Merry Christmas!

All dressed up for Christmas Eve Service and our party!

Mommy and Daddy are very tired from a busy day but I'm still awake so I decided to write you guys. Mommy doesn't let me on her computer but she's sleeping, so don't tell! Yesterday we opened gifts with Mommy's family and had a huge Christmas Eve party...everyone ate a lot of food but I was too busy playing to eat.

This morning I woke up and went downstairs to find a new fire station and fire truck waiting under the tree...I told Mommy I had been waiting three hours for it!! Everyone started laughing but I didn't get what was so funny.

This morning we moved over to my Grandpa Jack's house (Daddy's dad) and I am having so much fun hanging out with my cousins. We all get to sleep in the same room or at least that's the plan...we would rather play and keep each other up though.

Well I better sneak back into bed before Mommy and Daddy wake up. We are going to have a busy morning tomorrow...mommy and daddy said we are celebrating Christmas again with Daddy's family and I have even more presents to open!! The presents are fun but Mommy and Daddy have taught me the real meaning of Christmas is celebrating Jesus and his birth...the greatest gift of all!

Happy Birthday Jesus!

Merry Christmas,

Connor

Christmas Eve party

Cheesin' it for the camera!

Cousins in their new pjs

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Hello Fall (and friends!)

Summer is gone and fall has arrived!! I'm so sorry for our absence. These last few months have just flown by and I just can't seem to find the time to sit down and write but I will try my best to be better! Feel free to leave me annoying messages to keep me accountable!

There are 2 new albums to your right..okay well they are July and August, so now I'm only 2 months behind..lol! I will upload September and October tomorrow.

I would say that I would catch you up on the last few months but that might be a much longer post than you would care to read so I'll just give a few highlights to catch you up on what's been going on at our house!

We left off in July with the excitment of our new car! We are still loving it and all the extra room it gives us! Eric was also very excited this past week because he sold the Corolla and bought my Dad's Hyundai GX350L. I must say I was a little sad to see my Corolla gone. It was my first car and it just makes me realize that we aren't teenagers anymore (I know..duh..right?!). It's just crazy how fast time flies!! Connor is thoroughly confused now because he is very good at remembering everyone by their cars so now he finally has figured out that the lexus is mommy's new car but still occasionally will ask about Daddy's black truck and now he's confused as to why Daddy is driving Papa's car and where is Daddy's white car...etc. etc.) Poor kid..and now Papa will have a new car the next time he visits!!

In August, we enjoyed a beach vacation with the Williamson side of the family. Connor LOVED playing with his cousin Owen. Click on the link for August photos but be prepared...I think there are over 400 photos!! Don't say I didn't warn you!

In September, Connor started preschool! He ran right into his class without even saying goodbye or giving me a hug. I must say I wish he were a little sad about leaving me but he definitely takes after his mommy and is a social butterfly! He loves to interact and play with other kids and has become quite the leader in his class from what I hear. He is so proud of the pictures he makes and always tells me 'I made a picture for you mommy..just for you!' and then when Daddy gets home he says the same thing but instead of being for mommy it's for daddy. I'm getting the sense he is playing us already..lol! Connor also transitioned from toddler to big boy in Sept...no more diapers for this little man. The first Sunday after being in underwear all week without an accident he told his teacher 'I ain't no baby anymore..I'm a big boy'! I also attended the MOPS convention with my Steering Team and all I can say is 'amazing'!!! Matt Redman led us in worship every morning and it was such a time of renewal for me and just being uplifted by everyone that was there! Special thanks to my parents and my amazing hubby that held down the fort while I was gone!

October was a slower month for us so I really don't have an excuse for not posting last month. Our biggest event of the month was attending one of the Corn Mazes nearby. They have hayrides, a petting zoo, and of course a corn maze (they also have a little hay maze which we usually prefer). My only complaint is that it was soooo hot!! I'm ready for the colder weather!!

And now we arrive at November!! We will be taking Connor to the fair this week which means lots of entertainment for him and lots of fattening food for mommy and daddy! Pictures to follow this weekend!

Connor is quite the little comedian these days! He loves to make people laugh and he certainly knows how to crack us up. Some of our favorite phrases this month have been... "How you doin' mommy(daddy, papa, or whoever else may be around)?" He says it with an Italian flair to it which makes it hilarious. I also have to preface this next one by saying that we go to Moe's every Tuesday night for kid's night because all three of us eat for under 8 bucks and I get a night off from cooking...well if you have ever been there you know what they say the moment you walk in the door "Welcome to Moe's"...Connor thinks it's hilarious and yells it right back! As I mentioned before he is our little comic but he does NOT like to be put on the spot so if we tell him to say one of his infamous phrases he will look at us with a very serious face and say "I not do that now". I will try my hardest to get a video and post it because it is much funnier hearing it come from his mouth! This last one isn't so much a phrase but it has to do with the VeggieTales movie Jonah. Connor was watching it on one of our trips up to Columbia and then on the way home. The next day he was telling me about the movie and how a whale swallowed Jonah. When I asked him why..he simply replied "He didn't obey his God"! Wow, he really understood that from the movie??!! So thus, we have used that as a great teaching point when explaining to Connor why it is important that he obeys us. I'm sure he has nightmares about a whale swallowing him..haha..but whatever works right?!

He also has a very sweet nature to him too. Connor is super tender-hearted and it's so much fun watching him change every month and becoming his own little person. All of his God-given traits are starting to develop and it puts the biggest smile on my face just thinking about my little man. I've been quite addicted to my Matt Redman CDs since attending the MOPS convention in September and play them in the car all the time! The other day Connor started to sing along and at the top of his lungs was singing "hallelujah, we wanna lift you higher" over and over and over again. It was the sweetest sound to hear my little boy singing those words. Oh how I pray that they stick and he would develop such a a love for the Lord and a desire to serve Him. Everytime that song comes on in the car now he tells me it's his favorite song and I have no problem listening to it over and over just so I can hear his sweet voice worshipping God.

God bless,
Becky

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July Already?!

Is it really July already?! I can't believe how fast this summer is flying by! Life in the Williamson household has been busy as always so let me catch you up!

A proud Connor going on the potty!

Connor is doing very well with the potty training. The hardest part of the potty training (or at least one of the hardest things..lol) was getting him to poop in the potty!!!! I mean really I couldn't figure it out. I know friends have told me that their children all had a hard time with pooping in the potty and that it freaked them out but I was at a loss of how to deal with it SOOO last week I just decided that he would go without pants at home and we would see what came of it. He has proven that if he has pants on whether diaper or underwear..he will poop in them because he thinks he can hide it..grr! Well I'm happy to say that leaving him naked worked! I have not had to change a poopy diaper in almost 5 days and Connor will run to the potty, climb on all by himself, and go!!!! WOW, my life is getting easier everyday!!!

Those baby blues melt my heart!

It's a lot of fun to see him become more independent and becoming his own little person. Overall he is a really easy going little boy but trust me he can also have a very strong will when he chooses. Every stage we reach I say that it's my favorite and I've kind of stopped saying that because truly every time he changes and reaches a new phase I fall in love all over again! Hearing a simple "I love you mommy" melts my heart everytime!

Playing at the beach!

Waterpark!

Aquarium and then we enjoyed a picnic lunch..it was hot that day though!

June-July has been filled with tons of events so make sure to check out our link to our photos which I will be posting very soon! My cousin Chloe' who is 11 came and stayed with us for a week right before the 4th of July. She was such a huge help and Connor loved having someone who would give him their undivided attention 24/7. Chloe' definitely spoiled him to say the least and me...it's amazing how much more you can get done when you have someone to entertain your child! We all had a great time going to the beach, aquarium, waterpark, and all around Charleston. We then traveled up to Columbia to meet her parents for the 4th and give her back. :-(

Truck for sale...

My new car!! :-) :-) Connor loves the DVD player, I love the navigation, and the 2nd row is so roomy..Connor won't be kicking out seats anymore..woo hoo!!

We also made a very unexpected trip to Florida this weekend. Eric and I have been preparing to sell his truck for awhile now. I've really had second thoughts because I hate to have him sell the truck but we really need a much more family friendly vehicle and he has been such a good sport about it (don't worry he is planning for a convertible in 5 years..midlife crisis already??!! haha) We have had our eyes open for the last month looking for vans, suvs, pretty much any family friendly vehicle that would be an even swap for the truck. Well as we were searching autotrader last week a lexus rx 330 came up!!!! I never in a million years would have even considered that it would be in our price range but it was and not only that it only had 30,000 miles (the truck has 54,000) and it was LOADED...dvd, navigation, leather seats, the works!! Eric started investigating it Friday morning and after checking it all out and much counsel and prayer we decided it was a go!! The only thing is we had to drive to the dealership in Florida!! Fortunately, a family that we are dear friends with lived near the dealership and we got in the car Friday afternoon and drove the 9 hour trip arriving at their house at 1am that morning!! It was a crazy whirlwind weekend but we now have our new car!! So if you know of anyone looking for a 2005 Toyota Tacoma 4x4 please let us know as we need to sell it quickly to replenish our savings..lol!

You would think after that the excitement would have ended but then my parents met us at our house Sunday night to pickup their dog as they had been out of town all week (did I mention we drove down to Florida with their dog? That was an experience!). My parents stayed the night and the next morning my Dad and I were on to the next project...my front yard! The builder put a little twig of a tree in our front yard and right next to it were the water meters which were very unsitely, so I recruited my dad to help me sculpt out a flower bed. Here's a picture of the finished project which took us just about all day! It was well worth it though..I wish I had a before picture so you could see the difference but oh well. Connor also had a blast digging in the dirt and had to get a bath before he could even take a nap that afternoon while we finished!

Well now I'm pretty sure I'm just rambling and seeing that Connor is going to be waking up very soon..I have had a very unproductive naptime today..lol! Here is one of my favorite pictures from last month.

God bless,

Becky

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Updates from The Williamsons!

1st day at the water park!
Playing with cousins in NC

Looks like a quarterback already!

Owen, Avery, and Connor

Connor at our church picnic

I have heard from many of you and know that you would all like to know what we have been up to since April!! Life has been crazy and hectic as always, but I think that's the only way I (Becky) know how to operate. I've always worked better under pressure! I said goodbye to my wonderful preschoolers last week and will be very sad not to see them come Monday morning. :-( They were a lot of fun this year and I will miss them dearly but also looking forward to what our summer holds. We just had our end of the year MOPS fundraiser/cookout last night and thus begins my new journey. I have accepted the position of Events Coordinator for next year and it will be a very challenging role but I'm super excited! I LOVE my MOPS group and wouldn't survive without them. In just a couple weeks, I will be leaving for our planning retreat and in September I will get to go to our MOPS International Convention in Nashville, TN which I hear is an incredible experience. I can't wait to go and bring back some great stories to share with you all. I'm continuing to work for my Dad's church doing their accounting and books which is such a blessing. It provides us with some added income and also let's my mind focus on things other than dirty diapers/potty training, cleaning, and all those other wonderful tasks I'm blessed with as a wife and mommy. ;-)

Eric is extremely busy at work these days. After his company laid off 35 workers in April, they have been working hard to make up the missing man-power. Eric also completed another Six Sigma project which was highly received by his upper management. Both the chief engineer of the entire facility and Eric's boss are working to get him the Chairman's Award (an award that is only given to 15-20 people/year throughout all of Cummins including internationally)...pray that he would get this as I know it would be a huge encouragement to him and a great recognition of his hard work.

Connor is changing more everyday. I think he too is starting to miss school. He loved his teachers this year which always made it easy for me to leave him. His vocabulary is growing by leaps and bounds especially after visiting his cousins in North Carolina over Mother's Day. It's amazing how much they pick up and how fast they learn new things when they are around older children. Next week we will be venturing down the road of full on potty training. Connor has been going off and on in the potty for awhile now...both getting him used to the idea and us! It was too difficult to try during the school year as our schedule was never very consistent...so..next week I'm canceling as many activities as I can and the potty training shall begin!! I will keep you all posted as I'm sure there will be many funny and frustrating stories to share...wish us luck!! Some of his favorite activities right now are playing with his Thomas the train set-up on his new train table (we do this for hours everyday) and going to the water park. He LOVES the water and I'm so grateful because the only way to beat the heat here in the summertime and let Connor get his energy out is the water park. We are so blessed to have it just 10 minutes down the road and the price for the passes to get in for the whole summer is definitely worth every penny!! I will have plenty of pictures to post in the next couple weeks of our water adventures..so keep checking back.

Well, my brain is starting to shutdown. We are keeping a friend's little boy who is 15 months for 5 days and we are on day 3. Eric was able to manage the boys all by himself today as I had an event to go to and he did awesome. I was shocked he was willing but took full advantage once he gave me the green light to go!! ;-) It has definitely added a new dynamic having another child in the house. Connor was having major meltdowns the first 2 days not sure how to adjust to Cade, but by today he was taking on the role of big brother. He has become very protective of Cade and makes sure he has everything he needs and if he doesn't he makes sure to tell us...haha! I was a little worried and honestly second guessing the thought of having another child after seeing Connor's reaction on Thursday and Friday but now I'm starting to think Connor will be okay and adapt. He is just so easy going so to see him having so many meltdowns and freaking out was a little bizarre for Eric and I!! However, I'm not content with just 1, so Connor will have to manage when we have another and we will all figure it out together! :-)

Check out our pictures...I'm uploading several hundred tonight..not an exaggeration!! I'm still discovering my new camera..hehe. ;-)

Well now I'm just rambling and I'm sure I have an incredible amount of grammatical errors along with many misspelled words (sorry Jenn and Dad!).

Love to you all,
Becky (Eric and Connor too!)

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Back from sunny California!

I arrived back from California last night around midnight! I was debating whether or not I should fly out without Connor and Eric because I knew they wouldn't be able to make it, but I can honestly say I am so glad Eric pushed me to go. It was a beautiful service and I am really glad I didn't miss it!
We had a couple days to drive around and walk the city and the weather couldn't have been nicer. I definitely see why people live in California..not saying I want to move there but it was gorgeous! There are pictures uploaded to Picasa so enjoy!
Also, I am working on our April album to upload. Like I warned...April has been a very busy month for us with all of our birthdays and Easter along with many other activities. I have to narrow down the 300 pictures that I've already taken this month!

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We're Still Alive!

Hey Everyone!
Sorry we have not posted in a long time but things have been extremely busy and are only going to get crazier this month. You can catch up on February and March through out photos on-line. Click on the link to the right and enjoy!

This month we are running a marathon..or at least it feels that way. We kicked off April celebrating my birthday on the 2nd. This past weekend my brother, sister-in-law, and a friend of ours from Columbia came down for the Bridge Run which we all did on Saturday...even Connor got to go in the stroller although I think he would have rather I left him in bed. That child has not seen 6am in a very very long time! The weather was gorgeous. I am committed to getting a babysitter next year so I can run it because they won't let people with strollers run in the race and make you walk.

This upcoming week we will celebrate Eric's 26th birthday on the 8th! I am also traveling to Columbia for a week for work where we will have a birthday party for Connor on Friday the 10th. His actual birthday isn't until the 19th but I will be in California. Connor and I will come back Monday after Easter but only for a short while. My grandfather passed away this past week and the memorial service will be in California. Connor and Eric will not travel with me unfortunately because of the cost. Thank God for my wonderful friend in Charleston who is willing to watch Connor during the day while Eric works. I will leave on the 16th and come back on the 20th.

Needless to say, we are all feeling a little overwhelmed with our crazy schedule this month and I am ready for it to be over already. However, May is filling up very quickly too and we will have a lot of travel and excitement to come! If you know us, you know we are a busy trio!! I wouldn't have it any other way though. We are all doing well and enjoying each day that God blesses us with.

Don't forget to check out the pictures!
God bless,
Becky, Eric, and Connor

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January Pics!

Check out our pictures from January. I'm running a little late and I didn't take very many because I was anticipating the arrival of my new camera. My camera didn't come until last week though so January pics were definitely neglected. Don't worry though..February will probably be overwhelming because I am having so much fun with the new camera!

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Our latest press release!

Sorry to just now be posting an update. Things as usual are very busy at the Williamson house and I find myself struggling to sit down long enough to post an update. So..here it is!

Connor survived his barium swallow last week. Eric was able to take a longer lunch break and meet us at the hospital. Connor, as expected, was very insecure and unsure of the situation but did his best to lay still and cooperate with drinking the barium as they rotated him from side to side. The whole experience was relatively quick and I LOVED that we left with the results....no waiting by the phone is a wonderful thing! The positive results were that Connor did not have anything structurally wrong and no hiatel hernia. Unfortunately, that means we are still dealing with the reflux and this test doesn't let his doctors know the severity...thus they want to do the 'scope' now that they have ruled out that it's not a structural issue. Right now Connor is back into a good cycle on his meds and eating like a champ again. Eric and I are content to wait and pray for now. Of course our desire is that God would heal him and that all signs of the reflux would disappear...we believe God is able!! However, we have also prepared ourselves that if the reflux flares up again in a couple months which has been the reoccurring cycle (changing meds every 2-3 months) then we will have no choice but to do the scope and consider surgery. Please join us in praying that this step will not be necessary.

Now the exciting news...are you ready....
CONNOR IS POOPING ON THE POTTY...YES, HOUSTON, WE HAVE TAKEN OFF AND ARE READY FOR THE RIDE OF POTTY TRAINING.
That's right everyone..Connor has been interested in going on the potty for sometime now and was having really good success until December when Mommy became very lazy and did not want to spend the holidays in the bathroom missing all the fun. I know it was probably not the wisest decision on my part, but can you really blame me??!! I mean he was only 18 months and I just couldn't believe he was really ready. I prepared myself for the worst and was fairly confident that I had ruined my chances of this being an easy journey. However, last week we decided to start encouraging him again and giving him the opportunity to go. Within two days, he was telling us when he had to poop and even heading to the bathroom on his own without telling us. Daddy and I were SHOCKED!! He understood so well and definitely has now connected that he gets candy when he goes which has motivated him all the more. We had 4 days straight of success with no poop in his diapers (Mommy and Daddy were in heaven!), but unfortunately his routine was a little disturbed yesterday when Mommy had to come up to Columbia last night to work, so he ended up pooping during the night. So far though anytime he has had to poop during the day, he is telling us and running to the bathroom. I know I'm probably giving too many details and going on too much but this is all very exciting for Daddy but especially for Mommy since I was prepared for a battle. Everyone always warns that boys are the worst to potty train. Not only that but the fact that we are starting with poop and not pee is even more of a shocker because everyone has told me that they can get their toddlers to pee but not poop in the potty. (To my friends without children...YES..once you have a child your life revolves around poop, pee, and other bodily fluids.) So in conclusion, we are now on this adventure of potty training and will continue to press on each day. Mommy is just going to continue with the rewards, praise, and creating opportunities and is just hoping we will be out of diapers by April when Connor turns 2! Mommy definitely wouldn't mind a little break from diapers before we decide to have baby #2. ;-)

I will post pictures as soon as I get back to Charleston. We have some really good blackmail pics for when he's a teenager!

God bless!
Eric, Becky, and Connor

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Round number...?

Well unfortunately Connor's reflux has returned and with quite the vengeance. Last week Connor started refluxing after meals and having a hard time keeping anything down. I ended up having to leave my MOPS meeting early on Thursday and headed to see his peds doctor. Sure enough, they believed it was his reflux and put him on Zantac twice a day on top of his Prevacid. The doctor also said that it was time to do the barium swallow study and if that doesn't show us anything then he will have to be scoped. We encountered this same scenario last fall but after changing Connor's meds, he made a quick turnaround until now. The Zantac is helping him eat a little bit but not enough and as you have followed along on this journey with us..you know that means he's back on the losing weight track. He currently weighs less now than he did at his 18 month well visit and he will be 21 months on the 19th. Please continue to lift him up and Eric and I as none of us are sleeping very well and are ready to have some answers.

ALSO, Eric started experiencing some troubling GI problems and went to the doctor last week. The doctors believe that it's probably nothing but because of his symptoms they have to look further, so Eric will be undergoing a colonoscopy on Wednesday. He was really hoping to avoid this until at least 40, but the doctor did not give him another option. Please lift him up on Wednesday and that the results come back with everything normal.

Even as I write this, I have been sick in bed with hopefully what is a 24 hour bug today.

On a happier note, Connor's speech and hearing has improved leaps and bounds since his surgery in December. Eric and I are really amazed by the difference. His speech is so much clearer and within 3 weeks, he was starting to talk in little sentences. Because they also took his adenoids at the same time and with the tubes in to help with drainage, we decided to try and take him off his sinus meds. We feel horrible that he has to take so many meds a day and thought it was worth the try. SUCCESS!! He has been off of them for almost 2 weeks and is doing great.

As soon as I get to feeling better, I will post our pictures from Christmas. We did a horrible job at taking pictures this year, so I will have to steal some from family and compile an album.

We are so proud to announce my Dad's book has been published and is available for purchase. This is such an awesome accomplishment for him and we look forward to seeing more!! So here's my little plug for him..lol! It's available for purchase through amazon, barnes and noble, target, borders, and xulon press. Congrats Dad..we LOVE you!

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