2011

Happy New Years from the Williams Family.

My goals for 2011?

Balance.

Bible Study.

Create.

Be Joyful in all things.

Worship

Celebrate.

Love more.

Snow and a Girl who loves taking pictures

Equals a perfect opportunity to practice with the shutter speed.

Boys, Snow, and 4 Wheel Drive

It's not often we get a White Christmas in the South. Here in the North Georgia Mountains, we may get a cold Christmas or a Christmas with a light snowfall but rarely do we get a 6 inch snow.

Miss Katie loved the snow.

We got up on Christmas morning and made the decision to stay put. Or at least I thought that was the decision. The guys were convinced they could make it to Granny and Papa's house. They were sure their 4-wheel drive trucks could handle the road.

I think they just wanted to play in the snow...big boy style. Instead of sleds and snowmen, they wanted to slip and slide in their truck.

Instead of driving the main roads, we chose the National Forest Service roads. The drive through Cooper Creek Wildlife Management area is one of our favorites. The snow was beautiful. I could have taken pictures the entire day!

Here the guys wait on me while I snap a few more photos. We were the first ones to ride through the area.

My Alma Mater

This is the smallest school in the state of Georgia. It houses grades k-12. I graduated with a bumper crop of 12 students! I love this school.

We safely arrived at Granny and Papa's house for Christmas Dinner and were only 25 minutes late :)

Merry Christmas 2010

Just a few pictures from Christmas 2010 at the Williams' Arena

Adam playing his new Washburn acoustic guitar. He was just a wee bit excited. Actually he was blown away. He posted on facebook that he got the "best Christmas present ever!"

This picture is for the in-laws in Iowa. We had plans to travel to Iowa next week but the snow is keeping us at home. This was the third or fourth shot. They were actually smiling in the first two pictures...unfortunately someone had their eyes closed in each picture. By the time we managed to get a picture with everyone's eyes open, the smiles were gone. I didn't press my luck and ask for another picture.

From our family to yours - Merry Christmas!

All is Calm...

So far Christmas 2010 has been a quiet, restful season. Everything has been scaled back this year.

Fewer commitments.

Fewer shopping trips. (Thanks to the internet and free shipping!)

No Christmas cards.

No over-the-top decorating.

There wasn't a conscious decision to scale back or slow down. It just worked out that way....very nicely, btw.

Everyone's home this Christmas eve morning. The boys are sleeping and the house is quiet. Bob has a fire going in the wood heater and I can hear Stanley, our rooster, crowing. (Love that sound)

It is a good morning to reflect on the past year and thank my Heavenly Father for covering us with His love and grace...His guidance and protection...His gift of salvation. To thank Him for taking up residence in our home and our hearts.

A morning to quietly worship with my Savior.

"God with man is now residing, Yonder shines the Infant Light; Come and worship, come and worship, Worship Christ, the newborn King."

His "Happy Place"

Clay came home last night with an armful of boxes and a big grin on his face. It seems he had made the "purchase of a life time." He had several boxes of Mustang car parts that were going to make his truck run faster. *ahem*

He was out the door early this morning to get more needed parts for the truck transformation. Something about having to design and build a one-of-a-kind air filter...

I looked out the back door and this is what I saw. I thought to myself, "Well, Clay's found his happy place this morning." My next thought was, "and he's working in his new jeans and shirt." Ughh....

Oh my goodness, how I love this boy. He is such a delight.

He assures me he will stay clean and not ruin his clothes. I have my doubts.

Here's my kitchen table with all the "goodies" spread out.

His automotive genius can't be bothered right now with cleanliness and organization :)

A Snowy Morning

The view from the back door this morning. What was supposed to be a 60% chance of snow became 100%. We had around 2-3 inches...more than enough to cancel school for the day. Our driveway is on the other side of the picket fence and curves around through the trees in the background. Bob can easily get up the driveway in his 4-wheel drive; it's going down the other side that gets tricky. Too tricky for me, I'd rather sit in my kitchen and watch the rest of the neighborhood slip and slide on the hill.

I was more than happy to stay at home by the wood stove. Which also happens to be Katie's favorite spot.

What was going to be a hectic week filled with work commitments and meetings suddenly became manageable.

We enjoyed every moment.

An Early Christmas Present...

Picture taken in front of the Pettigru Place Bed & Breakfast

This year I bought the guys ground floor/Pit tickets to a Toby Mac/Skillet concert. We traveled to Greenville, SC for the concert. We stayed at a Bed and Breakfast just two blocks from the Bi-Lo Center. Bob and I walked with them to the concert, turned them loose, and then went back to our room.

Here are a couple of links to the bands. While I love Toby Mac, I'm not sure I could handle two hours standing in front of the stage. Not to mention I would stand out like a sore thumb...a rather old sore thumb :)