The Best Mother's Day EVER

I don't have access to my pictures AGAIN but I promise I will add some this week. I just wanted to tell about my best mother's day ever!
We took all of the kids to Dollywood! This was the first time that I had been there in the 9 years that I have lived in Knoxville. The day was so perfect. The weather was wonderful! It was not too hot at all and cool in the shade. This was a nice change after the full week of nonstop rain! We were worried that there would be crowds, but no again! The was hardly a wait at any of the rides. Hunter totally amazed me by riding the biggest of all of the roller coasters. The ones that flip upside down. I did ride one with him and held onto his little leg the whole time.
Shelby got scared at one of the kiddy roller coasters so we just stuck with the really young rides. She loved this pig ride that just went round in circles. Reese rode the carousel and was a little scared of it. We all got to ride the big train at the end of the day. It was really fun and I think Reese even enjoyed it. We ate corn dogs, funnel cakes, cotton candy, and popcorn. It was great. Reese was very good and took two naps in the day. We went with the McKee's, our neighbors. They have Logan who is the same age as Hunter. They had a ball together. There was only one mishap when Hunter skinned his knee and elbow trying to get off of a ride in the kid area. I got upset with the attendant for not helping him down! There will be a complaint letter written to Dollywood about that. Other than that, the whole trip was great. We opened and closed the park that day. We will be returning to Dollywood soon, but the Splash Country part. Looking forward to that too!

Some of the happenings......

I don't have access to my pictures right now but I give a verbal update on everything in the Law house.
On March 29th, I ran the Knoxville Half Marathon. I didn't do as good as I have done in past years, but I did good considering the training that I had done up to the race. Bobby brought little Reesey to the race and met at a couple of different points along the route to cheer me on. That was really nice and I loved it! Since it was Reesey's first birthday the very next day after the race, I wore a picture of her on back with the words, "Happy Birthday, Reese!". I had a lot of comments along the way about her picture. It was hard to believe that one year before that day I was in the hospital with a newborn baby.
Reese loved her birthday cake when we did give it to her. She didn't really even make a mess when she ate it! She started walking about a week and 1/2 after she turned one. Now that it is nearly a month later, she is practically running!
Hunter, Shelby, and Brooke are into their baseball seasons. Shelby and Brooke are on the Braves and Bobby is the head coach. Hunter is the Dodgers and Bobby is assistant coach on that team. I don't think he will make that big of a committment next time. It sure is wearing him out!
For Easter, H and S were with their dad so Bobby and I went to B'ham and took little Reesey. It was her first Easter even though she was already one. The funny thing was that it was her cousin Jake's first Easter too. It was really good to see Jake since we hadn't seen him since he was born in the hospital. He is getting really big and catching up to Reese quickly!
Shelby and Reese had their annual parade at the Children's Center (where they go to school). Reese's theme was Twinkle Little Star, and Shelby's class were Indians. I have some really cute pictures of Shelby in her costume and with braided hair! She did a great job walking through the parade and was so cute!
The kids are still in Awana at church every Wed. night. I enjoy taking them but will be somewhat glad when school is out and we don't have that commitment every week. Wednesdays are crazy evenings and we don't get home until close to 9:00!! That is tough for a school night.
On April 17th ( a Friday) I took a day off from work and kept Shelby with me. We had a special day and she loved it! We had breakfast at Chick Fil A, then nails done. After that I had a hair apppointment and she went with me. Then we went shopping at the mall and ate Chick Fil A again for lunch!! Then more shopping before we picked the other kids up. She is such a special girl and I am glad that we had a special day together.
This past Sunday Bobby and I took Reese to the Smokies for her first hike through Abrams Falls. She really enjoyed it! Bobby carried her on the backpack and we hiked 2.5 miles to the falls. I brought a picnic and we spent a lot of time letting Reese play in the water. She was scared at first, but quickly warmed up to it and had a great time! Then, we hiked the 2.5 miles back to the car where she slept most of the way. We ate at the Back Porch, our favorite restaurant in Townsend, on the way back to Knoxville. We got home around 8:30 that night and it was pretty much a perfect day.

Tooth fairy

The tooth fairy visited again a couple of nights ago. Hunter lost his second of his top teeth. Now he has a big gap on the top and looks so cute!! We were ready for that tooth to go..it had been hanging on by a thread for at least a week. Hunter pulled it out on his own at school this past Wednesday and was very proud of himself.

Reesey got her first big boo-boo last Wednesday too. We were getting ready to go to church and she hit her head on the edge of the end table in our living room. She cried for about 20 seconds and then was happy Reesey again. See her boo-boo in picture above. It looked a lot worse right after she did it and the next morning it looked 90% better. Now she just has a little bruise. Reese will be one in a couple of weeks and I can't believe it. I think I will have a little family party for her next Saturday night because the kids will be here then. I love my little Reesey. She is still taking about 4-5 steps and then just falls down. I think she could take more if she really wanted to.

At Awana this past Wednesday we had the Grand Prix race. Bobby and Hunter made a pinewood derby car and had been working on it a few weeks. Hunter's car actually did really good in the races. He raced in four heats and placed second in most of them. He got to race in the finals but never won first. He got a really cool racing tshirt for doing so well...but he wanted a trophy. He was disappointed when 3 got trophies and he didn't get one. I had a lot of fun watching the races.

Hunter had his Rhythm Program at his school this past Thursday. It is put on by the PE department and all of the first grade participates. Hunter's class used scarfs and did a routine with lots of exercises that they learn at school. It was cute and fun to watch. Shelby thought it was a lot of fun to watch too and can't wait to start school now. She still has a year to wait! You can kind of see Hunter in the pictures of all of the kids. He is in a red shirt. My boy is so big!

We are made of Cotton Balls

I think I may have the cutest story ever. I am writing this down because I don't ever want to forget it. This story involves my Shelby-girl.

On Monday night I was laying down with Shelby before she went to bed. Now remember, usually she is at her dad's house on Monday night but he had to work so I kept them that evening. So, if that hadn't happened...I would never have heard these sweet words.

After Shelby said her prayer, she looked like she was deep in thought. She said, "Mom, how does God make people?" Before I really had a chance to respond to her she says, "Oh yeah, I know...he uses cottonballs." She was so serious and I started dying laughing!!! I thought those were the cutest words I had ever heard. She was so sincere when she said it. I said, "no, we aren't made of cottonballs." She just smiled so big and then she thought it was funny too. Then she said, "So we are made of blood then and what is under the blood?" I told her "Well, we have bones in us too." She thought again and then said, "Oh yeah, God gets the bones to make us from a dog bowl."
Needless to say, I was laughing again...and then she was laughing with me too.
She is the sweetest, funniest little girl I have ever known. She is such a joy to be around and is always making someone laugh. Her teachers always tell me that Shelby always has a smile on her face. This is true. She is my special little girl.

Date Night

My boy, Hunter, and I had our first date night last weekend. I took him to see the movie Coraline. We had a wonderful time. It is a 3D movie and it was fairly scary! Hunter wasn't afraid at all, he is so brave. We had candy, popcorn, and coke and I will never forget it. I told him I wouldn't and it made him smile. I have a date lined up with Shelby when the Hannah Montana movie comes out. I am really looking forward to that too!
The cardboard cars pictures you see are the ones the kids made for Awana's drive-in movie night. They had fun decorating their cars. Brooke and Shelby shared their car. Hunter did a great job and I was really impressed with the checkered flag that he made on his. I think he definitely has artistic talent. Shelby is able to draw pictures more and more. Some of her people she draws finally have arms! So cute.
Bobby and Hunter have really bonded over the Nintendo DS as you can see. Hunter loves for Bobby to play Mario Bros. while Hunter watches him. Bobby has beaten the game and so now Hunter can go to any level of the game and play. He loves his DS that Santa brought him for Christmas last year.
Last night I made a special dinner for just Bobby and I. We ate at 8:00 after Reesey went to bed in the Dining Room. We have never eaten in that room before. I made Lamb Chops ( with a recipe from my Everyday Food), green beans, (also from Everyday) , red potatoes, chocolate covered strawberries, and molten choc. cake (with help from Betty Crocker) It was a delicious meal and we had a great time just being together by ourselves. As you know, we don't get much of that anymore! On Friday night we went and saw Rodney Carrington perform. He is hilarious and we have seen him before in Ohio. That was a nice time too.
Back to work tomorrow. YUCK!
Oh yeah- Hunter lost his first top tooth today. He called me from his dad's house. I can't wait to see what my baby looks like. He will be so different to me!!!

Day at Work with my Girl

Yes, today it was Shelby's turn to come to work with Mama. Actually, we found out that Shelb has pneumonia yesterday...the walking pneumonia kind. She is coughing off and on and occasionally has a fever, but other than that there is not much change in her. She is a toughy! She has had a good day and has been a really good girl here at my office. She has her Hannah Montana blanket, her DVD player with plenty of Spongebob!!!, her colors and her coloring books. She is good to go. When we got back from lunch in the cafeteria, which she thought was cool too, I had her lay down and take a nap. She is currently sleeping and hopefully will for a couple of hours.
I love having my pretty girl here with me and I hope she gets better soon. Oh..her medicine is soooooo nasty. The Dr. warned me how much she would hate it. I had Walgreens flavor it with grape but it is still awful. The Dr. gave me the tip of having her brush her teeth each time after she takes her medicine. That way she kind of forgets and it is not so bad the next time.

Snow days in Knoxville

Last week we got to enjoy a couple of snow days here in Knoxville. We built a 7 foot tall snowman too! The kids really enjoyed the snow. They had a lot of fun playing in the yard and with all of the neighborhood kids too. Hunter got two and 1/2 days off from school as well. It was nearly 70 degrees here today so what a change from last week. Enjoy our snow fun!

And Some more of Jake and our visit...

Here He Is.........

I am an AUNT

...and I can't post pictures yet!!!!
Jacob Steven Williams was born on Feb. 5th at 7:04 p.m. after Ashley went into labor about two weeks early. He was 6 lb 1 oz and 19 1/2 inches long. He is so sweet and so cute and looks like my sister, I think. Our computer has been acting up and we had someone out today to fix it, so I will post pictures of my nephew tonight. I took the kids down on Thursday night and we got in B'ham a couple of hours after he was born. I hate that I missed it, but that is what happens when someone goes into labor EARLY!! I guess she was taking after me!
Ashley seems like a pro already. I guess it is all of the practice she had with my three as newborns. I am so excited to go see him again soon. I am sure that he will look so much bigger to me even if it is a few weeks. Congrats to Ashely and Nolan!!!

Circus Tonight

We will be taking our kids to the circus tonight. They are way excited about it and I will have to say, so am I. Reesey will be staying with my wonderful neighbor..Thanks Heather!!! I think it just might have been a little too much for a 9 month old to handle and a little past her bedtime too. She is a clock and falls right asleep at 7:45 and I have to wake her up in the morning to go to school. Why are girls so good at this??? I am so lucky.
Here is a little tip for those with little children who are thinking of ever going to the circus...buy the little light up toys ahead of time. Yes. I did this last year and again this year as well. Go to Party City and you can spend $2.00 on a light up wand or twirly thing, or whatever looks fun versus the $20 ( and that is NOT an exaggeration) on the one that the circus sells. You will see. Every child will have a light up thing of some kind and it would be hard to just tell them "no". Bobby even suggested that we stop at Walgreens to buy cotton candy b/c last year the cotton candy was $10 a piece. Who are they kidding??? I got the kids clown noses and those glowing necklases too. They are so excited about their treats.
Cade, Hunter's best friend, and his mom and dad are going with us tonight as well. I will be sure to post some pictures of our fun!

Two Steps

Wow....little Reesey took two steps on her own last night. She is 9 1/2 months old now. I shouldn't be too shocked. My Shelby-girl walked on her own at 9 1/2 months. I have some advanced girls!!! Hunter was 11 months, normal.
It was really a freak accident how she took her steps. Bobby and I were sitting on the floor about 3 feet apart. Reese loves to have us hold her hands and stand behind her when she stands and "walk" with her. Well, we were passing her back and forth between the two of us. When Bobby was holding her on her way to me he let go for a second on purpose and she took two steps, leaned over, and fell into my arms. We went crazy! We tried it again and she didn't want to do it. I thinked it kind of scared her. She is a bit of a scaredy-cat, anyway. I was so proud of my baby. It may not happen again for a couple of months but I am marking this one in the baby book!

Ashley..this is directed to YOU!!! You better put a belly picture up there on your blog. I may not see the belly again until it is flat ( hopefully not) so you have to post one! I am so excited! Also, you have to give me the name soon. I want to complete my project for you!

Day at work with my boy

Since yesterday was MLK Day, there was no school for Hunter. I got the pleasure of having my boy come to work with me till around 2:00 when his dad picked him up. He was so sweet and fun to have around my boring office! He was very interested in all of the slides and wanted to look at a lot of cells. He brought his nintendo DS and that entertained him some too. He love to play Mario Kart that Gaggy and Poppa got him for Christmas. I took him to our cafeteria for lunch and we enjoyed Chicken Quesadilla (although we agreed that it is better at his school!!! imagine that!), salt and vinegar chips, a small salad, and a huge brick rice krispy treat. Actually, he had to take that with him when he left b/c we never opened it. I enjoyed my day and I wish that Hunter could join me at work all the time! There is no school today b/c we got about an inch of snow this morning so he is with his dad today working with him. He is getting some special treatment lately! Back to school tomorrow, I am sure.
We are taking all the kids (minus Reesey) to the circus this Thursday night. We are looking forward to it. It should be a good time. It just cost a small fortune to take everyone, but it is worth it. They loved it last year! Reese is going to stay with a neighbor b/c I think she would just be tired and not want to sit still...what else do you expect from a almost 10 month old????

The party is yet to come....

This Saturday will be Shelby's third and final party for her 4th birthday. To her..this is the real one. We will be at a local "jump place" with lots of inflatables for the kids to play on. I am so excited for her because she has watched Hunter have lots of big birthday parties and this is her first one. She has talked about this for about a year now.
I am somewhat glad that the Holiday season is over now. It is nice to be back to a somewhat normal routine. Bobby and I will start a new class tomorrow night while the kids are at Awana. We will be in The Five Love Languages of Children. I am looking forward to it. We enjoy our Wednesday evening church time. The kids have been off from Awana for a few weeks so its time they get back into the swing of things too!
Reese is so loved in the nursery too. There is an older woman that reminds me of a grandmother that adores little Reese. She always has her in her arms when we go to pick her back up. I am sure that Reese has changed a lot in the past few weeks that will surprise her nursery friends!
I know the huge picture of me and Bobby is kind of scary at the top of our blog. I am working on shrinking it, don't worry! I will fix it soon. Just ignore it for now!
I am finally getting better from a week of first..no voice, then scratchy scary voice, then horrible cough that won't stop. This is my third day of antibiotics and I guess they are working. I still have some coughing fits but not as bad as before. Mom has the same thing with an added ear infection and eye infection. Poor Ashley has some form of this too but she can't take as much medicine as we can b/c of the baby. So...she has to suffer! I think she said Nolan is a little sick too. It never fails, my kids always manage to get them sick when they come for a visit. Hunter and Shelby are pretty much over their coughs finally now too. I am sick of us being sick! I guess it goes with the time of year!

New Year's Eve welcoming in 2009

Shelby's 4th birthday

More Christmas 2008

Christmas 2008

It's been a while!

Sorry I haven't posted in such a long time. I guess all hustle of Thanksgiving and Christmas was just overwhelming. We have had a great Holiday season. We stayed in Knoxville for Thanksgiving and went to B'ham for Christmas. We hosted a New Year's Eve party last night and that was a lot of fun. I really don't know what to write about since it has been so long since I last posted so I will post a few sets of pictures that show some of our happenings in the past couple of months.
Here is a highlight:
Reese got 2 teeth
Shelby turned 4 on Dec. 29th!
Reese started crawling
Reese is pulling up and REALLY wanting to walk
New Year's Eve party
Christmas at Mom and Dad's
Ashley is over 7 months pregnant with my nephew


Enjoy the pictures!