November has been an exciting month for us. First off, Ben's sister, Rachel, got married on the 7th, and we got to be there for the wedding in Virginia. Arianna was the flower girl at the wedding, and was so cute! She was doing really well before she face planted into the grass; but, she's always good for a quick recovery, and was happy to make her way up the rest of the aisle in mom's arms. Here are a few pictures from that happy day.
Arianna turned one year old today. Along with this landmark, here are a few more.
A couple of weeks ago she took her first step, then yesterday she was getting more adventuresome in walking around without holding onto the furniture. Today, she amazed us by walking all the way across our living room all by herself. She is truly growing by leaps and bounds, and it is so amazing to watch it all happening!
As far as talking, she says "Mama," "Dada," and "Ball" all the time. We've heard her say "Doggy" and "Kitty" a few times, too. She also likes to dance and bob along to music. She is getting really good at waving hello and goodbye to people, and she claps whenever we say "Yay!" Oh, and the latest is that whenever she gets a minor bonk on the head, she then slaps herself on the the side of her head with her hand and says "Boh" for bonk... she made up that sign all by herself!
This afternoon Arianna and I went birthday shopping, and we got her a lot of the winter clothes she needed. We captured these movies this evening. The first is her walking, and the second is her playing with her new birthday toys. She is such a joy!
Once we returned home from visiting Ben's family in Virginia, our summer vacation continued here in St Louis when my mom--Kay--came out for Labor Day weekend. We crammed in as much fun and grandbaby-bonding time as we could in the 5 days that my mom was in town. Each night Mom was here, she got to read Arianna her bedtime stories, and they both enjoyed that a lot.
The first full day on Mom's trip was spent at the St Louis zoo and visiting the Gateway Arch.
The next day we got an early start and drove to Nauvoo, Illinois to tour the historic town. We took a carriage ride, saw the Nauvoo temple, and toured the old brickyard as well as other restored homes and buildings. Also, while we were in town we visited the local Lands and Records Office, and found where some of my ancestors (through my mom's side) owned property in and around Nauvoo.
Before Mom headed back to California, we were able to take some new family portraits. Here are my favorites...
So that's the latest here in St Louis. Summer is over, and Ben is back at school at Logan College. Arianna and I are getting back into our weekday routine... we usually go on a walk in the mornings when the weather is nice, and we play and run errands in between nap times, and then look forward to when Daddy comes home in the evenings.
We hope you're all doing well. Leave us a comment so we know you're reading. =)
My first semester at Logan Chiropractic College ended in mid-August. Since we moved out here to St Louis the day of my last final in Utah, we never got a summer break or vacation. So an hour after my last final we jumped into the van and headed east to Virginia to see my family for a week and a half.
It was a great getaway. The weather was warm and the pool was great. Arianna played her first pickup game of water basketball and dunked on her old man.
Since we were in the area, we hopped up to Washington DC to see our good friend Lee and see some sights at the National Mall. We had a great visit to the National Archives and saw the Declaration of Independence, Constitution, Magna Carta, and other documents. We also swung by the Bureau of Engraving and Printing (of money) and a few other places.
Arianna had a blast on the metro and got a whole bunch of people smiling at her.
The whole trip was a great chance to relax and enjoy time with family. Thanks to everyone we got to spend time with!
So, I have discovered the joy of videos. As promised, I am posting another video of Arianna. Today, as we were finishing up lunch, I snagged the camera to document more silliness of baby life. I hope you enjoy. ~Melina
Some of Arianna's latest achievements include crawling, clapping, waving, and pulling herself up on everything. She is even starting to attempt standing without holding on to anything, and she can usually last for several seconds before gracefully plopping back down onto her tush. I took a couple of short movies tonight of her playfulness. I hope you enjoy, and check back soon for more videos. ~Melina
Arianna clapping.
Arianna crawling.
In the past month we have taken two family trips, one to Lafayette, Indiana and just yesterday to Nauvoo, Illinois. Here's what you missed:
(you can click on any picture to enlarge it)
In Lafayette, we visited my cousin Chris and his wife, Leah and two boys, Noah and Ian. We had a nice relaxing time with them, visiting the local petting zoo, Purdue University campus, and eating lots of lettuce grown in their garden.
Chris is finishing his doctorate in mechanical engineering, and he showed us the lab where we works. Arianna got to sit in her first tractor. And skidsteer. And front loader. And motorcycle.
Yesterday we took a trip following the Mississippi river north to Nauvoo, the city established by the Latter-day Saints before they migrated west to the Rocky Mountains. It was a nice day for it: not too hot, not too bright. It was humid, of course, being 300 yards from the river and all, but not unbearable. Touring the restored buildings and homes was fun, and Arianna enjoyed preaching her first sermon in the Seventies Hall and taking minutes in the upper room of the Red Brick Store.
Oh, and we also got to ride in an oxen-pulled wagon.
You all know how much I love polls on this blog (and I know how much you don't love participating, hence the long hiatus), so I have a new one for you. Since August of 2008 I have grown out my current stylings of facial hair. So now that it is no longer new and people have grown accustomed to the look, I want to take a comparison poll of clean shaven vs not. Here are some examples:
So now let your mice do the walking over to the left hand side of the page and vote in my new poll, where for a limited time only, I will pay attention to your opinion. :-)
The summer is in full swing here in St Louis. We've had about a week in the high 90s with a humidity index putting it into the hundreds. But there are several community water parks in the area for Melina to go with the baby.
School is going well. Midterms are in full swing, and I'm looking forward to the July 4th long weekend. We are planning a trip to Nauvoo, IL that weekend, so we'll be sure to post some good photos from up there.
Baby Arianna has been working on her second tooth, and it came through about a week ago.
For those of you who already have a full dentition (or once did, but now are working backward) and don't really care about a play-by-play race to 28 chunks of enamel, then here's a better update for you: She's standing on her own.
In other news, Arianna can also pick up cheerios between her thumb and forefinger and put them in her mouth, and loves to clap.
We are doing well here in St Louis. We really like the area, and we have settled in quickly. I have been at school for four weeks now, and it is going smoothly. BYU certainly holds their students to a high academic standard, and it is paying off now that I am in a 28 credit (this semester) doctoral program.
I also was able to get a job working on campus as a research assistant, which pays well. That was quite a blessing for us.
Melina is enjoying staying at home with the baby and is making friends with other mothers in the community with play dates and weekly library reading programs.
All in all, we are doing well and enjoying this stage of life.
For those who are glazing over from all this text, here's another picture for you:
At the Gateway Arch
Fleeing from wild bison.
We left Provo about a month ago, but before we moved, we got to hang out with many of our awesome friends. This one goes out to all you wonderful Westerners!
First off, a shout-out to our neighbors and good friends, Ashley and Jordan Haug ... thank you for all the late nights hanging out and playing games. We call Jordan the "Black Barron," due to his tendency toward cut-throat strategy, especially in Ticket to Ride. And a big thank you to you guys for all the help with moving and babysitting. Here are Ashley and I with our little ones. Arianna and little Kimball got to be good friends in the few months we were all neighbors.
Arianna's little friend Aslynn received her blessing in April, and we got to be there (in Idaho) for it. Here we are with Luke, Bre, and Aslynn Mecham.
Arianna and Aslynn bonding.
Before we left Idaho, we also spent an evening with our friends Austin and Liz Dutton... and their Wii.
Back in Provo, we dedicated as many weekends as possible to hanging out with old friends. We went on a double date with my old roommate Gloria Harris and her husband Kyle, and here is Gloria posing with Arianna. Gloria is expecting a little guy of her own this summer, baby McKennan. We can't wait to see pictures of him!
We also got to go on a double date with Joel and Ami Frost with their little guy, Dain. 
Another important baby blessing was that of Megan Joy Muirhead. Brandon and Jenni Mae are two of our favorite people, and we were so glad we got to be there for the blessing of their little bundle of Joy!
After Megan Joy's blessing, we went up northward to West Jordan to visit with my cousin and his family. Here we are with Kenneth and Melinda Flynn, and the youngest of their three boys, Brigham.
Sunday night family dinners will be one of the biggest things we miss. Every Sunday night, we would get together with all the Williamson cousins and do a potluck dinner. Oh, the memories! Here we are with Clark and Bouathong (their little guy Talei was already in bed).
Brad and Leslie Twining, our adopted family, took us out to get malts one last time at Provo's Malt Shoppe. Yummm! 
Before we left town, we got to say goodbye to my graduate adviser (and friend!) Dr. Duke Rogers. I worked for Duke starting my sophomore year of college, and then I stayed on with him for my graduate work. So, after 5 years of working together, we finally say goodbye. 
And finally, here we are at the graduation party for Ben's cousins Clara and Stephanie. Clara just finished her Bachelor's degree in Recreation Management, and Steph is completing her Master's program this summer in Sociology. The grandparents flew in for the festivities, and we snapped a picture with them before the night was over. I love Arianna's surprised expression in this one!
We feel blessed to have so many wonderful people in our lives. We won't forget you, and please don't forget us!
We'll try to catch you up on the past month of excitement.... The first week of April Arianna and I rode the Amtrak from Provo to Sacramento. The train was called the California Zephyr. I was a little nervous about taking the train for the first time, but it was really fun... Arianna and I could walk around whenever we wanted to, we could relax in the observation car, and the people riding the train were pretty friendly. Not to mention, the view through the Sierras was awesome!
When we arrived in Sacramento, my mom was at the station to pick us up. Our first stop was to see the newest member of our family, Jackson Alexander Dunkel. Jody and Heather's baby was born on April 1st, a fitting birth date for my cousin Jody's son. ;-P
On Saturday, April 4th, we went to the Bay Area for my cousin Emily's wedding reception. There we had a family reunion, of sorts... we got to visit with aunts, uncles and cousins before, during and after the festivities of the reception. Here are a few pictures from that weekend.
My cousin Alejandra with Arianna;
Aunts, uncles, and cousins on my mom's side.
Back in Modesto, my dad got in some quality time with Arianna, too. He adores her!
One of my best friends, Anna Keppel, stopped by to visit with us for a little while at my mom’s house (darn, no picture). Arianna and I also got to spend the night with my other best friend, Rebecca Murdock, and her family in their new home in Merced. Her little guy, Elijah, was about 11 months here. He taught Arianna how to growl… now she does it all the time!
All in all, it was an awesome trip. We got to visit with lots of family and old friends, and we even got some great family history information from my aunt Linda about my Walden ancestors. We probably won’t get back to Cali until next May, so it was really wonderful to get to see so many people who are dear to us. Love you Californians!
