So, it's been awhile.....

Okay, so our computer is broken and until we get it fixed I won't have much chance to blog. I also can't get off all of the cool pictures from our Holiday adventures. So hang in there and hopefully within the next week, you will see pictures and blog entries coming your way! :) I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and has a great New Year's Eve tonight!

...and the Mamba's win the Tournament!!!!

This week we had our leauge volleyball tournament and our team, the Mambas, was undefeated! That's right, we took the tournament title! Yes! It was a blast playing on a leauge and I had the most wonderful people on my team. The Y is an amazing place to play and when life settles down a little, I will play again!

Families are Forever

This weekend, Eric's Dad passed away. He had been diagnosed with cancer earlier in the year and unfortunately all the treatments were unsuccessful. Although this is a really tough time for the family, we feel so very grateful for so much. We were blessed to be able to take the trip to California in September so that the kids could meet their Grandma and Grandpa Williamson for the very first time. They had some special moments with Grandpa Bob even though he was very sick and we are so grateful for those moments and the memories we have of them now.

I feel so much gratitude today for the blessing of eternal families and the knowledge that I have that this is only a temperary seperation and that when this life is done we will be together with all those we love, never to part again.

Thanksgiving

I can hardly believe that Thanksgiving has come and gone! Where is the time going? This year, I hosted Thanksgivng dinner and my parents joined us. It was fun and I really enjoyed cooking and thankfully, everything turned out great! Phew! :) It was so great for the kids to share the day with Grammy and Grandpa. This was our first Thanksgiving all together!

Twilight

On opening day, I took our young women to see Twilight! It was so much fun to be there and share the experience with the girls. There was a lot of screaming and laughing and fun was had by all! I have to say, the girls liked the movie a lot more than I did. I just didn't think it was enough like the books, the characters were a little too stoic for me. That being said, I'm sure I'll be lined up again to watch the next one when it comes out. :)

I'll be posting pics as soon as I figure out how to get them off my phone! :)

Nothing is Everything

As I've said a lot on my blog, things have been very very busy for us lately. It has been a long time since we have had a day where NOTHING is written on the calendar. Well, today, we were blessed with a day like that and it was wonderful! The kids and I played, got McDonald's and brought it back home where we had a picnic with it in the living room while watching a movie, played some more, had popcorn and just enjoyed being home together. Sean is in year-round school and he is tracked out for the rest of the month.

It was so nice to be at home, relaxing with the kids, and having absolutley nothing that HAD to be done. Nothing really is everything!! :)

Family Fun Day

It has been so long since my last post. Life has been a whirlwind of craziness and I haven't had much time to call my own as of late. :) Anyway, last Saturday Sean's school held a family fun day fundraiser on Saturday and so we all went to have some family fun. They had a lot of great things for the kids to do: games, rides, bounce houses, rides on the fire truck...and a raffle. Just for fun we entered the Tae- Kwan-Do raffle which was for a free two month class and we won! So Sean will be entering Tae-Kwan-Do very soon! :)

Since I'm a room mom I felt obligated to help with the fun day so I ran a game for an hour and baked a cake for the cake walk. :)

The Great Pumpkin Patch

We have been soooo busy lately that we haven't had a Saturday together as a family in over a month. So yesterday we decided, come what may, that we were going to have some family fun! :) We loved going to the apple orchard in Illinois and went often and after much searching we finally found a pumpkin patch here. It was awesome! They had train rides, gem mining, bounce houses, pony rides, a 60 foot slide (no joke), a fort, a hayride to the pumpkin field, etc....you get the idea. We ended up staying four hours and would have stayed longer if we could have. The best part (other than being together as a family) was the weather. It amazes me that in November it can still be in the mid-70's. I love that! We can enjoy the beautiful colors of fall and have none of the cold weather!

Here is the only picture we have for now. The camera battery died early on the trip so I bought a disposable one at the pumpkin farm. Will scan some of those in when I get them developed. :)

Chewy Louie

This past weekend, we had the pleasure of hosting "Chewy Louie" Sean's kindergarten class pet. He is a stuffed dog taken from one of the books they've read this year. Every weekend, a child in the class gets to take home Louie and make him a part of their family. He goes everywhere and does everything that we do. And then, at the end of the weekend, we record in Louie's journal everything he did and document it with pictures. Here are some of the things that Louie did with Sean this weekend: made crafts, slept in Sean's bed, made a pizza from scratch (and it was yummy), went to the mall and rode the carousel, attended church and met all of Sean's friends, played Wii....you get the idea.

It was lots of fun to have Louie with us and Sean took excellent care of him. Avery loved him too and could often be found trying to sneak him away so she could have him all to herself. She would grab him and run saying "My Chewy Louie". :) Here are the pictures we put in the journal:

We'e back!!

Hey everyone! We are finally back from our super long trip! We went to see the California Williamsons and then on to Disney!

The kids and I really enjoyed spending time with and getting to know the family. They are very excited to have lots of aunts and uncles and another grandma and grandpa and they were spoiled rotten with lots of attention and fun. Sean was able to go to the park and play baseball and make cool things with his uncles, and have treasure hunts with his Auntie Kris. One of his uncles even went with him on rides at a little amusement park. I just wish the time hadn't gone by so fast!

We finished up the trip by spending 5 days at Disneyland...and that was a blast! The kids are at a fun age and were able to enjoy all that Disney had to offer. Sean is so like his mom and dad and loves roller coasters and thrill rides. We spent a lot of time on Space Mountain (the family favorite), Splash Mountain, Tower of Terror, Big Thunder Mountain Railroad, and things like that. Eric and I were the biggest kids of all. We couldn't wait to get to Disney each morning when it opened! We proudly wore our mouse ears and smiled so big our faces hurt. :) Avery really loved Peter Pan, Monsters Inc., and Pirates of the Carribean. But what she loved most of all was Buzz Lightyear. She LOVES Buzz and I mean LOVES Buzz!! She had to hug and kiss him multiple times per day. The princesses are next in line and after she was able to hug and kiss her Buzzy, we went to see the princesses. Avery was so excited to meet them and was even able to get her hair done just like a real princess. She loved that!

The only sad thing is that I dropped and broke our camera early in the trip, so the only pictures we have of Dinsey are the ones they took for us. I have to order those (of course) and so I won't be able to post them for awhile.

On Vacation

Will post next weekend! :)

Who knew?!?

You Are Cinderella!

Dignified and hard working. With a gentle and soft-spoken manner you have something many people don't. Patience. Even through the moments of heartbreak you're still able to hold onto all of your hopes and dreams. Bide your time; your dream will come true.

Which Disney Princess Are You?


I have to say, I wouldn't have guessed it! :) But it is right about one thing, I never stop believing that my dreams will come true!

Day from Hades

I was reading my friends blog entry (kaylynn) and I had to laugh! I thought it was going to be about how great motherhood is and as it turns out, it was about how bad it can be at times. I have just had the day from hades! Really! There is just no other way to describe it. I throw in the towel and admit defeat. This job is too hard! :)

Sean got in tons of trouble at school (which he never has before, and while I was on the phone Avery got into the cats litterbox (EWWWWW) and dumped the entire contents all over the office...on the floor, on the furniture, on my papers, I mean everywhere. As if that weren't enough, I spent over an hour talking with Sean and sharing scriptures and stuff with him and nothing got through. I feel totally and utterly exasperated. Sometimes, we try and try and just see no results. At least it's that way at our house right now.

I am taking a bath and going to bed! Please oh please let tomorrow be better! :)

I've been Tagged!

Tag!! I've been tagged by Cindi!

20 YEARS AGO...
1. I was 11 years old and I hadn't found the church yet.
2. I was living in Illinois and attending an all girls college prep school.
3. I was listening to the Fine Young Cannibals "She Drives Me Crazy" and Phil Collins "Groovy Kind of Love". :) Those are the songs that I always associate with that time in my life.
4. This was the year that I discovered my love for volleyball and earned the nickname "mitochondria" because I was our class powerhouse on the court (and we were learning biology that year). :)

10 YEARS AGO...
1. I was 21 and living in Salt Lake City.
2. I was in my third year as a Big Sister for Big Brothers/Big Sisters and loving it.

5 YEARS AGO...
1. I had been married for two years. :)
2. I was the Mom of a very cute one year old boy named Sean.
3. I was working nights and taking care of Sean during the day. I was tired!!
4. We had decided we were going to buy a house and started the search.

3 YEARS AGO...
1. We were still in Illinois, but living in a different town in our very first house!
2. I was pregnant with Avery and very sick. This month three years ago marks the first of many hospital visits during my pregnancy.
3. My Mom came to stay with our family to help take care of Sean and me. :)
4. I was serving in the primary presidency in our ward.

1 YEAR AGO...
1. We decided to leave Illinois and move the family to North Carolina.
2. I was in Illinois by myself with our two kids trying to sell our house.
3. Eric was in North Carolina working and waiting for the house to sell so we could be together.
4. We were in limbo limbo limbo :)

THIS YEAR...
1. Is the best year yet! We sold our house early in the year!!!
2. We packed up and moved to North Carolina and we were all together again! Yes!
3. Sean started kindergarten!
4. I was called to serve in the young womens presidency my second week here! Yikes!

YESTERDAY...
1. Was a very bad day to be a mom! Avery got into the litterbox, Sean got in trouble at school, and Eric had to work very very late!
2. I started packing for our trip to California ( we are going to see Eric's family and then to Disneyland)!
3. I did a ton of laundry and wished for a maid!

TODAY...
1. I went to a friends house to make candles! It was fun and I learned a lot.
2. I am doing more laundry and trying to get things ready for our trip.
3. I am working on the young women's lesson I have to teach Sunday.
4. We were going to go to the temple but Eric has to work late, so I will try to get the kids to bed on time and enjoy the quiet.

TOMORROW...
1. I am getting my hair done! Yes! Finally, some time for me! :)
2. Running a ton of errands!
3. Taking Sean to a friends birthday party.
4. Playing Volleyball

NEXT YEAR...
1. Sean will be in first grade
2. Avery will start preschool
3. I will have more free time! Yes!

Updates

Hanna came through last week and she was about as dramatic as a thunderstorm. :) We had a little wind and a ton of rain, but we didn't lose power and all was well. A few flooded places here and there but nothing too severe. Ike is the one I'm worried about now. It's headed for Florida and that's where my Dad is right now. We plan to keep an eye on it and hopefully it won't strengthen as it heads for the U.S.

Now for the volleyball update...well, tryouts were nerve racking (I hate doing that kind of thing) but in the end it was worth it because I made the team! Yeah! So, now I can play once a week at church and once a week competively. I'm excited! I always feel so good after playing and it keeps me in shape which is becoming more important as I climb the hill towrads old age! :)

Bracing For Hanna

Okay, so this is offically our first North Carolina hurricane experience. They are really taking this thing seriously and the temple and church have been closed for at least today and tomorrow, maybe Sunday depending on what Hanna brings us. In the past, hurricanes that have hit NC have really caused problems and the last major one that occured was Fran who left people in our area without power for 5 plus days. I went to the store to buy a few more things and boy was it crowded.

Hanna is expected to hit us in the wee hours of the morning and stick around most of the day tomorrow. Hopefully all will be well. We have a ton of tall pine trees in our yard and we will be watching those closely. Will let you know how things turn out!

More Volleyball

Ok, so I've been bitten by the volleyball bug. It has always been my favorite sport and since we've moved here I have had the chance to coach the young women as well as play every week with the men/women. I love it and I look forward every week to my volleyball night. As if that weren't enough. a couple of the women and I decided to try out for a real league so we could play even more. :) So, Saturday, I will put myself on the line and try out for a real team! I am nervous and excited! I always wanted to play in high school but I was too shy and wouldn't try out. I feel like this is my second chance and I am going to take it. :) We are getting together this afternoon to practice/hone our skills some more. Wish me luck at tryouts and hopefully I can stay injury free (especially since we are going out of town for a week and a half later this month).

Labor Day Adventure

We have all been so very busy lately and we really haven't had much time as a family, so we decided to go away for labor day weekend. We went to Charlotte because they have a six flags type amusement park there and also a great childrens museum. We spent Saturday at the amusement park and had a blast. They had a ton of rides the kids could go on and even scaled down versions of roller coasters like batman. Sean is like his parents and he loves roller coasters. He went on every ride he was tall enough for. Avery, our giant girl, was tall enough for most of the roller coasters (and she's only 2)but we decided that we wouldn't put her on them. Even though she's tall enough, she is still young and I wasn't sure how she would handle them.

Anyway, things were going great and we were having a blast when things took a turn for the dramatic. :) I had given Avery some childrens sudafed because she was congested (like the rest of us) and while I was in the restroom, she got into my purse and found my pillbox. I came out to find her mouth covered in red and my adult sudafed bottle totally empty!!! Yikes! Not only did she have her own dose of sudafed she had eaten about 8 of the adult ones! After a quick call to poison control we were off to the ER. Scary as it was, things turned out fine. Avery was given lots of "halloween juice" (charcoal) to drink and she did great. She drank it all and most of the medicine was absorbed. She had an acclerated heart rate and her eyes were really dilated but she came through everything just fine and after about 5 hours we were able to leave the hospital. The hospital we took her too had a childrens ER and they were amazing! She had the best doctor and nurse and we couldn't have been happier with all that they did.

We are so thankful that she is fine and everything is back to normal.

Dad/Grandpa Came Home!!

As you can tell, it's been a long time since my last post. Things have been so crazy busy here. The most exciting thing that has happened lately was Dad/Grandpa's visit home! We all miss him and were so excited when he decided to come home to celebrate his birthday!

The kids LOVED seeing their Grandpa and each had time alone with him. Sean and grandpa did lots of projects together (including cutting down a dead tree in the backyard). Grandpa was able to help Avery ride her bike and she in turn showed him all her dollies.

Here are some pics from the visit:
















We all had a great time and it was so wonderful to see our Dad/Grandpa!

Family Fun Night

Last night our town put on a Family Fun Night where families could come and enjoy some fun. :) Hence the name. :) Anyway, Avery was so tired and wanted to go to bed, so Seany and I just went. It was great. Everything was free!! They had Domino's Pizza, Chick-Fil-A, Sonic Hamburgers and drinks all for free. I couldn't believe it!! For entertainment they had bounce houses, games, tractor rides, fireman and firetrucks, face-painting (provided by our friends, GOOD JOB GUYS!!!)and lots of other stuff. It was really nice to get out with Sean and have some fun together and I was blown away that we could have dinner, entertainment and activities and we didn't have to spend a dime. I love this town!

By the way, the black things on his face are storm clouds that he had requested during his turn at the face painting booth. :)

The wait is almost over!!!

Tonight at midnight, the new and final Twilight book will be released! The bookclub girls and I are heading out to the bookstore for their release party where we will be until midnight when we get our own copies of Breaking Dawn! Woo-hoo! :) Party Party Party...

Sean's TV Debut

What better birthday present can a kid have than being on TV. Sean and his t-ball team were filmed a few weeks ago for the weekly NBC 17 news segment, Pint Sized Sports. It was so great that the air date ended up being last night, on his birthday. It was a perfect end to a perfect day. Sean is on the Mudcats and is number 5. He is in the video twice, once as he trys to get away when anotehr kid trys to tag him with the ball and at the end givng high fives as the game is over. It is too cute and we were thrilled for him!

Sean turns six!!!

Tomorrow is my Seany's sixth birthday! It just blows my mind how 6 years ago tonight I was in labor and our family of two was about to turn into a family of three! Wow! Where did the last 6 years go? Now, he is a big boy/little man who goes to school all day everyday. Here are some pictures from a long time ago, when he was still my little bug.

Memory Tag

I saw this on Vivians blog and thought it was a great idea. I think we should all do it.

Here are the rules:
1. As a comment on my blog, leave one memory that you and I had together. It doesn't matter if you knew me a little or a lot, anything you remember!
2. Next, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you. It's actually pretty funny to see the responses. If you leave a memory about me, I'll assume you're playing the game and I'll come to your blog and leave one about you. If you don't want to play on your blog, or if you don't have a blog, I'll leave my memory of you in my comments. I can't wait to see what people remember.

Sean's First Day of School

This Thursday was Sean's very first day of school! I can't believe it! He was so excited and wanted to make sure his hair and clothes were just right. :) I drove him to school and walked him inside and as I went to give him a hug, he just kind of waved at me instead and said "Bye Mom"! What!?! He apparently was much more ready for his big day than I was. :) I tried to act cool about it and just waved bye back, but I was tearing up before I even got out of the school. I was so excited for him but all I could think of was how a chapter had closed in our lives together. I will never again be at home all day everyday witb Sean. The time I had to teach him and protect him is gone and this would be the first of many steps in letting him go. Dramatic, but true!













The hug goodbye

Hair Cut Day

Today we got the kids haircuts. It was Avery's very first one. Her hair was a little past the middle of her back and it was time for a trim and a little shaping. She did great! We took them to a great kids only salon and they loved it. They were spoiled and pampered and even got a free toy each. You can't beat that!

Sean got a cool new style for school...can you believe he starts this week? I can't believe my big boy is going to school! He will be gone all day everyday. I'm not sure I'm ready for this! I am excited, scared and sad all at the same time, just like Sean. :)

Back from Florida

Only at Disney do they give your kids chalk to write with while they are waiting in line. I love this place!





My Dad had bought a really neat kite shaped like an airplane and it was waiting for Sean when we arrived. Sean and Grandpa wnet many times to fly the kite out on the beach.





This is what it looks like from the sky.














We just returned last night from our trip to Florida where we went to spend some time with Dad/Grandpa. My Dad is currently doing some consulting work there and has a condo so we were able to stay with him. It was so beautiful there and we were very close to the ocean. We went often to the ocean to play and pick seashells and enjoy the peaceful quiet. And, as an extra special thing we went to Disneyworld while we were there. You can't go to Florida and not go to Disneyworld. :) It just wouldn't be right. It was so much fun to take the kids and see there reactions to everything.

Avery LOVES two characters right now: Buzz Lightyear and Princess Belle! It was so amazing to watch her as she met both of her heroes live and in person. I will never forget it! Sean's favorite part of Disney were the "awesome" rides. :) His two favorites were Splash Mountain and Space Mountain. They were my favorites too. Along with Pirates of the Carribean, Small World, Peter Pan...you get the idea. I loved them all!

Thanks so much to my great parents for a wonderful trip that we will never forget! :)

By the way, if you're wondering about the song choice for this blog, we have a family tradition that whenever we are driving to Florida we have to play Cat Stevens and this is one of my favorite songs that he did. For me, it brings back special memories of my childhood. :)

Back from Girl's Camp and off....again

Girls camp was awesome! I loved the chance I had to spend so much time with all the girls and get to know them even better. We were able to do lots of fun things at camp this year: swimming, kayaking, jumping off the inflatable blob into the lake, a high ropes course, archery, and even shooting air rifles. There was also a mini-golf course and sand volleyball. The days were full of fun and the nights were full of giggles and talking. It was a special treat to just get away and be a girl with the girls.

Despite the fact that this video totally embarasses me, I am posting it. :) One of my girls took it of me shooting archery for the first time. :) I love it though because the girls personalities show through in the tape (they are so super cool) and you can hear all their zany comments. Anyway, here is just a little taste of the fun that was to be had at girls camp....







Now that camp is over, it's off to Florida in the morning to see my Dad and enjoy some time at the beach. The kids can't wait to see Grandpa and neither can I. :) Sean's teacher told me today that he talked about it during the whole class. Avery keeps saying "See Grandpa" so I know she's excited too.

Vacation to Myrtle Beach

Hey everyone! We had a wonderful long weekend at Myrtle Beach! It was our first time ever going there and it was a blast. The weather was perfect, the ocean was warm and there were a ton of things to do. Here are some of the things we did:




Played at the Beach




Went to the Aquarium (which was totally amazing)!!!!




Went to the Family Amusement Park and rode a ton of rides





And our brave Sean went in a plastic bubble on the lake! As you can see, we had a ton of fun and made a lot of special memories. Thank you Myrtle Beach for showing us such a great time! Woo-hoo!