Nothing Like a Fat Man in a Red Suit & a Screaming Baby

Last week, we went to my parents' Ward Christmas Party - to celebrate the season, eat good food, visit with family & friends, but most importantly, to see the fat man in the red suit.  Much to my delight, Will started screaming as soon as I sat him on Santa's lap - honestly, I was happy to get a "screaming child w/ Santa" picture - those are always the classics!

Bev w/ Carter (Will's cousin) & Silvia w/ Will

Nothing Like a Little Nap & Then Cousin Time

Will hardly ever sleeps in our arms anymore, so it was such a treat when we brought him in from the car & he actually stayed asleep. 

After Will woke up, he was greeted by a bunch of his cousins - they played with puzzles & blocks together & then got all snuggled up in their jammies.

Lily, Zach, Will, Cole, Wes, Drew, Timmy, & Sammie Lou

Christmas Time Downtown

Last week, Scott, Will, my parents, & I went downtown for the Christmas Tree Lighting (even though we never even saw the tree).  We took off, bundled Will up in his stroller, drank free hot chocolate, listened to the missionaries sing Christmas Hymns, & then looked through the different shops in town. It was a great way to start the Christmas season.

Video of William Walking

Will's been walking for about a month now. He has great balance, is very sturdy, can pretty much turn on a dime, & dribbles balls down the hall.  I'm amazed at how fast this kid learns - it may take him a while to do something (like walk, or clap his hands), but once he decides he wants to do it, he just takes off!

Video of William walking in his squeaky shoes - he really gets cruising at the end.

Thanksgiving!

My mom has always gone all out for Thanksgiving, with so many different dishes, you can hardly fit samplings of everything on one plate: turkey, mashed potatoes, candied yams, pineapple & cheese, jell-o salad, carrots & cauliflower, pomegranate salad, green salad, crescent rolls, & stuffing. And of course for dessert, she makes so many different kinds of pie: raselberry, pumpkin, apple, chocolate, coconut, banana, & then bread pudding by special request.

Raselberry Pie in the making

The table's all set

Dennis & Gail came up for the celebration.

My dad carved the turkey.

Will fed his cousin, Carter, in the high chair.

Will standing on his toes, so he can "politely" shove bread in Carter's mouth.

Bev & Gail making the salad

Apple & Raselberry Pies

Two Grandmas = a lot of LOVE

Scott had to work a 48-hour shift the 2 days before Thanksgiving.  He was exhausted when he got home.

Trying to force-feed Will some turkey. I think he's going to be a picky eater.

Will is officially walking.

After dinner, we took a break down by the trampoline. My dad opted for the cement slide rather than taking the stairs down.

It was so much fun watching Will jump on his knees & walk on the tramp - he had really great balance!

Learning to give Carter a high five

Jumping with Mama

Will loves the swing.

Aren't the leaves beautiful?

2nd go-around of dinner

Dennis w/ his picture-taking.

My brother, Brad, has a thing about forcing his kids to learn their abs at a young age. Wes was very serious about keeping his body straight.

Showing Rachel the beautiful new fabrics I bought for one of my next projects.

Nothing says "fun" like a napkin.

Wes & Rach

Cole, Drew, & Sammie wrestled with Scott while he watched football.

Dessert time: Mmm Mmm Good!

All bathed & ready for bed in new Christmas jammies from Nana.

Videos

These videos were taken last week.

Will has discovered a love for balloons. This balloon entertained him for longer than a week, & he'd chase it & hit it for an hour at a time. I really appreciated the break :)

I loved this video of Will & my mom - especially the tender moment at the end when my mom didn't know I was still filming.

"Budgeting" My Time

When I was thinking about how I could improve in my life (there are many ways), the thought came to me, which it has many times lately, that I need to spend less time on the computer or lazying around.  It has become even more apparent that I spend too much time in front of the screen when I find Will crying for attention or rolling around on the ground at my feet in boredom.  This is embarassing to admit, but I now realize how crucial it is for me to make a change.  I make excuses that being at my parents' house has made it harder to get out & do the fun things I would normally do with Will, or that I can't work on beneficial projects: organizing my house, working on quilts, DIY decorating projects . . . since I'm not in my element while away from my home.

While making these excuses, however, I remember President Thomas S. Monson relating the following story of Arthur Gordon:

“"When I was around thirteen and my brother ten, Father had promised to take us to the circus. But at lunchtime there was a phone call; some urgent business required his attention downtown. We braced ourselves for disappointment. Then we heard him say [into the phone], ‘No, I won’t be down. It’ll have to wait.’
“When he came back to the table, Mother smiled. ‘The circus keeps coming back, you know,’ [she said.]
“‘I know,’ said Father. ‘But childhood doesn’t.’”

President Monson went on to say:

"If you have children who are grown and gone, in all likelihood you have occasionally felt pangs of loss and the recognition that you didn’t appreciate that time of life as much as you should have."

I have been spending my time on trivial things while life & Will's childhood is passing by.  I don't mean to say that spending time on trivial things is always bad - it is necessary to have some down time.  But when it gets to the point where Will is crying & rolling on the ground, rather than playing & entertaining himself, I have crossed from "down time" to idleness.  This is unhealthy both for me & my child, & it is teaching him very poor habits.

I started thinking about the fact that we associate "spending" not only with money, but with time (lightbulb)!  I have always been a stickler for budgeting my money.  I spend it very carefully & know where all of it goes, down to the very last penny.  Why then, do I not spend my time in the same way?  Why do I balance my budget, but not my time?   Just like money is precious & necessary for survival, time is even more so! I budget my money into several categories: home, bills, food, entertainment, personal, safety net, projects, birthdays/holidays, tithing . . . .  If I can take the time & energy to moniter how I spend my money, then I should be even more diligent in monitering how I spend my time.  I need to make room for: the spiritual, physical, homemaking, motherhood, developing talents, my husband, friendships, planning ahead, obtaining knowledge, service, down time.  If I just make the effort to schedule this into my day (I function best when I work with a schedule), I know my life will be more fruitful.  I will be better in all aspects of my life & will achieve balance & satisfaction.  By "budgeting" my time, there will be less time for squandering & more time for living fully.