Flashback Friday: November 3, 2006

Flashback Friday:

November 3, 2006

Will was born on a Friday four years ago.  He was due on October 28th and was almost a week overdue.  I had gone to the hospital early on the morning of November 2nd to be induced, and I'd been in labor all day with little progress.  After many hours of pushing, my doctor (who is wonderful) made the decision to deliver Will by c-section.  Will's birthday would have been on the 2nd, but there was an emergency c-section ahead of me in the operating room.  All of the waiting and labor was worth it and Will was born on November 3, 2006 at 12:40 A.M. He weighed 9 pounds, 7 ounces and was 22 inches long.  We were all surprised at what a big baby he was!

William James

He's perfect!

Waiting in recovery with Daddy

The first of many mommy kisses

Father and Son moment 

Our first family photo 

Looking back on these photos makes me teary-eyed.  I still vividly remember his birth like it was yesterday.  The years really do fly by and your children grow up before you realize it.  Will is four, and I can hardly believe it.  Reminiscing reminds me that we're so blessed to have such a happy, healthy little one who is growing to be a precious, little boy.

We love you so much, Will!  Happy Birthday!

Four Years Old!

Will is four years old!

Yesterday was Will's fourth birthday. 

Here are four things that Will currently loves.

1. Swinging on his playset

2. French Fries

3. PBS Kids

4. Reading

We love you, Will!  Happy Birthday to you!

Family Reunion

At the end of October we had a family reunion for Mark's side of the family.  We went to a Cooper Lake State Park in east Texas, which is about an hour away from where we live.  The weather was beautiful and the lake was so peaceful.  We all had a good time hanging out by the lake and spending time with family that we don't get to see very often.

The boys had fun playing on the rocks by the lake.

Will   

This flat rock was perfect for Ben.

Our attempt at a family photo 

old tree 

Will riding on his daddy's shoulders  

Ben laughing with his uncle and Will

Will tossing rocks in the lake

Fall trees

Cooper Lake State Park in east Texas

Old water tower in a small town we drove through on the way to the lake 

Happy Halloween!

Halloween 2010

This year Will dressed up as Buzz Lightyear and Ben was a cute little monkey.



More Halloween Fun

Halloween on the Square was so much fun that I decided to add just a few more photos.  The bounce house obstacle course and slide were sponsored by local businesses and free to all of the children.  Will had so much fun doing both.

Funny Halloween Story...

Mark was talking to his brother and watching the boys.  Mark noticed Will was getting into his candy and going to eat a sucker and he asked him, "Will haven't you already had a sucker?" Will said, "No, Daddy, I've had two."  Well, at least he was honest!  Will had such a sugar high on Saturday night that I thought he'd never go to sleep.  As you can see in the photo above, he thoroughly enjoyed each piece of candy.

Halloween on the Square

We celebrated Halloween on Saturday at our small town's Halloween festival called Halloween on the Square.  It's an annual tradition and one of the many things I love about our small town.  All of the local businesses, churches and organizations set up booths and give away candy to all of the children in our community.  We attend every year and it never disappoints.  We gave away over one thousand pieces of candy from our church.  You just can't beat small town traditions where the entire community comes together to do something good.

The boys and me with the town square behind us.

Will getting candy from our church's table.  Mark's mom and her friend were so nice and passed out all of the candy.

My cousin, Karen, commented on facebook on this photo.  She said, "Will is pondering the candy and Ben is on to the next table for more."

Trick or Treat!

 More trick-or-treating

View of the town square

Another view of the town square and all of the people trick-or-treating

 

Ben our Little Monkey

Buzz Lightyear (Will) and Mark just before we left

Halloween on the Square 2010

 

Evans and Son Grocery

My grandparents owned a grocery store in the small town where they lived from 1947 to 1960 {almost 14 years}.  As they would say, "People traded with them."  Growing up I heard numerous stories about the grocery store and their customers.  It was a significant part of their life.  Many items from the store were sold, given away or thrown away after they closed the store.  A few things were left behind, and I am lucky enough to have some of them at my home. 

The seed display box was  in my grandparent's shed.  One weekend I was home from college for a visit and my grandma was cleaning out the shed.  She was about to toss this in the burn pile.  I didn't know it was special and had ties to the store..  I just thought it was a neat old box, and I asked her if I could have it since she was going to burn it.  She said sure and told me it was an old box leftover from the grocery store.  I'm so glad I came home that weekend for a visit!  You can tell it has been used and it's a little worn in some places, but that makes me treasure it even more because I know it was once used to display seeds in  my grandparent's store.

This ledger book was used in the store.

The calendar was given to me by one of my grandma's nieces, Sarah.  My grandmother's sister, Ruth, was Sarah's mother.  She passed away several years ago and when they were cleaning out Aunt Ruth's house she found this calendar from 1954.  Sarah knew I would appreciate it so she gave it to me.  What a treasure!

Shopping basket that was used inside the store.



I'll be linking up and sharing my special family treasures from Evans and Son Grocery with Cha Cha at Sit Relax and Read.  I'm so thankful that she started Sentimental Sundays.  Since I started blogging I wanted to share these special pieces and stories, but I just didn't know how to go about it.  Sentimental Sundays has given me the perfect opportunity to reflect and share.  Each post is easy to write and takes little effort. I think it's so easy because it's written from the heart about things I hold dear.  Thank you Cha Cha for helping me find a way to share these special memories.