Day 30 - My Final Thank You

This has been an interesting journey. It really made me stop and think of all of the people and little things in my life that I have to be thankful for. I am so blessed and have such a rich and full life. My goal is to do a better job of telling all of the people in my life just how much they mean to me and how thankful I am for their love and support.

I hope you all have a wonderful holiday! Love to you all!!

Day 29 - Boxes

We are surrounded by boxes! Our tiny little duplex is filled with boxes. Poor William is going to come home to a mess! I have my brother and Frances to thank for all of these boxes. We are using the boxes they used about a month earlier to move into their new house. Thank you!!!

Day 28 - Tweezers

Today my parents took William to Arkansas to visit his great-grandparents so Will and I could spend the weekend packing and doing house stuff. Well about an hour or so into the trip my Mom calls to tell me that they had to pull over and pull a raisin out of William's nose! Thankfully my Dad had some tweezers so he could perform the "surgery". I informed her that the raisin up the nose was a new trick...my poor parents. Well I get another call....they have stopped at McDonald's for lunch and a raisin fell out of his nose...nice! Apparently he shoved a few up there!! UGH!!!

Day 27 - Happy Thanksgiving!

This year I have so much to be thankful for...a loving husband, a precious little boy, wonderful parents, the best brother, terrific in-laws, a great group of friends and a new home! What more could anyone ask for!! I am truly blessed!!

We spent Thanksgiving with my sweet Big Mama. Here are a few pictures.

William wearing SuSu's glasses

Writing Santa a letter
My sweet Mom and Big Mama

William helping Big Mama get ready

Day 26 - New Furniture

Today my Dad brought me some new furniture...well one piece was new and the other two were re-finished. He bought and re-finished a barley twist table for us as a gift for our new home. Thanks Mom and Dad!!

He also refinished two dressers for us. The are beautiful!!

Our new table

Day 25 - Long Naps

Yeah...a 3 hour nap!! William's halo has returned! These 3 hour naps are rare but I do love them!!!

Day 24 - Bedtime

After a particularly trying day with William, I am very thankful for bedtime and little quiet time for me.

Day 23 - Facebook

Yes...I am thankful for Facebook. I have "found" so many friends that I have not talked to in years. It is a great way to keep in touch!

Day 22 - The Schroeder Family

I am thankful for our good friends the Schroeders. They joined us at the ranch this weekend and we had a great time together. The little boys had fun riding the Rhino and running around outside. The big boys had fun shooting guns and deer hunting! Amy and I enjoyed some downtime while the boys played...it was great weekend!

William Schroeder driving the tractor

The boys on the Rhino

All bundled up and ready to go!

Day 21 - A Day Off

Today Will took the day off so we could go to the ranch for the weekend. We have not been there in ages and it was nice to have an entire weekend away from the craziness of the city. I am thankful that he has a job and one that allows him to take a day to spend with his family.

Day 20 - Family Time

I am thankful for a beautiful fall day and time with my family. This morning I met my Mom, Frances, Tom and Ben at the park and we had a great time. We watched the boys run around, slide and swing and just have a great time. After they had worked up an appetite we went out to lunch. It was a fun day!! I am lucky to have my family so close and that William is able to spend time with his cousins and SuSu.

Day 19 - Lollipop

Happy Birthday Lollipop (aka Pop)! I am thankful for my grandfather and William's great-grandfather! He is such a wonderful Christian man...a true example to his family. He is a loving husband to my grandmother and a great father to his children. He adores his grandchildren and great-grandchildren! I love you Pop!

Pop and Grandma

Day 18 - Suzanna

Today I am thankful for my cousin Suzanna. Last weekend she took William's picture for our Christmas card on a cold and windy Saturday morning. Well...today I got the pictures of my little man and they are precious! Suzanna did such a great job capturing his funny little faces and a few sweet ones...when he sat still for one second! She has such patience and a great sense of humor! You are the best!! XOXO

All smiles!

How sweet.....

Day 17 - Bible Study

I am in a Bible study every Monday morning with a wonderful group of Moms. I have enjoyed the "me" time for two hours every Monday and have also made a lot of great friends. It is so nice to start the week out with such a wonderful support system. I don't know what I would do without this group of ladies!!

Day 16 - My Sister-In-Law

Happy Birthday Frances! I am so lucky that my brother married such an amazing girl! Frances is a wonderful mom to my precious little nephews and a great wife to my brother, Will. She is also a great friend to me! She is always there when I need to vent, need advice about raising a strong-willed little boy or just to chat. I don't tell her enough how thankful I am that she is part of our family. I love you!

Day 15 - My Camera

Yes...I am thankful for my digital camera. Because, without my camera, I could not capture all of William's precious moments. Also, I fully intend to embarrass him one day with many of my photos...after all isn't that my job as a parent!

Cowboy or Fireman?

Playing with dental floss

Day 14 - Miss Willie

Miss Willie is our wonderful babysitter who helped me out at the last minute today! My grandmother and her caregiver were supposed to come over this morning to watch William while I did "house stuff" but my sweet Big Mama woke up sick so they couldn't come over! So I called Miss Willie (who was still in bed when I called) and she came over within the hour! She saved me!! I was able to take care of all of my house duties and William had a wonderful time playing with Miss Willie instead of running errands with me all day. Thank you Miss Willie!!

Day 13 - Church dinner

Tonight my husband and I had dinner with some other couples at our church. It was so nice to get to spend some time with Will and also enjoy the company of some of our friends from church. While Will and I enjoyed our time, William was having a ball playing with all of the kids in the nursery. It was a fun night! I am thankful for our wonderful church and all of the friends we have made!

Day 12 - Our Builder

I should have said this earlier...but I am so thankful for our builder, Chris! He is wonderful. We could not have done this remodel without him. He has kept everything running smoothly and on time. We have not (knock on wood) had any major problems and are getting close to the end. He has been soooo patient with our questions and changes throughout this whole process. He is the BEST....thank you!!

Day 11 - Bedtime

Today was a rough day. William was not himself. We went to Ikea with Amy and William and my William was fine for a while and then he lost it. He cried crocodile tears and screamed loudly as we made our way through Ikea. I was sooo embarrassed...who was this child? After nap time I thought he would be in a better frame of mind....was I wrong! He got mad at his truck and was frustrated with me because I could not understand what he was so adamantly trying to tell me...so more tears and more screaming! Ugh...the terrible twos have arrived!!

It was a very long day and I was so thankful when it was time for my little guy to go to bed and I could have a little quiet time.

Day 10 - Library Park

Today William and I went to the Library park to play. We both love this park! The equipment is just the right size for my little guy and it is surrounded by a fence so he can't escape...I love it!! We had a nice relaxing morning outside. It was a lot of fun!

Day 9 - Thankful for not being home

I found out this evening that yesterday while my Mother-in-law and I were gone my son killed a snake!! Yes...a snake! My husband told everyone else, including my parents, but neglected to tell me about the snake incident.

Apparently while William was outside in the backyard playing he saw an innocent grass snake and walked over to it and stomped the snake to death. Once it was dead he tried to bring it in the house to show Daddy. This bothers me on sooo many levels...stomping a snake...should I be worried about this? I am thankful that I was not home to witness this event.

Day 8 - Grandparents

William and GB

William and SuSu
William with Papa and Nena

Today I am thankful for grandparents. Nena and Papa (Will's parents) came to visit this weekend and William had a great time. It is so fun to watch him interact with them. When he woke up from his nap Nena went to get him and he was so excited to see her...it was precious! Then he started asking for Papa (who wasn't here at the moment) and ran to the front door shouting for him. When Papa and Daddy got home William just lit up...it was adorable!

I am thankful that William has all four of his grandparents in his life. He is such a lucky little guy to get to grow up with such wonderful people to learn from and enjoy.

Day 7 - A Beautiful Day

I am thankful for today. The sun was shining and there was not a cloud in the sky...and it was in the 70's!! We met Amy and William at the park so the boys could run around and play while Amy and I tried to visit...it is a little hard to get much talking done while watching the boys. It was a great morning.

Day 6 - A New Home

After searching for a long time (over a year), our family will be moving into our new home in a few weeks. I can't wait! We are all looking forward to having more space and William is looking forward to having a backyard to play in. This has been a long process for us but it was definitely worth the wait. We are getting the perfect house for our family and one that we will enjoy for many, many years! We can't wait to have our family and friends over for dinner!

Day 5 - Friends

I am so thankful for all of my friends. I have friends I talk to several times a day and friends I talk to every few months but they are all dear to my heart. They have all touched my life in so many ways. I don't know what I would do without their support and friendship. I love you all!

Day 4 - My Parents

I have the most amazing parents! They are loving, supportive, generous, kind, full of life and always there when you need them. They have taught me so much and I have so much more to learn from them. I am so blessed to call them Mom and Dad!

Day 3 - Sweet William

I am thankful that I have a precious little boy that calls me Mom. William is such a blessing and a joy. He is happy, outgoing, loving, funny, curious, sweet, energetic, adventurous and innocent. My heart melts every time he smiles. He is 22 months old and talking all the time. I love to listen to him talk (or sing) early in the morning or just before he goes to bed at night. He has the sweetest little voice. I look forward to all of the adventures we will have together and cherish the many memories we have already made. He is my little angel! I can't imagine my life without him!

Day 2 - My Husband

I am thankful for my husband, Will. He is a wonderful husband, father and friend. He is kind-hearted, generous, hard-working, funny, loving, intelligent, compassionate, loyal, handsome and thoughtful.

I don't thank him enough for all he does for our family. I am truly blessed to have him in my life.

A Month of Thanksgiving

I wish I could say that I came up with this idea but I didn't....I borrowed it from a very good friend who borrowed it from someone else. Anyway, I liked the idea so much that each day this month I am going to write about something that I am thankful for.

Day 1 - GOD
He has blessed my life in so many ways I can't name them all! Because of Him I have a wonderful husband who loves me, a beautiful little boy that calls me Mom, the most amazing parents, a brother I adore, a wonderful extended family, a great group of friends and a new house to call home. I could go on and on but the list would go on forever.

He is always there when I need Him and loves me unconditionally. I don't honor Him enough. He sometimes get lost in my busy life but He always takes me back.

This weekend I am at High Point (my parents' ranch) and it is hard not to look around at the beautiful countryside and not think of God. He made all of this for us to enjoy. This wonderful day I had with my family happened because of Him. The clear blue sky, sunshine, the laughter of the boys...all because of God. THANK YOU!!

Happy Halloween!!

This morning we went to the park with SuSu, GB and Ben (William's cousin) and had a great time. The boys ran around and burned off some energy. We tried to take their picture on the slide but as you can see William wouldn't hold still long enough to get a good pic....oh well!

Swinging with GB and SuSu

William and Ben

After nap time we got dressed in our very cute monster costume and headed over to scare Big Mama, SuSu and GB. Tom and Ben also came by to trick or treat...they looked adorable as Spider-man and monkey (a very fitting costume for Ben...or any little boy for that matter).

After we left Big Mama's house we headed over to The Philbins house. It was fun to see Indiana Jones (aka Charlie), a Jedi (aka Luke) and Diego (aka Mark) all dressed up. They looked great!! As they were gearing up for a big night of trick or treating we were heading home to get our little monster to bed!

My little Monster!! Soooo scary!!

William and The Philbin Boys

William wearing Big Mama's crown

Tom, SuSu, Ben, Big Mama and William

House Update

As of today the roof is finished and all of the walls have been sheetrocked and textured! Tomorrow the hardwood floors are going to be installed and so is the new HVAC system...yeah! The new windows will be put in on Friday and Saturday and the rest of the soffit work will be finished on Monday. Things are moving along!

Just the Two of Us

On Tuesday William and I spent the morning at the Arboretum. We arrived early so he could get his annual picture taken with the pumpkins. He was a great sport. It was freezing outside and I had him dressed in a precious smocked outfit (shorts no less) with turkeys and a pumpkin on it. He had to wear it! He smiled for the photographer through his chattering teeth...what a trooper! We got some cute pics for the grandparents.

After the photo session we changed clothes (into more weather appropriate attire) and walked around the Arboretum. William pushed his stroller around for a while and then stopped to rest (very briefly) on a pumpkin and then it was back to pushing the stroller. He played in the maze of hay for a long time. He loved jumping off the hale bales and landing in piles of hay. He was laughing and having the best time. We finally headed home for lunch and a nap.

Playing in the hay

My little man

Resting on a pumpkin

Smores Anyone?

In the middle of the house stuff we went up to High Point for the weekend. It was nice to get out of Dallas for a few days and not think about the house. William had a great time running around outside.

We built a fire one night and ate smores. William kept blowing on the fire and saying "hot"...very cute! He also eyed the graham crackers and Hershey bar I had set aside for our smores and kept saying "cookie". I gave him a graham cracker and he promptly put it down and took the Hershey bar and took a huge bite. MMMMM was his response! He wouldn't put it down!

Blowing on the fire

MMMMM!!
Roasting marshmellows

Busy Weekend

The Morgan family had a busy weekend! On Saturday I had a retreat at church and Will and William watched the roof go on at the new house. Saturday afternoon our Sunday school class had a Halloween party! William got to wear his monster costume. He was so very excited! He did well for most of the party considering he had about a ten minute nap that day but right after we took a group photo...melt down! It was time to go home. He was very tired and very sweaty. It seems that every costume is made for temperatures in the 50's not 80 degree weather!

Sunday was another busy day. Will and William went to church. Yes...I skipped out to go to the grocery store because that was the only time I could go and we had NOTHING in the fridge. After lunch I went to a birthday party on William's behalf (he was napping) and then met Alicia at the new house so she could pick up the washer/dryer and dishwasher. After that I met some friends at the house and gave them a tour and then we all met Will and William for dinner. Whew...a long day!

Our sweaty little boy!

Our Sunday school class
Our cute little monster!!

Demo is DONE...well almost!

For those who read our blog...sorry I have not written anything in weeks but I have been up to my neck in house stuff! It looks like a bomb went off in our house! Everything is gone...it is a little scary to see (especially for the two people who are paying for this project).

The electrician and plumber have been at the house this week doing their stuff. They have started putting the soffits on the outside of the house and plan to start putting the new roof on next week! I never thought I could be this excited about construction work.

I have been busy picking out granite for the kitchen and bathrooms, tile for the bathrooms, flooring for the bathrooms and kitchen appliances! I have had a great time picking everything out...with the help of Patty...our fabulous decorator!

Here are a few pictures with more to follow as our adventure continues....

Family room with a view of the breakfast area

Kitchen

Guitar Hero

Well...William loves the guitar or as he likes to call it "itar". Will brought his guitar out a few nights ago and William went nuts! He started screaming "itar", "itar" and trying to take it away from his Dad. Will let him hold the guitar and "play" it for a few minutes. When Will went to put the guitar away William threw a major fit because he was not yet finished playing!
That night Daddy and William made a special trip to Toys r Us to get William a guitar. Lesson learned....never send your husband to get a toy (that he likes as much as his son, if not more) because he will spend way too much money! William now has his own guitar that makes a lot of noise. We can actually plug it into the stereo and make it even louder!!

Playing Daddy's guitar

William's new guitar

House Update

Well today was a very busy day over at the new house (still not ours but getting closer). The inspector and builder were there this morning and our decorator was over there this afternoon.

There weren't too many surprises with the inspection...a few plumbing issues (not stuck toys, yet), a broken heater (who needs one in Texas...really!) and some other minor issues. This is a very old house (we were both born in the same year...which I will not mention) so these things were expected. Thankfully once everything is fixed the house will be in good shape and ready for William to destroy it!

Our builder is wonderful! He was so patient and listened intently to all of my ideas...and offered a lot of great suggestions. We are only doing cosmetic updates (no moving of walls) but it will make a HUGE difference in this old house.

Patty, our fabulous decorator, came over this evening and she loved the house. She also had a lot of great ideas...Will better watch out!!

Will and I are so excited and looking forward to making this house our home. I will post updates and pictures as the process moves along. It will be fun to watch the transformation.

Needs a LOT of love

Plumbing Problems...

Last Friday I was wondering why my toilet was not working...so I got out the plunger. William thought this was very cool and decided he needed to help me out...what a mess! Will tried to fix it when he got home but nothing happened...so I called the plumber. He called back early Monday morning and said he would come over that morning...great!!

The plumber could not un-stop the toilet either...even with all of his equipment....now I am a little concerned. He asked me if William could have put a toy in the toilet...of course I said that was not possible...he would NEVER do such a thing. I went on to tell him that I am ALWAYS with him when he is in my bathroom and there is just no way he put a toy in the toilet.

Well...$95 later my toilet is working and we are minus a very cool light up bath toy.

The most expensive bath toy...ever!

The Williams visit the Arboretum

This morning (finally up to date with my posts) while our husbands were shooting skeet, Amy and I braved the Arboretum with two toddlers....what were we thinking!

Amy and I walked a lap around the Arboretum before unleashing the little monsters. We knew that once they were loose getting them back in their strollers would not be fun.

Out for an innocent stroll???

Looking at the "urple" flowers

William Schroeder decided to sit in a wagon that belonged to a very nice family (they were happy to share it with him) and he didn't want to leave. Poor Amy had a time trying to get him out of that wagon! While they were sitting in the wagon William and I ventured down the way to the splash pool. William insisted on pushing his stroller and he didn't want me touching it...let me tell you that was fun! We finally met up with the Schroeders at the splash pool. The boys were immediately soaked but were having such a great time...it was so sweet to watch them play together.

Splashing each other....

Playing peek-a-boo

Finally we headed back to the front entrance...but this was a LONG journey. William HAD to push his stroller and if I so much as tried to help him he screamed at the top of his lungs. Meanwhile, Amy had her own battle up ahead....William had found a golf cart. Eventually both boys ended up the golf cart and didn't want to leave. After getting both boys (still soaking wet) in their strollers we headed home for naps!!

Such a big boy...pushing his stroller

One very tired William

Another very tired William