Somersault

Brad has asked that I post this video of William and one of his recent accomplishments - the somersault. It has been posted on Facebook already but a proud father wants to share this amazing feat with more of the world. If you can hear excessive high-pitched laughter off in the distance Brad is probably watching the video. It is only 8 seconds long so even the shortest attention span can endure. Enjoy!

Birthday!

Yes, I am a bit behind but...here are some shots from William's birthday. We had a small party with the people who have so kindly poured into William over the years.


His first time eating a real dessert and what a great start with birthday cake. He really liked it but didn't even finish the whole piece.


I just love this shot of Grace giving William candy from the busted pinata. We learned a lot as parents that day...don't fill a pinata full of chocolate and then hang it in a tree for a few hours in the summer.


And water balloons are very labor intensive (not just filling them with water but also cleaning up afterwards).


Nothing ends an awesome day of birthday fun like hanging out with Poppie and the Duke.


This has nothing to do with the birthday. I just wanted to share how cute it is when Neifi and William sit and watch Sesame Street in the morning.

Really short bangs

So, a little while ago the boy got an impromptu haircut from a well-meaning family member. It was fair that his bangs were getting a little long and needed a trim. But when he arrived home there was quite a bit missing. So much, that I couldn't help but think of Spinal Tap. Maybe it is because his volume knob is permanently stuck at 11.

Rough Neighborhood

As I was walking to my car the other day I noticed this in the grass next to our driveway.













You can imagine my shock and anxiety at finding this outside of my own home. My gut reaction was worry that it could belong to one of our two cats. Then upon further inspection I knew that there is no way their paws could work that tiny trigger. But it is still disturbing to know that some small creature is packing heat in our yard. Could it be the chipmunks, squirrels, moles or rabbits? Could this be a sign of neighborhood gang activity? I occasionally find evidence of violent rodent activity but I have always blamed it on our cats not cleaning up after themselves. But upon finding this I realize that I may have been wrong. I don't know much about guns but it appears to be automatic or semiautomatic with the capacity to hold numerous rounds of ammunition. It is a good thing my friend Ian is knowledgeable regarding small arms. I will be sending this to Maryland for his analysis as soon as I receive his new address.

Some Afternoon Counting

This afternoon we spent some time hanging out with Ruby and swinging. William has loved counting for a while but continues to have a block with the number four. About a week ago we were finally able to get him to say the word but it has not made it into the counting rotation yet. For some reason (maybe because we are sleep-deprived parents) we find his stubbornness in refusing to include four really hilarious.

Wowwee - it has been a long time

Yes, I know it has been a really long time. Not for lack of attempts and good intentions. (Begin legitimate excuse copy.) Our house is now on the market which took an incredible amount of work as does keeping it clean. I have also pretty much maxed out our Picasa account in record time so until I do something to remedy that photos will be few and far between. With all that being said we are doing well and the boy seems to be leaping and bounding and doing silly and unique things every day. Since the last post he has...eaten corn ON the cob, learned more numbers, started learning colors, learned to jump on a mini trampoline, become infatuated with attempting head stands, been about 90% peeing on command (can you potty train a toddler and sell a house at the same time?), learned how to work ALL the doorknobs in our house so that nothing is off limits (that should have been added to the excuse copy), and will try just about anything to get people to laugh at him.

We did get some good modeling time in his favorite front yard tree. You know it is fashion when you are wearing pajama shorts.

Lookout JCPenney catalog, here we come!

More To Come

Yes, it has been a long time. And yes, I do have a huge pile of photos to share with you. Some of which will show our bathroom which was recently demolished (and has yet to rise like a phoenix from the ashes). So, while I am running around like a sleep-deprived-crazy the blog ranks low. But in the meantime I will try to get a photo up here and there just because I think I should.

Just a quick glimpse of the boy after an extended Easter egg hunt with the family. Yes he is wearing a tie. The hat was a gift that day and not part of his church attire. Though it is nice how it makes the tie a little less serious.

Even with a fresh bloody lip (from a misstep on the slide and not friendly fire) he is pretty excited to be outside with the other family wee ones. I think it is important context to show that all the kids were wearing these less-than-masculine hats. Fifteen cool points to Joseph for opting for the pink one.

William's New Outfit

Oh yes, another video...

William's Nana made him a snazzy new outfit with trucks smocked on the front of it. And trucks are one of his favorite things right now. So we had to try it on tonight and his reaction was priceless. The child actually loves clothing. I am sure it is a phase that will pass but for now it is really fun. Thanks for the sweet outfit Nana.


William's gal pal Ruby turned 2 this week and he had an absolute blast at her party. He made sure to give her numerous birthday hugs. Unfortunately I didn't get any photos with the two of them together. There will be more.

Dancing

Over the weekend William attended his cousin Carly's wedding. At the reception there was a rockin' band and William insisted on being on the dance floor. This is a mere taste of the dancing that included finding every girl under 10 on the dance floor and dancing with her. He even got in the middle of the large circle for some "solo" dancing in front of a crowd of about 40-50 people. There is better video out there and if it surfaces I will share.

Note that he actually gets down on the ground with the lyrics of the song.


Some great mirror time while waiting for his bath to be ready.

Hangin Out and Being Loud

Practicing along with the drum tutorial on a Hillsong DVD. He loves to sit and try to play along on his little kit.


Enjoying his new book and quilt that his Nana sent him


Nothing says trendy like a themed ensemble. Not pictured here are his matching frog raincoat and frog umbrella.


Looking intimidating


He is becoming a man of impeccable taste.


Loving running around in the backyard. We are so glad that Spring is here since William always wants to go outside.

A Really Long Post

As usual it has been a while so this post is really long. Without further adieu...


We took a little trip to the beach to visit Ooloo & Poppie. Mamaw the Great came along for a colorful and interesting ride.


William got a little silly and earned the nickname "Strainer Spitz".


...wonder who taught him that.


This is a photo of mommy at the same age as William. Those may be mommy's eyes and coloring but the rest is all daddy!


More home improvements (this was during, not the actual improvement). Our bedroom went way downhill before it got better.


And for a few days we set up camp in the den.

-{I almost feel like I need to add an intermission here}-


William loves giving Neifi hugs. He hasn't been as successful with kisses.


As I am late in reporting, we got snow here earlier this week. And not just the typical wussy amount that NC gets but a real snow - like a postcard amount of snow.


It was lovely and William has enjoyed looking out the window and talking about it.


He did not enjoy being in it. Once he fell and touched it and realized how cold and wet it is he was ready to head inside and take his hat off.


Maybe he will enjoy it when he gets older. But for now we have had a great time admiring it from inside.


This is the control panel on his Little Einstein rocket ship. Note that only three continents are named (leaving out a few important and rather large ones). Also note the image on the left...when he pulls the lever different places of interest from around the world pop up. As I took the photo he pulled the lever and the Statue of Liberty popped up. His rocket loudly proclaimed, "Wow! It's the Great Wall of China". Einstein would be proud.

William Lately

William got his first real for real black eye last week. It was really pitiful.


He loves being outside and asks to go out most of the day. A special treat is going to Ooloo and Poppie's and going for a ride in his wagon.


He was infatuated with the fairy statue.


Getting silly with his carrots.


Swinging on a chilly day.

The Haircut

A few weeks ago (yes, I am a little behind) William received his first haircut. I would love to say a huge thanks to Jude for coming to our house and cutting his hair. Not only did she sacrifice some of her precious time but she also lost a gallon of milk in the process. Our cats were ecstatic (like Jed Clampett finding oil in our front yard).
Anyway, it went a little something like this...

William sits in anticipation for the unknown haircut to come upon him. He thinks maybe this won't be that bad.


What is that in her hand...?


The horror!


Ok, this isn't that bad.


Oh no the texturizer!


Acceptance. And no one has called him a girl since he got his haircut. Yeah!

BONUS Climbing Shots (We thought of you Gregory)


There isn't much that we can keep him out of anymore.

Would you like some sock lint or shellac?

Things have been wild as usual around here. On the convenient front William now lets us know when his diapers are dirty by saying "Whew" and waving his hands like he smells something stinky. I can't really capture that in an image but there is more below...


Since a haircut was looming on the horizon we felt we needed to take advantage of the long wild hair before it was all gone.


There is something about the socks Nana knit for him that makes him get sassy.



One of William's new hobbies is picking his sock lint from his toes and sharing it. He actually gets disgruntled if you don't take it from him with a thankful tone of voice.


He also likes finding things in drawers and baskets and accessorizing with them. They become hats and scarves and he dances around in front of the mirror. Here is his 80's hair band look.


Even though we are late on it I wanted to share a photo from our snow day. BTW William likes to see the snow falling but doesn't really understand the fun in playing in it.


Keeping mom on her toes.



I am sharing this because if you aren't a label reader it may encourage you to give it a try. Sure, it can be depressing to see what is in our food. And overwhelming/confusing because most of it doesn't resemble words we even understand. But it is a good thing to know. Take, for instance, the Godiva chocolate covered raisins that we received as a gift a month ago. Don't assume that only cheap stuff is suspect. Yes that is SHELLAC in the second to last line. mmmmmmm...