Too cute!

Morgan has FINALLY figured out how to play by herself! This means that I can actually get things done around the house. In fact, yesterday afternoon, I was wiping down the cabinets in the kitchen, when I noticed Morgan bringing a barstool into the dining room. I walked into the other room to find this:

You can't see it in the picture, but just behind Morgan on the table is a bowl of play food. Morgan thought her dolly was hungry and needed a bite to eat!

FHE and Bye-Bye Toddler Mullet!

This is two posts in one, since the same pictures can be used to explain both parts of the title.



As many of you know, Morgan has been having hair issues as of late. The back of her hair is growing, and growing, and growing, while the front hasn't been as successful. So, I finally had time, now that I'm almost done working (I'm only training this week, so way less than even part-time like before), to get her hair cut and styled, rather than my sorry attempt to just trim it.

First, the old "do":

And now, the new "do":

Also, on Monday night, we were able to hold our first semi-successful FHE with Morgan. In the past, all she's ever retained (not that it's bad) is the "Temple Song" and what a temple looks like (i.e. to Morgan a temple is the picture on the wall OR the church building--I don't know how she qualifies them both).

However, this week, we learned about being special. I have the OLD, OLD, OLD nursery manuals from my mom, dated back to the early 80's, so I used one of those lessons. We traced Morgan and learned about how she is different and unique, and then traced her and colored her to display on the wall. Notice Bunny also got traced and colored. We can't do much without her these days.

We also made a sign for Morgan's bedroom door that she got to decorate all by herself. It reads, "I Am Special!"

Here she is holding her sign and displaying her artwork:

We are very proud of our little girl and are happy to be able to teach her such wonderful principles about the Gospel and show our love and appreciation for her sweet spirit!

Super Nanny Would Be Proud!

No pictures today, and when you read the story, you'll understand that it's difficult to document something with photos while you are trying to teach a child. And, of course, when the teaching is over, so are the opportunities for pictures.

Here goes with the story:

This afternoon, Morgan decided to take every book off of her bookshelf in her bedroom and make a pile in the family room. So, naturally, the books had to go back to the bookshelf, and it only seemed fair that the person responsible do the work. Easy enough, right? Well, not for a 2 year old.

A task that could have been completed in about 5 minutes or less took over 45 minutes, 2 time outs for Morgan, and Bunny being put permanently in time out until the job was done! Somehow, Morgan thought it wasn't her job to put her books back--like 5 feet away from where they lay. So, we sat and waited. I think she was certain that if she refused long enough, that I would give in and put her books away. I didn't.

It took several times of me using her hands to pick up books and her feet to walk them to the bookshelf, but she finally got the idea. After a couple of tantrums on the floor, she decided to just bring the books back to where they belong and complete the task.

The easy way would have been to just pick up the books, but I am glad that I stuck my ground and Morgan learned that she had to do it. Now, if this was really the hardest thing I ever faced in parenting...

What NOT To Do...

...allow a toddler who LOVES chocolate have access to a chocolate fountain.

Okay, so under normal circumstances, this would be a MAJOR no-no. However, I went to RS book club today and had to take Morgan with me. Originally, Brian would be home to watch Morgan, but he ended up helping a family in the ward move. So, Morgan came along.

The chocolate fountain was on the coffee table and Morgan was eagerly watching all the adults use it, and next thing I knew, she helped herself to dunking a marshmallow. Then, she (and I) realized that her hand was messy, and didn't see any napkins close. I couldn't reach fast enough, and she did what anyone in that "sticky" situation would do. She wiped her hands on her shirt. The damage had been done.

We'll see if the good 'ol Shout stick can take it out. If not, it was only a $3 shirt on clearance and it'll be a great painting, crafting, messy shirt.

Lesson Learned--make sure there isn't a chocolate fountain when you take your toddler to an event.

Where Do I Begin???

Over Memorial Day, we camped in Ogallala, NE with Rich, Courtney, Afton, Madelyn, and Logan. We all arrived about 3:30 on Friday afternoon, and by 6:00, the weather had become so terrible (well, 70+ mph wind gusts are NOT ideal for tent camping). Needless to say, the adventurous and very fun (really, it was lots of fun) weekend had only begun!


Here's Rich trying his best to make a cheesy face for the camera as we all sat in the tent, waiting for the wind and rain to stop Friday.

All the ladies stayed inside the only tent we could (kind of) get to stay up, while Brian and Rich packed up all the supplies. The wind was so strong, I could barely hold the camera still as the tent swayed back and forth!

Of course, Logan can have a smile on her face! She's not trying to keep kids calm in the rain! However, we gave her the task of calling Dad so he could Google the weather forecast to see what the future held. Forecast: Rain on Friday, Saturday and Sunday--mostly sunny.

Brian had an excellent idea to go out to ice cream, in hopes of relieving everyone's stress. While we drove into town, the rains died down, only to come back worse while we were in Wendy's. Needless to say...

...we spent the night at the Econo Lodge. The deal was we would stick it out all together in a motel room for one night, and if the weather didn't improve, we'd give up and go home.

Luckily, when we woke up Saturday morning, you wouldn't have even thought it had rained or the wind had blown like it did! Back to camp we went, ready to enjoy a beautiful weekend. It even warmed up enough for the girls to go for a swim. Well, Afton got wet, but Morgan actually stayed fairly dry.

Here's Courtney and Rich enjoying one another's company at the campsite.

Mackenzie and Logan getting caught for a candid shot.

The true highlight of the weekend was watching the girls play so well together. Well, once they figured out that Afton wanted to push the stroller and Morgan was perfectly happy getting a ride, they seemed to keep each other busy.

But, what is a family vacation without a fight? I am proud to announce that Courtney and I got along all weekend and this really was the only fight all weekend! I just happened to have the camera in my hand, and this was too funny to not catch on video! Don't worry, we broke it up just after and the girls are friends again.

All in all, we had a great weekend. We got to relax, the girls fed the ducks and fishies (see Courtney's blog) and we all enjoyed spending time together. Other than the rough start on Friday, everything seemed to go well. And, we are learning to better appreciate Brian and Rich's sense of humor--if you can find a reason to laugh at "Denver Nuggets" and "Lincoln Logs". I guess there's not a whole lot for guys to discuss out in the great wide open, other than the bowel movements of their toddlers.

Traveling to Idaho

It took about 10 hours each way to get to Pocatello from Denver. Not too bad, and Morgan actually did really well! The hard part was about 1/3 of the drive was on a 2 lane highway through back country, so there wasn't anywhere to stop and let Morgan run around.



Here are some of the highlights from the road.

Morgan loves sunglasses. So, of course, she had to test Daddy's for a little bit.

Morgan was quite excited to see hot air balloons (and lots of them!) on our trip!

Napping in the car. The best 2 1/2 hours of the trip!!

We stole this idea from my cousin, Melissa (she had an unfortunate encounter with a Walmart restroom while potty training her girls). Because we knew a good portion of the trip would be on a 2 lane highway with nowhere to stop and go potty, we brought Morgan's potty along with us. She referred to it as the "outpotty".

We stopped at Burger King for lunch, where Morgan got an "Ivy Hat". (The first time she got a BK crown, she was with her friend, Ivy--she's got a pretty good memory!) She, of course had her hat and glasses on (she seems to about 75% of the time these days), and I turned back to see that she had managed to get her "Ivy Hat" on top! Now that's talent for a toddler!

Raelynn's Blessing

Last weekend, we went to Pocatello for our niece's (Morgan's cousin's) blessing. Raelynn is such a good baby! In fact, I think I only heard her fuss once the whole weekend and it was for less than 5 minutes! Elvin and Tara are very lucky!

Anyway, here are some pictures and videos from our trip. I'll explain each one below.

Merrik, Morgan, and Raelynn. Merrik always wants his picture taken, but we couldn't get him to smile!

Morgan kissing Raelynn--our poor new baby is going to be smothered with kisses. I hope she's tough!

Morgan wasn't quite tall enough to climb on some of the things in the playscape, so Brian had to go with her to help out (he had a terrible time, can't you tell?). This was Morgan's favorite part.

We went to a Family Fun Center and Morgan chose a princess wand with her tickets.

Saturday was a pretty warm day (90+ I think), so we decided to cool off in the pool. The water was pretty cold, though, so Morgan got a cold surprise when she took this first tumble.

Tara, Raelynn, Mackenzie, Morgan, Brian, Merrik, and Elvin. Try to get everyone to smile all at the same time!

Daddy's Back!!!

Well, he actually never left, but he's been studying like crazy for his latest actuarial exam, and I get a husband for about 2 weeks, until he starts on the next set--modules for his final accreditation. If all continues to go well (he hasn't failed yet--knock on wood), then this time next year, Brian will be have his FSA, EA, and ASA. And, he won't be studying all the time anymore!!! (Oh, if you want to know what any of that means, you'll have to either go to http://www.soa.org/, or ask Brian--I really have no clue!)

So, to celebrate the other night, we ate leftovers. Normally, Brian takes us out to dinner after his exam, but he really wanted to have leftovers, so we did. That's okay. We'll be out of town this weekend, so I'm sure we'll eat out at least once.

Here's Brian and Morgan at the dinner table. Can you see a resemblance???

I was tagged with…The Five Lists!!!!

5 things on my To Do List
1. Buy more Prilosec!!! Heartburn during pregnancy is miserable!
2. Take the car to get a tune up
3. Dishes (is this not the never-ending task??)
4. Clean Bathrooms
5. Make a grocery list and go shopping

5 jobs I have had
1. Foothill Chevron (my dad's gas station in CA)
2. Old Navy
3. BYU Mechanical Shop (secretary)
4. Baby Gap
5. J8 Equipment Accounting Assistant

5 places I've lived.
1. Sacramento, CA
2. Oceanside, CA
3. Provo, UT
4. Littleton, CO
5. Denver, CO

5 favorite snacks
1. bagels and cream cheese
2. oatmeal raisin cookies
3. a salad I DIDN'T make
4. a bowl of cereal
5. apples and peanut butter

5 things I would do if I were a billionaire
1. Pay off our house!
2. Buy a second car
3. Buy a vinyl lettering machine to make phrases for crafts and my house
4. Get a new bedroom set
5. Finish the basement

5 things you may not know about me
1. I really am NOT a crafty person--I'm good at copying ideas
2. I was in a car accident my first semester of college and "died" 3 times. (i.e. cardiac arrest, no pulse, not breathing for several minutes)
3. I'm not a big reader, despite teaching myself to read at age 3
4. Brian and I have moved 3 times since last ordering a box of checks---think we don't have to write many??? We figured we wouldn't need to buy more for at least 4 more years.
5. I insisted on getting married after my birthday in August 2003, so I wouldn't be a teenage bride (i.e. another "statistic" as I thought). So, we got married exactly 2 weeks after I turned 20.

5 things I LOVE
1. My husband, Brian
2. Morgan and our soon to be new baby
3. Snuggling
4. My Honda Pilot
5. Tulips (springtime in general is nice)

Now I tag 5 friends--Melissa, Aubrey, Ashley, Nikki, and Court!

I Love Being a Mom!

No pictures or videos today, so sorry for those of you that love to watch Morgan. I thought I would actually write a serious post tonight. And, due to the fact that I am pregnant, I will likely cry as I type.

I love being a mom! There aren't any big, exciting things that happen most days, but it's all the little things that add up to the great joy I experience as a mom. For instance, we went on a family walk after dinner and Morgan asked if Rock could come. At first, Brian was a little bit hesitant because Morgan wanted to ride on his shoulders and he didn't want to get hit on the head. But, Rock came along. And, here's the little moment that made the trip worthwhile. Partway through the walk, Morgan said, "Rock cold," and cuddled up to Brian's head and shoulders while snuggling Rock. Cheesey, I know, but so precious.

There isn't anything that replaces the "Love you, Mommy!" or the "Love you, Daddy!" when you least expect it. It makes those days when you get peed on in the middle of the Sacrament seem so insignificant because you have a child that loves you, and unconditionally at that!

I also love to see Morgan apply the things we teach her. "Please" and "Thank You" are very important words at our house and it's been really exciting to see Morgan begin to remember on her own to use them. While a toddler doesn't have the best of manners, it's such a sweet attempt at trying!

So, I may not get a monetary paycheck for being a mom, but the pay is phenomenal and I wouldn't trade it for the world! Who would want to pass up the opportunity to eat a chili pepper, pineapple, lemon soup everyday? (oh, that's what Morgan made for me to share with her tonight--thank goodness for plastic food!)