OR ELSE....

The title of this post is because that's basically the gist of what my Mom said when it was Sunday, the day after Halloween, and I had not posted pictures of Morgan from Halloween yet! So I am doing it pronto, in order to avoid finding out what the end result of the "or else" threat from my Mom might be :)

Halloween for us started at the Mangum's party, it is always so much fun and this year it was a full week before Halloween, so it got us geared up and excited a whole week in advance! There were loads of fun things there, like a pinata and donuts on a string. Morgan and I had to go solo for most of it, because JD was working.

Morgan and I went as Pongo and Cruella DeVille from 101 Dalmatians

Taking her whack at the pinata



Okay, so I felt HORRIBLE playing this game cause I felt like I was just teasing her with the donut! But eventually she got the idea and it was fun...at least I think she had fun!

It was so great because JD had the first Monday night off that he has had in a LONG LONG time so we got to carve pumpkins for family night and it was so much fun to be able to spend a little family time together!

Morgan was just yelling and laughing so hard because of the squishy pumpkin insides!

But then she got down to business!

I love this picture because she was concentrating so hard to paint that little pumpkin :)

JD decided he knew a better way to do this than using our prehistoric tools. He got out the Dremel. (what a man, eh? He's mine ladies...)

And we ended up with pumpkin sawdust!


This folks, is a rarity! An actual documented photograph of my existence!

Our uber-cool pumpkins transformed into jack-o-lanterns!

We went trick or treating with some friends of ours, and Morgan did great! She would say "Trick or Treat" and then she didn't even wait for people to give her candy, she would start grabbing it right out of their bowls! (we tried to squelch -is that even a word?- that behavior, but when everybody thinks it so darn cute its hard to teach her not to do it!) As she walked away she always made sure to say thank you and HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!

This last picture is just soooo Morgan.

Yep, that's right, she's eating two suckers at once.

And that my friends, is the only way to end your day after having one very, very, HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Our New Baby....

Alright guys, so, here are some pictures of our

HANDSOME LITTLE MAN!!!!!!!!!

This is a 3D image of his face...so cute and only half-cooked!

Here's a pic to show he is growing great and doing everything baby should do!

And, I have to tell you what the ultrasound lady said about this picture (she's kind of a funny/odd lady) She says, "Yep, definately a boy, here you can see his little penis floating around in all the fluid" Hahaha lady, niiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiice.

We are so excited to add a little boy into the mix! Now we just have to patiently wait for him to hurry up and get here!!!

7 days!!!!!

Okay, that is 7 days like EXCITED only 7 days away, not like creepy 7 days from the Ring. Just thought I'd clarify.

It is only 7 days till we find out if we are having another adorable little girl or a handsome little man! I can't wait. SO stinkin excited.

I know its hard to believe -and I don't think anyone believes me when I say it- but we really don't have a preference. With Morgan, things have been so awesome that welcoming another girl into our house would not disappoint any of us at all. (Actually, Morgan keeps telling everyone its a sister anyway)

On the other hand, if its a boy, well, its obvious why that would be exciting! And, since Morgan just doesn't quite get excited about all the complete boy things JD tries to show her (like frogs in a nasty mossy muck lake) a son would be great for him.

So, either way, we are just ready to KNOW!

We'll keep everybody posted...in 7 days!!!!!!!!!!

What now?

Like I said in our last post, I am planning on going private, but, I just needed to put this out there before I do that because I need as much feedback on this one as possible. So please, PLEASE leave a comment even if you think your opinion may not matter, or that you have no advice!
Here was my day today:
This morning I woke up, showered and left the house to go help a friend move. That, went just fine. From there, Morgan and I loaded up and headed to an OB appointment. Morgan was cracking me up, she was talking to all the nurses saying things like, "Hey Lady, what you putting that on my mommy's arm for?" (the blood pressure cuff) I don't think a single woman in the place was not smiling at my daughter.
After that, I did not get anything resembling a smile from anyone ever again. Well, there was the one lady who stopped me and said, "You are doing so well. I had one son who was just like that, and you are really doing a remarkable job keeping your cool." What elicited this from a random woman in Walmart? Oh, I don't know, maybe it was just the MONSTER my daughter had turned into!
People isles away were turning just to avoid us. Here's the scene:
Just imagine one sound, because if you were in the Prescott walmart today, that's all you heard : Morgan's wailing. One continuous wail that changes in pitch, but never in volume. JUST LOUD. Oh wait, there was another sound, me. And here's what I'm saying, "Morgan if you would just sit down- you need to sit down now- This is your last chance." This is where the super scream comes into play because Morgan wouldn't sit down, and I "helped" her into a sitting position in the store. So now its not just wordless cries, its mingled with, "My mommy hurt me! Mommy you tell me no!!! Morgan is so so SAAAAAAAAAAAAD"
So, I continue doing my shopping, at lightning speed, and of course there are the looks. The looks as I am zooming by someone that say, "Can't you control that kid?" And sadly, the reason for this post, is that I am afraid I can't.
When we were in the store, I tried everything. I tried positive reinforcement, threats, following through with the threats, bribes (eek), flicking her mouth for her back talk....And still, I know there is one thing I didn't try. Spanking.
I just... uhhh...I just don't like it. Its not that I judge anybody else who does it, I just keep it in reserve. Morgan has been spanked twice. Once when she ran away in a parking lot and once when she took off into the street. So, basically, I try not to do it unless it is a situation that if repeated, could have a major repercussion.
Yet...the last few days she has run this house. When I do assert my authority over her, its a disaster. She goes to her room for a punishment and even as I am dragging her there, she is laughing. Once she's in there, she's singing Wheels on the Bus or something else that just floats to my ears as a taunt, "I'm happy in here, and I'm not learning a darn thing."
I guess my biggest problem with the whole spanking idea is that I do not want Morgan to obey out of fear. I don't want her to be good because, if she's not, she's ending up with a raw rear end. To put it as simply as I can, Fear is not an emotion from our Heavenly Father. I don't want to use it while I'm raising my kids, I would rather use love.
I was talking to a friend about this today, and she asked what was the worst thing when I got into trouble, and I remember it clearly. I hated disappointing my parents. The problem now though, is, Can a two year old really understand that concept? Can I really expect for my hugs and kisses to somehow produce a child who obeys? I mean, when I say it like that, it sounds absurd.
Ahhhhhh, this whole thing is rambling. I guess I am just looking for some advice and every body's views on discipline and what the heck I should do next.

GOING PRIVATE

I have been thinking about this a lot lately and I just feel like Morgan is getting too old for me to safely have her pictures out on the internet for everyone to see. I just don't want to have to monitor what stuff I am putting on here, if I want to put a swimsuit picture, or a bathtub picture, then I want to be able to do it and know that its safe, and that she is safe. I'd rather monitor who's looking at our blog over what I'm putting on it. It makes me so sad that we live in a time when we have to be worrying about this kind of stuff :(
Anyhow, if you still would like to read it, I am planning on creating a grouping in my email of anyone who is interested so that I can just send out a mass email when we update since I know the updater things on Blogger don't work if you are classified as private. So, if you would like to keep up with us, send me an email to brytani_m@hotmail.com.
I really hope this works out and I am not losing too many friends because of it!

Start Your Engines!

Start your Engines! Rev it up! Thats right everybody, get ready for the

TERRITORIAL 500!!!!!

The Territorial 500 is my favorite ward activity of the year. It does everything a ward activity should: Promotes family time, fills your belly, and is SO MUCH FUN.

Here's the premise: You spend time together as a family making your car. It starts a cardboard box, then magically transforms into a racing machine. (Flintstone style)

Then, you go riding along in your automobile all the way to the church, where they divide the races up into:

1) The Dwarf Race (nursery)

2) The Big Kids (primary)

3) The Really Big Kids (youth)

4) The "Biggins" (adults)

Then, you take your mark, get set...GOOOOO!

And at the end, they hand out real live trophies. Does it really get any cooler than that? Does life get any better than seeing your kid be SO excited for the tiny little dollar store trophy? Nope. Sure doesn't.

I love it. I love to watch all the little kids go zooming around the track and I love to watch the super little kids cut through the track because, seriously, who really needs to run in a circle? Oh, I just love the whole thing!!!!

The Family is of God

In primary this year the kids learned a new song called, "The Family Is of God" So, to make sure I am not the primary president looking like an idiot and not knowing the songs, I sing the songs from the program to Morgan when she goes to bed. The last several nights, this one has been hitting home for me. There's one particular line in it, that just gets me:

"God gave us families, to help us become what He wants us to be. This is how He shares His love, for the family is of God."

I just cannot describe how strongly I agree with this. I know the Lord gave us families not only to allow us to find the level of happiness we cannot get from any other source, but because as a family unit we can grow strong together. When President Bednar spoke to us in the Ensign last year, he talked about husbands and wives and our different roles. He said,

"By divine design, men and women are intended to progress together toward perfection and a fullness of glory. Because of their distinctive temperaments and capacities, males and females each bring to a marriage relationship unique perspectives and experiences. The man and the woman contribute differently but equally to a oneness and a unity that can be achieved in no other way. The man completes and perfects the woman and the woman completes and perfects the man as they learn from and mutually strengthen and bless each other. “Neither is the man without the woman, neither the woman without the man, in the Lord”

It seems like I have been thinking about the relationship between JD and I a lot lately, and all the thoughts have been accompanied by a lot of looking inward. As I have dissected our time together in my brain, I have realized there is one overwhelming need that I feel when it comes to JD:

I do not want to disappoint him.

Going back to President Bednar, I honestly feel like JD helps me to be whole, and his characteristics push me to be better, to "complete and perfect" myself, for him. When I find myself wanting to do something I know to be less than right, it is his hurt face I see. I don't ever want to be anything less than perfect for him.

And in turn, I have found that as I thoughtfully help JD, and he humbly accepts my expectations, he has turned from a bouncy returned missionary into the mature patriarch of our home.

When we live to complete each other, we grow into people we could never have been alone.

I hope as our children grow they will be able to see that this is what marriage is about. I hope that when they find themselves looking for an eternal companion, they are searching for someone who not only makes them happy, but makes them think, and makes them grow.

I know I found somebody who does that for me, and because of it, I couldn't be happier.