Christmas Fessler Style

Will "helping" me wrap presents. Don't ask me why he has to stand on every present!
Christmas is already here...so hard to believe! So, we at the Fessler house have been trying to get in the Christmas spirit. We have watched Christmas movies on ABC Family, decorated the house, made homemade Chex Mix, baked Christmas goodies and even put Will in Christmas pajamas. Last night I even wrapped presents. It all sounds warm and fuzzy, but then add in a 15 month old and things get interesting. We find decorations from the tree all over the downstairs and let's just say wrapping presents can be an adventure. Will has even figured out how to work the radio that we use to listen to Christmas carols. So now we hear part of a song and part static because he is constantly changing the station. Oh goodness, its funny, but tiring at the same time. But I realize I only get to have Will this small once. So I'm doing my best to enjoy every minute, no matter how frustrating it may be!
Playing with Grandma's decorations.
Will and Caleb.

Recent Will Randomness

Will and Jake! These two love each other and play well together. But they also spell double trouble when they get together!

So...it has been awhile since I have posted about Will. He is changing a lot right now. I feel like I have to soak in every minute I can, because before I know it he is on to something new and different. Here are some of his new things:
1. He is very good at saying "yeah" and can sometimes say "no". We have fun with this by asking all sorts of crazy yes or no questions just to see what he will say.
2. Not only is he saying yeah or no, but he will sometimes say yeah and shake his head no or vice-versa. A little confusing, to say the least.
3. His favorite phrase is "Oh wow!". We have no idea where this came from, but one day he said it and it stuck. He has other phrases that sound like korean at times, but sometimes if you listen right, sounds like he actually said something in english. He really suprises us sometimes!
4. Will loves belly buttons right now. He likes walking around with his shirt up wanting you to poke his belly button. He also likes to lift my shirt to find my belly button. Luckily he hasn't done this in public, yet.
5. He loves pointing to facial features. He is not yet recognizing ears when you say ears, but at least he knows that these things on his head are important.
6. He is learning to open doors. SCARY!!!
7. Flushing toilets is so much fun for Will right now...not so much for our water bill.
8. Christmas trees...he loves Christmas trees. Needless to say, ours has only non-breakable ornaments on the bottom.

Oh my, how this child has stolen my heart. I love him dearly! Here are some new and recent pictures of my little man.
Will loves this car! I have to find one for him!
Sitting in little rocker at Marmie and Poppy's house. A toy black cat usually sits in this rocker, but when Will is there he throws it out!
Will and his lawnmower.
Will loves the computer and he will use whoever to be able to get on it. Here he is with Kristin, Andrew's girlfriend. Will adores her!

Here We Go!!

It's official. When January rolls around the Fesslers will be living in Charleston, South Carolina. Yep, that's right. We are moving!!!

Why are we moving you ask? God has called us to do ministry full-time. We are going to help plant a church, River Church, which will be meeting in the West Ashley area of Charleston. One of Mike's good friends and his wife were given the vision to plant the church. When I say plant, I mean to start a new church from nothing. We are not going to a church with an existing building or congregation. We are literally starting from the ground up, which is exciting and a little scary at the same time. The church will officially launch on January 31, 2010, but other church staff & core team members along with their families are already in the area meeting new people and connecting with them. From reading e-mails and talking to our friends on the phone, it is amazing what God has already done and how He is building River Church.

SO, where do Mike, Will and I fit in? Well, Mike has been hired on as the Pastor to Students and will also fulfill other roles as needed to help effectively launch the church. We have had several people say we are crazy, and I guess according to the world's standards we are. I mean we have a house and I have a secure teaching position with benefits. We are leaving behind a nice, safe, comfortable life for the unknown. We will be living off of financial support that so many of our generous friends & family members have offered to us. We have no idea what to expect, but we truly feel as though God has called us to be a part of this awesome oppurtunity. We trust God fully and we know that if he is calling us to Charleston, he will provide for us and not let us fall flat on our face.

There is a little nervousness, but I think it is more anxiousness, like we are ready to go. Our hearts are already there and we are ready to serve the Lord by loving people. We will miss Hiram, our house and our friends and family, but we know that we are on to bigger and better things. We know that God is going to bless our decision to go as we live our lives for Him.

In the meantime, you can check out all things River church at riverchurch.com.

Trick-or-Treat

Isn't he tough! I am sorry now that I didn't get film of him walking in these boots! You should have seen his little strut!

Halloween was always a fun time at our house growing up. My mom always made Lindsay and I a special dinner. It was always something fun like french dip sandwiches or sloppy joes. I will never forget the pumpkin brownie she always made, carving our yearly jack-o-lantern or going to Granny Gin's for carmel apples after trick-or-treating all night. We never did anything spooky or scary, just good fall fun.

As a parent I want this for Will. So, this past weekend, Mike and I got to have good fall fun with Will for the first time. He was 6 weeks old last year, and way too small, but this year he was just the right size! Friday night we carved our pumpkin. I thought Will would have loved to touch all the gooey pumpkin stuff, but he wanted nothing to do with it! He just want to squat beside me and watch what I was doing!

He wasn't so sure about the pumpkin. He did like the seeds though.

Saturday night, we went out trick or treating, its been a long time since I have done that! Will got a motorcycle for his birthday that he loves, so I decided to use it for part of his costume. I thought it would be perfect for him to be a biker. We had everything: the jacket, the doo-rag, the boots, and the motorcycle. It was going to be the perfect night. But then it rained and it was cold and Will wanted nothing to do with his motorcycle. He wanted to walk, but once he realized how cold it was, he wanted to be carried. He could have cared less about getting the candy. He had more fun once we got home dumping the candy out of his bucket and putting it back in. He would do this until he heard our doorbell ring. He liked going with us to answer the door for the trick-or-treaters. He didn't, however, like the kids who were dressed up in scary costumes. When he saw one, he would leave me at the door and run back to the living room!

Alright, enough talking, here are some pictures of our tough little biker! Your welcome Aunt Linny!

Our trip to the Pumpkin Patch

Saturday we took our annual trip to Elijay, GA to pick out pumpkins and apples. We go every year with Mike's family and friends. It is a Fessler family tradition. We always have a blast, and this year was no different. It was cold...45, cloudy and windy. Not exactly the perfect day for a picnic and a trip to the pumpkin patch, but we did it anyway! Last year, Will was 6 weeks old and Mike was unable to make the trip. This year, we were all there as a family. Mike and I had fun chasing Will through the pumpkins and enjoyed helping him pick out the pumpkin for our front porch. It was a long, fun-filled day! I am already looking forward to next year!

Be warned! I couldn't decide between pictures, so I am including several from our trip!



Will and Grandpa on the tractor. We took the same picture last year.
Caleb, Grandpa and Will
I love this picture! He looks so sweet!

Will's New Toothbrush

Last week it dawned on Mike and I that we should start to brush Will's teeth, especially now that he has 8 teeth. I hope we aren't starting too late, please don't think bad of us if you starting brushing your kids teeth at 7 months. Anyway, Will and I were at Target one night, so I ran through the toothpaste aisle and picked him out a super cute Elmo toothbrush and some Thomas the Train tooty-fruity toothpaste. That night I pulled up my vanity bench in front of the sink, let Will climb up, got his toothbrush ready and let him go to town. I helped of course, but when I finished I let him play. He knew what to do. He always laughs when he sees us and wants to help us by holding on to the toothbrush. So, here he is brushing his little teeth on his own. Wow! Just one more way he is growing up!

A picture Update

I will mostly post pictures today. Sometimes, its fun just to look at pictures instead of reading long stories. So here goes...

Now that Will can walk he has gotten into a routine of needing to go outside everyday. He likes to go out and "run" all over the backyard. I think it is his way of practicing, but he is also getting good use out of his new shoes.
Here is he is sitting in the grass...
...moving his slide (notice, I said moving his slide, he thinks it is funny to push his slide instead of sliding down his slide)...
...throwing a ball...
...and his new favorite outside activity, pulling the topsoil out of the planters on the patio. Fun for him...not for us. He gets it everywhere, like all in his nose, his hair, his mouth and his ears. Not to mention all over his clothes and the patio. It freaks Mike out. He can kind of be a neat freak when it comes to the outside of the house!
Here he is again in the planter. Little stinker!

Other than going outside, Will now loves...
to wear sunglassess! Here he is in mine. He thinks it is hilarious and that you can't see him.
and here he is in Mike's cousin Dustin's glasses. Mike is trying to be serious, or cool in this picture. I'm not sure which.

And lastly, he loves pianos!
Will and Uncle Andrew playing "Chopsticks" on Grandma Fessler's piano.
I'm so glad we don't have a piano!

Other than these adorable pictures, life in the Fessler house has been busy. We have seen a nephew dedicated, celebrated a b-day with Grandpa Fessler, celebrated with Grandpa Duggan as he got married, I myself turned 30 and I started selling AVON. Whew!

P.S. If you are interested in AVON, please let me know. You can order on-line by using my AVON link under the Websites tab. You can also leave me a comment requesting a catalog or placing an order. I will gladly mail either to you. Just let me know!