Sweet Babysitter

       I am feeling very on the ball today.  By 10:00 am the house was clean, Ty's lunch was made, kids fed, dressed, and dinner in the crock pot.  However, I could not have done this without my new sweet babysitter.  She only charges a one time fee of $1.94!  She is sweet, and has a very quiet gentle nature.  Who is this miracle babysitter??? Dear Mrs. Butterworth!  I found her on isle 5 at Marsh and she brings joy to our home a few days a week.  All Zealand has to hear is pancake, french toast, or SYRUP and the fun begins.  I only drizzle a tiny bit over his pancakes, but he doesn't mind. He had a conversation with Mrs. Butterworth in his highchair for over an hour today.  Meanwhile, I accomplished a variety of small tasks that normally would have taken hours if Z-Z was helping.  Zealand has started saying "Thank You" and "Welcome" It is so nice to hear when I do things for him :)
       We haven't seen Ty very much these past few days.  He has back to back exams the next few weeks.  I am happy to say... we are slowly adjusting to this new chapter in our life.  I try hard to stay on a schedule.  It seems to help the long days go by and we all seem much happier when we do.  It has been snowing quite a lot for Indiana, but we feel pretty at home.   A 4-8 inch storm seems to shut the entire city down.  A lot different from Utah when we sometimes get feet of snow at a time. Butler has closed a few times and Ty has had to resort to studying at home.  It is nice to know we have 4-wheel drive IF we need it.  We try to stay home though when the weather is bad, because these Indy drivers are pretty bad.
       We have all been very blessed with great health this winter.  I think doing pre-school at home with Zoey has really helped keep the germs away.  I am so thankful Ty and I haven't had to be up all night with the kids like a lot of families have been.  KNOCK ON WOOD :)
         Zoey has ballet and gymnastics a few days each week.  It is always a great excuse to get out of the house.  We have been spending our days doing preschool, play doh,  reading lots of books.  Zealand has a glorious 2 hour nap every afternoon.  Zoey is a SAINT and watches a quiet movie or plays in her room while I take a much need nap or read.  I hate to say it... but it is MY favorite time of day.  It just gives me that boost to get through the evening routine.  I feel like most of the time we are in survival mode, but we are so thankful to be here for Ty's schooling.  It took a long road to get here and we thank Heavenly Father everyday for this opportunity.
          It has been rough getting used to getting paid only twice a year.  Living on student loans is a challenge, and yet we are happy about the choice we have made for me to stay home with the kids.  It is so much easier to live cheaply and prudently since that is what the church has always taught.  Growing up, I dreamed of living like The Boxcar Children and in a lot of ways I pretend we are doing just that!
Todays, highlights included printing coupons off the internet, playing Boggle, and watching the snow fall.  It is nice to be warm and cozy!

The Williams Family

From left to right-  Piper, Zac, Rya, Aimee, Ethan, Zane, Zyler, Anali, Zander, Dad, Mom, Zealand, Zara,

Ty, Zoey and Zeb.  Wow that is a lot of Z's 

The Four Original Z- kids

Zac, Zane, Zara, and Zeb

Christmas in Utah

Grandpa Jon took these photos in December on our way to church in Utah. Ty was flying in that day from Indiana, just in time for Christmas!

 

Chilly Day at the Zoo

The temperature was only 20 degrees... but we all needed some sunshine.  We always feel right at home when we visit the Desert exhibit.  The collection of venomous snakes always makes us squirm.  

Zoey and Zealand love the Walrus exhibt.  We also went to White River Gardens.  It was so nice to be in the "TROPICS" even if it was only for 30 minutes.  The Orchids were amazing.

ORCHIDS                                                                      BANANA TREE LEAF

Zoey loves the Meerkats.  This little guy was so sleepy.

The kids loved running around smelling all the flowers.  It was a very nice 80 degrees! The kids looked out of place in their Arctic apparel.   

Zealand watching the fish in the pond

The polar bear.  This is the first time we have seen her walking around.

Home Sweet Home

We all made it back home to Indiana.  We had a wonderful visit to Utah.  It was so much fun to spend time with family and friends.   It was so good for Zealand to get to know all his extended family again.  He started saying so many new words too.  Some of our favorites are.. STAR, MOON, ANNIE SIT,

Now it is time to get back to the grind stone. Ty is anxious to get on with school.  I  have been unpacking suitcases full of Christmas gifts for days and days.  It is nice to get the house back in order.  The kids have been so happy to play in their own rooms and discover all their toys again.  (They both have way too many toys so I have secretly been purging)    I get frustrated that Zoey makes such a mess, but she is doing better at cleaning up after herself.  You know what they say "a child's work is a child's play" So, I guess I don't mind too much :)

Ty and I spoke in church today. My talk was so interesting Zealand fell asleep.  It was nice to see our friends from the ward again.

We are watching the Colt's game and they are finally ahead!  Zoey wants to have hot dogs so I guess we will have an indoor tail-gating party.

-Zara



 

2010

Our time in Utah is flying by.  Ty is headed back to Indy on Wednesday.  It will be hard to let him go.  He resumes classes on the next Monday.  The kids and I are in Utah until the 20th.  My mom is going to Hawaii for a week with her friends.  It will be lonely all of the sudden but, it will be good for us to get used to being the three of us again.  (for the most part) 

Christmas was wonderful!  The kids were so much fun to watch.  I need to post some photos soon.

-Zara

Home for the Holidays

The kids and I made it to Utah!  Ty is busy finishing up at school with exams.  Hopefully, we will have some fun pictures soon! - Zara

Thanksgiving Break

           So far... we are having a great Thanksgiving break.  Having Ty home has been a lot of fun.  The kids are loving it and so am I.  Saturday morning we went to the library book sale.  It was a bit crazy, but so worth it.  You could fill a big bag of books for only five dollars.  We figured we got $1075 worth of great books for only $20. They all look brand new.  Zoey and Zealand have been reading all weekend.  Needless to say, bedtime stories have taking a little longer because Zoey wants us to read ALL the new books.
Saturday afternoon we took the kids swimming at the Butler HRC.  It is a really nice pool, and we all had fun.  We hope to go everyday this coming week!
Ty went to a fly fishing seminar and learned how to cook a turkey in a trash can!  The kids played and I worked on a few sewing projects.
Today, we put Zealand in the nursery at church for his first time. He did great.... for about 20 minutes.  The nursery leader said all of the sudden he looked up from playing and knew we were gone.  He had big crocodile tears when they brought him to me.  He was really very good for the rest of church.  I think he knew if he tried running away we would ditch him again.
Everyone had nap time, then we went on a nice walk.  The weather was perfect!
Ty cooked us a really good steak dinner and made apple crisp.
Kids enjoyed their bath like they do every night.  Now, we are playing roll the ball. (Bubba's favorite)
Tomorrow we are going to the Indianapolis Zoo bright and early to see the dolphin show.  The kids and I go about once a week, but are so excited to get to take daddy.
I am getting excited to go home for the holidays.  We are really going to miss Tyrone for the first part, but it has been great to spend quality time with him. He deserved a good break before finals!
More tomorrow...
-Zara

Annie's Fall Portrait by Jon Williams

We can hardly wait to see Annie at Christmas!  She is growing up to be a very beautiful pup!

Day of Rest

I am relieved my Relief Society lesson went well, and secretly more relieved it is over. So far, we have been having a nice quite Sunday afternoon.  Ty is at the library working on a group paper for school.  I only wish he could be home with us.  Zoey has been watching Legacy and playing American Girl dolls. (which involves a pretty big mess) Lets hope she is just as enthusiastic about cleaning it up. Zealand and I got a much needed nap.  Then I have working on sewing some cute American Girl sized clothes. I have to  admit...  I may love American Girl dolls even more now that I am older. Maybe, it is just fun to have my very own real life American Girl. :)   Well, I am being interrupted by a brown eyed girl asking me to come play dolls. I just can't say no.

-Zara