Halloween

 This year for Halloween, Cooper dressed up like "Sly Cooper" from the PlayStation game.  Bryce made him a staff and we rounded up some gloves, a hat, and a belt for him.  We made a little Sly Cooper badge to go on his belt and then painted his face.  He kept saying how much he loved having a "homemade" costume.  I thought he looked pretty good.  Clayton was Flash from the Incredibles.  He fit the part perfectly with his spiky red hair.  We had a Halloween parade for our ward and then took all the kids out to the Gabrish's neighborhood to go trick or treating.  They got to much candy and had a great time.  Even Clayton lasted longer than I thought he would.

Pumpkin Walk

While we were up in Logan, I decided I better take the boys to the Pumpkin Walk that is located in North Logan.  Businesses or organizations in the community sponsor these different scenes. They mostly use pumpkins or squash to create their movie or message.  Some of them are so creative and its amazing to see what they come up with each year.

The boys really like the "Wreck-it-Ralph" scene.  I took pictures of the "MASH" pumpkins.  They had like four or five scenes from the show.  I sent them to my dad because I thought we would enjoy them.  I also liked the ones from Princess Bride.  It seems like they get more each year.  It was packed as usual with many families.  Again, the weather was so nice and the kids enjoyed it.

Leaves are Falling all Around....

 One weekend, we went up to stay with Jocelynn and her family.  She took us over to one of her neighbors in Paradise and we took some cute pictures of the kids in the leaves.  The boys had a fun time on this swing and the background is gorgeous, just like their cousin, Twni.

 The boys have always wanted to play in the leaves.  This year, we actually had really nice and seasonably warm weather, so they had a chance to go outside and rake up the leaves into big piles.  I remember doing this as a child, except our leaves were from Oak trees and they were brittle and brown.

 They wanted me to snap some pictures of them while they picked up the leaves and through them in the air.  I think I took 30 pictures of them, but most of their faces were blocked by the falling leaves.  They did it over and over again.

 When I first came outside, Clayton had covered Cooper almost completely with the leaves.  I had him lay down next to his brother and then covered him up.  they thought it was neat to be covered with the leaves.  Then I counted to three and they exploded out t of the leaves.  They had a great time playing with each other and enjoying this Fall activity.  It was so fun for me to watch them have this time together to bond and create memories.  I love these two boys so much.

UEA Weekend

In October, Cooper had a few days off of school for UEA.  I also happened to be watching Jaden and Addey for a few days.  Steph was kind enough to set us up with some of her condos over in Midway.  We had never stayed in these condos before and we liked that they had an indoor pool.

Steph also got a room for Jacqui and Jared.  We went over there on a Thursday evening. We brought all of our luggage into our rooms, decided where the kids would sleep, and then headed over to the pools.  The kids had a great time swimming in the pools.  The only problem is that after multiple times of swimming in the pools, the kids had rashes all over their bodies.  Cooper decided that it would probably be a smart idea to shower after swimming in the pools.  They must have put a lot of chemicals in the pool, because by the second evening, the boys were bright red with these chlorine burns.  Bryce and I ended up getting some lotion with aloe for their skin, but that made it even worse.   It held the heat in and they were freaking out because it felt like they were on fire!

The weather was perfect on this particular weekend.  The kids enjoyed playing outside.  They did tricks on the grass and threw the football around a little bit.  We also took them on a couple of walks, so they could get some energy out!

 On Friday, we took them over to one of the big hotels across the street.  They were having a scarecrow walk along their sidewalks.  Different organizations made these scarecrows and they were on display.  We all went for a walk to look at them and the kids would be quick to point out their favorite ones.  We even saw some little goats on the other side of the fence.  We stopped for a few minutes to let Clayton and Cooper feed them grass.

After the scarecrows, we walked oveer to the indoor volcanoe. We went inside to see what it was all about.  I guess it used to be an active volcano many years ago.  Now, they have turned it into a swimming hole.  It was over 60 feet deep and the water is warm and it comes of from the ground.  They have the top covered.  It was a neat place, but very humid and very expensive..A lot of people come here during the winter to scuba dive.

 By this point, Clayton was getting tires of walking around, so I took him back to the condos.  Bryce and the rest of the gang, went up to the top of the volcano to look out across the valley.  Midway is such a beautiful little town.  I love the valley.  It seems like a peaceful and quiet place to live.

  On Friday evening, we took the kids into town to take a ride on the Heber Valley Railroad Train.  The kids were able to pick out their own little pumpkin and they walk through a "haunted" train. Here is one of the conductors for the train.  He was a very friendly old man but I know they he enjoyed his job.

Once we got on the train, it took us for a 20 minutes ride across the valley.  It seriously only went about 5 miles an hour.  It was not what I was expecting.  They had some teenage girls come in the train and dance for one song.  They were supposed to be dressed up for Halloween.  I was really disappointed in the whole production, but the kids somewhat enjoyed it, so I guess that is all that matters.

 Once we started going, we took the kids two by two and let them pick out a drink and some candy.  There was a train car in the middle that had snacks and drinks and all sorts of food that could be purchased.  They handed out pumpkin chocolate chip cookes half way thourhgh the ride. The kids had a fun time enjoying each other.  At one point, they all crammed into tehese seats together.

 On Saturday morning, my good husband went into town to by me some egg, cheese, and jalapeno kolaches.  He also got me a raspberry cheescake kolaches.. They were sooooo good.  The owner of the shop said that Texans keep him in business because they are the only ones that know what Kolaches are. 

 After we got packed up, we took the kids down to a bridge that was built for the Olympics.  It was made for the cross county skiers to cross the river.  It was a beautiful bridge over looking a beautiful river.  I really enjoyed the crisp Fall weather and the wonderful colors from all the changing leaves. I think we all had a great time on this trip.  It was nice to have bryce take a day off of work and spend the weekend with us.  

Fall Activities

A few weeks ago, Bryce took Clayton and Cooper on a ride up to Inspiration Point.  I really wanted to go but decided it probably wasn't the safest thing for me or the baby.  I was kind of sad to drop them off and watch them head up the trail without me.  I kept thinking that it just wasn't right that I wasn't with them.  Anyway, Bryce drove at a pretty good speed and they made it up and back in 3 hours. They stopped up the top for a only a few minutes because the wind was blowing so hard.  They had a good time with their dad!

Cooper has been working hard on scouts.  We have been trying to go through his wolf book to get some requirements passed off.  He has really enjoyed scouts.  He loves the activities and interacting with the boys. He has amazing leaders right now and they plan great activities for the boys.  Cooper was able to earn his Bobcat.  I can't stand the dorky cheers that they do in scouts, but the boys sure love them!

Over General Conference Weekend, we decided to plan a "Douglas" family get together.  On Saturday afternoon, we went out to Paradise to have Jocelynn take some family pictures.  Cooper also had to take some pictures for the Reflections Program at school.  Here is one of my favorites. Afterwards, we headed back to the Douglas to eat dinner, relax, and watch a movie.

On Sunday morning, I got up and made gorilla bread for everyone.  We haven't had this bread in a long time.  Bryce's mom used to make it on General Conference mornings, but hasn't done it in years, so I thought I would make them while I was in town.  We all enjoyed the biscuits for breakfast and then headed downstairs to watch the first session of Conference.  Its hard to concentrate on the talks when family keeps coming in and out and so Bryce and I decided to listen to talks on our Ipad.  Hopefully, we can get through them all before next conference!

After the first session, the rest of the family showed up and we all enjoyed a tasty feast of regular lasagna, sour cream lasagna, chicken lasagna, and tater tot casserole.  The weather was cool and beautiful so we ate outside on the patio.  After lunch and visiting, we attempted to watch the second session.  Afterwards, we all went up stairs and the cousins made "Owl" cookies for Halloween.  They really enjoy this tradition.  I just enjoy watching them and eating the dough!

National Pirate Day

In Mid September, it was National Pirate Day.  My friend, Kim, told me that if we dressed up like pirates, we could go to Krispie Creme and get a free dozen donuts for me and Clayton.  At first, I wasn't sure if she was kidding or not, but I got us all dressed up and we headed over to the Donut shop.  There were lots of pirates heading in and out of the store.  We went in and they handed Clayton and I each our very own box of glazed donuts. What an awesome deal! And, the donuts were great! Clatyon looked so cute all dressed up but he did not appreciate the earring!

Clayton's 4th Birthday

This year we really wanted to find something for Clayton to ride. In the past, he has enjoyed riding the red little wiggle car and he is really fast on it.  But, his legs are starting to grow a little bit and it makes it more difficult for him to peddle with his legs.  Also, he kept putting holes in the toes of his shoes because he would drag his feet.  We discussed getting him a small bike with training wheels or a Big Wheel. We ended up finding this balance bike in Salt Lake for $50.  It is a really nice bike and he was so excited when he got it on his birthday!

This year, we decide to have a small friend party for Clayton.  I invited the kids that he plays with the most. This included Hudson Leff, Landon Gabrish, Zane Allen, Ember Lythgoe and Jaxson Casebolt.  We took the kids to McDonalds for lunch, cake and ice cream.

Each kid got to pick out a Happy Meal and they all loved the toys they received.  After the kids attempted to eat, they played on the play equipment and then we busted out the ice cream and cake.  After singing to Clayton, he blew out his candles.  He had a hard time blowing them out, so Dad helped him.

This year Clayton wanted a "Henry Hugglemonster" cake.  I enjoyed making the cake and had lots of help from my big birthday boy.  He mixed the colors for the frosting and helped me with the ingredients for the cake.

Daddy was out trying to get his Landcruiser started.  He took for a small ride in the back yard.  Clayton got to ride with him.  This is the first time he has driven the vehicle in over 10 years.  You can see the excitement on both of their faces.

On Clayton's birthday night, he, Cooper, and Dad wrestled till 11 pm.  They had a fun time rolling around on the floor and fighting each other.  Clayton thought he was the winner! Happy Birthday to my big 4 year old. It has been four wonderful years with this energetic guy in our home.  He brings so much happiness and joy into our family.  We are so blessed to have him as our son and brother! Love you Clayton Douglas!