St. George...

Scott and I got the amazing opportunity last weekend to go to St. George and get trained to become NAMI Teachers. Both Scott and I have taken the National Alliance for Mental Illness classes and participate in the group sessions, now we've made it a goal of ours to progress into teachers.

Scott and I haven't left the boys ever! The last time we've gone anywhere without them was when Carter was about 2. So this was a special treat for us!

I'm really proud of Scott (and myself) for how far we've come. Now that things are under control in our lives, we're determined to make a difference in someone else's. So, it was off to Sunny St. George for the weekend of training.

My mom watched the boys while Scott and I drove the 5 hours drive there, NAMI paid for our hotel and food, so it was just cheap gas and a few goodies that we had to come up with.

Though I was hoping for this to be our mini vacation, we really were stuck in the conference training ALL weekend. It was 9 hours on Friday, 11 hours on Sat and about 6 hours on Sunday. So pretty much we just enjoyed having dinner with each other (being able to talk without food being thrown everyhwere) and staying up late watching movies in our hotel room.

We did make one important stop though, we got out of class on Sat around 7 and drove by the St. George Temple. Breathtaking...especially at night. What a gorgeous sight....

Though it was a long weekend of training, driving and information overload....it was so nice to come home to the boys. I really missed them....I won't be going anywhere else anytime soon without them.

We took them to Smith and Edwards the other day...and I found the coolest thing! It's a corn cob, or so it appears.....

The boys examined it, and we put it in the bag, microwaved it for 3 minutes and....
POPCORN! The corn literaly popped right off the cob! Such a fun "winter activity" and it only cost $1.

Our Boys...Fun Times

We're getting back to normal...finally with our routine. I work less hours outside our home (many still in our home, but at least I'm home) and have been getting the hang of it! It's taken me a little longer than I'd expected to be better at scheduling, but it's all working out.

I've been having so much fun on my days "off" to play with the boys. The other day, I rotated the toys and they rediscovered their remote controlled construction trucks. They had a blast! (and the stayed occupied for about 30 minutes...so I even got some work done!)

They played so well with eachother. I love watching the 2 of them have fun playing games together. THey even make up their own rules while playing and get along so well.

We played so hard today that Braxton didn't get his usual 2 hour nap....this is what happened to the little man while sitting on my lap...

Scott found this cool bow and arrow set for Carter and was so excited to show him! I really was probably more excited than Carter, but the 2 of them had fun setting it all up....complete with a target and everything!

It's been all about having fun in our house lately....that's what life it really about right?

Friends....

We spent the afternoon last week with our friends, the Davis'. Braxton and Carter just love hanging out with their friends Brinley and Hunter. Brax was happy playing everywhere....their house is so nice because it's all one level.

Brin is sucha sweet girl, she's always been so kind to Brax and gives him kisses and hugs. So cute! Brax was actually one of the very first kids she would hug when they were little.
Hunter has always been such a sweet "huggy" boy and Carter usually resists it. (Though our Carter is such a sensitive little guy, he's not really the touchy feely type.) This time though, it's been a while since the boys had seen eachother, so Carter was excited to hug Hunt. These boys have literally grown up together since Carter was about 8 months old.

Scott and I took the boys to Boondocks one night. We ended up meeting there right after I got off of work, and we all had a blast! This was Braxton first real time going up the playland stuff by himself....pretty sure this little guy was excited!

Carter just loves the slide! He has such a blast going down it every time! I do have to say, I lost my camera while there (between the coats, diaper bag and my purse, it's easy to do) and the most amazing thing happened....I called Boondocks a couple day later when I realized the camera was missing and someone had actually turned it in! (It's times like these that I'm happy for our human race!)

The latest....Carter has his first-ever frien Sleep Over! That's right, our 4 year old is sleeping at his friend's house tonight! Wesley is such a cute kid and really kind to Carter, they really play so well with eachother...and he's been asking for a few months now to have Carter spend the night.

So one huge milestone is currently going on for our Carter....hopefully he lasts there all night.
Boys. Friends. Family. Life.

Memories, Changes, Traditions...it's the New Year!

2011 has proven to be a time for changes for our little family. I finally feel like things are slowly getting back to "normal" for us.

I am working less hours, so that allows me to spend more time with the boys. It's been hard leaving them so much...I can't wait to be a "fun" mom again.

Scott and I have been going through the house lately and really getting rid of things that we no longer need. (To be honest, most of the stuff we've gotten rid of we didn't even need in the first place) Part of our "winter cleaning" was moving Braxton upstairs into the "playroom." I've wanted the two boys on the same floor forever now, so I'm super excited now that's done!

He LOVES his new room...

Carter has been working hard on his writing skills. My little guy is a lefty, so that makes things a little harder on him. I'm a lefty too, so I've been working with him on holding his pencil/crayon and he's progressing so much! He got a new TV tray to work on his school work, eat breakfast in the living room, etc...and he's been loving it!
Our little Brax is now a member of Junior Nursery! We have too many kids in our ward so we have to split up the Nursery by age. Now our Sundays go a lot smoother. Scott has been going into Nursery with Braxton to get him used to it. I peeked in and saw both of my "boys" sitting on their carpet squares singing the songs together. PRECIOUS!

The other night, Scott and I got the boys in their matching PJs and took them to the Layton lights. It was a fun activity to do, and we all got stay nice and warm. There happened to be an Elephant made out of lights....guess who loved that?

The boys had so much fun watching the lights and what they made. I'm glad we went!

I'm excited to have the memories that we're making with our boys, I'm thrilled with the changes taking place in our family, and can't wait to keep our own traditions going...

Christmas 2010...

This Christmas was both really good and really bad. I have been so sick over the past week (fevers, nausea, coughing) so I didn't really get a chance to fully enjoy the holiday. I haven't been this sick in a very long time, and just went through the motions of Christmas.

However, our little family got SPOILED! Scott and I both have amazing families that really make the holidays worth while. We came home at the end of the night with an entire car load of presents! I'm so glad we live near our families, and get to share this special time with them.

We started off our morning with just our little family. (Scott and I love being alone with the boys in the morning) Though Braxton got excited to see his presents....ultimately he just wanted his breakfast! Carter got a new bike...from Scott. A few nights before Christmas, Scott asked if he could get something special for the boys from just him...it was perfect! He spent so much time thinking about what to get them and ended up getting them their favorite presents! (maybe next year he'll do the Black Friday Shopping.)

We then headed to Scott's family's house for a great lunch and more presents. I'm so glad we all got to hang out with each other, exchange gifts and I got some "down time"

Once we left the Morris' house, it was off to the Moore's. I was so sick by the end of the night that we stayed for a couple of hours and then went home to bed. I wish I took more pictures on Christmas than I did, but I was too out of it to even think about anything other than making it through the day.

I have been feeling so much better over the last 2 days though, and we've been playing with the new toys...so here are some cute pics...

Carter, Brax, Scott and I all got aprons from my sister (for when we all bake together) Carter's says, "Master Chef" Braxton's says, "Taste Tester" Scott's says, "Quality Control" and mine says, "Boss." They're prefect...and we broke them in today.

My dad got Carter the Smart Cycle video game. He knows I'm not a big afn of video games, especially for the boys, but this one a great! Carter cycles after each letter in the alphabet, steers clear of spilled oil and water...and just really has a great time. Because he got Carter the bike, he bought the giraff bike for Brax. Braxton thinks he's doing the video game too...

Though I was super sick, it was a great Christmas for the Morris Fam! Now it's time to bring on 2011!!!!

The Latest....and Picture Overload!

Thanksgiving...what can I say...other than it was just what we needed. We were at my mom's this year, which means it's pretty chill (there's only my brother, sister, mom and dad) so it's just relaxing...I couldn't think of another way to spend it.

My mom came up with this adorable Turkey Craft that we did after our meal....

The boys loved making (and eating) their candy turkeys. My sister made bracelets with Carter too that were Thanksgiving themed.

Right after Thanksgiving....Scott turned 27! He's now officially OLD! We both worked that day (I worked late that night) so he went hunting a couple days before his actual birthday to celebrate.

He came home very proud. Carter and Brax were so interested in learning about the different parts of the dead animals (gross I know) But Scott was so good to show them and let them feel how soft they were.

I sewed! I know it's not really that cool but it is for me! I made 2 aprons for my cute hostesses. And they LOVED them. They wear them while hosting parties and everyone asked where they got them. They were a lot easier than I thought too!

I've been doing some "Creative" bribery with Carter lately. I made little cards that Carter got to color and I called them "Mommy Money." He got to earn Mommy Money for doing little chores around the house....then he got to "buy" a craft from the Mommy Store with his money. He thought it was the greatest thing on earth!

He chose a pen that you fill with colored sand....it was both educational and fun!

One of the many perks about working at a Family Fun Center is being able to share it with the boys. My sister was the FatCats mascot last week for the parade and I brought Carter with me. We walked around passing out coupons...and Carter got to see the parade! Win-Win. I love when it works out that way!

FatCats also had our company Christmas party tonight....with a special guest!

They had inflatables...that the boys absolutely loved! (this was Brax's first time and man that kid was in heaven!)He didn't want to get out!

Unlimited free bumper cars....

free arcade games.....Braxton won the Jackpot!
Carter raced with his friend Garen...this would have cost us $2 to play...but tonight it was FREE!
We actually bowled for the first time tonight! We've just never had the time to bowl with the boys...Braxton loved the ramp...

Carter loved watching the ball go down. We played Cars where instead of keeping score, we moved our cars across the screen. Super cute!

We all got put in for a raffle...and I won the biggest prize! Over $100 worth of "date nights" for myself and Scott. Super, super excited!

Overall, it has been a busy couple weeks...but still so much fun! I'm so glad Scott and I get to participate in some really unique opportunities with our family.

Family Pictures....

We got our family pictures taken in November...and they are far better than I expected. Our photographer is a friend, Stephanie, and she takes amazing pictures....but we have 2 little boys who don't make it very easy.

She captured some GORGEOUS shots!

Our family shot turned out so nice! I will actually hang this up in my house! It's not everyday that you get all of us looking in the same direction...let alone looking GOOD! She's amazing.

The one of me and my sweet boys is PRICELESS!

Carter is growing up so fast...and seeing this picture makes me realize it so much.

Braxton has gorgeous blue eyes...like our entire family! He's so precious!

I can't wait to get these printed and hung around my home. If you want to check out Steph's website it's: www.patchworkphoto.com
She's absolutely AMAZING!

The Holidays Are Approaching....

Working as many hours as both Scott and I do is proving to be harder than expected...however so worth it in the end for our family.

I love my job, I love what I get to do and I love the people I work with...so because I'm so happy at work, it makes me that much happier with life in general. And who doesn't need a little bit of that every now and then right?!?

One of the coolest things I learned the other day was: How to Make Balloon Animals!

I know what you're thinking...but Carter and Brax think I'm the coolest mom ever!

Although my skills are still forming....the boys couldn't be happier watch me turn a long balloon into a giraffe or dog.

Another thing in life that keeps me going is: Stretching our Dollars. Scott and I have always been on a budget, and I have to say stretching our income to cover our obligations is hard at times....but it's times like this that I'm truly grateful for.

WinCo Foods had a coupon mailer come out this week, and this is what I got... 2 Packages of Bacon, 2 Dozen Eggs, 2 Malt-o-Meal Cereals, 2 English Muffins and 1 carton of OJ. Guess what my total was? FREE!!!! I seriously walked away paying absolutely NOTHING for all of this food! I just love getting amazing deals like this.

I've been teaching Carter about the Pilgrims and Indians and early America. To implement our "teaching" into something fun, we've been doing some crafts around the house.

We made a pillow (from 2 pieces of fabric and some filler, I know it's amazing) Carter and Brax both thought it was the coolest thing to watch the pillow come to life as we filled it. We also talked about what we were thankful for for FHE and wrote it all down on my cute Turkey-Inspired cards. So cute...and super easy with the Cricut.
And, I have to say my favorite part of Thanksgiving is PUMPKIN! I love pumpkin pie, ice cream, shakes....you name it! So I went searching for a fun recipe to try out with the boys....because we have so much frozen pumpkin puree from out Halloween pumpkins.

I found a Pumpkin Creme Pie Cookie recipe that is seriously DELICIOUS! And I topped it off with homemade Egg Nog Ice Cream. The boys thought it was pretty cool. (And I have to say, I'm super proud of how it really turned out.)
My mom visited family this past week in Arizona....the boys and I picked her up from the airport today. While we were waiting here's what my mischievious little men were up to... Cute Carter made a poster for his Brown Grandma, and was waiting so patiently for her to arrive... Now that Thanksgiving is only a few days away...it gets me thinking about BLACK FRIDAY! Oh how I love this time of year....