What's in a name ... an introduction

Well here it is, I had intended to have this written and posted shortly after Maelin’s birth – but anyone with a newborn knows that was just plain wishful thinking.  Then I thought for certain I could get it done in time for Mother’s Day – (it seems I like to set lofty goals for myself) but alas I think today is going to be the day… so here it is

What’s in a name, an introduction

Maelin Joy Williams was born March 7^th 2012 at 11:36 a.m. in what I consider to be the greatest labor and delivery ever (not that I have a lot of them to compare it too, right)

Maelin  ◊  Mae  ◊  Maeby*  ◊  Mae Mae 

*(like baby, ok I might be a huge Arrested Development fan J)  

 - no matter what we’re calling you – know that Maelin means love

A lot of thought was put into just what to call our lil girl –

Maelin, you won’t find your name in most baby name books, and I doubt it will ever make it into the top 10, or 50 or even 100- so let me take a minute or two to explain to you and everyone else, just what Maelin means

Maelin – your Oma is Dorothy Mae, she is strong and courageous and she is a fighter. She will always fight for what she believes to be right and she always searches out the truth.   She is kind and she is funny and your Oma always has a way of making you feel special.  She makes the best dumplings, barbequed chicken with mash potatoes and gravy and Holiday Ham gravy. While she may be far in miles, I know you will always be close in her heart. Maelin, you take a little bit of your Oma with you each and every day. She is an amazing mom, and my promise to you is that I will try my best to make her proud.  That’s the Mae in you- it means strong, determined and courageous.

Maelin- you have been blessed with a lot of amazing women in your life, most of them you haven’t even met yet, but you will.  There are your aunts Jill Lynn and Jacquelyn and Maria Len and me of course, your mommy, Joylin.  I had the privilege of having these great ladies in my life and am so excited for you to get to know them too. They are loving and funny, and each one of them has helped me become the mother that I am today. I watched each of them become moms before me and I witnessed the amazing little people they helped bring into this world. (Those people aren’t so little any more, you will see for yourself someday- you have a whole army of cousins who will always have your back) Maelin someday you will be a mother- and I know you will be kind and loving and you will love your children with all of your heart, because you will take with you the lessons you learn from these great women in your life, that is the lin in you.

Maelin - you have an amazing Daddy, and I have no doubt you are a Daddy’s girl (give him a little time to recover from that Wal-mart experience, you’ll see) Your Daddy is Ryan Mahlon - yep that’s right, it sounds the same.  Your Daddy loves you and he has since that very first day you became a reality to us- while we were standing in Miller Park (we’ll tell you that story someday) Maelin never forget you are your daddy’s girl- no matter what he will always be there for you.  He will always be in your corner Maelin, he will always be your biggest fan. 

So I am happy to introduce, our little bundle of joy, Maelin Joy Williams. She is sweet and she is loved. 

9 Month Lock- Out Ends with Successful Negotiation for Team owners and Players

AP- Simi Valley, CA

After a nine month lock out, Ryan and Joylin Williams- Co- Owners in Team R. Williams have reached a successful contract negotiation with newest team member Maelin Joy Williams. 

After what seemed like the longest maternal lock out ever- Maelin Joy Williams finally reached an agreement at 11:36am on March 7^th, 2012.  After a record breaking 4.5 hours, Maelin Joy Williams, 6lbs 8oz, 20 inches long agreed to sign on to be the newest member of the R. Williams Team. 

While the majority of the contract specifics will remain confidential, Ryan and Joy did reveal that Maelin will be loved and adored for eternity.  Also as part of the contract, Ryan Williams has agreed to wrap himself around Maelin’s finger and be at her beckon call. There has also been speculation that Ryan may have agreed to buy Mae a mocking bird and a diamond ring.   According to a source close to both parties, Joy Williams has agreed to let Daddy know when he “just doesn’t get it” and take Maelin to get her ears pierced (in the far, far future).  Team Captain, Ari Williams has agreed to protect Mae always- and in a last minute contract addition, he has also signed on to share his toys and his “Momma”. 

Team Williams became apprehensive near the end of February when it seemed as though Maelin was unwilling to show up for the contract negotiations.  “I tried everything possible to end the lock out in the end of February, Team Williams was anxious and excited, but Maelin had other plans – we got over it, we moved on and we are thrilled about how it all ended” said Joy Williams. 

“The team is stronger than ever” said Ryan Williams as he headed out to get lunch after the deal was sealed Wednesday afternoon. “We are very excited with the newest member of our team; she truly is a perfect fit to our organization.  Her full head of dark brown hair, skinny little feet, strong lungs and excellent latch are exactly what we were looking for when we entered into these negotiations last June.”

At press time Maelin was unable to be reached for comment, her agent said she was busy sleeping, eating or pooping at the time and could not be bothered.  

Nesting.....

I have finally finished all of the sewing projects I had wanted to do for Ari's toddler bed. I finished the quilt and pillow sham a while ago, but wanted to use extra fabric to make a bed skirt.
But.... I got sick, and tired, and busy! aka -pregnant
Also, my dearest Ari, in a fit of rage (yep he has those moments) or possibly out of boredom- Ari decided to "hammer" the side rail of his toddler bed. It's made from a pretty soft wood and left some awesome knicks and scrapes. Nothing a sander and a new coat of paint can't fix- but in the meantime I hated looking at it. Also, Ari has recently gotten in the habit of "needing" to have a ridiculous amount of things with him at bed time.
Right now he requests:
Tag jr
Tag jr books (like 6 books)
Puppy dog night light
Light sabre (doesn't every little boy need one of those to sleep)
Regular books- these change daily usually 3 or 4
A gun - yep he is all boy!
Anyway he "needs" all these items and then throughout the night we hear little thuds coming from Ari's room- at first we thought it was Ari getting out of bed but no it's just him tossing his "needs" on the floor.
I wanted to make a little organizer that I could tie to his bed rail and cover up the knick marks. It took me a while but I finally finished.
Of course in true Ari tradition - he hates it, so it's going to take a little getting used to. His exact words were take it off, I want it all on the floor.
*I have no expectations of Ari keeping his "needs" in his organizer, but I am excited to have a place for it all so I can have a place to keep all his "needs".
Now I can finally get started on all the baby girl projects I have brewing in my brain.

Parents Elect Controversial Facebook free Pregnancy

Parents Elect Controversial Facebook free Pregnancy

AP – Simi Valley, CA

A local couple has decided to have a Facebook free pregnancy, citing privacy and their unborn child’s right to choose as their main reasons for this less than traditional approach to pregnancy.  Facebook founder, Mark Zuckerberg couldn’t be reached for comment, however sources who claim they know exactly what Mark would say have responded in droves.

 Joe Reeves, an avid Facebook user with over 15,000 friends noted; “It’s totally irresponsible; with the technology we have today these parents should be ashamed of themselves. It’s that mother’s responsibility to keep their Facebook friends updated on things like Doctor appointments, uncomfortable body changes, and the miserable and joyous events surrounding this impending birth.”

“What gives these “parents” the right to shut the rest of the world out from their pregnancy, if you have a Facebook account, it’s in your user’s agreement- you are REQUIRED to share every mundane, boring, exciting, and/or private detail of your life- they are in direct violation and something should be done about it.” – Karen Kinsmoore, self-professed Facebook master and neighborhood gossip.

“Without the direct written consent of our soon to be born DAUGHTER, we felt we had no legal right to put any aspect of this pregnancy and upcoming birth on Facebook. Sure I would have loved to post a daily “ what the heck is going on with my body post” as well as monthly “I had to wait ____ long to see my Doctor, agh so frustrating”  not to mention the ever growing list of foods I cannot eat, and locations I have thrown up “ said future baby- momma Joy Williams.  

With their 3 year old son, Ari, already seeking the legal counsel of attorney Jeffery Williams regarding time outs and his bed time, the couple had a lot to think about.  Ryan Williams, the expectant father explained, “We really had to think, do we put ourselves out there and share our experience with the world of Facebook, risking an expensive settlement if baby GIRL Williams decides to seek legal action upon her arrival in MARCH.  We could be talking a lot of money, if this goes to dinner table court. We could end up having to buy her a BMW Z4 Roadster 6v Battery Powered Car, or worse a pony.” 

Supporters of the Facebook free pregnancy were also willing to show their support, @hasanopinionabouteverything tweeted “These parents should be heralded as forward thinking- I think deciding not to tell people the gender of the child and allowing the child to choose its own gender ID is an excellent parenting strategy…. What they’re having a girl, this isn’t about gender identity – it’s about not Facebooking their news the day that double line showed up, @#$#&; that’s just stupid, what are those parents thinking”.

Really we’re just lazy….

P.S. Do you think The Onion is hiring? 

Check out this awesome offer from Shutterfly

Because I love you, and I love a deal - I am pretty sure you all love deals too.  Check out this awesome deal I found from Shutterfly for bloggers. I ran across a promotion the other day for Shutterfly, where bloggers can get 50 free cards! How awesome is that??? I love Shutterfly for their great customer service, large selection and quick turnaround! I love, love, love, the photo books you can create on their website. Super easy and super cute. I made two of them earlier this year, one for Kristin's wedding shower and one as a guest book for Kristin and Macky's wedding.I have also printed digital scrapbook pages using Shutterfly and they turned out awesome. You can use their templates or upload your own pages.  They have such an awesome selection that anyone can find something they love! Check them out- Shutterfly won't disappoint! This is such a great opportunity to find great gifts for just about anyone on your list. Chances are if you are on my Holiday list- your getting something from Shutterfly!

 This year I am using Shutterfly to make a lot of my holiday gifts, including things like calanders, photo mugs  and holiday cards.  

I had a minute to update

I had a minute to update and after fighting with blogger - I finally gave in - the blogs are posted out of order - so scroll down and start at the beginning if you want to or just read them as they are - either way I hope you will enjoy them

Love

Joy

The 39.3 miles that changed my life ... Conclusion!!!

Okay, here are the last photo's from My Avon Walk

day one - opening ceremony 

Day one mile 12

Day 1 mile 23 ( isn't that obvious?) 

Mile 26 ... it was pretty congested 

Finish Line Day One 

My tired feet day 1

big huge blister 

so pretty I though you would want to see it twice 

breakfast.. for anyone who knows me... this was
hard to eat , thank goodness for
ketchup 

Waiting for the finish line day 2 

My feet - day 2 

My pretty pretty flowers from my mom & dad
 Thanks for all your love
and support !!!!

if you haven't already ... go donate PLEASE www.avonwalk.org/goto/joywilliams 

if you ever get the opportunity to be a part of this walk - I highly recommend it - immediately after I crossed the finish line I told Kate I wanted to do it again!!!

39.3 miles that changed my life Part 3

So I have been fighting with blogger - and blogger is winning
Here is another post
So we got to Wellness Village at the end of Day one and it took everything I had not to break down and cry - I was so overcome with emotion- emotion from the amazing people I had met and stories I had heard, the heartbreaking losses so many had to go through that brought them to this point, the emotion of actually making it the entire 26.2 miles - when at points I thought I was not going to make it another mile. I called Ryan and I almost broke down, I called my mom and I almost lost it.  It's a combination of excitement and exhaustion, pain and pride.... it's unlike anything I have ever experienced before.
Once we were at Wellness Village we got foot and back massages, went and got our tent and set it up.. (yeah we had to pitch our own tents....) ate ( Kate and I both went back for seconds... yeah for pasta) showered. And then we went to the Med tent... see during the walk, I could tell that my foot hurt but I didn't dare to look- if I had I don't know if I would have had the will power to go any further.  I had the hugest blister on my left big toe.  Actually considering my feet and my history with loosing toe nails and getting blisters ALL THE TIME ... I consider this a success... only one blister - it was just HUGE.  After getting my blister drained... it was so gross. We headed back to camp and went to sleep.   
 We woke up early the next morning ( early then we were planning thanks to our noisy neighbors) Went and had a delicious breakfast of eggs and potatoes ( yep I had to break down and eat eggs ....luckily there was ketchup) We set off for day two feeling tired, and sore, somehow 13.1 miles sounded a heck of a lot further today then it did yesterday.  
But we did it - the last 3 miles were horrible - we were tired , my back was killing me, Kate's ankle's were swelling more then normal for a pregnant person (although probably exactly as much as they should given the fact that she had walked 40+ miles)
We made it - and it was AWESOME !!!   Don't forget to visit My Walk Page  I just $460 from my fundraising goal.... every donation makes a difference!!!

It's hard to see but I was trying to
get a picture of all the walkers behind
us - Day 2

Day 2 mile 7 - so really mile 33.2 miles
this was a little more than half way
day two !

One of the many rest- stops where we could refill water
go to the bathroom and get medical attention if needed
Each rest stop had a theme I think this one
was old Hollywood 

Here we are just outside the closing ceremonies
waiting to cross the finish line - Day 2

Inside Closing Cermony - it's basically a sea of pink

Still waiting.. the finish line is in sight!!!

Here are my feet - 39.3 miles later ... bandaged and broken
(not literally) but it was all worth it 

We did it !!!! 

I did it!!!!!

39.3 miles that changed my life Part 2

So here we are Day one complete - there was so much
traffic at the "Official" 26.2 mile
marker that we borrowed this sign
from on the the people cheering
at the side lines

Here is our address for the event. E88, sleeping in a small tent on the hard ground never felt so good.  

Here is our tent .. home sweet home ! 

They call this tent city - you can see the shower trucks in the
background... once again, I have never enjoyed showering
in a tent so much 

yep, as if getting up at 6:00am to the thought of walking another 13.1 miles
wasn't hard enough... we had to take down our own tents 

Tent City 

Tent City @ night 

Here is the tent where we ate dinner and breakfast while at Wellness Village 

These are my feet after day one.. I haven't taken my socks off yet
to see the 6th toe I grew on my left toe 

  Here we are at the official END of the Walk on Day ONE 

39.3 miles that changed my life

 I know, I know... my Avon Walk For Breast Cancer was officially 41 days ago... but I have been uber busy with school and teaching and Ari and life - and it seems like I almost never get a free moment to update my blog.  But alas it seems I might actually get a chance to do it right now- so here it goes.

On September 11th I participated, along with 2800 others, in the Avon Walk For Breast Cancer Santa Barbara.  It was one of the most amazing events I have ever been a part of and I am so glad I made it my New Year's resolution oh so long ago... 

It started out with my best friend forever Kate, who just happened to be 5 months pregnant at the time, flying all the way from Alabama to participate in the walk with me- LOVE YOU KATE 

Kate flew in on Thursday night, Friday we were busy all day tying up loose ends to prepare for the walk, and Friday night we had a great pasta dinner at Buca di Beppo's.  Early to bed for us (although I was so excited I could not sleep!!!) 

We got up EARLY 4:30am to drive the hour drive to Santa Barbara so we could be ready for the walk to begin

This was Opening Ceremonies when we first arrived.. so EARLY 

The view in front of us -  Opening Ceremony 

The view behind us - Opening Ceremony 

it was cold and foggy as we waited with the other walkers and crew - but we were excited and eager to begin.
As we got started we met the most remarkable people, people who were walking in honor of loved ones they had lost, people walking while fighting their own battle with breast cancer, and people who had fought and won their battle - proud to announce that they were now cancer free.  Some of the most amazing people we met were the people who spent their Saturday and Sunday camped out on the sides of the roads cheering us on, handing us treats, and thanking us for walking. Every time I felt like I couldn't walk any further- someone, either another walker, Kate or someone from the sidelines said just the right thing to keep me going.

Picture Opportunity with John Wayne Mile 12

 We were so busy walking and enjoying the time we had to catch up with each other... (I hadn't seen Kate in years...) that honestly the first 12 miles sort of flew by.  I am happy about that because I take it to mean that all the time I spent walking with Ari and training at the gym paid off.  Around mile 11 or so we started to walk up what the walk organizers had described as moderate hills... yeah right - these hills were STEEP and that sucked, but at mile 12 the John Wayne Cancer Foundation had a mile marker and a photo op spot for the walkers ( who can resist John Wayne) as well as pink bandannas dipped in ice water that were PRICELESS!!!! They were so refreshing!

Me and Kate showing John Wayne some love!!! 

13.1 Miles on day one- the official half way mark

Mile 20 and still feeling pretty good. My foot had started to hurt but I didn't dare look at it. I figured ignorance was bliss at this point.  We were so excited to only have 6.2 miles left of our walk... for the day.  I don't think I have ever been more excited about the prospect of pitching a tent and sleeping.  By this time of the day - that sounded like the Ritz! 

This was attached to a motorcycle that belonged to the
 group of bikers who were working the event. Most of the
bikers would blast music from their bike stereo and
they would dance to keep our spirits up.  They were
awesome people (most of them were men)

Day ONE - COMPLETED !!! 

We met some of the most inspiring people during the walk, as well as some of the nicest. There was a group of bikers, mostly men, who had signed up to volunteer and direct traffic. They would park their bikes at the intersections where we had to cross and most of them had their bike and themselves decorated for the occasion. They cheered us on, and had candy and gum for us.  One of the motorcycle crew members had this on his bike - we saw him several times throughout the weekend and he always made us laugh. (it helped that he looked a lot like Santa Claus)