Devil Dash

Dad and Bryton had been planning to run the Devil Dash for a few months.  It's a 5k mud run with about 10 obstacles and lots of mud.  I really wanted to go watch and to get some good pictures of them.  That morning, Tony decided to join them spur of the moment.

BEFORE

DURING

THE FINISH LINE

The boys sure had a lot of fun and we had quite a few laughs.  I was glad I could watch them, and especially glad that my car stayed clean, despite all the mud.

More from Fall Break

The best part about Fall Break was getting the undivided attention of Grandma and Grandpa Brown.  They always make us feel so loved/spoiled.  Because Kemp, Whitney, and Jacie came down with a killer stomach bug, we didn't even have to share with them!  [However, we would have much rather shared, because we love those guys to pieces too!]

Hyrum spent lots of time in the back yard with Grandma.  She would take him out there whenever his little self desired.  Now he thinks he's being mistreated because Mom and Dad just don't have as much time as Grandma did.

Grandpa always loves to chase Hyrum and tickle him and make him squeal.  They had a real fun time doing that.

We're so glad the Browns came to visit.  We can't wait to see them in December!

Jack-O-Lantern

We're not much into Halloween around the Brown house.  I think Halloween is one of those holidays where you're a fanatic or you're absolutely indifferent.  I fall into the latter category.  The ward trunk-or-treat is enough for me.  No decorations, no pumpkin pie (no pumpkin flavored anything for that matter), and jack-o-lanterns are just a lot of work.  Well, except for when you have an 18 month old and you think that a jack-o-lantern would be much appreciated.  So, the Browns carved a pumpkin for the first time this year.

We had a lot of fun, and it helped that we picked out a little pumpkin and therefore less guts...  And my favorite part was trying to get a family picture with our lovely pumpkin.  I love it when my boys look stoned.

Kiwanis Park

While the Browns were in town, we headed over to Kiwanis park and rented a double surrey.  It had four sets of pedals and a perfect little seat to strap Hyrum into.  We were surprised how much work it was to move that thing, but we had a lot of fun.  We laughed and chatted as we rode around the park on a beautiful day.

And we made sure to stop and feed the ducks and pigeons...because there are always pigeons.

It was a fun little adventure.  Definitely a must do on a beautiful day in Tempe!

Bryton's Mission Call

Bryton got his mission call.  It came on Friday.  He was so excited!  We were so excited!  We've been waiting for this day to come along...

He has been called to serve in the Nevada Reno Mission, speaking English.  He reports to the Provo MTC on December 12, 2012.  He has 52 days to be ready to go!  His mission covers most of the state of Nevada, some of northern California, and a small piece of Utah.  If you want to learn more about his mission, you can check out the mission blog.

Signed by the prophet, Thomas S. Monson.

Congratulations, Elder Shinkle!  You're going to make an excellent missionary.  We're so excited for you!  Serve with all your heart, might, mind, and strength!

Schnepf Farms

Grandma and Grandpa Brown are in town for October break and we are just party party partyin'.  We're so glad they came.  We love them so much.  We love playing board games and laughing and eating.  Hyrum gets spoiled by Grandma, who takes him outside whenever his heart pleases him.  And that's a lot.

On Friday night we went out to Schnepf Farms.  We had never been before and were very impressed.

I think I made a great pig and Hyrum is the cutest cow I ever did see.

They had all sorts of little carnival rides and games.  Hyrum really liked the big slides.  The older folks watched a BMX stunt show while Hyrum and I rode the Bee ride.

They had a corn maze that we successfully got lost in.  Their corn puts ours to shame.

Hyrum wasn't too sure about the petting zoo.

Pumpkins were a big hit.

Grandma's favorite part of the whole night was giving Hyrum his first horse ride.  He had a good lookin' horse named Jack.  He did really well and even gave him a little pat.

Oh and I fell in love with these little face photo thing-a-ma-bobbers.  Hyrum is just the cutest thing if I might say so myself.

The Children's Museum of Phoenix

On the first Friday of every month, the Children's Museum of Phoenix is free to the public from 5pm - 9pm.  We took Hyrum, as well us Uncle Hayden and Auntie Brooke this month.  We all had a grand time!  It was crazy busy, but there were so many fun things to do.  It is tailored to kids of all ages!

Hyrum loved the 3 and under area.  It had lots of things to climb and places to run and things to feel and hear.

They have a miniature grocery store, complete with carts and checkout lanes.  Hyrum liked the bean scoop area.  They also have a pizza kitchen, a fort building room, and lots of other cool things.

This is Brooke and Hayden in the bike wash.  It was pretty cute.

We definitely want to go again!

A Whole Year Older

As I'm sure many of you know, the age for young men to serve missions for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was lowered from 19 to 18.  Young women are now able to serve at age 19, rather than age 21.  It's an exciting change and one that will eventually affect the Brown family!

Hyrum is the ideal candidate for this change.  He will turn 18 in April, graduate from high school in May, and be ready to serve a mission!  He practically grew up a whole year right before our eyes!

I mean look!  He's driving already!

Veggie Meal Gone South

We decided to try out what I'm going to call the "veggie lifestyle."  Hyrum and I went grocery shopping this afternoon, and I have to admit that it felt good to leave the store with so much produce.  When we got home we started on the recipe from the "Forks Over Knives" cookbook that was most excited to us.

Polenta Pizza.

We made some severe alterations, as in the only thing we stayed true to was the polenta crust.  We put real cheese instead of "No Cheese" sauce, used pizza sauce from a jar, and added vegetables that sounded good to us.  Oh and yes, we drank milk with it.  Pizza of any sort is just better with milk.

I'll call it a half failure.  The Browns do not like polenta.  Hyrum threw it.  Husband and I scraped the pizza toppings off and ate them sans polenta.

The toppings.  That's what saved this meal from being a complete and utter failure.  We had onions, spinach, mushrooms, tomatoes, and sweet bell peppers.  They were quite scrumptious.  We'll probably put it on noodles next time...or regular pizza crust.

So in the end, we're only out two cups of cornmeal and Husband is making himself some Macaroni & Cheese.

I'm not sure what to think of the "veggie lifestyle."

Going Veggie

I can't sleep.  My mind is buzzing.  And on top of that, Husband is snoring his heart out and I can't ask him to roll over because he has a terrible knot in his back and if he doesn't sleep "just so" he's useless the next day.

Personally, I like a useful husband.

Now about the mind buzz...At my community health clinical today we watched the documentary Forks over Knives.  I was fascinated.  They claim that by cutting animal products from your diet, you can decrease significantly, your risk for heart disease, cancer, stroke, etc.  They had sound research to back up their claims.  And yes, by animal products, they mean meat, dairy, eggs, fish...anything (or anything made from anything) that ever had a face or a mother or a father.  This is the closest I've ever come to "buying into" these so-called "perfect" diets.

No I am not going vegan.  I like milk and cheese and eggs.

No I am not going vegetarian.  I like chicken.  I like hot dogs on Fast Sundays.  Husband refuses to give up brisket.

But seriously, is there anything wrong with cutting the amount of meat you eat and increasing the number of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and legumes?  Isn't that what the Word of Wisdom says?

So I borrowed the Forks over Knives books.  They have hundreds of recipes and tips on making the change.  Now, mind you, they want you to cut out dairy and that means eating tofu and other weird things, but I want to try some of their recipes, just modified a bit.

Am I totally crazy?  I think I am.  Husband thinks I am.

It sounds so much more expensive.  So much more time consuming.  It sounds like I'm going to make us eat disgusting stuff like kale and eggplants and other things I don't know how to pronounce.  [I'm only saying disgusting because I've never eaten these things, therefore they must be disgusting, right?]

Change is hard.  I don't like it.  We'll see what happens.

Become As Little Children

Last night, Hyrum and I were on our way to brush our teeth.  At the end of the hall, we have a large painting of Christ.  As we passed it, Hyrum pointed and said "Jesus."

I was surprised, but it made me so very happy to know that my little one knows who Jesus Christ is.  Then I asked myself, "Do I know who Christ is?"

"Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven." Matthew 18:3

I know that Jesus Christ is my Savior and my Redeemer.  Through Him, I have an eternal family.  Because of His Atonement, God will forgive my mistakes.  I know He lives!

Just a few things...

Just a few things that have been going on around here:

 

1. We took a little miniature trip to Disneyland.  Dad, Keila, Keila's friend, Husband, and I drove out Friday night, played all day Saturday, and drove home Sunday.  Hyrum stayed at Grannie's house and got lots of lovin' from his aunts and uncles.  Husband's favorite part of the trip was when he left the park and went to Freebirds.  He brought some back for everyone.  It was delicious.
2. We ate hot dogs on Fast Sunday.  Usually Fast Sunday is the day you make roast and potatoes and salad and jello and as many yummy things as you can think of because you're just so darn hungry, but this Sunday it was "What's the fastest thing we can make?"  So Hyrum and Husband made chili cheese dogs and I loaded mine with mayonnaise  ketchup, relish, and potato chips.  And let me tell ya...they were delicious.
3. Husband is going to work 40 hour weeks at the airport over the next two weeks.  We're real excited about that.  It'll be good for our budget.  It'll make him that much closer to qualifying for a lead position.
4. I finished my pediatric clinical rotation.  I have one more test and one more day in the lab until I switch to OB.  I'm real excited about that rotation too.  I'm looking into finding a job in the NICU.  This includes volunteering at Phoenix Children's Hospital, getting to know some NICU nurses in the valley, and pestering the NICU managers to see if I can wiggle my way into their department.
5. Husband has noticed an increasing number of construction jobs lately.  He's been applying and has also had some friends recommend him to some companies.  We're glad for the TSA (so much better than Home Depot in so many ways), but we're excited to see where life is headed.  The Morgans come home next summer, so figuring out where we need to be is on our minds a lot.
6. Hyrum likes dirt.  A lot.  Also related to the dirt is our garden.  Our corn is doing great!  Everything else...not so much.  The most we've seen are a few pea sprouts that got dug up and chewed on by some kind of animal.  We're sad.