Happy Birthday, William!

 We left in March to head to Texas.  We had no idea the world was getting ready to shut down.  I love this picture of the boys...getting such a kick out of something they were watching on the computer!

In April, Lindsey sent me pictures.  William is an outside guy.  So he was busy playing soccer, building projects, and loving on Sullivan!

May is a big month!  Emerson and Benjamin both have birthdays...and I was crushed to not be there.  So what did we do?  We zoomed!  

With June came warmer weather.  I love it that the boys were having fun with a slip n slide.  Look at William!  He just looks like FUN to me!

We zoomed some more...and he told me all about chickens!

I love these!  Lindsey is so great about taking pictures.  (I wonder where she gets that?)  So she resent me the photos from the first day of school...along with the last day.  Notice what I call their 'zoom hair'?  It's a bit long!  I noticed both of the boys had a bigger smile at the end of the school year than the beginning!

THIS, is another of the amazing things about William!  His projects...his interests.  He was trying to catch a bird!  This was his trap.  

In the picture above, he was hiding, watching for a bird to go in his trap.  Below, he had made food that he had in the trap to try and lure them in.

William got some chicks...how sweet is this?  This picture below, how precious is that?

July came and I had a place to stay in Utah...so I just was as careful as I could be and drove to California.  My heart was hurting to see the kids!

William was showing me his new bike...and how he could ride it sitting different ways.

He also started playing basketball!  He and I played a bunch of games...then we got his sweet mama.  She still has her touch from her high school days.  William was impressed with his mama!

Soccer is his love...and he is a BEAST!  There are no games, but at least he could practice.  He had to wear his mask until he got on the field.  Then they had cones 6+ feet apart where he could lay his mask and water bottle.  Even the practice drills were 'socially distanced.'

William LOVES to eat...and he was waiting for his mom to give him some pancakes!

More basketball...and he is so good to Sullivan!  

August... I went up to see Emerson and Walt...and then was back down to see William, Benjamin, Sullivan...and of course, their parents.  I love taking William to practice...

This made me laugh...so William!

Back home, he has a friend who lives close...and this is how he came home.  MUD...yep, they were playing in the mud.  

The chickens grew...

William is definitely THE affectionate one of their family!  Sullivan is usually the recipient!

As many times as I've seen this picture, I laugh every time!

Gabe, Emerson and Walt came down the day before I was heading back to Colorado.  I had all 5 of my grandsons together!  

We played  more basketball...

Now not every kid has an uncle who can cut hair.  William (and Benjamin) had some very long hair...and their Uncle Gabe took care of that!  

Look at the new hair cut!  Wow...you look great, William!

Haircut done ... time to get back to playing!

Before Gabe and his crew left, I wanted some pictures with my boys.  

I took other pictures, too...

Lindsey sent me these in October.  She was trying to take a picture of her boys...and look what they did!  They aimed their nerf guns at her!

Another project of William's!

November was a great month.  They now have eggs!!!  

Lindsey made a Thanksgiving feast...

William is loving to cook these days.  I didn't ask if he's been cooking eggs.

We zoomed some more in December.  It was the best we could do.  

Lindsey and Donnie are so great about getting their boys outside..going for walks, for hikes.  

Donnie and William went skiing one day...just the two of them.  How special that must have been for William!  

January, 2021...

See that skateboard?  That's one of William's new interests.  

I asked Lindsey if Donnie was also skateboarding...but no, he's roller blading while William boards!

Now here it is February...and my William is turning 9 years old!  He has such a dynamic personality...I wonder what path he will pursue as he gets older.  He has such a variety of interests now!  I love these next two pictures.  Lindsey told me it was something like an international play day...and so William shared one of his chickens with his class.  (They're only on zoom for school.)  And then this...one of his chickens on his skateboard! 

Oh William...what a guy...I miss him so incredibly much...as I do all of our California kids.  Soon...soon...

Happy birthday, Will-I-Am...Your Mimi and Papa love you so much.