Bring in the New

2009 was a great year! We did a lot of fun things and had a lot of positive changes in our lives. We made two trips home this year. The girls started preschool. Brinnley went into Primary and Porter into Nursery. We took day trips to explore the beautiful area we live in. We made a lot of good memories. But I am excited for the new year. We have a lot to look forward to. Brinnley will start kindergarten this year. Chant will graduate with a Doctorate in Chiropractic. This time next year who knows where we will be. I am excited for the changes headed our way.

Like most people I have my list of resolutions for the New Year, such as finish my scrapbook and other half-finished projects, exercise, etc. But this year I am taking a different approach to my goals. This year I am focusing more on internal things. Here goes:

1.) Find joy in things. I want to feel accomplished and find joy in the daily tasks rather than see them as merely "housework" and mundane tasks.

2.) Be more spontaneous. Schedules are nice, but they are not iron-clad. Brinnley will be starting school and we will be leaving the friends we have here. I plan to take full advantage of the time we have left and live it up!

3.) LAUGH. Everyday.

4.) Do those things that will bring me closer to Heavenly Father. More in-depth prayer and study of my scriptures.


I am excited for the future and all the prospects it holds. I feel a need for change and to spice up my life. Part 1 happened Sunday. Church was canceled due to snow, so I spent 4 hours weaving ribbon through wicker balls. I wanted to add some variety to my living room. So the Christmas decor came down (Hey, it had been up since Thanksgiving, so I feel that was long enough) and up went the new decor. We hung a line of 8 wicker balls in the area separating our living room and kitchen. It brightened things up and even though it was a cheap project, it created a whole new look.
The second part was redoing a wall in my living room. We had 4 pictures and a shelf on the wall, 2 pictures hanging on the wall and the other 2 sitting atop the shelf. The pictures came down and up went a 9 foot length of sheet metal. Now I have a new way to display my photos. I love it!

Part 2 started Tuesday. I got one of the worst haircuts of my life, for sure a top 10 and maybe even a top 5. It was pretty bad. I screamed a time or two at the mirror while trying to do something with the disaster. When screaming didn't do the trick I looked up hair salons in the area and made an appointment. I went in this morning and said, "Help!" She said "WOW!" then started cutting. After an hour I walked out of the salon a new woman. Even though my hair is short again (I have been working a year to grow it out) I love it! Talk about a miracle worker! Then I decided to take it a step further so I went to the store and bought a highlighting kit. Watch out world! Now my hair is short and sassy. It's a new year and a new me (sort of)! Wishing everyone a Happy New Year and here's to new beginnings!

P.S. The pictures of the kids aren't really for anything other than because I thought they were pretty darn cute. This family is loving anything prince or princessy. The capes and crowns are a welcome addition to our daily play accessories.

Christmas at the Williams Home

Christmas Eve in their new jammies
Christmas Morning waiting for Dad to get the camera before heading to the living room
The girls both got FurReal Friends puppies. They bark and wag their tales when they are petted. As close to a real dog as we are going to get for a while.
Opening his 10 pack of cars.
Ainsley is into puzzles right now. She got 3 new ones to keep her occupied for a while.
Hannah Montana costume. ($0.88 at Claire's on clearance!)
Ainsley's new cape Grandma made.
Brinnley's cape
Foamy dots that Grandpa got us. The girls had a lot of fun with them.
Porter got this awesome track from Aunt Kristy and he started playing with it and didn't stop for 45 minutes. The big rug is a garage sale find I have kept hidden since June.
Ainsley got her own guitar, blue even. She is awesome on it! SO excited for her "guintar"
I think Porter looks ready to head off to Hogworts. Makes me want to reread Harry Potter just looking at him.
Brinnley got a new Leapster and 2 new games. I have never seen such a big smile as she had when she played it for the first time. She was thrilled and caught on so fast. It is going to be amazing!
Super Why friends (Wonder Red and Princess Presto) from Gran
Mulan and Jasmine from Opa and Oma

And I got a beautiful necklace courtesy of Chant and a beautiful handcrafted watch from Mom. I am listening to my favorite tunes right now thanks to Margi and Kristy and Jenny.
Chant rolled in the shirts and ties and movies this year.
And we got a fondue pot from Grandpa Gene and Tammy that I cannot wait to bust out.

It has been a wonderful day here relaxing and playing with our new treasures. Thanks family for the wonderful gifts. Even though we are missing everyone, we have had a pretty good day! Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!

I'll Be Home for Christmas, If Only In My Dreams...

The kids with Opa
Grandpa Gene and Aunt Dee
The cousins
More cousins
Playing with Grandpa
Snow, blessed snow!
Porter Boy and Aunt Kristy
Brinn and Gran and Aunt Kristy and Auntie J
(Photos of Christmas 2008)

It is Christmas Eve. Up until now I have been so busy with parties, doctor appointments, and being sick that I have not had much of a chance to be homesick. But today I am. The kids are napping. Rain is thumping the roof of my home. Chant is doing some last minute shopping. And I am alone. It won't stay that way. The children will awaken, Chant will return, and we will be off for dinner with friends tonight. But for now, here I sit in silence but for the gentle thrumming sound of fingers on computer keys. I miss my Mom. I miss her home. I miss sitting and talking with her on the sofa by the window. I miss my Dad snoring softly in his favorite chair. I miss all the hustle and bustle of nieces and nephews, brothers and sisters-in-law coming and going. I miss playing games. I miss Mom's amazing cooking. I miss the hugs and smiles of family. Now I wish I had a Kleenex! I miss my sisters-in-law, and laughing with them. I miss my mother-in-laws gentle hugs and tender voice as she plays with the kids. I miss our visit with Opa and Oma and taking over their basement with all our things. I wanted to see my father. It has been a year since we saw him last. I'll dry my eyes now so I won't be crying when the kids come out of their room. I will enjoy the rest of the day and tomorrow too as we celebrate the birth of our Savior. But a little piece of my heart will be out West, with family playing in the snow. I love you all!

Journey to Bethlehem

Friday night we attended an event called Journey to Bethlehem. It is hosted by another church. It starts out watched a live enactment of the angel telling Mary she was to be the mother of Jesus, the Savior. It continues on with her telling Joseph and all the events up to them leaving to be taxed in Bethlehem. Then as families they took groups on the journey to travel to Bethlehem to be taxed. This journey was outside and we traveled for about 45 minutes. We met other people who were traveling as well, Roman soldiers who checked our travel papers, the three kings who were following a star, and the shepherds who saw an angel. When we finally reached Bethlehem ourselves there was no room for us in the inns but we were directed to a stable, where we found the Christ child lying in a manger. It was beautiful done! Lots of people (700) were required to pull the experience off and I am sure the time and preparation was great. Thank you Harvester Christian Church for a wonderful evening! (P.S. We brought the camera and the only things we got pictures of were an animal roasting over the fire and the donkey. They had horses, donkeys, and even camels. Pretty awesome! But the roasting animal was pretty much the highlight for Chant the Photographer Man, apparently.)
Since I was just talking about kings, I thought I would show another king-hopeful. The girls won these crowns as prizes from playing Super Why games on the computer. Porter felt pretty honored that they would share.

Monkey Tuesday

Both the girls put monkey shirts on this morning when they got dressed and we didn't want Porter to feel left out, so he got one too.
And we had to take a few close ups of Porter's hair. He woke up this morning with it looking basically that way. I added a little water and that's it. The girls and I think he looks pretty cool!

This is the desk Chant made for the girls' room. Now they have their very own place to let the creative juice flow. And believe me, they have. Their room is decorated with one of a kind art.
And we played Prince and Princess the other day. Both Ainsley and Brinnley wanted to be the Prince but they needed a Princess to save. So Porter was designated as Lady Laughs a Lot and he was locked away in the dungeon (i.e. his bedroom) to wait for the heroic princes to come and rescue him.

Hurry Back!

Dear Library Express at Winghaven,

You have been one of our truest friends. Always there when we needed companionship on a boring, sunless afternoon. Always willing to lend us your many treasures, even if it is 18 items on reserve that just so happen to all come in on the same day. You always had your doors open, or at least your drop box. Friendly too! Always greeted us with a smile, at least the librarians did. You knew me by name, always made me feel special. My children loved visiting you to see what new surprises awaited. They love your tiny bench by the window and always looked forward to perching there at least long enough to read two stories. Your location too was quite brilliant. Close to the duck pond and in our favorite neck of the woods. Oh sweet construction workers, let thy tools be quick. Oh divine February, come quick! You will be missed, our dear sweet friend. We have shed a tear or two in your behalf. Know you will not be forgotten. We await your return! Until then we will remain forever true, except for the bi-weekly rendezvous with Middendorf-Kredell. (Don't worry, in our book you remain far superior to your bigger brother.)

Until we meet again,
The Williams Clan

So Proud. So Long

My children are changing so much and I just thought I would share a quick update.

Brinnley can write her name, frontwards and backwards. Impressive huh! She loves to draw pictures and more specifically people. They are awesome, but of course I am partial. She even made us pictures with our names on them so we had assigned seating at the table. Still picky in the food department. We had cereal for dinner last night. I think that is the first time she has eaten dinner in months! Brinnley loves to read books together. And she has a new love of headbands. So do I, they are cute and easy!

Ainsley can dress herself mostly. And she wants to pick out her clothes now. I only have one child left that lets me dress him anyway I want. At least I still buy the clothes, so I know what they wear I will like ;) She loves to put puzzles together and is very good at it. No help, please, I can do it myself. And she is my music guru. She loves music, all types. And she can memorize a song after hearing it only a few times. She still loves to play with babies. She loves to drink milk. Not a huge fan of fruit, but we are working on that. She'll eat applesauce now! But she loves veggies.

Porter Boy. He is a climber! The other day there was a bottle of ginger spice on the floor. I asked Chant if he had been using any spices. Nope. That's right, Porter drug a chair over to the counter, climbed up and raided the cupboard. Funny but also a little scary! He loves to help unload the dishwasher. And watch me cook. He loves getting his hair done and volunteers to come and sit in front of me with the brush in his hand. He loves his bed, blanket, and his monster. He LOVES shoes, anybody's it doesn't matter. He will eat anything except applesauce and green beans. He loves to dip. Ranch, ketchup. He will use the same carrot over and over. (Sound familiar, Mom?) HE loves music and dancing. He is the king of the head bob. He loves to cuddle. And he jabbers, all the time. He likes to color and it is official. We have a lefty folks! Now Mom isn't so lonely! And he no longer sits in his highchair. He is at the table in a booster. Welcome to the family! His favorite ornament on the tree is a green glitter bulb. Favorite color?

Porter and Ainsley love to watch tv together sprawled on the floor. (I make them scoot back.)

I had a huge "I'm Proud" moment this morning. I was doing dishes and I asked the girls some questions about preschool and what jobs they liked best. The girls started talking about it and then they argued about who liked to lead the Pledge of Allegiance more. I asked if they knew it. "Yep." Then both girls says, "Please stand for the Pledge of Allegiance." With hands over their hearts they both recited word for word the entire Pledge. I knew they knew parts of it but I didn't know they knew the whole thing. I am so proud of my girls. And it helps that they have the best preschool teacher ever. We love you Miss Becca!

Really long update over now!

Okay, a little longer. Chant is doing amazing in school and he starts in out-patient clinic in a couple weeks. We are so proud of him! He works so hard!

My hair is getting longer, and I like it. I had a miraculous day the other day where I felt kind of okay and I took a picture of myself. Sorry, won't happen again.

Okay, now I am done. A good book is calling my name. Oh, and it is snowing RIGHT NOW. Fluffy white flakes are lightly floating to the ground. I am in heaven. Now all I need is that book and some cocoa!

Ants in my pants

I feel anxious. I have a need to create, beautify, and decorate. I want my red and yellow room. Red couch. A family of 6 red, yellow, and orange decal birds on the wall. Owls, cute ones, made from fuzzy sweaters sitting on my entertainment center and bookshelf. A bright red shelf with a yellow flower arrangement perched atop. Red or yellow curtains, I cannot decide. Yellow chairs, one on each side of my red couch. Stark white walls, okay I can't decide yet, so that my decor will pop.

I have material and patterns waiting. A skirt for each girl, a dress for each girl, and a new bag for me.

Ten months of pictures to be scrapbooked.

The morals of the story: one day I will have a beautiful red living room where my girls will twirl in their new skirts and dresses while I pour through albums full of pictures of my twirling cuties and their wild man brother who is dancing circles with drool dripping from his chin.

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas

The stockings are hung from the ceiling with care. Candy Cane Lane has been strung from wall to wall. The tree has been assembled and dressed with ornaments of plastic and wood. Smowmen and Santas have been placed on newly dusted shelves. The candy calendar has been filled with chocolate delights. And now...we wait. Little hearts are bursting with anticipation of the event that is still 23 days away. But to fill the time we enjoyed a marvelous Thanksgiving with friends. Delicious food aplenty and pleasant company made the day warm and cozy. Next will be the ward Christmas party and other gatherings with friends. It truly is the most wonderful time of the year, even if we are lacking two things: family and snow.