Happy Thanksgiving

I know it is well into the Christmas season now, but I have to post what I am thankful for.

I'll start with my boys. I am so thankful for these cuties!

I'm thankful for my families...the Williams side

...and the Shinsel side. I have always felt like they loved me the first time we met.

I'm thankful for the missionaries...specifically for my brother serving right now and for the missionaries who converted my parents.

I'm thankful for the people who keep us protected...my brother in the airforce and my dad who once served.

I'm thankful for friends that live close to us...

...and far away.

I'm thankful for good health, and my legs so I can exercise and do fun races.

I'm thankful for always having food...especially this 12 layer chocolate cake we ate on Thanksgiving day.

I'm thankful for the Christmas season when there is so much Christlike spirit and we can refelct on what I am truly most thankful for...

...the birth of our Savior.

I have a little boy and not a baby boy...

My baby boy grew up too fast. With his new obession with cars and trains, he is definitly a little boy now. It's fun to play cars and trains with Lincoln; however, I do have a question. How is it possible that Lincoln is better at making noise effects? It has to be a gender thing! Lincoln and I roll the cars as hard as we can across the kitchen floor. He has made his high-chair his fort.

I was suprised one day when I saw Lincoln climb into a chair with a couple books. He is very proud that he can climb that chair by himself.

Dave and I bought Lincoln a train set for Christmas. We found it on Craigslist and had to buy it before someone else did. Because we don't have anywhere to store it, and we are going to Dave's house for Christmas; Lincoln got an early Christmas present. Really, Dave and I were so excited when we picked it up, it was like Christmas day for us! Lincoln plays with the "toot-toot's" for hours, so it has been worth it. He played so hard today that he took a 4.5 hour nap. It was only that long, because I woke him up. I was afraid he was in a train coma.

Lincoln eating blueberries with his train. He even gives them kisses when Dave asks him to!

Halloween Rewind

I am so behind in my blogs, and I thought I was going to be good at keeping up. I thought about using the excuse, well not much went on the past 2 weeks, but it was Halloween, so I can't use that one. Here's our Halloween Rewind:

Zandi, Elijah's mom, from playgroup hosted a Halloween playgroup at her house. She had it all decked out in decorations and the kid,s as always had fun playing with each other. Lincoln went as Lion, it was Carson's old costume, and Dave hated it. I don't have pictures, so I'll have to mooch off some of the other moms . I was taking video of the picture taking process, which is pretty entertaining!

The Dietz family hold a Fall Festival at their house/property every year. It is great because they have enough land to do hay rides, forest mazes, launch rubber chickens, etc. For the past 2 years, it has been moved to the church because of rain. I was excited for Lincoln to Trunk or Treat, but it didn't get to happen this year. The Fall Festival got moved to the church gym, so it was fun for eating lots of yummy food (there was a chili cook-off) and for seeing the kids in their costumes. Speaking of costumes, here is my cute monkey:

Dave went out on Halloween afternoon and found this monkey costume for $2 at Old Navy!

Look at those big dark eyes!

Later that night, Mom and I took the monkey trick-or-treating to some close neighbors. I binged on candy that night, because I started a "diet" the day after. It's not really a diet, just eating healthier and keeping track of portions and food groups. Dave is on a strict diet set up by the P90X plan. Even though I don't approve of the diet, he is doing really well: he even ate fish!

It is amazing how much toddlers learn. (I know there wasn't much of a transition there, but I couldn't think of anything.) Every day Link is doing something new. Some new words are egg, toot toot (he even moves his arm up and down when he says it), and more. He is really interested in the stacking rings and the shape blocks you push through the lid. The little boy is coming out in him, because he makes vroom noises as he rolls his cars and trains across the floor.

He still loves the tv, and Dad introduced him to Thomas the Tank Engine. The faces on those trains freak me out, but Link loves it. I was lucky to have a sister-in-law and aunt give me lots of clothes and shoes from their boys (thanks Kim and Cheryl), which I keep in Lincoln's closet. One day we were playing hide-and-seek and Link ran into the closet. He came out a minute later holding a tennis shoe with Thomas on the side. I don't think I have ever seen his eyes so big before. To say he was floored was an understatement! Luckily, they even fit him (size 6).