More Pictures of Baby William

Our first family picture:

Here are a few more pictures of William. Isn't he handsome? (That's all for tonight - I promise!)

William Meets the Crazies

Megan, Jared, and Kate were so excited to meet their new baby brother.

Megan would have been happy to hold him forever. She remembered everything from when Kate was little.

Jared was excited to hold him too. I think he is thrilled to have a little brother.

Kate was....Kate. She is a little hurricane! She climbed on all the furniture. Jumped off everything she could. Pulled my IV out of the vein so the fluid pooled under my skin. Hugged and kissed her baby brother. Tried to get him to drink from her sippy cup. Beeped his nose, poked at his eyes, ears, and mouth. Pulled his hair. Ate candies without taking the wrapper off. And dumped out my water bottle. It will be an adventure when we go home tomorrow.

Please Welcome Baby William!

William James Mansfield was born on Wednesday, February 6 at 12:13 pm. He was 8 lbs, 7 oz and 21 inches.

Here are a few pictures taken when he was just minutes old.

Jared's a Bike Rider!

Jared really really wanted to learn to ride his bike, but being almost 9 months pregnant, I simply couldn't run along side him to give him the help he needed. Believe me. I tried. I made it about 3 steps before being in so much pain I could barely walk. So I did one of the smartest things I've ever done as a parent. I hired a girl from church to come and teach him to ride.

Her name is Maddie. She runs cross country. She ran up and down our cul-de-sac for an hour. I kept offering her a drink or a break or SOMETHING, but she never even got winded. She just kept running and running, stabilizing Jared when he wobbled, cheering him on, and running. Always running. I've never seen anything like it.

She came two Saturdays in a row, for an hour each time. And before long, Jared went from not being able to ride at all to this:

Ever since, he has spent every spare minute out riding his bike.

Megan got her ears pierced

Megan has been wanting to get her ears pierced for a long time, and we decided that Christmas break was a good time to do it.

Pre-piercing (she was really nervous and a little silly, so she wouldn't let me get a better picture)

Post-piercing

She is counting the days until she can swap out these earrings for some of her choosing.

New Years Eve 2012

In years past, we haven't done much for New Years Eve. Until this year, our kids didn't even know that people usually stay up late. Since they are getting older, we decided it was time to let them get in on the celebrating.

We had the Christensens over for dinner - Travis grilled chicken and beef sliders, and we all filled up on yummy sides and treats and cookies. We played Canasta (fyi, Amy and I TOTALLY won) and just generally had a great time hanging out.

After the Christensens left, we put the kids to bed (around 9:30). We woke them up at 11 and got ready to go over to some other friends house to watch their annual fireworks display. Travis has gone to this before, but it was a first for the kids and I.

The fireworks were pretty impressive. Probably better than many small city displays. It was steady explosions for 45 minutes straight. The kids LOVED it (including Kate) but I think next year I'll bring ear plugs.


In case you didn't know, one of Travis's favorite things in the world is fireworks. He LOVES Texas because the rules regarding what types of fireworks are allowed are so much looser than in Utah.

What's the True Cost of Participating in the Elders Quorum Pinewood Derby?

The Elders Quorum held a Pinewood Derby last week. This was the first time our family really got excited about building cars.

Kids:
Basic Pinewood Derby Car Kit ......$ 4 Each
Paint, Sandpaper, Glitter, etc ......Free (I insisted they use what we already had)

Travis got pretty excited about building his car, especially since they didn't have to follow the regular Cub Scout rules. Basically the rules were anything goes,as long as it was gravity powered (no motors, CO2 cartridges, etc).

He decided to make an "Agent P" car.

Travis:
Basic Pinewood Derby car kit ......$4
Special axles and barrings .....$40
Custom machined wheels ......$20
Coping Saw, Chisel, Epoxy, and other misc tools .......$30
Paint ........$4
Wood putty .........$4
Lead Weights ......$5
Can of Tuna ......$2
Googley Eyes ......$2
Hat .......$2

Watching your husband be as excited as a little boy while making a Pinewood Derby car......... Priceless 

(After all that, the wheels popped off on the first race and wouldn't stay put after that. The epoxy wouldn't hold. But watch out next year! He'll be back and he's car will be smoking fast!)