Happy in Houston

Well, we are finally here in Houston! We are so thankful to have such a wonderful church to live life with, a fun new city to explore, and a beautiful home to decorate. Thanks to our parents we were able to move in without incident and get settled quickly. Here are a few pictures of Gracie's first few weeks of this new adventure.

Gracie eating cheerios and watching her favorite show Boz, while we do some unpacking.

There is a little window by the our front door that Gracie loves! She looks out every day to see the ducks and to see her Daddy come home. We have a pond across the street which is home to many ducks that wander in our front yard searching for food. They're cute, but the duck poop in the yard is no bueno. She sure does love them!

Gracie and Papa feeding the ducks. Gracie usually gives some bread to the ducks then takes a bite for herself.

Gracie and Kaymi feeding the ducks. It is crazy how aggressive these ducks can be. I always put her on the table in case one of them gets a little crazy and I have to drop kick it! :) No, I love the ducks, I just love my daughter more!

One of Gracie's favorite things is going to the park across the street to swing, and if Daddy's there it is perfect!

YAY!! Swinging!!! She loves to go as high as we'll let her. Look at our little dare devil!

Two Lines Again!

Here we go again! The pregnancy test revealed two pink lines (actually all 3 pregnancy tests revealed two pink lines). I am definitely with child! I have so many questions!!! How many are in there? Is it a boy? Girl? We are so excited to take in this life-changing experience once again! We recognize the blessing this is and we praise the Lord for another little one!

Some things I am looking forward to the next 9 months:
1. feeling the baby kick
2. watching Gracie's reaction to my growing belly
3. hearing the heartbeat for the first time
4. seeing the sonogram of our precious little one
5. deciding on a name

Some things I am NOT looking forward to the next 9 months:
1. the nausea, oh the nausea!!!!!!
2. excess saliva (you heard me right, this is a real thing that makes you want to spit all the time)
3. the swelling. the lips I can live with, but the cankles need to go
4. the sleepless nights due to the baby on the bladder and the huge uncomfortable big belly
5. changing Gracie's diaper (made me want to gag before, now with my heightened sense of smell, it's virtually impossible)

Oh the changes our bodies go through to bring life into the world!

Easter 2011

This was Gracie last Easter. A week old. So peaceful. So calm.

...and this was Gracie this Easter. 13 months old. Frustrated with tights. Full of life!

Oh how the time has flown by! Her little personality is coming out which is spunky, outgoing, and passionate. She is her own little person. She loves to laugh and make people laugh. She has this fake laugh that she uses on strangers when we go to the store (gets them every time!) She uses the words "uh oh" and "whoa" about a hundred times a day and she despises milk. Her favorite things to do are to swing, listen to music, and just be outside. Every time "na na" (momma) comes out of her mouth I melt. She is a snuggler, especially at night. She gives the best hugs! She wraps her little arms around my neck and will squeeze with all her might. She will say "na na" and pat me as she lays her head on my shoulder. Sometimes when I am holding her at night, when I think she is asleep, she will lean back and plant a big kiss right on my lips. Makes me want to cry every time. I love my life.

My Baby is One!!!

My little girl is one! I knew this day would come, but I never dreamed how fast! We decided to celebrate her first birthday in style with a carnival extravaganza! We played games, painted faces, opened presents, ate delicious sweets, and loved on Gracie as we celebrated her first year of life. What a special day! A big thanks to my mom, sister, and Donna Kay for making this party happen!

This was the dessert table. How cute are the cones of cotton candy Nicole made?

Can you say sugar high? Yummy!!!!

Mom was manning the prize table. The kids took home a lot of loot!

Games Games Games!!!

A break from the festivities to love on Kaymi!

Gracie giving Drew a push on the tricycle

The delicious desserts for the guests

Gracie's birthday cake experience. This was her first taste of cake. If you can't tell she LOVED it!

And the end result...Gracie covered in delicious cake goodness!

Be My Valentine

"The supreme happiness of life is the conviction that we are loved."

Thank you God for loving us like you do and for allowing us to give and receive love from those you have placed in our lives.

Check out more pictures from our family's Valentines Day photo shoot at www.raspberryrainimages.com

Super Bowl Sunday

This year's Super Bowl was a little different than most I've watched in the past. Why? Mainly because of a little cutie named Gracie. We tried to watch the game between feeding her, watching her do her tricks, loving on her, and trying to get her down. Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't trade it for anything, and since I really didn't care who won this year, I appreciated Gracie keeping things fun! On a side note, we were able to teach her a new trick tonight - touchdown! She raises up her hands in excitement as we yell "touchdown!" So cute!

Snow Day! (Part 2)

Well, today was one of my all time favorite days! Jonathan and I decided to go play outside in the snow when Gracie went down for her nap. Play? I think not! WAR! The biggest snowball fight of the century, and here is how it played out in pictures.

Pre Snowball fight (notice no one is covered in snow yet and each of us still have our pride; also notice the cute ear warmer that makes Gracie cry every time I put it on)

We divided the yard in two, made piles of snowballs strategically placed, counted to 3, and started throwing. First one to hit the other 5 times was the winner. This is just an example of what went on ALL GAME!

I call this picture VICTORY! (and man is it sweet!)
We made up after Johnny forgave me for crushing him in the first annual Williams Family Snowball War.
One day Gracie you will get to pick sides and play with us. Choose me baby if you want to DOMINATE!

Snow Day!

Well, today we finally braved the cold weather and actually left the house. Gracie and I have been sick and the weather has been snowy and freezing so we have been cooped up in the house for 3 days now. We bundled up, braved the cold, and snapped a few pics along the way. Here is our cutie in one of the warmest things we could find. Oh, and the bear feeties make me want to cry they're so cute!