Okay, I have to disclaim, it isn't the prettiest picture. It is 5 days after coming home from the hospital. All of us are in our pajamas and we are just about to go to bed... but this is one of my new favorite family photos (and the only one we have with Jake). But I love it. It's imperfections and casualness and all. I probably won't blow it up or frame it on our wall, but I will find a way to use it somehow!
We had a blast with grandma and grandpa in town. Grandma took the girls to the park every night (that is until we got our own playground in our backyard). Hannah loved doing arts and craft projects with grandma every day. They loved playing in the backyard with our little pool and going on errands with grandma, especially trips to Yo-diggity and McDonalds.
When grandpa is in town, they always get airplane rides at bedtime. And of course, you know about the playset. the girls definitely had a blast these last two weeks and I know they will wonder how life could get so boring so fast, when it is just me. But luckily, the fun continues in a week when Nana and Papa come to town.
Once we finished our backyard, the end goal was always to get a playset for the girls. So, this weekend, my dad came into town to help us put together this long awaited playset. The girls couldn't have been more excited. So, after 19 hours of building fun in 90 degree weather. My dad and Chris created what the girls call "our playground". They have been out on this "monster of a set" every day for hours.
Needless to say, they love it and so does mom!
Thanks Chris and dad... you guys are the best.
PS - We took a picture every 5 to 10 minutes during the whole building process and here is the movie of the structure being put together from beginning to end.
I keep meaning to take a photo shoot of Jake as a newborn... but I don't really have it in me and I don't really know how to do it. I am afraid of him being naked and pee-ing all over the place, so I am kind of avoiding it. But I really need to do it and do it soon before he doesn't sleep all day. Any suggestions? Until then, here are a few photos of our little guy. He has so many faces... but I guess that is a newborn for you.
Random Report June 20, 2009
My mom has been grandma of the year and mother of the year. She has been playing non-stop... she is making me look bad as a mom. The girls are going to be really sad when she leaves and life is boring again. I have been able to take things easy. I get ready when I want, enjoy Jake, take naps and just take things at an easy pace as I learn to deal with three kids and recover and take care of a newborn.
My dad and Chris will have spent 19 hours working on the jungle gym. They did it in two days in 90 degree weather. The play set is a monster. I am so glad grandpa came to help. He arrived with a hurt back, but of course that hasn't stopped him. He is typical grandpa - a hard worker and a great man.
Jake is doing the newborn thing. Sleeps a lot and luckily sleeps after each feeding at night, so that is a huge blessing. He is starting to look big again as he gets close to his birth weight. he could eat forever. Each feeding session is 30 mins long, but I think he could go longer, but we will see how this does. He is 8'6" in weight, so halfway back to what he weighed when he was born. He also got circumcised earlier this week. That was sad. Poor little wee-wee.
Funny thing. When Hannah first saw his wee-wee. She said what is that. Grandma said it is his "penis" being all technical. I said let's call it his "wee-wee". She will go around in public with friends and at church talking about a "penis", so let's use a cuter name for now.
So, after Hannah learned it is how he goes potty, she said "just like Landen's"... (her friend's brother). I shrugged yes and asked how have you seen Landen's? "When he goes potty here". Oh, goodness. So, much for closing the door when you go. But, at least that is covered. She knows the difference between boys and girls.
I wish I could lose weight faster, but of course that will be a slow process. I don't know how I will get ready with three kids, but I know I will figure it out. life is good so far and I am grateful for all mom and dad and my husband do to help it be soo much easier right now. So, that is it for us.
With summer upon us... there are more camp-outs, trips to the mountains, vacations and late nights out. Although, we won't be doing these things for awhile, I wanted to share some fun variations on s'mores. Check out these fun twists to an old time favorite.
As I wait for the bed we are going to put Ella in and wait to re-do Jake's room in an alphabet theme, I came across this great site called Project Nursery. It is a great site to get ideas for rooms, projects, etc.
But, you have to check out this room. I love it. How clever is the mom that found all these letters and created such a great wall. I might have to start my search for letters and see what I come up with. Although I am sure it took her years to find them all. But the outcome would be well worth it. I might not have a nursery to put them in, but a playroom would work great too.
I love doing blog banners. The sky's the limit with creativity and they usually have a definite theme which is fun to play with. Here are a few of concepts of banner designs I created for a client. I want to share, because they were so fun.
PS - these were created before the baby came. I am not that crazy to be taking customers a week after having a baby :-)
And the events leading up to his arrival. Again, I write these things down as a journal for our family and all that happened when Jake was born.
It all started Sunday. hannah woke up throwing up. Monday was a better day and we thought it was all over. Then come Tuesday, it all came back. We went to the doctor and he told us we had to wait it out, but was concerned about her being dehydrated. So, worried about Hannah and me scheduled to have Jake the next morning. Around 8:00 pm, things got worse. Ella started throwing up too. So, both girls were throwing up and we spent the night changing towels, sheets and pajamas. I went to bed at 1:00 am and woke up at 4:00 am for the rest of the night. Chris went to bed at 4:00 am.
We had to leave the girls with a babysitter (still sick) and head to the hospital Wednesday morning at 7:00 am. So, with a lot of prayers and hope, we left the girls and went to the hospital. My friend Tiffany scheduled herself to work (she is a labor and delivery nurse) and so she got us all ready for surgery. At 9:30 am, I was in the OR and getting my spinal and waiting for Chris to join me. There was a bit of anxiety while I waited for Jake to arrive. Usually I am in labor, so I am more concerned about getting the pain to stop than worrying about being cut open. But this time, I was a bit worried about being cut open.
So, they started the operation and told me they could see Jake and then wa-laa... I could hear him crying. The doctor said "wow" when he saw Jake. I was a bit concerned by that exclamation. But then he said "that is a big baby". Everyone in the room commented on how big Jake was. I was just thrilled to hear him cry and know that he was here and had officially joined our family.
Chris went to the nursery and they cleaned Jake up and did the tests. I stayed and they sowed me up and then off to the recovery room. Tiff and I chatted (it was nice to have a friend there, since the recovery room is a bit boring and you have to stay there 2 hours). We went to our room and relaxed for a couple of hours and made phone calls to family. Then Chris had to go home to make sure the girls were okay.
That was it. Chris was only able to come back to the hospital for an hour the next day and an hour the day after that. He was busy taking care of sick kids and then on Friday, he himself got sick with the flu. So, now Chris was taking care of sick girls (this darn flu lasted about 5 days per person) and himself and trying to clean up the house, so that Jake and I wouldn't come home to a germy house. It was pretty miserable for Chris, but what a husband and dad. he did it all feeling lousy.
So, the day Jake and I got to come home from the hospital... we had to find a babysitter to watch the girls (ella still being sick) and Chris had to come to the hospital and wait in the car for the hospital staff to take me and Jake to the car (because they didn't want sick people up on the floor). Not our ideal plan for Jake's big day coming home from the hospital.
But we finally are home and Jake and I are limiting our time with the family. We are keeping a distance from Ella and Chris has yet to hold him, while we are home. I just hope and pray my mom doesn't get sick while she is here to help and that we can get this home back to normal really, really soon.
Jacob christopher Williams has joined us! He was born 10:07 am. He
weighed a hearty 8 lbs 12 oz an 21 1/4 inches. He is a cutie and are
so happy he is here.
Sent from my iPhone
Tomorrow is the big day. Jake comes to join our family. It has been a long nine months and we are very excited to meet this little guy. hopefully the c-section will go well and the recovery will go better. I can't believe we are going to be a family of five. What fun things we have in store and we welcome a boy to the family and one more kid to our bushel. 
Have you noticed that even the simplest of things when packaged with ribbon, tags, twine or paper takes on a completely different look and can become the cutest gift one could ever receive. I love turning simple gift into cute gifts by packaging them in a fun and clever way. So, when I came across this blog Miss Pickles press (a cute name doesn't hurt either) ... it went straight to my bloglines.
I love these ideas. Case in point. simple s'more ingredients (graham cracker, chocolate and marshmellow) is about the cutest thing ever seen when packaged in a cellophane bag, tag and ribbon. The possibilities are endless and again anything (soap, band-aids, an orange) can become the cutest gift ever.
I wanted to share the mutual activity we did last week. We took the girls to Target and gave them a list of random things to go find. They had to take a picture of the item and at least one of the team members had to be in the picture. They had 30 mins to find all the items and get back to me and the winning team won anything they wanted at the snack bar. (Everyone else won a small icee).
It was a fun activity, because my girls love to take pictures of themselves (which you would understand if you saw their facebook pages). And it was a great bonding experience for our girls (which is another thing that was great for our little class).
It was a fun night and an easy activity to prepare for.
As you may or may not know, I love cakes stands. I don't know what it is about them, but if I had room and money, I would own quite a many. The other thing I just love is ruffles. They just say FUN. Well, so Crate and Barrel combined the two to make these adorable ruffle cake stands. I just love them. I might have to go and buy this little guys. Mostly, because he is pretty affordable and more than cute.
I am not sure how it started, but our patio doors have become our wall of art for all of Hannah's arts and crafts. I had to capture a picture of all her artwork and how it is displayed for her to see in the future. This is probably 6 months worth of school art and art projects she has done at home. We are about out of room and need to probably take some down and start over for the summer.
My girl loves arts and crafts!
A while back, I shared the chair covers I made for our kitchen table. Although they were fairly easy, they were time consuming and I lost steam on the last one. I never finished the last chair. I just couldn't bring myself to do it.
Well, just last month, we got a new kitchen table and again it had upholstered seats (which is not idea for little ones). so, after the first day of one of the cushions getting a grease stain on it... I was under pressure to yet again, make new chair covers. something I did not want to do, but had no choice if I wanted my chairs to stay nice and clean.
So, I set out to make 6 new chair covers and to do it before any other chairs were ruined and before the baby came. I made it to the last chair (again) and ran out of piping and couldn't find the color anywhere. I had to get this last chair done before the baby came, so I went out to find my needed supplies and I just finished all of them.
I am thrilled about how they turned out and am sooo happy this little (or should I say BIG) project is done!
The mutual theme this year is what? 1st Timothy 4:12
“be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity.”
“When you keep the commandments and follow the Savior’s example, it’s like holding up a light. Your good example helps others to find their way in a darkening world. It takes courage to do what you know to be right even when it is hard, very hard. (“Stand for Truth and Righteousness,” Ensign, Nov. 1988, p. 94).
What kind of light do you think they are talking about?
- a little birthday candle?
- A bigger candle?
- A flashlight?
- Or a big torch that feels up an entire dark room?
Our YW logo is what?
It is a picture of a torch (with the face of a young woman) Have you ever thought of what that meant? Why a torch? It is because as YW we are to be examples… just like the quote we just read. As examples we helps other see the light in this darkening world, by what we do.
How can you be an example to those around you.
1st Timothy talks about 6 ways: word, conversation, faith, charity, spirit, purity.
Let’s discuss 6 other and similar ways (elaborate and discuss each example):
1) your behavior is decent and modest, and yet you are very fun to be with;
(2) your language is never crude but happy and interesting;
(3) you are well groomed, and that is appealing;
(4) you are focused on developing your talents and achieving your goals, not piercing and tattooing and flaunting your body;
(5) you play sports with gusto but never lose control;
(6) you don't seem to care about what the latest pop star wears or does because you have a certain style of your own.
Being good makes you feel good, and it also makes others feel good! Can I just tell you this—it is so much easier to do what is right than it is to do what is wrong. Life is so much less complicated when you are good.
STORY:
Tell the following true story:
“I’m 17-years-old and have been a member of the Church since I was eight. Living the gospel has never really been a problem for me until just the other day, when I had an unforgettable experience with a boy named Craig.
“… One day in algebra class, [a certain group of guys] decided to be especially rude to Craig, who sits right next to me. Craig is quiet, and he’s not the smartest guy in the class, so these guys loved to make fun of him. One day they decided to pass the word around that everybody in class was to ignore Craig. I usually helped him with the problems he didn’t understand, so when I heard their plan, I didn’t know what to do.
“… A few minutes before class let out, Craig leaned over and asked me how to do a certain problem. Every person in the room turned to see how I’d handle it. My heart started pounding, and my palms became moist. I wanted to do the kind thing by answering him, but I could just feel the pressure mounting as all my classmates waited for me to snub him.
“I felt my face getting hot and I knew it was red as I turned to Craig and explained how to do the problem. That was it. As soon as class was out, the guys started calling me names and really letting me have it. I couldn’t believe we were in high school. It felt like first grade, and I wanted to cry. But deep down inside I knew I’d done the right thing.
“The next day I dreaded going back to my algebra class. But when I got there, the same boys met me and told me they wanted to try the same trick again and begged me to go along with it. By that time though, I knew that what I’d done the day before was right, and there was no way I was going to play their game.
“When I told them so, I got the surprise of my life. My best friend, who sat nearby, told them she wasn’t going to cooperate with them either. Several other people joined us, and soon just about everyone in the class decided their plan was childish and stupid. Before the end of the class, everyone was talking to Craig, and even the boys who had started the whole thing were discussing some of the problems with him.
“From all this I learned that being a good example is not quite as easy as it seems, but one person can make a big difference. If you have enough courage and enough faith, you can influence a whole group when the pressure’s on” (Stephanie Christensen, “When the Pressure Is On,” New Era, Jan. 1988, pp. 8–9).
Discussion: Ask the following questions. Allow time for several young women to respond to each question.
* Why should we always try to set a good example, even when it is difficult?
* What help is available to you when setting a good example?
* How can you influence your friends for good?
Explain that members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints have a great responsibility to reach out and set a good example. We know what is right and wrong and have the assurance that our Heavenly Father will always be with us when we do what is right. It is far better to be close to Heavenly Father by keeping his commandments than it is to be popular with other people by disobeying the commandments.
Discussion - Invite the young women to share times when they have been influenced for good by someone else or when they have influenced another person for good. You may want to relate some experiences of your own.
What are some helpers that we have to help us remember to be good examples?
- Strength for Youth
- Personal Progress
- Scriptures
- Leaders, friends, parents
The Savior taught us to "let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven."1 The divine light which you carry within your soul is inherited from God because you are His daughter. Don't dull the brightness of the spirit you came with from heaven. The Lord needs your goodness and your influence in this world.
Be an example in all that we do…. Word, conversation, charity, spirit, purity…. And be that light that shines bright in this darkening world.
The handout is supposed to be a torch. I tried to come up with something that was torch-like. I filled it with candy. 
I love etsy and mostly because there are such talented people that can share their fun items with all of us. One of those esty sellers is Type Type Type. She creates great LDS related posters for YW, primary and the youth. I thought I would share... in case you were interested and looking for something current and cute for your children or those you serve.
Random Report - Dated April 29th, 2009.
Backyard The concrete is poured, the bushes, flowers and tree are in and the grass is down. It is so pretty. Honestly, such a nice yard. They even put lights on all the trees and re-did our plants in the front yard. Things still left to do.. is slate laid on both patios. And then the jungle gym and BBQ and trullis (sp?). When the slate is down, I will take pictures and share. Hannah's birthday Party This Saturday is the big event. I think I have most of it under control. We are having a face painter come (which was much cheaper than I thought), the girls will get to decorate wands, decorate pretzel wands, and get coronated as a new fairy with wings, halo, pixie dust and a new fairy name (all with a certificate). I think it is all going to be so much fun. Hannah's Birthday her real day is Sunday and she gets to give her 3rd talk in a year in Primary (2nd in two months.. uggh). Hopefully it will be a relaxing day, so we can recover from the weekend. Upcoming Week I have to teach Enrichment on blogging on Thursday night. I have my own baby shower on Friday the 8th and another model home sale for Chris' company. So, the fun just continues and continues. Other Random things Ella is counting to ten. Which makes me so happy, although the words are a little unclear, but I know what she is trying to do. I think we are officially in spring/summer. I don't know that we will go below 70 degrees again. The next week is high 70s, low 80s.
Hannah had to take something that started with the letter "u" for show and tell. We couldn't come up with anything and then Hannah came up with "underwear". I thought is was clever and so funny and wish we could do it, but I told her "she couldn't be the girl that brought underwear to school, it just wouldn't be right", although I was tempted because I thought it was funny. We found out that Hannah's dance recital dress rehearsal and actual performance are on a Sunday. So after much thought, we have decided against her performing. It is so sad, since she is excited and we have sunk a lot of money into it, but we decided she is getting old enough that now is the time to teach the lesson about keeping the Sabbath Day holy. So it begins. So, mom and dad might get a special performance while they are visiting, so she can use her costume and perform her dance for an audience. My c-section is scheduled for June 10th officially. So, we will see. Chris is going to have an eventful birthday (although it won't be cenetered around him) and Father's Day will have even less fan-fare. But he wants Jake's born on that day more than anything, so I think he knows what he is getting himself into as far as sharing birthday celebrations, etc. Oh, in case you didn't know, we are naming the baby Jacob Christopher Williams. Jacob happens to be Danish for James (Chris' dad's name), so it works great.I am much less prepared for this baby than the other two. I have just barely started to think about changing the room from pink to blue. The poor guy will be surround by pink when he gets home, unless I get on it. But I think I have a plan, hopefully it will work. Not much motivation going on these days.
Random Report - Dated April 8th, 2009 It is spring break, so this week is a bit different for us. The girls home all day... if only we had a backyard. My tummy is always there. i feel it all the time and the worst at night. 2 more long months. Ella is so funny these days. She saw Chris juggle and thought she should try it. She moves her arms up and down and then throws the balls. She is coming out of her shell and more and more like Hannah. People come up to us at church all the time and say how outgoing, fun and happy she is. And I get more ohhs and ahhs from her in public. What a difference a few months make. I want to start sewing again... I just need to start. I found the cutest dress you make out of your husband's old shirts. I think that will motivate me. Polly pockets are all the rage in our house right now. The girls love Polly Pockets. I have to start giving Hannah's party some serious thought. The yard won't be done by then, so now i don't know what to do. Any suggestions? I hope I can convince her that a Tinkerbell party might not work now. Hannah has named her baby doll, Baby Sophia. She goes everywhere with us. And she is the perfect little mother. She hushes her to sleep, tells me when she is tired, rocks her and is quite cute. She has informed me that I am Baby Sophia's mom.. and I need to take care of her. I keep trying to tell her otherwise, but she insists. I think it is time for a baby brother. Hannah and Ella fight a lot about sharing, but other than that they are really, really great friends. It is just so fun to watch! This weekend, we have planned - decorating easter cookies, dying eggs, easter egg hunt and of course a big easter dinner. I have a bit to do this week. I have three unfinished quilts that I need to have finished (backs put on and stitching). When am I ever going to do it or feel justified in spending the money to have them made. My logo business has been doing so well. I had 9 clients a couple of weeks ago. I still have 5 and multiple projects for each one. It is kind of fun and I feel like a i have a real business that provides some real money to play with. We had a nice thunderstorm last night. Thunder and lightening for half the night. It was awesome, considering we only get a storm like that once a year and it will probably be the last one of the year.
I think that is it...
Random Report Dated March 17, 2009
here are random thoughts and going-on's with us. I wish I could find a place that has caffeine diet coke from a fountain drink... I am craving it so badly. I have killer charlie horses every night in my legs... they hurt so bad... I feel them for days afterwards! Hannah and I made paper plate animals today.. it was fun. Hannah likes to use the words "cool", "awesome" and "freak out". I went and took pictures of the girls with all our pretty blossoms that are out. the photoshoot did not go smoothly. I dont' know that I got any frame-able photos, but some cute ones just to have. I have 4 logo clients right now. It is so much fun, but I am being told by my husband it is time to pay taxes on that income. It is mid-70's all week. I am feeling my belly these days. It is definitely there and the next 3 months will be long and uncomfortable. Hannah wants to have a Tinkerbell party this year... not what i want to do, but it is her birthday, so I guess we will have one. Ella is doing better, learning a lot of my words... although they dont' sound like the actual word. But we know she is trying. She has started to say prayers too... but she also likes to play "duck, duck, goose" during the prayer too. We didn't wear green today, but we probably should have. I am going to have to get better at things like that. We finally got the sketch for our backyard... it is going to be so beautiful (if we do it all). I can't wait!
that is it for now... just thought we would share some of the things we are up to and thinking about.
Posts
All Comments
