December 30

I've been contemplating cutting my hair short for quite a while and today I took the plunge. I wasn't sure if I'd like it or not, but I figured it was just hair and it would grow back. Thankfully, however, I love my short new hairdo!

December 29

Sarah and I took the kiddos to Charlie's Safari today and, as you can tell, it was great fun! Will bounced, jumped, and climbed his way around for the hour that we were there. I'm sure he can't wait to go back!

December 28

I exchanged the computer from Uncle Bob for a TAG Reading System. This thing is amazing! Within 5 minutes, Will learned how to use the "pen" to read the special TAG books. He sat on the couch for 30 minutes, listening to "The Cat in the Hat" and answering questions about the book. At one point he looked at Marc and said, "It's like I'm in school!" It most definitely is not a replacement for good, old fashioned reading, but it was a great way to keep him entertained while I was cooking dinner, and a great alternative to the boob tube.

December 27

Today we took Will's motorcycle out for a spin in the neighborhood. He's already a pro at directing traffic.

December 26

Today we were exhausted from two days worth of holiday activities. (A house full of Richards means a minimum of 4 dishwasher loads!) Thankfully, Marc took the reigns when it came to cleaning the house up today, as I was totally out of energy. Will spent the day playing with all of his new toys. Here he is in his Robin costume, playing with his Thomas Lego set and Buzz Lightyear (a hand me down from Noah).

December 25

Today we enjoyed having my family and Dianne over for Christmas dinner. The boys couldn't wait to open presents and though it was a bit chaotic at times, everyone had a great time. It is not often that all of us are around at the same time, so that always makes Christmas extra special. In fact, this is the first shot of the three Richards grandchildren together!

December 24

Today we enjoyed a wonderful Christmas Eve at Dianne's. Will was very excited to open his first presents of the season, but still hasn't learned the art of faking it when the gift isn't *exactly* what you expected. He opened his first gift and cried, "I didn't want books!" Marc and I died of embarrassment, as we had spent a great deal of time talking to Will about thanking people for gifts. Needless to say, he actually does like the books and they are all he's wanted to read since he received them. Thanks, Grandma!

December 23

Tonight we took an extremly crabby kid out to look at Christmas lights. After coercing him into the car, we headed to Ralph's for some hot chocolate and mochas. The minute he had a sip of his, Will exclaimed, "I don't like it." I set it in the cup holder and not 5 minutes later he kicked his feet and hot chocolate went flying all over the car. Of course, that very same minute he decided he was thirsty enough to actually drink the hot chocolate. Instant tears since he had no more hot chocolate and I had nothing else to give him. He just kept whining "I'm thirsty," over and over and over again. We nearly turned the car around without seeing a single light. Finally, we stopped at a gas station to get Will some juice and all was well with the world. There were some great houses, but this one was our favorite by a long shot!

December 22

After putting Will to bed, Marc and I enjoyed played a game and enjoyed a lovely bottle of wine that Sarah gave to me. Tonight, however, we realized the downfall of Scrabble - you spend so much time thinking about your words that you play the game in silence. Next game night we'll do Monopoly or something that requires less brain power!

December 21

Today Will pretended to be Santa, driving his sleigh through the sky. He used the box for the sleigh, a reindeer from Grandpa Gene and Grandma Lisa, and a grocery bag for Santa's sack of toys. It's pretty cute to watch him move the reigns up and down!

December 20

We finally made it to the mall to see Santa Claus today. After waiting nearly an hour, Will ran to Santa the minute we said it was his turn. When he was done, I asked Will if he had told Santa what he wanted for Christmas. Will replied, "No. Santa had a smelly beard." Poor Santa must have had bad breath and poor Will for having to endure that torture!

December 19

Will was still feeling under the weather today, but he did manage to read his guys a story. He lines them up at school (always on the floor in the living room) and usually I'm the one who has to do the reading. He must have sensed I was on vacation from being a teacher right now!

December 18

Today was the last day of school, but I stayed home with our sick little guy. He threw up in the middle of the night and had a fever of nearly 103 for most of the day. At one point I asked Will if he wanted to finish watching his show or take a nap. He chose a nap - he must be sick!

December 17

Will insisted on taking a picture with my camera tonight. He had a hard time holding in up and kept pointing it at the floor, but he did manage to get a very unflattering photo of my face. Go figure!

December 16

Father and son dancing in the kitchen by the glow of Christmas lights. Their laughter makes me smile.

December 15

Tonight as I was sitting on the couch, I heard the cat start to growl. I looked over and we had a little visitor on our back porch. This little guy sat on our step (much to the chagrin of Chewie) for nearly 5 minutes, just checking the two of us out.

December 14

Tonight as Marc was getting the recycling bin ready to take to the curb, Will insisted on joining him outside, despite the cold and rainy weather. It was fun to watch him stomp on all the cardboard, so proud to be helping Dad out.

December 13

Today we had a small dusting of snow and our little firefighter went outside to check it out. Will enjoyed trying to catch snowflakes on his tongue, but only for a few minutes. It was cold out there!

December 12

Thanks to Grandma Dianne, Marc and I enjoyed a wonderful day enjoying the sights and sounds of Christmas in Seattle. We spent our day shopping, leisurely sipping coffee, and walking the waterfront. At night, we enjoyed "A Christmas Carol" at the ACT, followed by a great dinner at Palomino. It was a much needed date night for us!

December 11

Tonight Marc had his office Christmas party, which meant Will and I hung out by ourselves. I introduced Will to "A Charlie Brown Christmas" and we enjoyed lots of snuggles on the couch.

December 10

This evening Will loved playing in the bathtub. I loved snapping a photo of his gorgeous lashes.

December 9

Wassup, Dude? This morning Will woke up in a fantastic mood. He giggled and laughed all morning long and really enjoyed prancing around in his sunglasses.

December 8

Despite the fact that Chewie's food bowl still had plenty of food in it tonight, Will wanted to give her some more. I tried to get him to understand that she only needed a little bit more food. Suffice it to say that Chewie now has enough food in her bowl for the next two or three days.

December 7

Lately, every night we have to negotiate where Will wants to sit at dinner. We'd prefer that he sit in his booster seat, but he insists on sitting in a 'grown up' chair. He begs us to sit in one, saying, "I'll pay batention." We always let him start the meal on the chair, but more often than not, his squirming and standing gets him back in the booster. Tonight, however, he was true to his word, sitting still and not getting up once!

December 6

Today we headed to Hunter's Tree Farm to cut down our tree. This was our 6th year getting our tree at Hunter's and it was a cold one! Luckily, we found our perfect tree in a matter of minutes. After Marc cut down the tree, we enjoyed some hot chocolate and, of course, feeding the goats.

December 5

Brrr! It was a cold 26 degrees this morning and a thin layer of frost covered everything in sight.

December 4

Tonight we attended the annual Holiday Concert and Potluck at Will's school. Will had been saying that he didn't want to stand up with the kids, he wanted to stand witht the parents. The minute he and his classmates marched in to perform, he came over to me and started to cry. I convinced him that I'd stand in back of him while he performed. For the most part, he sat on my lap, however, he did manage to participate in "You Are My Sunshine," if only for a few seconds. At the end of the night, he had a quick visit with Santa before we headed home.

December 3

Tonight while I was getting the bath ready, Will came into the bathroom with a blue marker in his hand exclaiming, "I drawed on the wall!" When I went to investigate, sure enough, he had drawn on the door. Like a good boy, he cleaned it up.

December 2

This morning the moon was setting over the water and I couldn't resist capturing a picture of it. It's not often we get to see the moon so big and full during the day!

December 1

Will and I got out some more decorations tonight and he was fascinated by the Nutcrackers. He asked if we had any nuts and when I said no, he immediately ran to the kitchen and asked for cheerios. Our "cheerio cracker" provided Will with a great deal of entertainment this evening.

November 30

I love ordering from diapers.com and Will loves playing in the boxes. Tonight he enjoyed sleeping in the box and made us close the lid "all da way" so he could bust out.

November 29

Today we headed downtown to enjoy some Christmas festivities - a parade, living Christmas tree, and the lighting if the city's tree. Before the parade started, Will turned to Marc and I and exclaimed, "I excited!" He enjoyed watching the motorcycles and firetrucks and, of course, getting candy. If you ask me, the candy was his favorite part of the parade. However, if you ask Will (and I did), his favorite part was the cheerleaders.

November 28

We started our Christmas season with a visit to the Christmas Forest. Looking at the gorgeous trees and listening to the music is a great way to get into the season. Will couldn't wait to see Santa - what a change from last year! Will brought his own little sack of toys. For some reason, he really wanted to show the big man his newest guy's oxygen mask. Will asked Santa for a dragon castle. We'll see if Santa comes through with his request!

November 27

We spend most of our time engaging in Will's make believe stories. He has the greatest imagination and it is constantly going. Today the fireman was accompanied by his friend the construction worker. They worked together to put out fires around the house. Unfortunately, we didn't catch Will before he put his fire hose up to the bathroom sink and turned it on. Luckily, we weren't too far behind him so there was only a small puddle of water on the floor.

November 26

We had a busy Thanksgiving with family. We started our day visiting Marc's side of the family. Will was very upset that we didn't have a turkey at home (and didn't believe it was Thanksgiving because of it) so he was very excited to see Grandma Dianne's turkey. She pulled it out of the fridge and he asked, "Why it not moving?" Poor kid...his favorite Thanksgiving book was one where the turkey was running away and hiding from the Pilgrims. I told Will that this turkey wanted to be caught. Luckily, he believed it. We then headed to meet up with the Richards half of the family. We had a nice time and Great-Grandpa's house...Will's favorite thing was going up and down the stairs using the lift.

November 25

Will spotted some little puff balls in our craft box and they entertained him for quite some time! He delighted in throwing them all over the kitchen floor. We also spent some time dancing and "ice skating" on them. As I was taking pictures, I asked him to make a funny face and this is what he came up with. Love it!

November 24

Crabby boy tonight. Nothing would make him happy. Will wouldn't do anything without his bike helmet, including brush his teeth. It was all I could do to get it off of him to go to bed.

November 23

Will loves to bring tons of toys into the bathtub. Today, his dudes got a break since Will opted for his Weebles. He also practiced swimming in the tub tonight and was kicking pretty well!

November 22

Will and Marc spent some quality time dancing around the kitchen this evening. Will loved it when Dad spun him around quickly and shreiked with laughter every time.

November 21

Will played, played, played after waking from his nap at 3:30. He kept bringing out toy after toy after toy. We built lego towers, drove hot wheels on a path made out of an entire roll of toliet paper, and drove in our car made out of dining room chairs.

November 20

We had visitors this weekend - Ty, his girlfriend Alaina, and Chris. Will loved "Uncle Ty" and wanted to play with him non-stop. Ty, lover of kids that he is, happily read books to our little man.

November 19

Each night Will asks, "Can I sleep with my men?" The answer is always the same - no. This morning, while I was giving Will his breathing medicine, the following conversation ensued:

Will: How do I get the man out of my pajamas, Mommy?

Mom: You have a man in your pajamas?

Will: Yeah.

Mom: When did you put a man in your pajamas?

Will: When I was in time out! (We had to put him in there when getting him ready for bed last night.)

Somehow he got the idea to smuggle a dude into bed by way of his pajamas. Needless to say, we found this very amusing!

November 18

Today Will decided he wanted his guys to practice swimming and diving. He carried the pumpkin into the bathroom and filled it himself. (I added the towel underneath.) He had a lot of fun "plopping" and "splashing" his dudes in the water.

November 17

Today Will brought home the packet of numbers (6,7,8) and letters (F,G,H) that they have been working on at school. I asked him to show me what he does with them, and he traced the 6 saying, "Go down and around." I was surprised to see that he was (for the most part) tracing the letters appropriately - starting in the right place, etc. He then spent time retracing the things in his packet with a "narker." A few moments later, he was looking through a tracing book I bought months ago and said, "I got lots of work to do. I'm need to take a bath later." Hee hee!

November 16

Tonight Will was very excited because he earned another toy for five days worth of good napping. When I arrived at school, the first thing he said to me was, "I get a toy today!" Today's toy was an Imaginext knight that came with a flying dragon/lion thing.

November 15

Will was all about playing with his "guys" (Imaginext toys) today. Here he is putting "Little Zurg" in time out.

November 14

Today I took pictures of Becky, Tom, Hannah and Sydney. Posing a family for a group shot isn't at all easy! I got some good ones, but I wish I had done better. Guess I'll have to keep practicing!

November 13

Tonight was Family Fun Night. We ate dinner in the living room while watching the Curious George movie. After, we had our first attempt at playing games with Will. He enjoyed playing Memory, but he had to do so with his own rules and by himself, as the game "wasn't for grownups." He's certainly got some learning to do when it comes to the basics of game playing!

November 12

Will spent time painting after dinner tonight. Apparantly, it is more fun to pain on oneself that it is to paint on paper. What a mess!