Home Away From Home

Home away from home, that is what it felt like going to Hilton Head. It made me realize how much I miss the South, the humidity, the vegetation, the swamp creatures, the FOOD!!! :) Don't get me wrong, I love Utah but the South will always be a part of me.

 

Dave and I had a blast in Hilton Head. There was so much to do and see, I definitely would consider going back. There are bike trails everywhere and everything is so close you almost don't need a car. We explored Sea Pines the first day on bikes. Beautiful golf courses, beaches and a marina with loads of options for boat tours and such. 

 

Ran into this little guy just off the biking trail.

 



 

And this guy....who I was afraid to pass. He definitely wasn't in a hurry to move as we approached and that beak was long and pointy. I am positive he wanted to take one of my eyes out.

 

We did a little stop and looked at some ruins of an old Civil War plantation. Interesting to see the materials they used to build these homes and to still be able to see the remnants of the plantation.

 

Our next pit stop on our bike tour was the beach. South Beach was beautiful and there was hardly anyone there. We basically had the whole thing to ourselves. You can walk or bike for miles on this beauty.

 

We are pretty much in heaven!

 

Here are some dolphin friends we found while walking on the beach. The picture hardly does justice. It was so fun to see a group of dolphins playing in the water. To hard to capture with a picture.

 

Another ocean friend. I haven't seen a horseshoe crab since I lived in Malaysia.

 

That evening we went to Harbour Town (the marina) and pretty much had the best dinner of our lives. A little pricey but so worth it. Dave and I found every opportunity to order anything with crab in it. So yummy! Did I mention how good the food was....oh how I miss good seafood and good 'ol fashion Southern cooking.

 

The next day we did a stop at the Rose Hill plantation to take a tour. Not your traditional plantation but the history behind it was so interesting. It still had a lot of the original materials when it was first built. Same doors, hinges, windows....the brick that was originally on the plantation was reused to make up the porch and back patio. It was brick handmade by the slaves that worked on the plantation.

 

Look at those mossy oaks! There were ginormous and everywhere. So pretty.

 

Can't go to Hilton Head and not do a little golfing, so that is what we did. The golf courses are beautiful and so well done....and Hard! There was practically an ocean on every hole at this one. Needless to say I think I lost a whole box of balls :)

 

The views were well worth it

 

Plus, where else can you go golfing with alligators and wild turkeys. Look in the background behind Dave during his put.

 

Here is a closer look. Yep, that is a gator and you can't tell from the picture but he was not small. Dave hit his ball by him and did the smart thing and took a drop instead. We were feeling a little Happy Gilmore that day.

 

If you couldn't tell, we had a blast! A little beach time for me, a little golfing for him mixed with some biking and southern culture, history and FOOD! Did I mention how good the food was? How perfect is that!

 

Much love Hilton Head, from Mr. and Mrs. Williamson. We will be back!

Earth Solo

 

Julie's class did a play on the solar system. There were speaking and singing parts and to my disbelief Julie volunteered to do one of the singing parts....a short solo. She was Earth. I have heard her sing before but mostly with other people or when she is blissfully singing away in the shower.

 

I was so proud of her. I never had that kind of confidence when I was her age....and not only that, she can actually sing! Looks like she may have the Williamson gene because she definitely did not get it from my side.

 

Sorry the video is not the best because my camera died so I had to use my phone.

 

 

 

Her BFF in class. Love these girls!

And look at that awesome shirt I made :) I may not be able to sing but I can draw me some continents!

Joy School

 

Little Miss Jill Jill started joy school and oh boy was she excited. She has been asking to go to school the past year. She even got herself dressed and everything. Princess backpack and all. Seriously love that little face!

 

 

She goes to school with her BFF London who lives across the street. It is a rare occasion if there is a day that goes by that they do not see each other. They even have matching do's. (I will have to give an updated post on that later)

 

So grateful for all the moms I do joy school with this year. They are such amazing ladies and I am so grateful for the time and talents they are putting toward school this year. I just hope the days I teach I can do justice.

Yay for a new year of school and learning (and 2 hours twice a week to myself)



All My Life

Dave and I recently celebrated our 11 year anniversary. To show my undying love for him I serenaded him the other day using a karaoke machine Megan got for Christmas. Can you say K-Ci and Jojo. Needless to say he was not impressed. He didn't even know what song I was singing. Either he has never experienced the pure awesomeness of Mr. K-Ci and JoJo or I am a really, REALLY, bad singer. I am guessing it is the second.

Jingle Bell Rock

Megan had her Christmas dance recital and this year they danced to Jingle Bell rock. I can't even express how much she loves dance. I am not sure if it is the dancing or all the costumes she gets to wear. Look through the pics and you may catch a glimpse of Megan's signature pose.

Here is Megan with one of her BFFs Addy. She lives right across the street and they go back a forth between houses and play. I love that she has such a great friend so close.

These girls crack me up.

Now for those who were so disappointed they didn't get to watch Megan in all her dancing glory I posted her Christmas dance below. Enjoy!

Sea World in the Lone Star

This year we went to go visit my parents for Thanksgiving. It was a short weekend trip and since we have pretty much seen everything the greater part of Houston has to offer, we decided to head down to San Antone to see none other than "shampoo" as Megan would say.

First stop. Lunch. Now you can not come to Texas and visit my dad without some point or another ending up at Whataburger. Lets just says there are Whataburgers there like there are McD's here. As they say: Everything is bigger and better in Texas. The chicken nuggets in the kids meal are more like breaded chicken breasts and the burgers remind me of the destroying angel at Porters Place.

I have to say we couldn't have picked a better time to come. The weather was perfect. High 60's late November is quite refreshing. Once in the park we wanted to make our time count so of course we headed to see Shamu first.

You could feel Megan's anticipation as she waiting to see the one and only "shampoo". Here face was priceless as she saw the killer whale come out. Purely mesmerized and a jaw drop included. The picture does no justice but it was so fun to see her so in awe of the whole thing.

The one and only. Oh wait! I believe I have seen him in Cali too :) I have been to Sea World in both Texas and California and I have to say the rides and park itself is better in Texas but the shows are better executed in California. Sorry to bore you with the next few pics but I must explain the Dolphin show.

See this.

and this...

and this....yeah! no dolphins. Okay so the came out a couple times and did a flip or two but then back to the synchronized swimmers, tight rope walkers and whatever you call what this gal is doing. Are we at the water circus or dolphin show. To be honest it was kinda weird. They tried to do a whole Christmas nutcracker theme because of the holidays but left me feeling very confused.

Sesame Street kiddie ferris wheel with grandpa.

It was kinda cool to go after Thanksgiving. They had Christmas lights everywhere, Christmas shows, caroling and how many times can you say you go to an amusement park and go for the hot chocolate instead of a nice cold beverage.

All in all it was a great trip and my girls just loved it.

A "little bit" of Christmas

Meet "little bit"

We have more than one "little bit" in our family and Megan is one of them. Also referred to as peanut or itty bitty kid.

 Here is little M at her school Christmas concert. Dave took her and I had to stay home with Julie who was recovering from getting her tonsils out. Of course we are awesome parents and didn't even have a camera on hand.

I guess it didn't really matter because he ended up in the very back behind the other zillion people who were there to watch their kids in all their Christmas concert cuteness. 

Luckily we have amazing friends who were up at the front and took some pics of Megan for us. Thanks for thinking of us Stokes. Because if you hadn't I would have never been able to see these gems.

Why "little bit" you ask? Proof is in the pic. Here is Megan between two of her classmates. Yes, the are all in kindergarten. I knew Megan was small but this made me chuckle to see her almost a head shorter.

I just love this girl! She loves nothing more than to sing and dance and she is always ready for a performance. She loves getting up in front of people to sing or dance her little heart out. (Christmas dance recital pics to come). When I volunteer in her classroom I have even caught her dancing and swinging her hips to whatever music is going on in that little head of hers. Merry Christmas my little sweet pea.