4-wheeler, playing basketball, and exploring the farm.

Lunch was amazing. It’s something about being in Wedowee and eating Mawmaw’s food, it just feels like home. There is no false pretense, you can be yourself and stuff yourself silly.

Soon, it was time to leave and head back home for dinner with my parents. My parents spend the day cooking and the food was great. The only disappointment was that we headed to Auburn right after dinner, so no leftovers for us.

As busy as it was, we are so thankful that we have so many wonderful places to visit and people there who love us. Clay and I are always overwhelmed at the love our families show to us and Will.

Turkeys and a Little Indian

2011-11-24T12:18:00.000-06:00

Will and I made these turkeys and sent them out to family and friends. Will loves arts and crafts so he had fun helping me cut and glue.

Tuesday when I picked Will up from daycare he had this on.

He loved it so much and wanted to wear it every where.

I love that he gets excited over some construction paper, feathers and glue. Its the small things that make me so thankful for this life God has given me.

Phone Pics :)

2011-11-22T08:23:00.003-06:00

This month has kind of been same thing different day. We don't have too many exciting things going on, but we have been spending a lot of time as a family and that is what is most important.

Since I don't have a ton of new stuff to share, I thought I would share some pictures from our phones.

This picture was taken before Halloween. These are the baseball socks that I bought for Will's costume. They were the smallest size that any store had. Will loved them and asked me to pull them all the way up. It was so funny. He wore them like that until I made him take them off for bedtime.

Will always thinks its fun to ride with the windows down in the car. He insisted that we roll his window down one day when Clay was driving around 50 mph.

Oh the potty! I just thought this was cute. According to Will's teacher, he uses the potty consistently at school. Home is another story. Sometimes he wants to go to the potty some days he refuses. As soon as football season is over, we are going to make potty training our #1 priority.

This is where we found Will one night when we went to check on him. He must have been really tired!

One night, Clay took Will to see Pawpaw and CC. He loved every minute and ended up breaking two of Pawpaw's Auburn statues. Good times! Good thing they love Will so much.

Asleep in the car.

I bought this hat and sunglasses for Will for $1 each at the Children's Place Outlet. He loves them!

Mawmaw bought Will these TowMater teeth. It was a sucker on the other side. Hilarious!

Painting with Pop

2011-11-21T12:52:00.000-06:00

My child is in love with his Pop! Three different times this week Will has cried when we left my parents house because he wants to stay with Pop. Saturday was no different. Saturday morning, we got up and picked up Mawmaw to go to the grocery store. Once we got back, I was going to take Will home to eat lunch and take a nap. He was not having it. He cried and screamed because he wanted to stay with Pop. Not only did he want to stay with Pop, but he knew Pop was going to the paint store and Will "needed" to go too. He kept telling me (through screaming and crying) "I go to the paint store with Pop. You not follow the rules, Mommy. I go to the paint store!"

Needless to say, Pop saved Will from a total meltdown and let him go with him. When that got back from the paint store, Pop told Will he had to eat a good lunch and take a good nap so he could help paint the cabinet doors. (Dad built new cabinet doors and they are almost finished!!) Will ate his WHOLE lunch and took the best nap. He does whatever Pop says!!

Mawmaw picked Will up so I could go get a pedicure with Kristen! Praise the Lord! When I got to their house for dinner, this is what I found:

At first I was telling Will how good he did and then I realized that looked like one of my cabinet doors. I asked Dad if that was one of my new doors and he said Yes. So then I thought, "of that must be the back of one". That would be a sweet memory to have in our house. Then Dad told me it was the front. That is when I started to panic a little. He let me go on thinking it was a new door for about 15 minutes. He finally told me that it was one of the mock up doors he made. I felt so relieved. Will had so much fun!!! Painting with Pop is all he has talked about since Saturday!

Operation Christmas Child 2011

2011-11-20T08:52:00.001-06:00

It's that time again for Operation Christmas Child. We made two shoe boxes this year, both for 2-4 year old boys.

I let Will pick a couple of toys for each box. He picked stuffed dinosaurs and some cars. I added coloring books, crayons, a Bible characters matching game, toothbrush, toothpaste, combs, t-shirt, and flip-flops. I cleaned a cabinet our recently and found some leftover birtday goodies, so we added those as well. After we got everything in, we could barely close the boxes!

This year we were able to participate in something special because our church was an official collection center and my mom was the coordinator for our center. On Wednesday of last week we got to work at the collection center. It was a ot of fun.

Here is Will taking his boxes into the collection center:

As of Saturday night, we had collected over 550 shoe boxes.

Will was helping Mawmaw count all the boxes. Too bad he only knows how to count to 13.

We love Operation Christmas Child. I hope Will continues to enjoy making the shoe boxes and learns about what it means to give to others who are less fortunate.

The Weekend in Review

2011-11-07T15:52:00.000-06:00

This weekend was all about family and friends!

Friday night, Mom and Dad kept Will so that we could go out to eat with Kristen and her family to celebrate her birthday. We ate at a little Italian place and it was so good. The best part of the night for me was that I got to sit by Kristen's grandmother. She is seriously one of the funniest people I have ever met.

Kristen and Jordan

Saturday, Will got up at 5:15 am. Clay got up with him and they spent the morning watching cartoons and drinking milk. I got to sleep until 8 and was so thankful. I seriously have the best husband ever.

We went as a family to Jack's and had breakfast. Will was cracking me up the whole time. He is so random sometimes and he was wired. When we left Jack's, Clay went home to work on some projects at the house, and Will and I went to buy Kristen a birthday present.

Will wanted to go to Dollar Tree. He picked out about 30 things to get Kristen, but we ended up buying a green jump rope, a princess crown, and a ceramic church. He also picked out some balloons. The assortment was quite random and included: a dump-truck, Elmo, Tinkerbell, a smiley face, and a Happy Birthday balloon. We took Will's gift to Kristen and spent some time with her, since it was her actual birthday on Saturday.

Will and I ran a few errands and then headed home for naps!! My favorite part of the weekend.

Saturday night, Mom and Dad offered to keep Will overnight so that we could go out with our friend's to celebrate Kristen's "?0"th Birthday!

Kristen with her Princess crown that Will bought her.

We ate a Cocina Superior and it was delicious. Ashley brought an Edgar's cake, which is always a hit!

CAKE!!

We ended the night back at Kristen and Jordan's house playing board games. It was so fun. I really don't think I have laughed that hard in a very long time. It was definitely a memorable night.

At dinner. We decided that instead of Kristen being ?0, that she could be 29 years and 27 hours old!

Sunday morning I woke up to the phone ringing. It was Will and he was crying to come home. Mom brought him to the house on her way to church and we headed there shortly after. After church, we ate at Mom and Dad's. Dad grilled chicken and pork chops and it was SO GOOD! I wish I could eat my parent's cooking every day!

We ended Sunday with a pastor appreciation fellowship at church. Will insisted on wearing this outfit:

Is that enough stripes?!?

He seriously is the silliest kid I know. Love when he wants to pick out his own outfits!

Can't wait for next weekend!

Trick-or-Treat 2011

2011-11-01T12:56:00.000-05:00

We had a great Halloween Night!

We started off the night at Mawmaw and Pop's house for pizza and candy! When we got there, I wanted to take Will's picture by the fireplace because we have done it every year. Well, this kid is getting too smart and he didn't want to sit by the fireplace because it was allegedly hot. It wasn't even on, but Will was adamant that it was too hot. We finally bribed him by having Pop sit with him at first and then offering candy! But I got my picture so I am a happy mom!

After we ate pizza, we headed to the neighbors house so Mrs. Judy could see Will. Will has been talking about trick-or-treating ALL WEEK so we were so excited that it was going to be so fun with him this year. WRONG! As soon as we got to the steps he started crying that he wanted to go home and he didn't want to trick-or-treat. I picked him up and once he realized he would get candy he calmed down.

We left Mom and Dad's house and went back home to trick-or-treat and hand out candy. Again, when we mentioned trick-or-treating, we refused to go. We told him that we hand out candy to the other kids and eat candy out of the bowl, so he was all about that.

We sat on the front porch and Will had the best time seeing all the "good kids". Not sure why he kept calling them that but thus is life with a 2-year-old.

He put a whole Reese cup in his mouth and then realized that that might not be the best idea. So he took half of it out and gave it to Clay. Hilarious!

We enjoyed getting to see our neighbors and it was a successful Halloween!

Harvest of Friends

2011-10-30T22:00:00.000-05:00

Tonight was Harvest of Friends at our church. I have come to love this tradition at our church. It is so fun seeing all the kids run around in their costumes and getting to invite people into our church for dinner and games.

Will wore his baseball uniform. He loved it and couldn't get enough of the socks. I had a friend make the shirt and he loved that it was his favorite color - GREEN!!!

He played a couple of games and rode on the train. He even did trunk-or-treat with Mawmaw for about 10 cars.

Here are some pictures from the night:

Playing soccer.

Not loving the train ride at first, but he got over it and rode the train about 10 times.

Uncle John!

Playing a game with Kritchen.

Riding the train with "Linda". Can you see his little blonde head?

Will and Jackson. Jackson was literally running all over the place so we had to catch him to get the picture.

Best buds - Will and Gavin. This is the first successful Halloween picture of the boys. Normally, one or the other or both are crying.

Trunk-or-Treat!

Will with his "best fwiend" Cody! Love how funny both of them look!

We had over 400 people come to Harvest of Friends and we were able to share Jesus with them and that is the most important part of the night!!

OktoberFest

2011-10-30T12:18:00.000-05:00

Saturday, our town held an fall festival at the park called OktoberFest. All the local churches and businesses have tents and there are some games for the kids.

Clay and Richard went to Auburn for the game, so Julie, Beth, Kristen, Will, and I went and walked around for a bit. It was SSSOOO cold and windy but that didn't stop us from having a good time.

Will played some games and "won" a bat and alligator. All the games were "everyone is a winner" type deal so it was pretty much us paying for him a prize, but he thought it was awesome.

We hung out at our churches tent for a while and Will got to play with some of his friends.

We ended the morning with lunch at Wendy's, then naps, and then we watch Auburn beat Ole Miss!

Chili and Pumpkin Carving

2011-10-30T11:45:00.000-05:00

Friday night, Ashley, Beth, Julie, Richard, Mom, and Dad came over to the house to eat chili and carve pumpkins.

I love eating chili on cold nights and it was such a wonderful fall night to have chili on Friday.

After we ate, we carved our pumpkins. Will had two pumpkins, so we let him pick out something to carve on the first one and did his name on the second one. Our punpkin carving kit came with some design pages and Will picked the "castle" (aka spooky house). That is the one I carved and Beth carved his name in the other one. Richard brought a pumpkin and carved two ghosts.

Will did not actually participate as much as I would have wanted, but it was fun to sit around with family and friends and make memories.

The Ice Cream Truck

2011-10-27T09:01:00.000-05:00

I know it's October, but yesterday we let Will have a treat from the ice cream truck.

When I was getting Will out of the car, we heard the music and Will started screaming "ice cream, ice cream!!"

Clay grabbed some cash and the ice cream truck stopped so Will could pick out an ice cream.

He picked a green and blue Popsicle. No surprise there since those are his two favorite colors.

The only down side was the Popsicle stained his face. It took forever to get it off, but it was a small price to pay for some afternoon happiness!

Saturday and Sunday

2011-10-25T08:47:00.000-05:00

This past weekend was so pretty. The weather was absolutely wonderful.

Saturday, we hung around the house and played.

We spent some of the afternoon outside and Will rode his tricycle in the driveway.

He had the best time and kept wanting me and Clay to watch him go fast!

Later, Kristen and Jordan came over to watch the Auburn/LSU game. Kristen found this fireman jacket for Will and he loved it!

We had corndogs in honor of LSU. Of course the game didn't go the way we would have liked but it was fun hanging out with friends.

Sunday, was business as usual. We went to church and then out to lunch with friends. That afternoon, Pawpaw meet us and took Will shopping for new clothes.

On Sunday nights, Kristen and I work in the nursery. We thought it would be fun to make pumpkins with the kids. Crafts only keep the attention of 2 and 3 year olds for about 5 minutes. Kristen ended up finishing some of the pumpkin decorations.

And this picture is random, but this tree is in one of our neighbors yards. I made Clay stop the car and let me take a picture. I just thought the colors in the tree were so pretty!

Happy Fall!!!!

"but you're my best friend"

2011-10-17T12:38:00.000-05:00

Lately, Will has been pushing his boundaries when it comes to bedtime. We have the same bedtime routine every night. We put on Will's PJs, read a book or two, say prayers, and then lights off.

Well, about 3 weeks ago Will figured out that he could turn the door knob and get out of his room. So that started a nightly ritual of him coming out of his room and standing in the hall calling for us. We instituted a "you can not get out of your bed unless mommy or daddy come into the room" rule. That worked for a day or so.

Then Will started yelling for us. He was REALLY loud. So loud, that one of us would eventually have to go in there to tell him to stop yelling. We then tried to explain to him that he only needed to yell if something was really wrong. He then proceeded to start screaming "I NEED YOU MOMMY/DADDY!!!" Finally, he stopped the yelling for a couple of days.

In all of this, we found the more tired he was, the more he tried to stall going to sleep.

So last night, he was really tired! We put Will to bed, and Clay and I went about picking up around the house and getting ready for bed. We heard Will talking to himself so we figured he would fall asleep in a few minutes. Clay and I were standing in our bedroom talking and the next thing we hear is the door knob of Will's door turning. I went to Will's door and this was the conversation that followed:

Me: Will get back in your bed.

Will: but you're my best fwiend

Me: Will you need to get back in your bed

Will: but you're my best fwiend, I need you

Me (while holding Clay back because he thought it was so cute, he wanted to rush in and "save" him from bedtime): Will get back in your bed now

Will: I need my best fwiend

I opened the door and Clay and I both went in. He jumped back in his bed and was smiling. Clay gave him one more kiss and hug, and then left the room. I explained to Will that he needed to go to sleep and that Mommy and Daddy needed to go to bed too. I went and checked on him about 20 minutes later and he was fast asleep.

I am sure we have many more nights of bedtime drama ahead of us. Thankfully, once Will is asleep, he is a great sleeper and doesn't get up during the night.

A Full Saturday

2011-10-17T08:48:00.000-05:00

Saturday was busy! Clay left at 6 am to head to Auburn for the game. Will and I were sad to be staying home, but I get nervous taking him to big SEC games that start late.

Will and I spent the morning hanging around watching cartoons and eating breakfast. Soon it was time to get ready for our first birthday party.

Will's best friend, Gavin, is turning 3 this week so we headed to his sports themed birthday! Will had a great time playing with all the sports toys. We soon had to leaved that party to head to our next birthday party.

We met up with Kristen and headed to Ryland's house to celebrate his first birthday! Will had a blast playing outside on the swing set and riding Ryland's Thomas train.

After celebrating two birthdays, we headed home for a much needed nap! Will was so tired he fell asleep on the couch, which has happened maybe twice in his entire life. i moved Will to his bed and was able to take a nice little nap myself.

Once we woke up, we got ready and headed to Kristen and Jordan's for pizza and football. Robby and Molly were there too. Molly and Will had so much fun playing together. They were cracking us all up.

We ended the day with an Auburn win, which is always a great end to a Saturday!

CUPCAKES!!!

2011-10-15T08:25:00.000-05:00

Last night, Will and I made cupcakes. He had been asking for a while so Friday was the perfect night. In all honesty, I did most of the work. He did have fun breaking an egg on the floor, licking the bowl, and putting on the sprinkles.

While we mixing up the ingredients, Uncle John came over and hung out with us for a little while.

Once we were done, we went over to Mawmaw and Pop's to give them their special cupcakes that Will decorated for them.

Now Will is asking to make a green Aubie cake. I will have to do some research on that one.

Will's First Dentist Appointment and Some Back Story

2011-10-12T08:59:00.000-05:00

Will went to his first dentist appointment on Friday, October 7th. I was really nervous to take him because I didn't know how he would react to the whole situation. And Clay completely put it out of his mind because he hates the dentist.

At Will's two-year-old well-check in March, our pediatrician recommended that we see a dentist for simple check-up before Will turned three. Clay and i had been asking around about potential dentists and we were just waiting to find the right one before we made an appointment.

Of course, Will being the child he is, kind of sped up the process a little for us. On Wednesday, September 28th, we were at Chick-fil-A with Kristen and Jordan having dinner. Will was in the play place and he was being a little rowdy. I should have known then to just take him out but I didn't. He decided it would be a good idea to jump backwards off the one of the steps. When he did, he hit his mouth on the step coming down and busted his gum pretty badly. He was bleeding like crazy and I freaked out.

Thankfully, Kristen was there to help me and calm me down. My mom was just up the street at a church service so I called and she was there in a few seconds. Once we got the bleeding under control, we noticed that one of his front teeth was pushed back a little. We called our friend, who is a dental hygienist, and took Will to see her. She said everything looked okay but there may be some damage. It was just a wait and see kind of thing.

Will's gums were pretty swollen and bruised up the next day, so I kept him home from school. He only complained once about pain when he was trying to eat a chicken nugget. After that we didn't hear any complaints from him.

So all that lead up to us going to his first dentist appointment. We took the advice of our friend and went to a pediatric dentist she knew. I am so glad because Dr. V is wonderful and he is an Auburn grad!

Will was a little apprehensive at first. To be truthful, so was I. He did cry a little bit when Dr. V started looking at his teeth and I could tell he was scared. After about 5 minutes, he calmed down and the rest of the appointment went smoothly. Dr. V told us the tooth looked fine but there would be no way to tell if there was nerve damage. So hopefully its fine but we will be able to tell more as time goes on.

After Will's appointment, I took him to Target to get a prize for being so good. He had fun playing with this little hat in the dollar section. This was the only picture I got all day. :(

We go back for a cleaning in December, so I hope we have a good experience then. Will seems to be okay with everything that happened because he has told everyone about how he went to the dentist.

Another first for our little boy!

Will goes to Legion Field

2011-10-11T13:19:00.002-05:00

Saturday, we went to a UAB football game with Kristen and Jordan. Auburn was playing away and the game wasn't until later that night. The wearther was perfect so we ventured over to Legion Field for the UAB/Mississippi State game.

Jordan is a huge UAB fan so Will knows a little bit about UAB just from us hanging out with him so much. Will always tells us "Jordan favorite color is green and gold." Will also knew that a dragon was the mascot. He seemed fine iwth that fact until the morning of the game. In the car he kept telling us that he "wanted to see football not the dragon." I got worried that he may not like it once we got there.

It was fun to go to another staduim and watch a different team play. Will really enjoyed it and he had lots of room to roam around.

By the end of the game, he was telling me where "Blaze" (the mascot) was and talking all about him being a dragon.

Of course, there had to be a small panic attack thrown in. At the beginnning of the fourth quarter, Will was restless so i told clay and Kristen and I would go aheasd and start walking to the car. Clay reached in his pocket and he didn't have our car keys. We all paniced! We asked a police officer and he radioed to the lost and found. No keys. We looked in all our bags and pockets. No keys. Clay ran to the car to look and found the keys. He left them in the ingnition with the doors unlocked. Most people would say that Legion Field isn't in the best part of town, so we were so happy that our car was right where we left it!

First Post in the Month of October

2011-10-11T12:58:00.000-05:00

I didn't realize how long it had been since I posted last until my husband pointed it out to me.

We haven't really had that much going on, but I feel like we are always busy. Life is just crazy sometimes and I guess we are just getting through it the best we can.

Clay and I have both had a lot going on at work. So that keeps us pretty occupied. Then we have church commitments, Auburn games, and softball. Will is still loving school and is usually pretty tired when he gets home. We try to make time for the library and play dates.

Also, Mr. Two-Year-Old has been giving us a run for our money. It is just a phase, but it is a tiring one. I don't want to complain because Will is our whole lives, but if you have ever had a two-year-old you understand. It's just tough some days. He is so independent and strong-willed that it gets the best of all of us.

Regardless of some behavioral issues, we have done some fun things lately and I plan on posting about those soon!

Auburn vs. Florida-Atlantic

2011-09-27T08:15:00.000-05:00

Saturday was a day full of tailgating. It was Auburn's first night home game of the season so we took advantage of getting to spend the day on The Plains.

The day was made even better because Jordan and Kristen joined us. It was Kristen's first Auburn experience!

We had lots of people join us to tailgate. My mom and John, and Dan and Celia were there. Brantley, Tracee, and Clancee also came, as well as, Clay's co-worker, Jason, and his wife and daughter, Rebecca and Bailey. John's friend, Nick came by and brought a group of people with him too. And our friend, Chris Lee, showed up too!

Since we had a lot of time to spare before the game, we did a little walking tour of campus so that Jordan and Kristen could see our favorite places. We went to the new Auburn Arena and did a little tour. The women's basketball team was there practicing and Will was in love. He kept screaming "they playing basketball, mommy...they playing basketball right there!!!" We can't wait to take him to a real basketball game this season. He will freak out!

There is also a little museum area in the arena so we walked through there and got to see the championship trophy!

We stopped by the Auburn Gear store so John could get a new shirt and hat. Jordan found the signature Gene Chizik pull-over and had to model it. He is obsessed! HA!

Then we headed to Haley Center and the new student center. It was a fun morning walking around campus!

Once we were back at the tailgate we ate and ate and then ate some more. Love hanging out with all our family and friends. Soon it was time for the game and everyone headed for the stadium. Kristen and I stayed back at the tailgate with Will because we didn't want to take him into the game since he didn't have a nap. Jason, Rebecca, and Bailey stayed as well and the kids had fun playing.

Since I knew the traffic would be minimal during the game, Kristen, Will, and I took a quick drive over to Toomer's so that Kristen could see the trees. It was really SAD!! We also rode by my old apartment at The Oaks. I miss that place so much!

The game went well and we won. We didn't get home until after midnight but it was such a fun day!

28

2011-09-19T07:50:00.000-05:00

Saturday, I turned TWENTY-EIGHT years old!!! AAAHHHH! I am so getting old and I should really stop celebrating my birthday. But i seriously have the best family and friends so it is always fun to have an excuse for us to celebrate!

PF Changs was our first stop of the birthday celebration train. All my favorite people were there minus Will. ReRe and Scooter offered to keep Will and so Clay and I got to eat dinner with adults. Such a fun night.

Saturday, was all about football. Auburn was playing Clemson so i knew there was no way I was dragging Clay away from the house. I decided that the best way to celebrate my birthday was to have all my favorite foods and hang out with all the people I love.

Saturday night, we went to Wings for dinner and watch football. Then we headed home for chocolate cake from Edgar's. YUM!!

It was a great birthday and I hope that this year is my best year yet!

Homecoming Parade 2011

2011-09-16T15:44:00.000-05:00

We took Will to our local Homecoming Parade this afternoon. This is his third year to go. We met Ashley at the church and watched it from there.

Will's friend, Gavin, was there so he played with him for a while before the parade started.

Will was really excited about the parade this year. He kept telling us that "we see the band and we get candy."

I think the highlight for him this year was his best friend, Cody, rode on the firetruck. Cody works at this daycare and goes to church with us. He and Will are great friends. Cody is really good to Will. Cody is a senior this year and won Fire Prevention King, so that is why is was on the firetruck.

Will got lots of candy so that was fun for him. I love that we live in a small town and get to expose Will to small town traditions.

Picture Day at School

2011-09-15T19:38:00.000-05:00

Will was supposed to have Picture Day at school today, but for whatever reason the pictures didn't get made. I took some pictures of Will before he left for school. He looked pretty cute so I thought I would share!

Auburn vs. Mississippi State

2011-09-12T07:24:00.000-05:00

Saturday was another day spent on The Plains. The night before we spent at the lake so we were up super early Saturday to head to Auburn. It was another 11 am kick-off so we had to get going around 5 am.

It was a gorgeous day! It was cool that morning so it was nice to sit around and eat some breakfast food before it was time to go into the stadium.

We got there early enough that we had time to go to the bookstore and get some new shirts. Thanks, Pawpaw!

Once we got in the stadium, it was HOT!!! Will did great for pregame and the first quarter. We soon had to take a break from the sun so we went to the concession stand and got a snack. Thankfully, there are TVs in the concession stand areas so we were able to eat our snack and watch the game.

We went back to our seats and stayed a while longer but it was just too hot. Will and I decided we would leave and go over to the student center where they have air conditioner!!! Will got a sucker and was a happy camper.

Near the end of the fourth quarter, Will and I headed back for the tailgate spot. Everyone else soon got back and we cooked out hamburgers and watched some other games that were on TV.

It was a long, hot day but it is always fun! And bonus, Will asks to go to Auburn almost every morning. We are training him up right!

Fish Tanks

2011-09-08T08:49:00.000-05:00

Will's preschool teacher went to the beach over Labor Day Weekend and was sweet enough to bring the kids back a little treat. She brought them all a pair of goggles. I don't know if Will knew what swim goggles were before today so that probably lead to the confusion. He kept telling me they were "fish tanks". I have no clue where that came from but it made us laugh so hard.

Last night when we got home I opened the goggles for him but he didn't want to wear the "fish tanks". I put them on and showed him they weren't so bad. He still wasn't fond of having something over his eyes. However, this morning he was all about wearing the "fish tanks". He wore them in the car all the way to school.

Seriously, this child is the light of my life. I love him so much! And thanks to Miss Tammy for our new "fish tanks"!

Auburn vs. Utah State - 2011

2011-09-06T08:14:00.000-05:00

Saturday, we traveled to Auburn to see our Tigers play. Will was so excited about football season this year. He couldn't wait to get to Auburn. He literally asked every morning this past week when we were going to see Aubie.

We got up EXTREMELY early Saturday morning to head to the game. John and Clay left at 5 am and then mom, Will, and I left at 6:15 am.

When you tailgate, you get to eat cupcakes for breakfast.

Once we got there, the tailgate spot was all set up and we had some friends join us. We ate some snacks and played a few games of cornhole. The game started at 11 so it was an early start to the day. We headed to the stadium around 10:15.

Marlin and John.

Ready to walk to the stadium.

Will loved being in the stadium. He pointed out everything he saw and talked non-stop.

Aubie with the National Championship trophy!

During the first quarter, he kept asking "are they done yet? I want to play on that big field." Maybe one day!

He was saying "War Eagle Hey!" Love it!

It was so HOT Saturday. After the first quarter, we headed down to the concourse to try and cool off. I didn't want Will to get over heated. He and I walked around for a bit and then we headed back up to our seats until half-time. Since it was so hot, I decided it would be best for us to headed back to the tailgate spot. Clay came with us and set up the tv.

Auburn didn't play so well but in the end--in true Auburn fashion--they pulled out a WIN!

After the game was over, we cooked out and ate. We decided to head home around 4 and it was seriously the longest car ride of my life. We stopped by Kristen and Jordan's on the way home, and by the time we got to their house it felt like it was midnight. Will was exhausted so we went to the house and he fell asleep almost instantly.

We had so much fun hanging out as a family and it was a great kick-off to football season. Will hasn't stopped taking about the game yet, and we are so excited that he loved it so much.

These are a few things he said about the game that were cute:

-"I can't see Aubie, I need some noculars."

-"The big kids with the big pants and big shoes play football."

-"The cheerleaders flip over."

-"The band make a lot of noise."

Two and a Half Years Old

2011-09-04T15:50:00.001-05:00

Will is 2 1/2 Years Old!!!

Will and Tiger

It amazes me how quickly time passes and how big Will has gotten.

From what I can tell, Will is a typical two-year-old boy! He is literally all over the place all the time.

He is doing so much these days, it is hard to keep up with it all, but here are some highlights:

-He loves play. Indoors or outdoors he doesn't care.

-He loves people (most of the time). Of course our families play big roles in his life so he loves spending time with his Pop, Mawmaw, Pawpaw, CC, Pawpaw and Shirley, and Uncle John. He constantly talks about them. We also have a core group of friends who love him so much and he loves being with them. And his friends at school and church are his favorites: Colt, Gavin, Devin, Jason, Carson, Braylen, Logan, Jameson, Sawyer, and Caroline. He also has a few "best fwiends". Sometimes that is me or Clay but most of the time it is Cody. Cody works at his daycare and goes to our church.

-He talks all the time. Long sentences and paragraphs. He relays everything he is doing to us. I am so proud that he talks so well and even strangers understand him!

-He is such smart boy! He knows his ABCs and can count to 13 or 14. He knows all his colors and green is his favorite.

-He loves to sing. A few favorites are: Where is Thumpkin?, Jesus Loves Me, Jesus Loves the Little Children, Twinkle Twinkle, Little Bunny Foo Foo, The B-I-B-L-E, and the Jack's Hamburger jingle.

-He wears 2t clothes and size 7 shoe.

-We still talk about the potty a lot but he is still wearing Pull-Ups. He was really interested a few months ago but that interest is almost completely gone now. I know once he feels like going in the potty he will. We are not to the point yet where we want to push the issue too much. Like our pediatrician always says "He won't go to college doing that."

-He has the best personality. I wish I could bottle it up. He is loving, independent, sweet, stubborn, funny, and everything in between.

-He understands things around him so much better. The meltdowns are not as often and I think that is because he is much more aware of cause and effect. He minds much better and listens and follows our instructions.

I can't believe he is two-and-a-half. That blows my mind! I can't wait to see how much he grows and how much he learns. It is so fun being his mom.

And because nothing is ever "perfect", he are two outtakes from our photo session with Tiger:

To see all of the Will and Tiger pictures, go HERE.

Kid-Friendly Tailgating

2011-09-01T12:41:00.000-05:00

Tailgating in 2009.

Tailgating in 2010.

My brother sent me an article this morning about kid-friendly tailgating. Of course, this is interesting to me because we have a kid and we tailgate. Football season starts for us in two days, so we are busy trying to get everything together for our tailgate.

The last two football seasons have been fairly easy with Will because he was so young and we could contain him. This year is definitely going to present some challenges because we have an on-the-go, independent 2-year-old on our hands. He loves to participate in anything that older kids/adults are doing, so we need to find ways to keep him entertained and safe while we tailgate.

I plan on taking some of his toys and then we have a few tailgate games, like cornhole and tailgate golf. Thankfully the game this week is at 11 am. That means we will tailgate a little bit before the game and a little bit after. This should decrease the time for Will to get bored.

All in all, we just want to have fun and have good experiences going to Auburn. We want him to love it there as much as Clay and I do.

Will's Library Card

2011-08-31T17:17:00.000-05:00

I took Will to the library today to get a library card. The library is in our neighborhood so it is definitely convenient. I decided that Will was probably old enough to go and pick out a book or two.

Once we signed up for our library card, we headed over to the children's section to pick out a book. Will picked a book titled "Who's Afraid of Tigers?" I thought that was a good choice.

After he picked his book, he wanted to do some puzzles.

We left and came home to read our book!

Will was really happy about his book. When Clay got home I told Will to tell him where we went and he said "Daddy, we went to the....I can't say that word." He couldn't pronounce the word "library". So cute!

Also, our library participates in the Dolly Parton's Imagination Library. I signed Will up and he will get one free book each month until he goes to school.

First Day of Preschool

2011-08-29T09:20:00.000-05:00

Will starts his first official day of preschool today. He is going to be at the same daycare center he has been at since he was 3 months old, but today they start their Pre-K program. This will be the first year that it will be scheduled school time during the morning.

I went to orientation last week and got to learn about all the things he would be doing during the year. He has the same teacher he had during the summer and we love her, so it should be a great year. Will has already learned so much from her and I know that will continue.

Of course, I was that mom that had to get a picture of him at the house and then one in his classroom.

There will be eight children in his class including him. There are 7 boys and 1 little girl. We should all say a special prayer for that little girl. I can't even imagine. Ha!

I hope that he learns so much this year and has a great time. I know that things that he learns now will be the foundation for his entire education. I am thankful that we have a good christian daycare to send him to and that he has a teacher that loves what she does. I pray they all have a great year!

Craig and Mary Beth's Engagement Party

2011-08-28T16:00:00.000-05:00

Craig and Mary Beth got engaged a few months ago so Saturday night we finally got an opportunity for everyone to come together and celebrate their upcoming wedding. They wanted to get the wedding party together so we could all meet and kick-off the wedding celebrations. We were invited because Will is going to be their RING BEARER!!! I am so excited and a little nervous. We have 9 months to practice before the wedding in June.

We are so honored that they would ask Will to be a part of their big day.

The party had a tailgate theme and everything was decked out in Alabama gear. Even though we are big Auburn fans, it was still fun to hang out and celebrate with our friends. Craig, Mary Beth, and their families did such a great job with the food and decorations!

Will was very well behaved and I was glad to see that they had set up some outdoor games so we could be outside and he could run around. Of course, Will's favorite part of the whole night was the cake! He kept telling us it was Craig's happy birthday party. So cute.

Later, Mary Beth set up her laptop with a Veggie Tales video and Will was all over that. He laid down in the floor to watch it. He was glued to Jordan the whole night, so he made Jordan lay with him and cover up with a blanket.

I am so glad we got the opportunity to celebrate with Craig and Mary Beth and we can't wait for all the wedding fun!

The Golf Tournament

2011-08-28T08:47:00.000-05:00

Our church's first annual golf tournament was Saturday. I was so glad it was finally here. Clay planned the whole thing and it has been a stressful couple of weeks. Thankfully, the weather was perfect and everyone had a great time.

Will has been talking about the golf tournament for weeks. He couldn't wait to go. He was also so excited because he was going to get to play golf with his Pawpaw. It is seriously all he talked about. He did really well considering we got up very early that morning.

Once we arrived at the golf course, we set up our registration table and all the golfers had a chance to go to the driving range to warm up. I was in charge of all the administrative tasks and Kristen and Ashley came to help me.

At 8 am the tournament started and the golfers were off to their first hole. Will rode with Clay and his dad. He thought he was big stuff.

Our pastor saying a few words before the tournament started.

Will listening to all the rules.

Will on Hole #10 with Daddy, Uncle John, and Pawpaw.

While the tournament was going on, Kristen and Ashley helped me set up the room where we were going to have lunch and give away prizes. Kristen was trying to move this grill and I am almost certain that the grill weighed more than she did.

We also had a lot of other great prizes that Clay was able to collect.

The whole day went well and I was really glad Clay was able to pull it off in such a short amount of time. We had 43 golfers and I think everyone of them said how much they enjoyed it and couldn't wait to do it again!

The score sheets waiting to be filled out.

Arts and Crafts

2011-08-18T09:48:00.000-05:00

Will is really into arts and crafts right now. He always wants to color, use scissors, or use glue. He usually brings something home from daycare everyday. He will go into great detail about what he made and how they made it. A few of his favorites have been a ladybug and flower. I think he liked those two because his teacher let them glue on eyes.

When we were at the store the other day, he insisted we but glue. I will admit I was a little hesitant. A two-year-old and glue just don't seem to make a good team. That night we did a little project. I let him use the glue all by himself and he loved it. He actually did a really good job too. No big mess to clean up.

August Beach Trip 2011

2011-08-16T08:51:00.002-05:00

This post is long with lots of photos!

A while back, Kristen and I started talking about taking a trip to the beach together to get away for a few days. Kristen has had a lot going on these last few months and with my surgery last month taking a toll, we both felt like it was time to take a break from reality and just rest. And in my opinion, the beach is the best place to do that!

We left out on Wednesday and came home Sunday. Of course, Jordan, Clay, and Will were with us and my mom joined us too!

Wednesday, we drove all day and didn't arrive at the beach until late. Jordan and Kristen were already there so as soon as we pulled in, we headed out for dinner. We went to this little beach side cafe that Clay and I like and it was the perfect place to kick off our stress free trip!

There was a little place out front, where the kids could play and it took Will all of three seconds to kick his shoes off and jump in the sand. He was in heaven.

Thursday, we got up and headed to the beach. It was such a nice day and we couldn't wait to relax on the beach all day. The water was a little yucky from seaweed, but that didn't stop us from having a good time. Also, Jordan beat his ADD beach record. He said normally he only likes being a the beach for like 20 minutes and then he is done, but because Will was there to entertain him, he stayed out there with us the whole time. After some beach fun, we headed back up to the condo for a nap.

That night we ate at Doc's (mom's favorite!) and then played putt-putt golf (Will's favorite!). We ran into some friends from church at the putt-putt course and played with them. It was fun! Will even got his first legitimate hole-in-one. He placed the ball at the start of the hole and hit it--it rolled right into the cup! He was so excited and so were we. I am sure everyone there thought we were nuts!

Friday we woke up and it was raining. We weren't going to let that stop us, so we went and grabbed some breakfast at Waffle House until the rain stopped. By the time we got home, the weather had cleared up and it was time for another day at the beach. Jordan and Clay joined us for a little while and then they headed out to play golf. We spent most of the day on the beach and then went to the pool for a little while. Will was really brave and jumped off the side of the pool to me. I was so proud of him. He is growing up so fast.

That night, we decided to go to a Japanese steak house. We thought it would be fun and that Will would enjoy it. Guess what?!? We were wrong. As soon as the chef did one small fire trick, Will was done and wanted nothing to do with it. I took him in the bathroom and tried to calm him down. He just kept telling me "Mommy, let's go sit in the car." It broke my heart but I knew there was no reason for him to be scared so we stayed. Thankfully, right behind the grill where we were seated there was a little 2 person table. The restaurant allowed us to sit there so Will and I had a little date, and he seemed fine as long as we were at the little table.

One dinner was over, we headed to The Track to play in the arcade. Will loves the "racecar store". He calls it that because of the go-carts. Kristen, Jordan, and Clay won some tickets so that Will could pick out some prizes.

Saturday was our last full day. That morning we got up and Marlin (John's Auburn roommate) came over to visit us. He is a police office in Gulf Shores and we hadn't seen him since football season. Will thought it was so awesome that a police officer came to see us. Will even got to see the police car. This was probably the highlight of his life!

After, Marlin left, we headed to the zoo. Gulf Shores has a small zoo called "The Little Zoo That Could." Will has never been to the zoo before and since this one is much smaller than the Birmingham Zoo, I thought it might be a great place to go for his first zoo experience. The zoo was so cute and had lots of different kinds of animals. The only down side was it was 5,000 degrees outside. It was seriously the hottest I have ever been in my life!!! Will really enjoyed it. I think his favorite animals were the baby goats. Kristen fell in love with a sheep that we saw and now she claims she is going to get a sheep. HA!

We officially drained ourselves physically at the zoo due to the heat, so we decided to head over to LuLu's for lunch. Kristen and Jordan had never been. It is a fun place to eat with kids because there is a lot going on. After we finished eating, I took Will down to see the boats. He told me "I want to ride on the big boat (aka yacht)" and I told him he needs to become a doctor. Maybe one day!

We spent the afternoon at the beach soaking up the last bit of sand and sun before our return home. Will had fun playing. I was so happy that he really enjoyed the beach this time. Sometimes it is hit or miss with him. We all had a much better time because he loved it so much.

Will was really tired on Saturday afternoon. I think he was worn out from all the activities. We planned to all go to eat at the Oyster House, but Will kept telling us he wanted to stay home. My mom (who is the best mom ever!) agreed to stay at home with him so that me, Clay, Kristen, and Jordan could go out to eat. It was a nice way to end our trip. A meal with only adults. As usual, something funny had to happen. Our waitress was obviously from another country and every time we asked for something, here reply was "yes, please". That became our theme for this trip "YES, PLEASE"!

Sunday, we woke up and packed our cars to head home. We only got about two blocks from the condo when Kristen called and said their car wouldn't start. It took us about an hour to get the battery charged even for the engine to turn over.

We got on the road and headed to Lambert's Cafe for some lunch. After lunch, it was a non-stop trip to the house.

It was great trip with great people. I am so happy that we have friends, like Kristen and Jordan, that we can do things like this with. Not only are we all great friends, but they love Will so much and that means the world to me. And of course, I was so excited that Mom went with us. She helps me and Clay with Will so much and Will loves his Mawmaw. Great trip - Great people - Great fun! Can't wait to do it again soon!!!!

Softball

2011-08-09T09:43:00.000-05:00

Clay is playing on a co-ed softball team this fall and the season started yesterday. We were afraid that the team was not going to be able to play because it was raining pretty hard about 30 minutes before the game was supposed to start. Thankfully, the rain moved through our area and it cleared up just in time for the game! Clay put the team together so all the people on the team are our friends. It's fun getting to see them play together and it's nice to hang with such great friends. Also, Robby and Robbin agreed to sponsor the team! So the Triple R Metals Co-Ed Softball team hit the field for their first game!

I was going to try to get some pictures during the game, but because we were rushing to get to the field, I forgot my camera at home. Also, Kristen and I are in charge of keeping the book so between that and keeping an eye on Will, I didn't have time to take any photos. We are hoping that next Monday the weather is nice so we can get a team photo.

Of course, Will is part of the team too! Our friend, who made the team shirts, was kind enough to make a little shirt for Will. He was so excited to wear his "baseball jerseee."

Will enjoyed watching the game but it lasted past his bedtime so he got a little cranky towards the end. Thankfully next week's game starts an hour earlier. I am definitely going to have to find him baby sitter for some of the games because they don't start until 8:15 or 9:15 pm.

We ended up losing the game 7-3 but everyone did such a great job. I think for their first time playing together in an actual game, they held their own. I can't wait to see what the rest of the season holds for the team and I know that it going to be fun!

10 Year High School Reunion

2011-08-07T08:45:00.000-05:00

Clay and I had a blast at my 10 year high school reunion last night! Our class officers did a great job putting everything together and the location was awesome. We had the reunion at a rooftop bar in downtown Birmingham and the weather was so nice. It was fun hanging out and catching up with old friends surrounded by great scenery.

There were about 40 or so classmates there plus their guests. We graduated with around 95 people so almost half came to the reunion.

Of course, Jenny and Tabitha were there. Jenny and I have been friend since 4th grade and Tabitha and I have been friends since 8th grade. We were really close in high school and still stay in touch today. Also, Jenny is moving back to Alabama soon so there is no excuse not to get together more.

Jenny, me, and Tabitha

All in all, it was a great night. I can't wait to see where everyone is in 10 more years.

10 Years

2011-08-06T08:43:00.000-05:00

My 10 year high school is tonight. That will make you feel old! Sometimes it seems like high school was yesterday and other times it seems like it was so long ago.

I had a good time during high school. I know many people who say that they would never do high school again, but I didn't have a bad high school experience. I always had fun during high school and I was never involved in too much drama. I was on the dance team and many of the kids from school were in my youth group. I had a good number of close friends and pretty much hung out with everyone. So if I had to do over again, I wouldn't do anything differently.

When I first got the email about the reunion, I kind of freaked out thinking about all the things I needed to do. Mainly, lose weight. I think that is probably every girl's first thought, but then I got over it. I guess I just don't really care about that stuff so much any more.

To be honest, I am really happy with where I am these days. I could stand to lose a few pounds and I could definitely be more patient with people, but I feel like I am right where God wants me to be.

I have talked before about success and money, and how it just doesn't have a hold on me like in the past. I may not make hundreds of thousands of dollars and I may not have the biggest house or the nicest car, but I am a good wife and a good mother. I could hang out with my family all the time and be happy. I have great friends who love me and have my best interest in mind. I like what I do for a living. It allows me some extra perks in life and I have a flexible schedule. I have a roof over my head and food in my pantry.

I guess I say all that to say this, I am content. Did I think this is where I would be at 27 years old? I have no clue. I always remember thinking that I just wanted to be proud of myself and I wanted my family to be proud of me, and I think I accomplished that. I had a great time at college and graduated on time. I married my best friend and we have the greatest son in the world. My mom, dad, and brother are part of my everyday life. I work hard. My friends are some of the most wonderful people. All those things make me feel successful. I had dreams 10 years ago and a lot of those dreams came true. I can't wait to see what the next 10 years hold for me and my family!

Something Different Everyday

2011-08-05T11:43:00.000-05:00

Will has such a GREAT personality. i wish you all could be around him everyday. He is always doing or saying something funny. I want to bottle up the cuteness!!!

Holding a mannequin's hand. He told me "I want to give her a kiss." He then realized she didn't have a head so he said "where her face?" It was an interesting conversation about what happened to her face.

I thought that I would list a few cute/funny things Will has said recently:

"You know what?" - This is his favorite phrase right now. He has said this phrase 100 times over the last few days. Every time he says it, Clay and I answer back "what?" and then he will tell us some random fact about what he is doing or his day.

"We go to the beach?" - We are going to the beach next week and he is really excited about it. This is usually followed by "we play in the big sand box, go play putt-putt, swim in da pool."

"Sank you" (Thank you) - Seriously the cutest thing EVER!!

Will absolutely loves music. He listens to the iPod whenever he can and he doesn't care what song is playing as long as he can hear the music.

Also, Will has been singing a lot. He loves to sing "Where is thumbkin?", "Jesus Loves Me", "Hickory Dickory Dock", and "The B-I-B-L-E". I have some videos of him singing and I will post them once I figure out how to get them off my phone.

I saw this little survey on another blog and thought it would be fun to do with Will:

What is your name? Will

How old are you? 2
What is your favorite color? Green

Who is your best friend? Will
What is your favorite animal? monkey
What do you want to be when you grow-up? a elephant
What is your favorite Movie? a monkey
What is your favorite book? a green book
What makes you happy? animals
What makes you sad? the animals
What is your favorite food to eat? racecar cheez-its (Funny side note: at first I thought he said racecar Jesus, but then he said it again and I realized he said Cheez-its. It made me laugh so hard. Also, for clarification he is talking about Cars (the movie) Cheez-its)

What is your favorite song to sing? Jump. The jumpy thing is a Mickey. (I assume he is talking about a song on Mickey Mouse Clubhouse or he is just talking about a bounce house...who knows?!?)
What games do you like to play? hockey

Eating chocolate cake for breakfast!

Hope everyone has a great weekend.

Fun Summer Night

2011-07-26T21:49:00.000-05:00

Our little family had the best night tonight!

After dinner, Will wanted to go and play in his kiddie pool. He was having such a good time "swimming" and Clay and I got to sit out there with him and talk. Then Will decided that it would be funny to get us wet. He is such a silly little boy. We stayed out there until we were all drenched from head to toe, but we had the best time.

Once we got all dry and put on clean clothes, we went and got ice cream! Will was so excited. We drove through Sonic and then headed over to Pop and Mawmaw's. It was great having a little ice cream date with them.

Will was a tired little boy when we got home and went to bed almost immediately.

It is such a sweet memory and a fun summer night!

Where has the time gone!?!

2011-07-22T12:45:00.000-05:00

Sorry the blog has been so quiet recently. I had a minor surgery last week so things have out of whack around our house. Also, Clay has a lot going on right now with coaching a co-ed softball team and planning a golf tournament. We have either been at a complete stand still or go-go-go! I am feeling much better so hopefully things will get back to normal this week.

Here's whats been going one the last two weeks:

My surgery went great but I was down for a couple of days. My mom stayed with me for two days to help out around the house and to help keep Will occupied. Kristen and Rita made us dinner the day of the surgery so I didn't have to worry with getting everyone fed. I am so thankful for a great family and fantastic friends!

We have been going to the park a lot because of Clay playing softball. We are usually up there Monday and Thursday nights. Last Thursday we ran into our friend, Jackson, and his mom. Will had a great time playing with Jackson. Now every time we go to the park Will asks "Where's Jackson? Where he at?" It's really funny. Also, another Jackson funny: Jackson's first birthday party was held at our city hall. We just happen to live behind city hall and have to pass by it everyday. About every other day or so, Will will point to city hall and say "Happy Birthday Jackson party...we eat cake." Jackson's party was back at the end of April. It amazes me how much Will remembers.

Last weekend we went and stayed with Richard and Julie. Will and I slept in the same bed and it was not fun. I maybe got 3 hours of sleep. He is just like his daddy, all over the place when he sleeps. We went to a charity breakfast on Saturday morning and then Richard took us on a tour of Tuscaloosa. We
hadn't been down there since the tornado so we went a saw some of the devastation. It was really sad but from what I can tell, they have a lot of support. Hopefully, things will be back to normal for them as soon as possible.

I don't know when we bought Will this because my weeks are running together, but Will got a brand new tricycle! He loves it so much, but he still has a hard time reaching the petals. What can I say, there are not many tall people in our family. He still has a lot of fun tyring to ride it and he looks pretty on his little tricycle.

Wednesday night we built birdhouses at church. The wood came from north St. Clair County where the tornado hit on April 27th. Our youth group built about 30 birdhouses and they are going to be delivered to the people in that area. Of course, Will was all about building his birdhouse. We were asked write something on the back, so we added Will's bible verse ("Every good and perfect thing is from above." James 1:17) and a drawing. It was such a neat idea and we had a great time!

Well, I guess that is all for now. I struggle sometimes with things to blog about so I may do one of those 365 day challenges. I have seen people who do them and they really liked documenting their day even if it was just a picture. Plus I need to be better about taking pictures of Will. He is growing up so fast now and I don't want to miss a minute!

Tuesday Night

2011-07-07T15:55:00.000-05:00

Tuesday night, Clay headed to the park to play softball with some friends so Will and I decided to go for a little swim.

We had so much fun. It was a little overcast so it wasn't so hot and the water was a great temperature.

Will showed me how he swims.

After his diaper reached its limit, he took it off and proceeded to show me how he can kick fast.

Also, I should note that right before we were for a swim, I cut Will's hair. I thought it turned out pretty good since it was my first time cutting hair. His hair was a mess before but I had been dreading taking him back to see Mr. Larry because he freaked out so bad last time. It was so stressful so I just decided to do it myself. It saved me a couple of bucks and a lot of stress!

A Day at the Lake

2011-07-03T15:25:00.000-05:00

Yesterday, we went to Pawpaw and CC's lake house for the day. Richard and Julie were staying with us for the weekend so they came too. Uncle Gray and Aunt Kate were there as well!

Will fell asleep in the car about 20 minutes from their house so once we got there, we let him finish his nap. We knew he probably wouldn't take another one and we wanted him to be in a good mood.

Once he woke up, he was excited to see we had made it and the first thing he wanted to do was see Pawpaw's boat.

We spent time just hanging out and letting Will play in his pool. He was all over the place. He loved being outside!

After lunch, we went on a boat ride. We ended up going to this place where they have a swing in a tree. Will thought all the people swinging were fantastic! Everyone got out of the boat and swam because it was so hot. Will finally got brave enough and got in with Clay.

Pawpaw added onto their pier and now there are steps that go down into the water and a SLIDE!! We were all pretty excited about that. Will went down once by himself and he wasn't too thrilled about it. Uncle Gray caught him at the end. He went down another time with Richard. Again, he wasn't thrilled about it but I think as he gets older, he will enjoy the slide more.

We ended the day with hamburgers. Uncle Gray shot a few bottle rockets and Will loved that. Every since then, when we hear people shooting fireworks he says "Uncle Gray do that." Its really cute!

Of course, there was golf involved in our day. The boys spent most of the time until we left hitting balls into the water and trying to see who could hit it the farthest!

We headed home at dark and Will fell asleep almost instantly.

Big Apple Adventure

2011-07-01T08:47:00.002-05:00

This past week was Vacation Bible School at our church. Will went to VBS last year for the opening worship rally and really liked it, so we decided to do that again this year. Plus it is fun to go and watch all the kids and how excited they are to be there!

One of our best friends, Ashley, is the VBS Director at our church so we like to go and help her out. She did such a great job this year. The theme was Big Apple Adventure. Our sanctuary looked like New York City! It was so cute. Also, the other VBS workers did a great job decorating their rooms to fit the theme. Such a fun time!

In the taxi!

Will had a great time this year. He even tried doing some of the hand motions with the songs and he also loved the little video series for the week. It was about superheros so it was right up his alley!

Uncle John came too!

My mom in her room with her youth worker. She did the missions room and it was set in Grand Central Station.

He favorite part was taking his offering and putting it in the bucket! This year the offering collected is going to provide a one-year scholarship for school for a child in Guatemala. Every night before we would leave the house to go to the church, Will would tell me "mommy, I get my offering!" It was so sweet and I hope that he will continue to give joyfully.

Wednesday, some of Will's nursery friends were also there. We had to get a picture of them together. Ashley put this picture on Facebook with the caption "Future generation of VBS!" Can I just say that it made me cry? My prayer is that Will will continue to love church and will come to love the Lord with all his heart. I hope that he and these little friends grow up together in church and always remain friends.

Will, Caroline, Sawyer, and Gavin

Will and Caroline

It was a great week!

Funny sidenote: I told will over the weekend that Vacation Bible School was this week and he was so happy. I kept calling it Vacation Bible School or Bible School. Monday when we were getting ready to go, I said "are you excited about VBS?" He started crying and I asked him what was wrong and he answered "I don't want to go to CVS, I want to go to Bible School." So funny! We couldn't call it VBS the rest of the week.

June Randoms

2011-06-30T09:56:00.001-05:00

I found a couple of cute/funny pictures from the month of June so I thought I would share them.

There were taking when Mom, Dad, and I took Will to the farmer's market. Will thought we were going to a farm so he was disappointed when we ended up in Downtown Birmingham and there were no cows.

One day, I decided to see how Will would do in big boy underwear. He peed on the floor. Good times! He loved that the underwear I got him was Woody and Buzz!

This is our living room after a day at home with Will. Real life!

My mom is going to kill me for posting this but it is such a quality picture I can't resist. Mom was cleaning out the dog cage at their house. So funny!!!!!

And this last one is from one day in the car. It is just a sweet picture of my boy.

The Green Handprint

2011-06-30T08:23:00.000-05:00

I found this on the wall in the kitchen today...

Then I found this coming down the hall...

Will's first piece of wall art work.

Thankfully, it was a washable marker and it came off with just a Clorox wipe. Also, I guess I caught him before he did too much damage because I didn't find any other evidence. He was really proud!!

Ice Cream Date

2011-06-29T09:41:00.000-05:00

I have been working from home on Wednesdays. It has been so nice, and I am so glad our work is letting us work from home one day a week. I get so much work done, plus I get our laundry done too. So bonus!!

When I work from home, I always pick Will up from daycare a little early. Today, we decided we needed a treat so we went to Jack's to get some ice cream.

It was so nice to take Will on a little ice cream date. He had a lot of fun and ran all over the restaurant. We were the only 2 people there.

I asked Will what kind of ice cream he wanted and he said blue. They didn't have blue ice cream so he picked orange sherbet and then I got chocolate. We went to sit down and Will decided he didn't want the orange ice cream. He then proceeded to eat ALL of my chocolate ice cream! He kept telling me "mommy like orange ice cream" like he was trying to convince me that I picked orange ice cream.

I was a great date with my little man!

Friday Fun

2011-06-25T09:50:00.000-05:00

Friday was a fun day for our little family!

One the way home, Clay and I stopped by Edgar's for a little treat and we got Will this cute little monkey cupcake.

As soon as he got home, he went straight for the cupcake and he loved it!

That night we met up with Kristen, Jordan, Chris, and Ashley for dinner at Wings. After dinner, we headed out to a new kids place to play Will's favorite game - PUTT PUTT GOLF!!

He was so happy! He loved every minute of it. He has been asking to go play putt putt since we went to the beach in April so when we pulled up his eyes got so big!

We had a great night hanging out with our friends and we are so thankful that they will join us for little outings that center around Will.

Carter Family Reunion

2011-06-24T09:08:00.000-05:00

Last Saturday, we traveled to Cragford to attend the Carter Family Reunion. This is Clay's grandmother's family.

The reunion was held at the Cragford School. It was really neat. I have been there once or twice before but it had been a while back. This was the first time we have taken Will. The school is so neat because they have a lot of history about the school and pictures posted. The school only had like 4 classrooms and a gym. The gym has old wooden floors. It really is an interesting site.

Clay's grandmother has nine brothers and sisters, so including each of their spouse and family members, there were a lot of people there.

We had a great time catching up with everyone and having Will meet family members he has never seen before.

Also, one of the highlights was Clay's cousin, Tonya, got to come and bring her new baby Tyler. He was 3 weeks old and so sweet. I love newborns. We are so happy for Tonya, Tony, and Taylor! A little boy is just what they needed.

It was a really fun day.

When we were leaving Cragford, we decided to stop by the Harris Dam. This is the dam on Lake Wedowee. We wanted to take Will to see it because his Pawpaw worked on this dam during its construction. When we got to the dam we told Will that Pawpaw built it and Will's reply was "Pawpaw build me a big slide." He didn't understand the concept of the dam and thought it was giant slide. He thought it was great and talked all the way home about how Pawpaw built him that slide.

Terrible Two's

2011-06-23T15:27:00.000-05:00

So...

We are in the midst of the terrible two's. I hate the word "terrible" because Will is not terrible, we are all just struggling a bit.

Will is such a great little boy. He is so loving and funny. He is smart and crazy. I love everything about his little personality.

But let's be honest, he is not perfect, I am not perfect, and Clay is not perfect. So things have been rough around our house.

That little boy that is so cute and sweet can sometimes be ugly and mean. I know that it comes with his age, but wow!

We have spent numerous nights in time-out and hours trying to talk out his frustrations.
Sometimes we hear the word "NO" so many times it makes me and Clay crazy. And if we are being honest, sometimes Will pushes both Clay and I to our breaking point. But I have found out one of the greatest things about being married during these hard days. On the days that I get frustrated and just can't handle things, Clay has a day where he lets everything roll off his back and he is able to stay calm. And on the days Clay feels like he is going to lose his mind, I have a day where I feel like I can conquer any problem. And the luckiest person in all of this is Will, because he always has one of us to step in and handle things without anyone getting upset. Will is our top priority and even on his "problem" days we couldn't ask for a better child to call our own.

And who can deny this face:

So, here's to the terrible two's!

A June Post

2011-06-17T11:18:00.001-05:00

I can't believe I haven't posted anything since May! Crazy!

We haven't been super busy or done anything super exciting. We spend our days working/going to daycare and our afternoons are spent playing outside and being together. We have spent most weekends being with family and friends and just enjoying the summer. Because it has been so long since I posted, here is a list of things that have been going on:

1. The first weekend in June we had a cookout at our house for our Sunday School class. It was a lot of fun! Will's best friend, Gavin, was able to come with his mom to the cookout so that was great! We cooked out, played some outdoor games, and then sat around the kitchen just catching up with everyone. Clay and I have great friends and we love being around them.

2. Just to give an example of how random our friends are, after the cookout Kristen, Jordan, Richard, Craig, John, Drew, Clay, and myself sat around the dining room table taking a personality test! So funny!!! Jordan had done the test at work and had Kristen take it. Then we thought we should all take it. Kristen and I were the same personality so it proves we really are BFFs! HA!

3. Richard and Julie stayed with us the weekend of the cookout. Shout out to Richard...here is the picture I found on my camera the day after they left.

4. Will has been all over the place these days. He moved up to the next class at daycare. They must wear him out everyday because he comes home tired. He takes at least 30 minutes every afternoon to rest. It's so funny. Also there have been some tantrums followed by lots of fun times! He is definitely a typical two year old. Love him so much!!!

5. Clay and I celebrated 6 years of marriage on June 11th. Time seems to fly by. I couldn't have asked for a better husband and friend. I hope we get to spend 60 more years together!!!

6. I have been dealing with a little health issue. It is not too serious and I am having some test done to figure out a plan of action to get things under control. That is one of the main reasons the blog has been silent for a few weeks. I am usually very tired and it takes all I have to get through the work day and then get home a take care of my family. Hopefully, I will have some answers soon and be feeling better in a week or so.

7. The pool. I bought Will this pool while Clay was in TX over Memorial Day weekend. We set it up and Will will not get in it. He thought his dinosaurs would enjoy it more. The pool has been taken down. Maybe we will put it up again later in the summer.

Well I guess that is really all that has been going on. We have also been doing some projects around the house, so I will share those in another post.

Hoping for a fun weekend with my boys and our dads!!

Bye Bye Crib

2011-05-30T15:02:00.000-05:00

Will said bye, bye to his crib today.

I thought I would be sad to see his crib go, but I was excited because Will was so excited. I ordered his toddler bed about 2 weeks ago so we have been talking with him about for a while. He was so happy when it was finally delivered today!

Clay put it together and Will moved the pieces around. We were missing some screws when we were nearly finished, but Will "found" them for us.

As soon as we put his bedding on, he got right in and laid down.

I hope that he transitions well. I definitely think he is ready. He is in his room right now taking a nap and we haven't heard a peep out of him.

Our boy is growing up!!!

The Weekend

2011-05-23T08:41:00.000-05:00

We had a great weekend!

Friday night, Will stayed with Mawmaw and Pop so that Clay and I could go out to celebrate Jordan and Drew's birthday. We ate at Stix and then went to Jackson's for dessert. It was a much needed night out and we had a great time just eating and talking.

Saturday morning, we got up and headed for Roanoke. It was Brett (Clay's cousin) and Krista's wedding day. I love weddings and of course it is a wonderful reason to get the whole family together. The wedding was gorgeous and Krista did a great job planning everything. Also, it was Will's first wedding to go to and sit through the whole thing. He went to see Kate and Gray the day of their wedding when he was a month old, but he didn't stay for the ceremony or reception. He was at Richard and Julie's wedding but mom took him out before the ceremony started. Brett and Krista's wedding was the first time he actually got to see someone get married! I was a little worried at first because he is so talkative and a little loud. He actually did really well. He talked a little while the mothers were being seated but we gave him milk and a snack and that quieted him. Half way through the ceremony, he fell asleep!

His favorite thing about the whole wedding was the bubbles. He thought it was great that we got to blow bubbles for the bride and groom. It was a great wedding and a fun day with family. Congrats to Brett and Krista!

Sunday, we went to church and then ate lunch at Wendy's. Clay headed for the golf course and Will and I made our way over to mom and dad's house. We played out in the yard for a bit and then went home for Will's nap. I cut the front yard and did laundry while Will napped. He slept for almost 3 hours! He must have been exhausted. Then we went back to church for service and then Clay and I attended a church leadership meeting. We fell into bed about 11 last night and struggled getting up this morning.

Fun weekend with family and friends! Wouldn't trade it for anything in the world.

And because Will always keeps us laughing, this is what he said to me in the car yesterday after lunch:

"You take me to Jackson's house. I eat Happy Birfday Jackson cake!"

I don't know where it gets this stuff from. Jackson's party was weeks ago. I guess Jackson's birthday cake left a lasting impression!

Oh the things he says...

2011-05-18T11:23:00.001-05:00

Will has always been a talker. He talks all the time and we rarely have quite moments in our house. We have a constant running commentary of what he is doing or what is going on. He even talks in his sleep sometimes.

I think there are two reasons he talks so much are:

1. He goes to daycare and I think he gets a lot of stimulation there, which I am thankful for.
2. Clay and I never talked "baby talk" to him. We talk to him like we would talk to anyone else. Also, we always try to have conversations with him and ask him questions.

Will is at such a great stage right now. He recounts his day for us and talks in length about every subject! Because I want to remember, I am going to recount some of the things he has said over the last couple of weeks.

Everyday when we pick him up, we ask him about what happened during the day. This is a conversation I had with him one day:

Me: Did you have a good day?
Will: Good day.
Me: What did you do today?
Will: Played ball wif my fwiends.
Me: Did you do anything else?
Will: No.
Me: Did you read a book, sing a song, or color?
Will: No.
Me: So you didn't do anything educational today?
Will: No, dere no education at scool.
(Sidenote: There is a lot of educational things done at his school. I think he just enjoys playing more than anything else!)

A couple of versions of what he said after his fall on Sunday:

Me: Tell Daddy what happened?
Will: I fall off da bed and hurt my head on da dwawer. It hurt. Da firetwuck came to see me, I go to the fire station. (The paramedics said he could come visit the fire station).

Me: Tell Pop how you got your boo-boo?
Will: I fall off da bed and hit my head. Da firetwuck come to my house. Whoo-whoo! <---making the siren sound.

Last night before bed:

Will: Mommy I love you so much, your my best friend! (Seriously melted my heart!!!)

And if I am being completely transparent, he said this little gem the other night in the car. None of us were talking and we were leaving Jack's:

Will: Mommy is a jacka**.

Awesome, right?!?! I was mortified. I don't think he has ever heard anyone say that to me. Clay asked him to repeat himself a few times because we thought he might be trying to say something else. But no. He was saying that word. I told him that was a dirty word and he said "dat not a diwty word". Oh the joys of parenthood.

I love him more and more everyday!!! He is the best thing ever!!

An Afternoon Spent in the ER

2011-05-16T16:57:00.000-05:00

So...

We spent Sunday afternoon in the ER at Children's. Not my ideal way to spend an afternoon.

Here is what happened:

After church, Will and I headed home and Clay headed to the golf course. Will and I were in my bedroom changing into our sweats in anticipation of spending the rest of the afternoon on the couch. Will was sitting on the bed and I was changing shirts. I have no clue what happened, but one second I was pulling the shirt over my head and the next second Will was on the floor crying. I scooped him up and held him to my chest to comfort him. I went to pull my hand away from his head and I looked down and my hand had blood all over. I turned him around and blood was all over the back of his head. Since I was alone with him, I called 911. I have never called 911, but I just felt like it was the right thing to do. Plus, we live on the same street as the fire station and I knew they could get here quicker than anyone else I called. Thankfully Will never lost conscience or anything. He was actually excited when he saw the paramedics because he thought it was a fire truck and it was super fun that they were coming to see him! The paramedics were so nice and they checked him out. They decided because of his age and how far he fell that he needed to be checked out by a doctor. They also thought he may need stitches for the cut.

Sometime during that whole thing, I called Clay and he came home. As soon as he pulled up, we put Will in the car and headed to the ER. Will was acting normal but he did tell us his head was hurting. The ER was almost empty so we were taken back pretty quickly. We were there a few hours. They had to strap Will down to this board to hold him still so they could clean the wound out. That was the worst part. He was crying and asking me to hold him. It was so sad. Once they got his head cleaned up, they said the cut wasn't as bad as they thought. They said they could put a couple of stitches in but it would be purely for cosmetic reasons and that might be more traumatizing then the benefit of the stitches. We opted out of doing the stitches, so they made sure the cut was really clean and then put some antibiotic ointment on it. Then we were sent home!

It was a really scary moment for me but I think Will seems to be fine. He keeps telling people "I fall off da bed and hit my head, it hurt". He is so sweet and I am so thankful that he was a very very minor injury.

I am sure that my Mother of the Year award is on its way in the mail right now! I felt so bad!!! Clay told me to get used to it, we have a very active little boy and this probably won't be the last time we see the inside of the ER. HA!

GOLF GOLF GOLF

2011-05-15T08:19:00.000-05:00

As I have mentioned in a previous post, Will loves GOLF!!! It is a topic of many conversations around our house. It is crazy how much he talks about golf and wants to play golf.

Pop decided to encourage his little obsession. He took an old Ping golf iron and cut it down to Will's size! It was love at first sight for Will! Haha!

(Please try to ignore the bright blue croc/shoe combo!)

Will now has a real putter and iron, as well as, all his little plastic golf clubs. Clay is really happy that Will thinks golf is so great!

Mother's Day 2011

2011-05-11T16:06:00.001-05:00

Mother's Day was a very low-key day for us and I loved it. I didn't ask for a gift, but Clay kept inquiring about what I wanted and the only thing I could think of was sleep! He took Will and let me sleep in on Saturday morning and then I got a nap on Sunday afternoon. Seriously, that was the best gift ever!!!

Sunday morning we went to church. They had baby dedication and 4 babies were dedicated to the Lord, including Will's friend, Jackson! It was a sweet service.

After church we headed over to mom and dad's for lunch. John bought a ham and I fixed the sides. The ham was mom's gift so she didn't have to cook.

John got me a gift and it was a chocolate Edgar's cake!!! LOVE!!!

Of course, most of all, I feel so blessed that God gave me Will and allowed me to be his mother. I already knew what a precious gift that was, but through a difficult situation a friend is going through, I am even more grateful for Will! And I am so grateful for my mom. I could not have asked for a better mother and friend. She is the BEST!!!!!!

It was a great day spent with my family!!!

Jackson turns 1!

2011-05-04T08:00:00.002-05:00

Today is Jackson's Birthday!

Happy 1st Birthday!

We celebrated with Jackson on Saturday. His mom and dad planned a wonderful party with great food and a cute cake.

The boys played together and were all over the place. Jackson was so sweet at his party and I think he loved all the attention!

Happy Birthday Jackson! We love you!

Thankful

2011-05-02T13:56:00.000-05:00

The last few days have been a constant reminder of how blessed I am. I stand in awe of what God is doing in my life and in the life of my family.

I have taken so many things for granted but I am thankful for God’s constant reminders of his love for me.

Here are a few things I am thankful for today:

1. This man:

I seriously don’t know what I would do without him. He is walking beside me as we navigate the waters of being husband and wife. He has such a tender heart and I love that he cares more for others than he does himself. He has been helping our neighbors and friends as they clear their property of trees and debris. He has worked so hard and I am so proud of him.

2. This boy:

He keeps me going. I am so thankful that God has allowed me to be his mother. He is pure joy and he sees the good in everyone.

3. My family and friends—Since the storm hit, our house has had a constant rotation of friends and family (mostly because we had power). I love spending time with my parents and brother, and I am so glad that we have so many wonderful friends in our lives. I am so thankful that God kept them all safe during the storm.

4. My job/finances—Clay and I are by no means rich, but God has seen fit to provide for us financially during this time. What a blessing. We were able to go and purchase some much needed storm supplies without putting a financial strain on our family.

I could go on and on, but these are the things that I have thanked God for over and over the last few days.

The LORD your God is with you,

he is mighty to save.

He will take great delight in you,

he will quiet you with his love,

he will rejoice over you with singing.

Zephaniah 3:17

Emotions

2011-05-01T17:20:00.000-05:00

The last few days have been very emotional. Our city and state have gone through so much because of the devastation that the storms caused. Also, one of my closest friends is going through something and it is very serious.

I want to be a good friend, mother, helper, wife, Christian, etc. I know that there will always be times when I feel like I am not meeting the needs of everyone in my life, but thankfully those who love me are very forgiving. I hope that God will sustain me through these next few days. My prayer is that He will use me and that I will be open to the plan He has for me.

The one thing that I cling to during this time is that no matter what is going on, God is still God and His plan for our lives is perfect! Please continue to pray! Prayer is what is getting me through all of this.

I love this song and we sang it this morning at church:

You're the God of this City

You're the King of these people

You're the Lord of this nation

You are

You're the Light in this darkness

You're the Hope to the hopeless

You're the Peace to the restless

You are

There is no one like our God

For greater things have yet to come

And greater things are still to be done in this City

Greater thing have yet to come

And greater things are still to be done in this City

Greater things are still be done here!!!

April 27, 2011

2011-04-28T17:10:00.010-05:00

We woke up the morning of April 27th to the weather radio going off. It was almost 6 am, so I told Clay to turn on the TV to see what was going on. As soon as we turned on the TV, we heard our local weatherman saying that the storm would be hitting our city in 3-5 minutes. Clay and I got out of bed to check things out. Clay went to the window in our office and immediately saw things were probably about to get bad. He told me to go get Will up and then not two seconds later he told me to get in my closet (our safe place). It was so weird. The wind was blowing so hard and we could hear tress falling all over the place. I was so scared, but it really was over in the matter of a few minutes.

We thought things were okay, until we looked out our windows and saw that there was a lot of damage on our street. Trees were down everywhere!! Clay went outside to check to make sure our house wasn’t damaged. We were so lucky but our neighbors weren’t. There are so many houses with trees on them and many houses have damage that may not be able to be repaired.

Looking out our front door.

Once we figured out that things were probably worse than we thought, we headed out to go to my parent’s to get a generator. We couldn’t even get to my parent’s house because of all the trees that were on the road. We turned back and went a checked on Kristen’s parent’s house. They had a tree on their front porch. They were also very lucky. From their house, we went to our church and saw that our steeple had blown off and the roof had some damage. We tried getting in touch with our preacher, but we couldn’t so then we started calling Ashley. When we got a hold of her, she wanted us to come get her right away. Her apartment complex was very damaged and she couldn’t get her car out.

Our church steeple.

Front of our church office building.

Ashley's apartment complex. (Not her apartment)

We spent the rest of the day surveying the damage and helping out where we could. About midday, we found out that Robby and Robbin had severe damage at their house. Their home is completely destroyed! The storm was so bad at their house that Robbin was even picked up by the wind at one point and slammed into her mantel, and then the couch fell on top of her. She has some broken/bruised ribs and had to have stitches in her hip. They are so lucky to be alive and we are so thankful that God kept them safe.

The side of Robby and Robbin's House.

Robby and Robbin's living room.

Their office on the second floor.

That afternoon, we hung around the house waiting for the second round of storms. Thankfully nothing too bad came through our area, but other parts of the state were devastated!! Places like Tuscaloosa are completely destroyed!

Again, we are so lucky and we praise God for keeping our friends and family safe. My prayer is through all of this, God will be glorified. Please continue to pray for the state of Alabama, all those who were affected by these storms, and all the people who are helping to rebuild in these areas.

He got up and rebuked the wind and the raging waters; the storm subsided, and all was calm. Luke 8:24

More pictures HERE.

Easter 2011

2011-04-27T17:08:00.011-05:00

As usual, we spent Easter in Wedowee. We arrived at MawMaw Yates’ house late Saturday afternoon. We had been in the car all day traveling back to the beach, so the first thing we did when we got there was let Will run around and play. He had so much fun playing with MawMaw and Uncle Al.

After he burned off some energy, MawMaw took us to eat at The Hub. IT was delicious as always! We spent the rest of the night catching up with them and then it was time to go to sleep so we could head to sunrise service the next morning.

Sunday morning we were up EARLY! We actually slept through our alarm, but we were able to get ready at a lightening pace and make it to church on time. I love the services at MawMaw’s church and always enjoy seeing the people who used to be our neighbors when we lived there. Also, it is really special spending the day with MawMaw and having Will and creating traditions with him.

Between church services, we let Will have his Easter basket. He got a toddler Bible and the Veggie Tale’s Jonah movie. He also got $5 and he thought that was awesome!

MawMaw prepared a great Sunday lunch! We were stuffed. We had to leave shortly after lunch to go to Roanoke to see Clay’s Grandma and that side of his family.

Clay’s cousin, Misty, hosted an Easter Egg Hunt at Shawn and Greg’s house. They had some great food and there were over 500 eggs to hunt! Will found a couple of prize eggs with money in them. He now thinks that all Easter Eggs have money in them. We always have a great time with that side of Clay’s family. We don’t get to see them very often so it is always nice to see them and catch up on what’s been going on in everyone’s life.

IT was a long day and it ended with some tears from a tired little boy, but I can’t help to step back and thank God for all He has done. We are so blessed in this life and we are so grateful that Jesus died on the cross to save us from our sins!

There is a tree inside our lake house!

2011-04-26T17:08:00.007-05:00

The Friday before we left for the beach, a couple of bad storms came through the area. Nothing at home was damaged, so we didn’t think much about the storm.

The Friday that we were at the beach, we got a call that we had some damage at our lake house. The neighbor that we have there had been trying to call us all week but wasn’t able to reach us. My cousin was taking her kids down there for the weekend and when she got there, she found this…

Obviously, the tree is not supposed to be in the lake house. There were lots of trees down all over our property and we had damage to our porches and our pier.

While it is a very serious situation, we were very lucky not to have more damage and no one was there so there were no injuries. It is just stuff so we will all work hard to repair the damage.

More pictures HERE.

Spring Beach Trip

2011-04-25T17:07:00.019-05:00

We just spent 8 wonderful days at Orange Beach. The weather was absolutely amazing. It was 80 degrees and sunny every single day. Of course the best part of the trip was spending our days with Will and the rest of our family. My mom and dad, John, Richard and Julie spent the week with us.

The guys spent most of their days playing golf. My dad even played golf for the first time in 4 years. He hasn’t been able to play due to his back, but since he had surgery in the winter he decided to try and go. He had a great time even if he was a little sore after.

The girls and Will spent time on the beach playing in the sand and reading books. I think we probably read 4 books a piece. Will had so much fun this year playing in the sand. Julie also bought him a kite and he thought that was great!

We spent our nights eating out at our favorite restaurants: Doc’s, Mikee’s, and Lulu’s. Mom and Dad even kept Will one night so we got to eat dinner and go for ice cream.

Will absolutely loved the pool. We spent a lot of time in the pool this trip. He was all about swimming like a “big boy” and jumping in. He never really swam because Clay or I were always there making sure he didn’t go under, but he did a great job and was not scared of the water at all. The condo we stayed at had a little baby pool that was only a foot deep. I thought that was perfect, but Will was did not want to go in the baby pool. He always wanted to go to the big pool! I think we have a little fish on our hands and swimming lessons will be in our near future.

On Wednesday morning, we decided to go to the Naval Museum in Pensacola. That morning it was a little foggy on the beach so it was the perfect morning to take a break from the sand. I had not been to the museum in years, so it was so interesting to see it as an adult. Will loved looking at all the planes and model aircraft carriers. They even had a little kid play set that was set up like an aircraft carrier. He didn’t want to leave that. The funniest thing happened while we were there. They had an area set up to look like a base camp during the Vietnam War. There was a little tent with a mannequin in uniform that looked like he was sleeping. Clay and John told Will the man was sleeping and I guess Will thought he needed to be awake, so he would go over and whisper “wake up, wake up” to the mannequin. He would then look at us and tell us the man is “sweeping, he need to get up!” It was hilarious!

The best part of the trip was putt-putt golf. Will has been really into golf lately, so Clay and I thought he would be the perfect age to play putt-putt for the first time. Will had so much fun hitting the ball and chasing after it. He even listened to us so that he knew the rules and followed them 90% of the time. After the first night we went to play, he wanted to go every night! We went one other time and it was so fun. Will loves golf so much more now that we are even thinking of making a small putting green in our back yard. Of course, Clay hopes that Will continues to love golf!

It was such a great trip and I loved being able to take a week off to spend with my family! We are already planning to take a long weekend trip in September!

To see the rest of the pictures from our trip, go HERE.

Beach Bound

2011-04-15T19:15:00.000-05:00

We are leaving tomorrow for the beach! 8 days of sand, sun, and family.

I hope that Will really enjoys it this year, I think he will. We plan on taking him to play putt-putt golf for the first time and Clay is thinking about taking him to the golf course so he can ride in the cart. He will love it. Golf is all he talks about these days.

I am excited to get 8 days to spend with my family in one of our favorite places. I have lots of books to read and lots of nap that need to be taken!

Can't wait to get to my happy place!!

Mommy and Will Day

2011-04-13T10:46:00.002-05:00

Saturday, Will and I had the day all to ourselves. Clay was doing the Diamond Dash with Jordan so Will and I time to spend just the two of us.

We started the day at the MS Walk. The company I work for has a team. I always participate because our friend, Tracee, and Clay's cousin, Tonya, have MS. Will was a little shy at first. I think the number of people there caught him off guard because I told him we were going to the park. I bought one of those little backpack leash things so we tried it out Saturday. Will didn't seem to mind it. It was nice to have control over where he could go without having to worry about him running off.

Will got this little plastic football from one of the vendors there, and he has carried it everywhere since Saturday!

After we left the walk, we headed over to a kid's shoe store to get Will some new tennis shoes. We always buy the little grey New Balances. This time we got the same shoe but I opted for the ones with laces instead of velcro. It makes me a little sad because those are big boy shoes. Just another reminder that Will is growing up! Will did so well at the shoe store that a little reward was in order.

There was a bakery next door, so we headed over for a cookie. There were so many cookies to pick from and Will choose a pink Easter egg cookie. He sat in the booth across from me and we talked while he enjoyed his cookie. He is such the little observer, so much that he was ease dropping on the conversation two ladies were having and he was answering questions that they were asking each other! HA!

Will ate his whole cookie and then we had to go pick up a birthday gift. Soon it was time to head toward home for nap time. By the time we got close, Will was hungry for lunch so we opted for Happy Meals. I had so much fun eating lunch just me and Will. He even sat in his own chair--no highchair or booster seat! Really when did he grow up?!?!?

We finished our lunch and went home for our nap. I got a couple of loads of laundry done while will was asleep. Once he was up it was time head to MA's third birthday party. Will had a great time at the party. Gavin was there too! The three kids had fun playing together. There were a few meltdown moments, but that is to be expected with 3 only children.

Will ended his day by having dinner with Mawmaw and Pop. He always asks to go to Pop's house. That's his favorite place to go because he gets to do whatever he wants whenever he wants! I am so thankful that my parent's love having him over, it gives Clay and I the chance to get out of the house. We went to dinner with some of our best friends and had a great time!

It was a great way to spend a Saturday!

Talking and Singing

2011-04-04T22:08:00.000-05:00

I have been loving spending time with Will. He is growing up so fast!! Kristen and I were talking about how just in the last month Will's vocabulary has taken off. He is putting together more and more sentences that actually make sense. Tonight, we were going to eat with Kristen and Will said in the car "I go see Kristen and Izzy. Izzy potty outside in back yard." (FYI-Izzy is Kristen's dog.) It amazes how much he knows and how much he remembers.

He also has learned his first bible verse and has said it about 4 times without any help. It the first part of James 1:17, "Every good and perfect thing is from above." We also do our prayers every night and he lists off the people he wants to pray for. 99% of the time Gavin is the first person he asks to pray for. Then we pray for our family and friends by name. It really is the sweetest thing you could ever witness as a parent.

Will is really into singing right now. Oddly, the Jack's Hamburger jingle is one of his favorites. He also loves to sing Jesus Loves Me, the ABCs, I'm a Little Teapot, the theme song to Wonder Pets, and the Auburn fight song. He is so funny singing all of these.

And as most 2-year-olds do, he is repeating everything!!! Clay and I have really had to watch what we say. Our family and friends have become really aware of our little tape recorder so they are trying to watch what they say too.

I am loving this stage and am so happy that we can really have these cute little conversations with Will. I am so happy that I am his mom! It's the best job ever!!

The Corner

2011-03-31T13:55:00.001-05:00

This corner in our kitchen has been occupied quite a lot these days...

I am not sure what the deal is, but Will has definitely been pushing his boundaries. I know that it comes with being two and finding independence. Thankfully, 99% of the time, time-out works for us. Will is very good about standing in the corner for his allotted time. When he gets finished with his time-out, we go over why he was in time out and then hugs and kisses. It's pretty much the Supernanny method. I have watched that show a thousand times and always figured that it didn't work, but it actually works for Will.

After a long night of whining, crying, and time-out, I went to get Will ready for bed. I was trying to have a little conversation with him about how he needs to mind mommy and daddy. I wasn't getting on to him, just talking. Well I guess he thought he was still kind of in trouble from earlier in the night, so he wanted to change the subject. In the middle of me talking, he started singing "Jesus loves me". IT WAS SO SWEET!!! He totally got me. He is my little con artist. He knew exactly what to do to get out of the little lecture I was giving him.

Nights like last night really wear me out, but i hope that Will is learning a little bit of discipline. We can definitely tell that he understands that if he does something wrong that he will be punished. Our prayer that in all of this that we will raise a well-behaved and thoughtful child!