McKay was very excited to turn 4 years old last week. He has made sure that all of his clothes now say "4T". He had a great day by starting out with some cupcakes and singing at preschool. That evening we had a dinner of Quesadillas at his request. Then we were finally able to do some cake and presents. I would say that the highlights of the gifts included hot wheels track sets and monster truck sets as well as some new games. He also received some fun workbooks and coloring books which he went to work on immediately. The dot-to-dot book was finished after two days!
Family singing Happy Birthday over the phone
On Saturday it was time for the friends to come over and party. McKay wanted a Mickey Mouse Clubhouse birthday party. So, we played some Mickey Mouse games like pin the bow on Daisy, Mickey, Mickey, Mouse (duck, duck, goose), and find Pluto's bones. It was then time for pizza, Mickey cupcakes, and a Mickey pinata. At the end we turned on some music and let the kids show us their moves. It was such a cute group of boys and McKay loved every moment of it. 
Happy birthday to a cute boy with a sweet smile!
Thursday, October 22, 2009
Happy 4th Birthday McKay!
Field trips
It has been the month of field trips. First McKay's preschool group went to the firehouse. Carter happened to have the day off of school, so he was able to join us. The boys loved checking out the firehouse and trucks.
McKay also had a field trip to the pumpkin patch. It is one of my favorite fall places around here. There are pumpkins galore and some fun mazes, bean bag tosses, and blow-up jumping castles. They also have an assortment of fresh fruits and vegetables to shop from.
Carter had his first field-trip at the Littleton Towne Centre where we saw Aesop-a-rebop play. It was a play based on Aesop's fables. It was an intimate theater setting where the auidence is involved in all the action. It was so fun to go with Carter and his little class. Thanks to my friend Becky for taking McKay and Tanner. 
This week Carter had what is called immersion week. His immersion was called To Infinity and Beyond, where he got to spend the whole week learning about space. This includes field trips to the Denver Museum of Nature and Science and Fiske Planetarium in Boulder. He couldn't say enough about how much fun it was to learn about the stars and planets. He even made up a cute song about the sun and a planet mobile.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Another trip to Utah...
At the end of September we made another quick trip to Utah for Cameron's baby blessing. He is the first cousin on the Moreton side. During our short stay we packed in as much as we could. We made sure to get in a lunch at Cafe Rio, took the boys to Hogle Zoo, celebrated my birthday, had a BBQ, and went to the BYU vs. Colorado State football game. 
McKay at the zoo with the baby elephant
Two little cousins, Tanner & Cameron, enjoying the BBQ
Cheering on the Cougars - BYU beat Colorado State
On Sunday Josh blessed baby Cameron. What a cute and sweet little baby. It was a nice event to bring the whole family together. 
Holding baby Cameron
The whole Moreton family
Sunday, October 4, 2009
Bragging Rights
I guess every mother likes to brag about her children sometimes. I usually try to not "toot my horn" too often, but I am so proud of my children and all their accomplishment and I feel that Carter's parent/teacher conference maybe warrants a little bragging. This past week Carter and I both attended his "Dreams and Wishes" goal setting conference. His teacher's report could not have been better. Last year we had a few minor problems of crying and trouble working in groups. It seems that he has now matured and that those are no longer issues. His teacher said that he has a wonderful math mind and recommended him in the top 1st/2nd grade math class. He also tested at 97% on his timed addition facts drill and 73% on his timed subtraction drill. Carter has always been a good reader and loved reading, but I have worried about his comprehension. His teacher surprised me by telling me that he is at a fifth grade reading comprehension level and sixth to seventh grade reading and decoding level. But, even better she said that he is a "courteous, friendly, and quiet[hmm?]young man, and a pleasure to have in her classroom." I couldn't be prouder. For a reward we went a got some Cold Stone ice cream that night. Keep up the good work Carter!
Monday, September 21, 2009
Developing Skills and Talents
Carter set some goals this summer and achieved them right before school started. The first one was to learn to swim, which after two sessions of lessons and a trip to Grandma's pool in Texas we saw some definite improvement. The second goal was to learn to tie his shoes. This came right at the time school was starting. Hopefully this will improve the condition of his shoelaces. The third goal was to learn to ride his bicycle - training wheels off! This goal took an entire summer of bike rides and a lot of work before he was able to achieve this goal. He now loves to ride up and down the streets with very few falls. Carter is also beginning to learn how to play the piano. Here is a clip of him playing "Ode to Joy" in our ward talent show after a little big riding demonstration.
When it was time for the ward talent show we asked McKay what he would like to do. He told me, "maybe bounce a ball." This was a good idea, however, as we looked deeper into his talents we decided that his dancing and singing were pretty good. Here he is dancing to a t.v. show called Phineas and Ferb and then singing "I Lived in Heaven" for the ward talent show.
Tanner is getting big so quickly. He is already doing an army crawl at six months! I don't remember my other boys being that young, maybe I have just forgotten. We have to watch out now with what we leave on the floor because if he spots something he wants then it is only a matter of minutes or seconds until he gets there. He has also started on solid foods. He loves all the fruit that he has tried, but is not a big fan of squash and we are still working on carrots. Here he is crawling and then trying rice cereal for the first time.
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Thursday, September 10, 2009
BYU vs. Oklahoma
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We just got back from spending a few days with my family in Texas. It was great to relax, swim and spend time with family. But of course, the biggest highlight was the BYU-OU game. We were dreaming of a victory, but in reality just hoping that BYU didn't get blown out. The whole game, from the stadium, to the LOUD and PROUD BYU fans, to the atmosphere was just awesome. Definitely one of the best BYU victories of all-time.
Back to School
We are now officially back into the swing of things with school. Carter is a big first grader and loving it. When he arrived home from his first day I asked him how his day was and he told me, "Wonderful! Even better than Kindergarten." He then went on to give me a detailed account of his daily schedule. At Carter's school they do grouping, so he is in a class with half first-graders and half second-graders. We'll see how that goes, but for now no homework and he loves being back. We have a great carpool this year which means that I only have to pick him up twice a week -which I love! 
McKay started his preschool co-op again with some new and some old friends. He also loves it and asks me every day if he gets to go to school that day. He is one of the older kids this year and I think that he enjoys knowing all the answers. We'll see how much I enjoy the co-op when it is my turn to teach next week.
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
A Quick Trip...
Recently we made a quick trip to Utah and Idaho. My uncle passed away of Parkinson's Disease and it was a good time to be together as family. Due to the unexpected nature of a funeral we flew my sister, Michelle, out here to help me drive to Utah with the kids. It was a big help and enabled me to attend her graduation at BYU the next day.
Michelle graduated in Psychology
Lamont flew in a couple days later and on Saturday morning we headed to Burley, Idaho for the funeral. Even though it was under sad circumstances, it was great to see everyone. My cousins live mainly in Idaho and Canada, so we don't see each other often. If it had been under better circumstances it would have been more like a family reunion. It was a good time to reflect upon the importance of family and to support one another. 
Most of my cousins on my dad's side
Friday, August 21, 2009
Ward Campout
Two weeks ago we went on our ward campout. Carter and McKay had been counting down the weeks ever since the Father's and Son's campout. As it turns out McKay was a little under the weather on the day of the campout, but that did not stop him. With a little Motrin he was ready to go.
The campout was not too far away in the Golden area. It had great group facilities and we had a great turnout from our ward. I would say we had at least 25 families. In the evening we made dutch oven pizzas with some friends and for dessert made dutch oven cherry chocolate cake and homemade ice cream (the hand shaking way in ziploc). It was a lot of fun. Then it was time for some singing around the campfire. Carter and McKay are too funny. The minute it began to get dark outside they were ready to get in the tent and were begging us to let them go to sleep. After a little more socializing we finally gave them their wish.
*On a side note, Carter just cracks me up. That night at camp he came up to me and was holding a big stick like a cane and made me guess who he was. When I was unable to guess he told me that he was Theodore Roosevelt (Duh Mom, "I am carrying a big stick").
Anyways, Tanner did great through the night on a little pallet beside me (especially considering so many other babies were crying) and we had a great breakfast in the morning provided by the bishopric. The YW were in charge of some water balloon volleyball that ended up to be a lot of fun as well. Carter told me that he wished he could go camping every month! 
On the way home we visited the Buffalo Bill Museum and Grave. It was pretty interesting and worth the time and money. We did a quick tour since we were all pretty tired, but I am sure that we'll make it there again sometime.
Monday, August 10, 2009
Summer Fun!
We have had a very busy and fun summer since we have been home from our summer vacation. Here is a little bit about what we have been up to...
We had Reece, Grandma and Grandpa Larsen at our house over the fourth of July. We celebrated with some fireworks of our own and took in a Rockies Baseball game where there was an awesome firework show.
The boys took two sessions of swimming lessons which they really enjoyed. I noticed improvement with both of them. The first day of lessons McKay would not even get in the water, but by the end he was swimming away.
Carter enrolled in a soccer summer camp. Even though it was really hot he seemed to have so much fun. Once again it was great to see his skills really improve. He has come such a long way in soccer!
Both boys have been very involved in our library's summer reading program. They had a to read 15 min. a day for 6 weeks to receive all the prizes. One prize was a pass to Lakeside Amusement park. It was pretty ghetto, but I guess you can't beat free and Carter and McKay sure had a lot of fun. We are now working on the Barnes and Noble reading program.
And last but not least, I attended Girl's Camp with my Young Women for a day. I drove them up to camp and stayed the day with them. Since Tanner is still so small I did not stay the night - I have some great leaders who did. I'm sure next year, however, will be a different story. I have decided that I think camp preparation is almost harder than attending girl's camp and I learned a lot about how to do things next year.
Heading up to camp with my Mia Maids and Beehives
Monday, July 20, 2009
Family Trip
McKay, just happy to be on vacation
Tanner was a trooper, but got pretty worn out.
Our family vacationed at the end of June with the Moretons. It was so nice to have all of the family together. We went on a church history trip. We started by staying in Kansas City and seeing the sites in Indepedence, MO. We also took in the whole area of Richmond, Liberty, Far West, and Adam-ondi-Ahman. We even had some time to enjoy to Kansas City BBQ. It was then off to Nauvoo. The temple is so incredible there. It is absolutely amazing inside and outside. It was a highlight of the trip to do a session there. We enjoyed tours of the replica homes in the city of Nauvoo. Carter and McKay especially liked going to the blacksmith and the brick maker. They also learned how to make cookies, shoes, and even rope there. The next day we went to Carthage Jail where the prophet Joseph Smith was martyred. It is such sacred ground there and a great place for reflection. It was then on to Winter Quarters just outside of Omaha, NE. There we were able to go to the visitor's center, temple, pioneer cemetery, and Kanesville Tabernacle. It was amazing to think of the trek that the pioneers made across the plains. Here we were driving a similar route in our air conditioned car. We thought we were going to die of heat exhaustion just walking around to the different sites. This trip was a great testimony builder to me of the truthfulness of the church. It was also a great time to be together as a family playing games and having fun together. It will always be a memorable trip.
