Happy Birthday Morgan

Today is Morgan's 8th Birthday. I am so excited and a little bit. . . not sad but a little emotional I guess, because it just seems like time flies so fast when you aren't paying attention. I swear it was just yesterday that she was so small and warm in my arms and that it was just last night that she was keeping me up all night crying because her tummy hurt so much. (poor thing) Morgan is such a blessing to our family. She is fun and energetic and she love to give hugs and she will still sometimes crawl in bed with me in the morning. She is our little social butterfly with lots of friends. She is the one that will finish all her homework and then start the phone calls until she finds one of her friends that can play. She loves to do gymnastics and to jump on the trampoline next door. She is a great reader and she is very smart. She is a wonderful big sister and is always reading to her brothers. She is a great help to me and I love her so much! I am so excited to see what she will do next. I know that she will have a great future and I am so happy that I get to be here to see it and share it with her.

Happy Birthday Morgan!!

I love you!!

Morgan with Troy, Me and Mikayla at the hosptial

Morgan's first birthday

( I had to convince her that she wanted to eat the cake. I don't have to do that anymore)

Morgan had the best curly hair!!!

Morgan has the best smile

Morgan's first day of preschool

Morgan loves gymnastics

Morgan's next big step

The Ward Halloween Party

Last night was our ward Halloween party. I have to say that we have the best activity committee I have ever seen. They are great. They set up a spook ally to walk through just to get to dinner and then a haunted woods for the brave ones. (just a side note we are not among the brave ones) Every body dress up so fun although there are some that looked a little scary and the kids were a little bit nervous. We are so grateful for our ward and all the friends that we have made here. I especially want to thank Katie Lott for dragging me kicking and screaming out of my practically inactive funk. I am truly grateful. Here are some pictures of some of our friends in their costumes

Bishop and Sister Gray

Megan and Brent Castagnetto

Brandon Vonk (not the vampire I was looking for but oh well)

Me (my hair is done "Hairspray" ish) and Jaryn (the witch from Wicked)

Have you ever?

Have you done any of these? I thought this was neat. I kind of got to see what I have done in my life and the fun memories from doing them and then I kind of have a list now of the things I would like to do someday. I got this from my friend Mennifer ... Just copy and paste this to your blog and highlight or Bold the ones that you HAVE done.

1. Started your own blog 2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band 4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower 6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland 8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis 10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped 12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea 14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child 16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty. (ok most of the way)
18. Grown your own vegetables 19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train 21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked 23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort 25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping 27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice 29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run . (does it count if it is in your back yard with a plastic ball and bat?)
32. Been on a cruise 33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community 36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied 38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing 40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke . 42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant 44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance (Twice)
47. Had your portrait painted 48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person 50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling 52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud 54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie 56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business . 58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia 60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies 62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason 64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving 66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check . 68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy 70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar 72. Pieced a quilt. (Will never do that again!)
73. Stood in Times Square 74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job . 76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone (many) . 78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person 80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican 82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem 84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible 86. Visited the White House .
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating (Never, not even a fish)
88. Had chickenpox 89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous (she was a really old oscar winning acress and she Hated me)
92. Joined a book club 93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby 95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake 97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone 99. Been stung by a bee

What do you guys do on a Monday night?

So I ask you, What do you guys do on a Monday night? Family home evening (we do ours on Sunday, when we get it done) after school activities, play outside with the kids, go for a nice family walk? These are all things that I think would be a good way to spend a Monday night. Here and the humble Baxter home. This is what we ended up doing on Monday night. That is right, we play Guitar Hero. It seemed like all fun and games until riding in the car and I think it was Ozzy Osborn, could have been Black Sabbath I am not quite sure but both of my girls were singing along in the back ground. And then on Monday night my little Samuel started to play air guitar and head banging to the music. I am thinking now that we have definitely exposed our children to too much Hair Metal. I am sure that my husband would disagree, but I guess there are worse things, right? (please say right!)

Mikayla Playing Guitar Hero

Morgan Playing Guitar Hero

Samuel Playing Guitar Hero

Owen had already had his turn when I started to find this funny enough to take pictures of it.

Look What I Woke Up To This Morning

As I am sure most of you already know the weather people here in Utah have been saying that it was going to snow this weekend here in Utah. Saturday was cold but dry (we packed Troy for the worst when he went to the BYU game!) I was thinking that the weather people must have been way off!!!! Well much to my surprise when we woke up this morning. SNOW!!! And not just a little either!! I was really surprised how much it snowed. Usually the first snow storm is just like frozen rain that doesn't stick to the ground. The kids were really excited to see the snow this morning and then equally as disappointed when we came out of church today and it was gone. (ahhh fall in Utah) I love when the weather turns cold and all the family traditions start. I love to snuggle in the blankies and watch a movie with my family and make hot chocolate and bake anything and everything I want too. I am super excited for the holidays. This month is a big one for us with Morgan's Birthday and Baptism and then Halloween. So you will be hearing a lot from me towards the end of the month. Until then, enjoy a warm blanket and a cup of hot cocoa for me.