We Live!!!

In order to appease my huge number of blog fans (I think the total may be up to 2 now), I thought I would return to the blogging world. Rather than bore you with an extremely long post describing the crazy summer that flew by, the morning sickness filled last several months, or the monotonous yet fun life of a SAHM, I will simply start fresh.

I recently celebrated my birthday (please do not ask how old, let's just say I am OLD) and my DH offered to buy me a new camera for my birthday (interpreted, that means that I would do the looking, shopping and purchasing of the camera and thank him later for getting it for me.) Thanks honey!!

After looking at several different options, I decided to take the plunge and enter the world of digital SLR photography. When my Canon Rebel T1i arrived, let's just say I was slightly overwhelmed. It had about a hundred or so more buttons/functions than my little point and shoot camera had. But, I am not known for giving up.....well, diet and exercise don't count....so I stuck my nose right in that owner's manual and started studying. Here are the results:

Ahhh, my sassy little gal.

Not bad for a beginner. However, there are SOOOOOO many things about my camera that I still want to learn about. If you have any tips, tricks, instructions, websites, etc. - ANYTHING that will help me move on from beginner to novice, I would love the advice!!

And as for all my blogger fans (I hope you two are still awake), I will try to do better and update at least once a month. :)

A Little More....

This is just a quick post, because I don't want to forget this moment. The other night we were all in the living room watching a movie and Kyle suddenly says, "I love all my family. I love Dad and Mom and Mason and Hadley." Then, he leans in to me and quietly says,
"But Mom, I love you a little more."
I still smile and get teary-eyed when I think about it. That made my day and I don't want to forget it!!

One Decade Gone!!

Like we all say...."Where does the time go?" My baby is ten years old now! I guess he's not A baby anymore, but he'll always be mine.

It seems like just yesterday....

And now.....
He was so excited to find this present on the morning of his birthday! He's been collecting aluminum cans for over a year to save up for his very own motorcycle. Mason had saved over $300 (just from cans!). We decided to pitch in the rest and surprise him with it for his birthday.

Happy Birthday Mason! We love you!!

Spring Break Trip

With Lynn's job it is really difficult for us to leave for Spring Break, but I twisted his arm and convinced him that we needed to take the kids somewhere, anywhere, for a couple of days so that we wouldn't be totally bored the whole week. While going south to somewhere warm was really tempting, I thought it would be nice to go to Salt Lake, see some sites there and visit my mom. Here's a few pics:

(Maya, Hadley, Kyle and Mason)

Tuesday night we arrived in Salt Lake and my mom and my aunt were so kind to watch the kids while Lynn and I went to the Jordan River Temple. We wanted to go to the Draper temple but were running late and found out that you needed to get appointments ahead of time because they are so busy. That was fine because a temple is a temple, right? It is always wonderful to be in the temple.

My mom took the kids to Chuck E Cheese and they had a blast. Nina and her family came down and played too. Thanks so much Mom and Aunt Carmen!

The next day we enjoyed a ride on Trax (exciting for small town kids!) and went on a tour of the Conference Center. Kyle and Hadley have never been there, but it was fun for the rest of us to go again.

(On top of the Conference Center. Windy and cold....)
We were lucky enough to see an apostle during our trip. Elder D. Todd Christofferson was wandering the halls and we also rode in the elevator with him. It's always an awesome feeling to be in the presence of a prophet of the Lord.

Afterwards, we visited the observatory of the church office building - if you have never done this, you need to! It's amazing!
(See the capitol in the background?)
It is the very top floor of the building, 26th floor I think. And the elevator is the fastest elevator in Utah - you travel a floor a second, maybe even a little faster. We want to come back again on a clear day - they say you can see the whole valley from up there.

(How cute is this?)

(I told you....the view is amazing!)

(Ahhh.....another cute pic)



(Like I said, it was windy that day....)

After lunch, we spent the rest of the afternoon at Discovery Gateway. A very fun place for kids, but a little pricey if you don't have a membership there. I guess all that matters is the kids had fun, right?

That night the kids enjoyed another night of swimming at the hotel (thank heavens for Marriott rewards - free hotel stays!!). For small town families, an indoor swimming pool and a stay at a hotel is sometimes all the vacation we need!

After some minor car problems (thanks to a full gallon of watered down gas - don't buy gas from the Chevron in Orem that is southwest across from University Mall!!), we made it home safe and sound Thursday night. It was a fun trip, but it's always great to be home!

The Answer is....

Ok, so I'm trying not to be depressed after all of your really low guesses.....:) Here's the scoop:


I watched as my total started at about $177 and then plummeted down to $54 and some change - it was awesome! As you can see, my savings was over $120!! And, I still have a coupon for free milk and two 10% coupons for next time, plus I will be sending in for a $20 rebate. Granted, I didn't pay as little as some have done in the past, but I was still super excited with the savings! Hopefully, as I gain experience, I can someday post an even better savings total! Thanks to everyone for playing.

Name That Total.....

As a coupon virgin (so to speak...), I have been anxiously awaiting the day that I could unashamedly display a picture of my great savings. The day has arrived! Without further ado (much to the embarassment of my husband and son), here it is!

How much did I save? Nope....not so fast.....I'd like you to guess. Comment with your guess of the total cost for all 46 items. Please take note that there are two packages of country style ribs, two gallons of milk, a new release movie "Bedtime Stories", seven boxes of cereal, ten betty crocker icings, eight bbq sauces, and more! I'll post the total in a couple of days. I can't wait to see the guesses!

Ahhhh....March is over!

Do you hear that? It is me, sighing.....March is finally over! It has been fun, hectic, exciting, crazy....it came in like a lion for me and is now going out like a lamb (unlike the weather). I guess I'll back up a ways and report on some of the events of the last couple of months - so as we all say, "beware of long post!"

Although it felt like we had barely put last year's Pinewood Derby car away, it was once again time for Lynn and Mason to put their creative juices to work. Mason made the design, cut out the car, painted it and Lynn attached the wheels/axles. I must say that I was once again impressed with the good balance of creativity and competitiveness displayed by father and son. They want to win (of course, who doesn't!) but they also enjoy spending the time together building the car.

Circleville Pinewood Derby - Jan. 29, 2009

After a long night of some pretty intense racing, Mason ended up with 2nd place! He was pretty excited and we were so proud of him - because he did almost all of it himself! We had a great time and were glad that our group doesn't go race at a stake level. :)

Valentine's Day 2009

Valentine's was fun, between the kids' artwork, gifts, Lynn's "heart-attack" and our favorite - sugar cookies! - we definitely felt the love at the Morgan house!


Kyle decided that he wanted to try out wrestling this year. Mason has never shown any interest in it - he is faithful to basketball - but I'm willing to let my kids try most things at least once. So, we signed up and attended wrestling practice - with a four-year old. If you're thinking that's crazy.....you're probably right!

I foolishly left my camera at home when we attended the first practice. It was the most hilarious thing I have ever seen! Kyle and his best buddy Jaden were excited to wrestle but they didn't know what that entailed! Needless to say, we parents were in tears from laughing so hard at the boys trying the "Piute roll", single and double leg takedown, etc.

Tournament day finally arrived....

See, there are other people as crazy as us!

Kyle did really well. He won his first match by default, lost his second match and then pinned his third man. He would have won his second match because he had the little boy pinned the whole first round, but they don't let them win the first round. Then the second round he got on the bottom and just couldn't get back up. But we were so proud of him and he had a lot of fun! The best part was the silver medal he received!

Here he is with his friend Jaden - proudly showing off their medals.

Hadley's 1st Birthday

I made it through Hadley's first birthday without crying, amazingly enough.

Here she is on the cute little chair Grandma Vanya gave her - which she loves!

Loving her new dolly.....

Thanks to all the cousins who came for the party!

Hmmm....she's not to sure about this cake.

Maybe cake isn't so bad!

Ok, so now, the reasons why I'm glad March is basically now over:

1: Circleville Elementary Spring Sing
This is an annual event that the school puts on. I actually LOVE helping with this, but it is quite time consuming. Each class picks one song that they would like to perform and then the whole school performs two songs together. So, that gives me NINE songs that I choreograph and teach within a matter of four weeks. This year was extra fun because of the songs they picked - and the kids did an AWESOME job! I'm always so amazed at how smart these kids are - they learn the moves rather quickly and perform them wonderfully when the night comes.

Here's half of Kyle's preshool group and you can see the rest of the school in the background.

Kyle (in the middle with the glasses) singing "Be a Friend" from the CareBears - he sang his little heart out!

Mason - we didn't get a picture of him doing the best part :( Their song was "Hittin' the Hay" from Barnyard. The boys had a part where they would jump and alternate kicking their legs out to the side - the crowd went wild during that! This was a super fun song and I got a good workout teaching it to them!

The whole school - they performed "We Rock" and "Footloose" together. Tons of fun, but glad it's done!!

Reasons #2 & #3 I'm glad March is over:
2: Region Drama
About a month and a half ago, Scott Bagley asked if I would be willing to help some students prepare for the One-Act Play competition for Region Drama. I stupidly agreed to (not realizing that I would be teaching two other things at the same time). We had less than three weeks to learn, memorize and prepare the play. Halfway through, one of the lead parts quit and I had to replace him. But, the kids were so much fun to work with and we had a great time. The play did well, but didn't make it to state. However, all the students who competed in individual events are going to State competition and two of them received medals at Region. I was really proud of them!

3: Junior Prom
The Juniors asked me to choreograph their promenade. I've done it several times in years past, but I was a little nervous for this year. First, because last year's promenade was amazing (great job Loana!) and I didn't know if I had much creativity left in me! The Juniors made it a little harder by changing their minds about their song 3 times! But, it went well, we had fun and the kids also did a beautiful job.

So THAT'S why I'm glad March is over! But.....now what am I gonna do with all this time on my hands? :)