Success!

My garden this year was amazing! I've never had so much success and had SO MUCH food. This year I decided to put down black plastic and punch holes for the seeds and plants. I LOVED not having so much weeding and the vegetables seemed to really like the heat. This year I did TOMATOES...which we are still eating. The cardboard box with newspaper really works. I also made a bunch of spaghetti sauce. ONIONS didn't do as well as last year because they were slightly over taken by everything else, but we still got a bunch. I also had ZUCCHINI and CROOKNECK coming out our ears. I made Raspberry Zucchini jam...it's pretty good. CUCUMBERS have never grown for me and I had a lot this time. Our CANTALOUPE was to die for, very yummy. WATERMELON was good, but not great, I don't know if we'll do it again. PEPPERS I was able to use a bunch and freeze some too. PUMPKINS did amazing. I had 12 orange pumpkins. I had way too much fun this year and I'm excited to see how it goes again next summer. I love not having to pay for produce and learning new things.

First day of school!

My baby in school! What's up with that! He is such a smart little guy he probably doesn't really 'need' preschool, but he definitely needs a social outlet outside of mom's world. So I ship him off two times a week to hang out with friends and play. He's starting to get into it. He loves going, but at first he wouldn't do much. His teacher said he'd just sit back and watch everyone else, but didn't really want to participate in the activities. I think he's starting to get more involved.

Braxton with his new teacher. He is the only one that calls her by her name...Teacher Kareen. All the other kids call her teacher. We love her!

Yellowstone in the Fall!

I had James stop on our way into Yellowstone to take some pictures. This one is my favorite of all the ones we took. The moon reflecting off the water was so pretty.

Our good little traveler! This boy LOVES camping.

Our camping buddies! We love these guys! James works with Chad and we've started camping with them a couple times a year. We have so much fun.

Tatanka! Anyone? We learned from our friends on this trip that it means 'buffalo'. Now you know! Braxton is showing us what one is.

Grandma and Grandpa met up with us on this trip.
We love having them come along!

Mom and Braxton making our 'crazy' faces!

Dad and Braxton playing in the water at Yellowstone Lake. Braxton was having so much fun throwing rocks in the water that he was walking in the water.

New Blog

I decided after LDS Conference that I wanted to start a new blog. One that was out there for the world to see and something that would be inspiring and uplifting in the times we live in. I'm not a fan of the media sharing the many awful stories and wrongdoings in the world, yet I find myself getting sucked into their heart wrenching stories. I wanted to create a place where people can go to read about the small, maybe big, miracles of service that are occurring around us everyday. I'm really not exactly sure where I'm headed with all of this or where I'll end up, but I have to start somewhere...so I think I'm ready to get it out there.
I'd love for you to post any stories that you feel 'made a difference' in your life or the lives of those around you. Maybe you are the secret service giver and just want to share with someone...post it on my new blog in the comments. If you would like me to 'POST' it as an entry you can send me a message in the comments or e-mail me your story and I can add pictures as well.
I'm very excited to see what great things are happening out there and hear your stories: http://sharingwarmfuzzies.blogspot.com

More Surgery and a bunch of rambling...

I chose this first picture because as I was going through the hospital pictures you can actually kind of see what Braxton's eyes are doing...maybe. He had what was called Exotropia. His left eye turned out slightly. James noticed this when Braxton was little and we went to a local eye doctor two years ago who told us it was probably nothing. We went back to him a year later and he told us the same thing. When I took Braxton in for his three year well check my doctor said he was sending me straight to Primary's. He told us if they said there was nothing wrong then we would at least be at peace with it all. Within two months, Braxton was in for surgery, August 26th.
Primary Children's is an amazing place. I don't mean this in a bad way, but I did feel like a heard of cattle. We went in the same circles with a lot of the same parents. They took extremely good care of us and were very good to explain everything they would be doing.Here is Braxton right before surgery. Yes! Those are Teletubbies. He LOVES these little people. I could do without the responsibility of keeping track of 4 small creatures all the time. I talked him down to one and his blanket for surgery. He is such a little trooper and good sport about everything.
Here is Braxton a couple days after surgery. He wouldn't open it before then. They say it feels like they have sand or dirt in their eye because of the stitches. We tried to get him to watch the movie Cars with us the first night, but he just layed in our laps and listened. The next morning I turned on cartoons for him to listen to and gave him his sunglasses in hopes he'd try to open his eyes. It was hilarious when he said, "Look mom, two bunnies." Then he looked at me and said, "Two mommies." The surgery over corrects the eye so that it will be straight when it heals and this is what caused the double vision. The redness is still there but very mild to this picture. Sorry if I grossed anyone out.

We had lots of visits from friends and family both before and after surgery. His friend, Samantha, brought him a little doctor set before surgery. Another one of Braxton's little friends, Kenzie, stopped in to see how Braxton was doing after surgery. She had made him a play dough cake in hopes that he would feel better soon. She is so thoughtful for a four year old.About a week later, his eye was looking much better and he was ready to start preschool.

OCTOBER:
Our little family on the way to Primary's yet again...we thought we'd make and early foot follow up appointment for Braxton. We have met our deductible for insurance and were told almost a year ago that Braxton may need to have some of his toes straightened. This all has to do with his club foot stuff.

Good times in Dr. Stott's office. We're always finding creative things to count or play with and this time...we got into the gloves. Shhh...don't tell. Braxton LOVES playing with plastic gloves...so easy to please.

Dad and Braxton playing on the table. James was teaching him how to jump up on the table using the foot stool. Where to place his hands and use his weight as leverage to get him up. These two crack me up.

For those of you who haven't seen Braxton's baby pictures or have forgotten just how bad his feet were, this is a picture before we went to Primary's. He was about a month or so old here.

We had to cast both of Braxton's feet for a while before we could move onto the shoes and bar. He was my grouchy little guy the first 9 months of his sweet little life. He definitely tested our patience and taught me a lot. Now he's about the happiest kid I know. What an angel!

CONCLUSION:
Surgery again! Yep! We'll be going down November 4th for surgery to straighten 4 of his toes. This one should be a breeze compared to what we've been through with the eye surgery. They say he'll be walking by dinner. I'm so thankful for the good doctors that we live so close to. I am amazed at the technology and knowledge of the times we live in. We are truly blessed!

Deal or No Deal!

Most of you know, I'm all all over a good deal. Guess that's what I get for deciding to stay home and be a mommy. James tells me it's my job at home to find the good deals, and I can live with that. Here are just a couple of the deals I found over the summer, and I have to say 'made' my day.

Any of you that know my husband, know he LOVES his Dr. Pepper. I found this awesome deal at Albertson's and literally loaded up. I got all of this (minus a couple of cases I gave to a friend who was with me) for $7.20. YEP! It comes out to be less than a penny a can. Now if I can just convince him to fill his mug at work with these cans. That will save us approximately $14.00 a month for a whole year. Which comes out to be almost $170 for the year. Crazy!

James laughs when he finds these random photos on my camera, but what can I say...I get a little excited about saving money. I told him I'd be rich if I got to keep all the money that I save each month on sales...so why aren't we rich? Anyway...I saved $150 on this trip and only spent $41. I have to thank Albertson's again for their great deals.

Now for the 'No' Deal part. All 7 Albertson's stores in Utah have been sold out to Associated foods. Darn it! Associated foods does have overall good prices, but not like the stock up prices that Albertson's has given my family for the last couple of years. I'll just have to get more creative in getting things for free.

Oregon Trip

In August we went to Oregon for a week and a half. We did our annual family trip with my dad's family. We all load up or camp trailers and hit the road. This year we were lucky enough to get Connie and Mike to join our craziness AND my cousins from Washington came down at the end. We're so glad they all decided to tag a long.
Our first adventure was Crater Lake. This place was beautiful and one of my favorite things here was a tiny island...called 'Wizard Island' (there's a pic below). We also got to go walk up a mountain of lava and go through a lava tunnel. It was cold and dark, but I'd highly recommend it. So fun! We wished we'd had a better lantern than our little flashlights, but it all worked out.
The ocean is one of my favorite places. I don't care if it's cold or warm...I'm gettin' in. The sounds of the ocean are so calming and relaxing. Braxton had a blast here. The tide was coming in so fast we would almost get his name written in the water and then the waves would be starting to wash it away. After the ocean, we went to see the Sea Lion caves. Very cool, but very expensive too.
This trip was definitely the climax of our summer. We love getting together with family that we don't get to see very often. AND...what we really enjoy is sitting around the campfire with them all and just hanging out. This is where the best memories are made.

Oquirrh Temple

Sorry I post so many pictures with every post. I take way too many pictures, but love having all of our memories recorded for us. This little adventure was to the Oquirrh Temple Open house. We love living in Utah and being so close to all of the happenings of the church that take place so close to us. We are very blessed to live where we do! It was pretty cool to be standing in one place and be able to see three temples all at once. Thank you President Hinckley for being so inspired.

Here's our little family in front of the temple after the open house. Braxton thought the temple was cool, but didn't quite follow the whole concept of things. He started to get a little bored towards the end...not wanting to stay on the walkways...and wanting to wander and explore. But I can't complain...I did too! Now don't get me wrong, but I didn't think this temple was as 'fancy' as all of the others I've been in. I had just been to the Draper Open house a month or two before with our Young Women and thought that temple was absolutely beautiful. This one just seemed to be more plain...and quite frankly maybe that's more how it should be...

Braxton posing with his daddy!

Braxton loves giving hugs and I wasn't about to pass this one up.

Summer Fun!

Braxton wanted to have some friends over for a pool party. We set up his new pool in the backyard and had the kids come over and play for a bit. It was busy, but still a lot of fun for the moms.

Braxton chillin' with Kenzie!

Samantha is always on the run...it was hard to get a picture of her.

Brynlie thought it was great fun to try and drown herself. She found the deepest part of the pool and would slide down into the water. She thought it was hilarious, as we all panicked to get her back up. Kenzie has been playing at our house since she was pretty little ...she's like a big sister to Braxton.

Pioneer Day

Me and my awesome little sister Ashley!

Grandma with here cool pops for the kids. They LOVE her!

Every year we got together at my dad's house for dinner and do some fireworks. It's been tradition to hang out here for most of July...at least that's what it seems. We ate and hung out for a while before we went outside. Braxton and I were in a little bit of a hurry this year because I wanted to take him down to Willow Park for the fireworks they were having down there...what a waste. I can't believe that the city even wasted their time and resources for 10 minutes worth of fireworks. They started and then they were OVER...just that quick. We met up with James who was directing traffic for a couple of minutes and then he had to take off.

Camping in July

We only went camping once in July with all of the holiday stuff going on. This is the second year we've gone camping with the Vernon Clan. We absolutely love hanging out with these guys. We stayed at Beaver Mountain this year and then drove down to Bear Lake for the day.

I think this picture of Braxton is so cute. He is always so happy and fun to be around. I thought he'd be more leary of the water than he was. He got right in and had a blast with the girls. They'd drag him out on the float toys and bring him back, but he'd get one of them to take him back out.

This was so fun to watch! James had built a sand castle using the bucket. He'd fill it all the way up, pack it down, and then dump it out leaving the sand standing. Braxton was fascinated by this. He would get his shovel and dump some sand into it and dump it out, but he didn't fill it all the way up or pack it down. He couldn't figure out how to make it work...we had so much fun watching him try to figure it out.

Before we came home, we hurried up to Bloomington Lake. Braxton was a little sad since he'd just burned his hand on our trailer, but he was a trooper. We watched people on the rope swing and the Vernon's hiked around to the other side of the lake to swim and play on a log. We hiked down on our own and met up with them at LaBeau's for lunch. I love how beautiful it is up there and I'm surprised to hear that so many people have never been up there.

Swim Lessons

We put Braxton in swim lessons this year for the first time and he was in a class of all boys. He did awesome the first day. He was the only one who jumped to his coach and thought it was pretty cool. The second day the pool was a lot cooler and he didn't really LOVE it like he did the first day. There were days that he would cling to me and not want me to leave him, but as soon as he got in the water with his coach he did great! I think it was more about the temperature of the water than anything else. He definitely hates water getting in his face...so we're working on this.
Braxton's favorite part was doing bunny ears as he hopped through the water. They taught the class to slide their hands up and then point them out. They taught the class to say, "Slide 'em up, Shoot 'em out, Push 'em down!" Braxton was so cute doing this that they would make him repeat it so they could hear him say it again. The instructors thought he was hilarious.
On the days he had lessons, we tried to go swimming afterward. We would go to lessons, go out to the car and eat lunch, and then come back in when they opened at noon. Braxton loved going down the slide and is looking forward to being able to go down all by himself next year.

Red, White, & Blue

July is one one of my favorite holidays of the year. Not only do I love the BBQs and family get-togethers, but I love the fact that we get to celebrate our country's freedom. I'm so thankful for all the men and women who sacrifice their time and dedicate their lives for our country. The fireworks are a great bonus too.This is me and James waiting for the fireworks to start at the stadium. We sit on the corner of the street my parents live on and take the radio with us so we can hear all that is going on at the stadium. James always has to direct traffic right after the fireworks so hanging out with my parents is the perfect location for him to take off as the finale starts.

We were waiting for the Hyrum parade to start. Candy wasn't quite the hi-light I thought it would be. Braxton is such a passive little guy, we had to guard the candy for him. He was learning the concept of candy flying through the air. He came home with lots of candy and we had our fair share as well...along with lots of fun freebies and fliers.

Here is Braxton at the annual 'Cruise In'. It's not quite like it used to be, but we have fun going every year. Braxton sits in awe as he watches the cars go by. We've sat in front of Carl's Jr. for years now and it continues to get more and more crowded on our little corner. We've started the tradition of getting a slurpee right before it starts. We were sad that Nana was sick this year and didn't come with us, but we hung out with Papa; and even got to see James for a minute before he started his long night of work.

Happy Anniversary!

I found this amazing deal on a trip/airfare to Vegas in June. Since we already had two camping trips planned in May, we planned our little adventure for the next month. We had a blast and wore ourselves out. We discovered the bus! I know sounds silly, but it was the cheapest way to get up and down the strip. We rode to Freemont Street twice. The first night we got there too late for the light show they have...so James wanted to go back again. We had fun watching an amazing artist there paint with spray paint. AND another highlight...I got to eat at Cheesecake Factory. YUM!

James anxious to get to our luggage. We had a flight delay both ways. Next time we'll just drive. We almost would have saved time and we'd have more fun.

Our hotel, MGM. We discovered a short cut out of this hotel the last night we stayed. Go figure! I think they said this place sits on 32 acres or something. The pool was divine...just like in the movies. I could have hung out at the pool the entire time I was there.

We went to see the show Ka that was in our hotel. I thought it was so awesome. People had a hard time following the story line, but I thought it was great!

Blue Man Group. Need I say more? James has been wanting to see these guys for years and we've just never done it. There show was hilarious and a little sticky...after I was sprayed with bananas. We'd go see these guys again for sure!

Rain Forest Cafe is one of my favorite places to eat. We've started going there at least once when we go. This time was more convenient since it's at the MGM. Yay! I can't wait to take Braxton there one day.

James has this obsession with taking pictures of me while I'm eating...ever since we were dating. I dunno! This time I set it up...not really...but I think it's funny the dessert sign is ironically above my head as I eat breakfast...that I found in the dessert section they had set up for lunch.

This was a much needed most fabulous get-a-way trip. Only the second time we've ever left Braxton. I missed him muchly, but it was good for our little family. HUGE thank you to my most wonderful little sister Ashley who took him for the four days we were gone.