Three Going on Thirteen

This was Lincoln's reaction this morning when we tried to wake him up:

We consider ourselves fairly warned for the teenage years.

Ten on Tuesday - Vote!

1.  If you're in Alabama, head to the polls!  It's no secret, but we'll be enthusiastically voting for Mitt.  And if you're local, we also support Mo Brooks and Chris Messervy.  Feel free to ask Tyler for all the details.

2.  Tyler replaced our garbage disposer this week.  What a handyman!  I was totally impressed.

 
3.  Last Thursday, Lincoln threw up while we were getting ready to head out the door, so I stayed home with the kids. I guess getting that out of his system made all the difference because 30 minutes later he was up and playing.  I wasn't too upset to spend some unplanned time with my boys.  And when Lincoln still had some tummy troubles on Friday, it turned into a 4-day-weekend!  No complaints here.

4.  Lincoln is such a great helper!  The other day, he was REALLY excited to help me feed Mason.  I love it.  In about 3 more months, I can just assign that to Lincoln permanently.  ;)

5.  Mason's stats at his 6-month check-up:  22.0 lbs, 27.5 in.  That puts him in the 95th for weight and the 80th for length. (charts)  He was 6 lb 10 oz and 18 in. when he was born (premature) 6 months ago.  We feel so blessed he's hale and hearty.

6.  On Sundays, we usually go over to Tyler's parents for dinner and then hang out for a little while.  As we were getting ready to leave, Tyler told Mason something that (as Tyler put it) if anyone tells him in HS, he'll be grounded for life: "Let's put your pants on and take you home."

7.  The boys are going to Tyler's sister's during the day this week.  Apparently Lincoln and his older cousin got into the mio, and for some reason, Lincoln wanted James to poor it down his back.  I'm not sure who's idea that was, but he was red from his shoulders to his bum.  Silly kids.

8.  Today Angela is loading the kids up and taking them to the train museum!  I hope she took a camera...

9.  For some reason, Lincoln has started putting his hands up by his face when he says cheese.  So the other day I took a picture of my boys all laying on the floor, and Tyler joined in the fun:

10.  Lincoln got a monster truck track for his birthday.  He LOVED it.  Apparently, Mason's a fan, too. 

Ten on Tuesday

1.  I weighed Mason Friday morning.  He is 21.6 lbs.  His 6-month check-up is in a week, and I can't wait to see his "official" weight.

2.  We made the Great Carseat Switch this weekend.  We got Lincoln a booster seat and moved Mason into the carseat Lincoln was using (but switched to rear-facing).  Lincoln was a little older when he moved into the bigger seat, but not much.  Here's our comparison.

3.  Mason's also the chillest baby now that he's over some stomach issues he had.  Lincoln practically mauls him (softly), and Mason just coos and laughs.

4.  Lincoln loves to push Mason in the stroller.  Adorable, right? He needs a little help steering sometimes, but it's actually pretty effective to keep him entertained.  And Mason just likes to check things out, so he's pretty content with the arrangement.

5.  We went to Spoiled Rockin' Kidz Salon last Thursday to get Lincoln's yearly professional cut.  Lincoln thought the clippers tickled.  Mason just chilled.

 

6.  Anyone interested in $5 off a roku?  We can give you a referral, and then we both win.  Just let me know.

7.  This is our niece Gwen holding Mason.  She is 4. 

8.  Tyler was "scaring" Mason and making him giggle.  I had to get video.  Sorry about Motab in the background - next time I'll remember to turn down the tv.

 

9.  Lincoln has decided he loves angry birds.  I've never played, but he sends the birds backwards most of the time.  It's awesome.

10.  So I think we're going to load my old cell phone with angry birds and just a bunch of other Lincoln games.  Any suggestions?

Ten on Tuesday

1.  Saturday, we drove down to Birmingham to see Wicked.  It was my 2nd time and Tyler's 4th time.  It was fabulous.  Easily my favorite musical.  Thanks to Tyler's sister Sara for watching the boys for most of the day so that we could do that!

2.  The livingsocial deal today is $10 for $50 to spend at VistaPrint.  I bought it, and you can, too!    If three people use my link, I get it for free, but check it out regardless.  I've ordered from them before, and I was really happy with the service and quality.  I'm excited to get some postcards with a picture of the boys to send out.


3.  Yesterday when we got home, I asked Lincoln if he wanted to go play in the backyard.  He answered in the affirmative and asked if I was going to go play with him in the backyard as well.  I told him I couldn't right away because I had to get Mason "settled" first.  He must have misheard me, because he said, "OK, and then you snuggle me, too?"  Could your heart just melt?

 4.  Speaking of cute things Link says.  At Wicked, we splurged and got t-shirts.  Mine looks like this.  Link came up to me and said, "What's on your shirt?  Gears!"  Where does this kid get these things?

 

(source) 

5.  I can't wait to dye eggs with Lincoln.  At first I was dreading it (messy!), but I saw this handy tip a while ago, and now I can't wait!  I think these would be fun, too.
 

(source)

6.  Does anyone have any experience with a balance bike?  It's like a big-kid bike with no pedals. Apparently the idea is to teach the kids balance first rather than teaching them to use training wheels and THEN learn balance.  I think we're going to get one for Link.

 

(source)

7.  I so did NOT follow through on my stated goal last week of making this happen.  In my defense, our printer is on a filing cabinet, and it's topped with bills, etc, to be filed.  Oh, that's not a good defense?  You're right.  I'll get it done this week. 

8.  Mason and Lincoln are both so happy when Tyler gets home.  Lincoln stops whatever he's doing and runs to the door.  And this is Mason saying hi:

9.  This is basically how Tyler and I met.

(source) 

10.  Lincoln started holding one of Mason's (too-small) onesies on his back and running through the house shouting "SOO-per Ginkin!"  (Ginkin = Lincoln in Lincoln-speak) So I made him a quick no-sew t-shirt cape, and he's adorable.  I haven't gotten a picture of it yet, alas.  He won't slow down long enough.

Ten on Tuesday

1.  We have a new nephew this week!  Bentley Mckay Williams arrived yesterday evening, and we got to meet him this afternoon.  Tiny!  Momma and baby are doing great, and they'll be heading home tomorrow.

2.  Speaking of babies, Lincoln has been so amazing since Mason was born.  He's so cute with him and doesn't seem to have any sibling rivalry at all.  His only indication of jealousy is that now he says he's "too little" to do things.  We just humor him so far 'cause I think it's cute.  If that's the way he chooses to get more attention, I support it.

3.  We signed up at the Y.  (YMCA not BYU.  Ha!)  I can't wait to put Lincoln on the team sports.  In the meantime, we need to hit the gym.

4.  We got the cutest matching ties and jackets for the boys at Target the other day.  Tyler got a picture of Mason.  I'm kicking myself for not getting one of the two of them together. 




5.  Tyler surprised me with this cute charm for Valentine's day.  I love it.  We got married here, so it's pretty perfect.

6.  I introduced Lincoln to the wand on the vacuum.  It's his new favorite game now.  Go figure.




7.  We're going to see Wicked this Saturday in Birmingham!  I can't wait.  Plus I heard this cast is amazing.

8.  Lincoln loves this Grover book app on the iPad.  Totally worth the $4.  Now we're looking for other interactive books.  Any suggestions?

9.  Girl Scout Cookies.  Need I say more?

10.  Put this on your to-do list for the week.  It's on mine.

Ten on Tuesday

1.  Lincoln couldn't get his arm out of his sleeve the other day and said, "This is driving me crazy!"  He soaks up phrases he hears like a sponge.  Other fun ones?  "I bonked my noggin'."  "I'll be back in a minute.  Wait here."  and "I need to go check on Mason."


2.  Mason. Is. Huge.  I'm one wrenched elbow away from making the Great Carseat Switch.

3.  Mason is also supercute (one word).  Just so there's no confusion.

4.  I've been hanging up pictures and stuff in the house.  Nothing wrong with that.  I've only owned the house for almost 5 years.

5.  In my defense, it's probably the fourth iteration of a furniture arrangement in the living room, and we're in the middle of totally redoing Lincoln's room into a Cars room for the (two) boys.

6.  I signed up on the Primary substitute list when they passed it around in Relief Society a few weeks ago.  Now, I'm not saying that was a mistake, but I AM saying I've subbed 2 weeks of the 4 since that paper went around.  Luckily, singing time is so much better than grown-up Sunday School.

7.  Lincoln loves this shape app on my iPad.  Unfortunately, it doesn't lock, so he can push the home button.  I know for a fact he's gone into photobooth and taken pictures when he was supposed to be "reading mama's pink book."

8.  We're practically counting down to The Hunger Games.  Anyone want to come watch the kids so I can drag Tyler to the midnight showing with all the crazies?

9.  I've been using my iPhone to take pictures lately.  There's also a blogger iPhone app.  One of these days, that will mean more regular blogging.

10.  In case you missed it, I decided to start doing Ten on Tuesday posts.  I'm hoping I can start working on it during the week and then just remember to publish it once a week.  Wish me luck!

Top 10 of 2011

We are way behind on updating our friends and family on our 2011 (and we have not updated our blog in some time).  We thought a good idea for doing both would be to put together a list of the ten most exciting things that happened to us in 2011.  While there were clearly some exciting things that happened to our family during the year, many of the most exciting things happened "around us:"  Tyler's brother got married, Kelli's sister is moving to South Korea for a year, Tyler's dad was called to the stake presidency, Kelli's mom got a new job, and Tyler's sister was diagnosed with leukemia.  Nevertheless, some exciting things happened to us as well.  Here goes.  

1.  Lincoln's Birthday

In January, Lincoln turned into a 2-year-old!  I made his cake, which I blogged about on my craft blog.  He loved it.  It has been fun to watch him turn from baby to toddler to little boy.

2.  Great Blizzard of 2011

Also in January, we had a huge snowstorm.  The town was shut down for almost a week.  That's the way I prefer my snow - limited to one week of the year.   Lincoln did not like the snow, but we thought it was pretty fun.  

3.  Road Trip!

Tyler's brother Jake married Courtney Edwards in March.  To get the whole Williams clan out to Utah, we rented a 15-passenger van, piled in, and drove for 3 days.  The kids (1-year-old Emmett, 2-year-old Lincoln, 3-year-old Gwen, and 5-year-old James) were amazingly well-behaved. But I'd still prefer not to repeat that drive for a while.  Or ever.

4.  Tornadoes and Power Outage

On April 27, 137 tornadoes were reported in the South.  The whole of North Alabama lost power, and it took several days before we got it back in Huntsville.  It was surreal to be in the middle of so much devastation and really only be inconvenienced.  We felt so blessed to be spared the worst of it.  We did a lot of cooking on the grill, played a lot of board games, listened to the radio, and went to bed when the sun went down.  It was kind of nice to disconnect a little bit. 

5.  Cars 2

We took Lincoln to see his first movie in theaters this summer.  It turned out to be better on the small screen, but at least he liked running in the halls.

 

6.  Mason Arrives

On August 30, we welcomed Mason Bryce into our family.  He arrived 5 1/2 weeks early because I developed preeclampsia with this pregnancy as well.  He had to stay in the NICU for a while, but progressed quickly and was able to come home after only a week.

7.  Tate Farms Trip 

In October, we went up to Tate Farms to pick pumpkins and generally celebrate fall.  It was a fun day-trip with Tyler's sister Angela and our niece Gwen.

8.  Halloween

For Halloween, we dressed as Toy Story characters.  Lincoln was Buzz Lightyear, and we dressed Mason as one of the little green aliens.  Tyler had the clever idea for us to dress as Andy and Bonnie.  Lincoln loved trunk-or-treating, and caught on pretty quickly to the concept of walking around and demanding candy.

9.  Lincoln's Favorites

As Lincoln approached age 3, we started quizzing him on his favorite things.  We like the idea of memorializing the things he likes at this age and figure this is as good a place as any.  They are:

Drink - chocolate milk
Food - Eggos
Color - blue
Movie - The "monster truck movie"
Song - In the Leafy Treetops
Best Friend - "Baby Carson"

10.  90th Percentile

By his 4-month checkup at the end of the year, Mason was in the 90th percentile for both height and weight.  He got his dad's head, which is off the charts.  We may or may not refer to him, occasionally, as Gigantor.  He. Is.  Huge.

Here's to an exciting 2012.