Fun in the Sun and Snow

We had so much fun sledding today! It was a perfect sunny nice day. The slopes weren't too crowded and Eli just LOVED it. Last year we had to force him to go down and this year he was gung-ho about it. We went with my good friend Heidi and her darling girls. Winter isn't so bad when you have dry roads and blue skies and plenty of white snow on the ground.

Christmas Fun!

We had such a fun Christmas this year! Eli got spoiled as usual. We had fun visiting our families. We played a bunch of Rock Band and ate delicious food. We drove through a few snow storms...wait that was the crappy part! So here are the pics!



Here are our Christmas morning pictures!

Update:

We are back in Utah! Yeah.  I'm so happy and that sometimes makes me not want to blog. Being especially sad makes me not want to blog either.  I just have to be in the middle or "normal" as some may say. If I have to be normal to blog it's amazing that I have so many blog posts. 

Anyway after a 3 day road trip in scary weather and boring scenery we finally made it back to Utah.  I was so happy to see our families and Eli was thrilled to see everyone.  He still hasn't seen the Haights and that has been the only downside to his trip.  The positives are 1) a christmas tree. 2) presents under the tree with his name on them. 3)presents.  I know, I already said that but seriously he's going nuts about presents.  While visiting the Christmas lights on temple square, Eli was annoyed that we were going in to see the Christus statue AFTER making him sit for 5 minutes and listen to a little of the scripture story of Jesus' birth. He said: "we aren't here for Jesus! We are here to see the lights!" Ummm O-kaaaay.

This morning I wrapped presents for an hour and a half!  I decided it's better to wrap them as you get them.  I have to say that I'm getting SO excited for Christmas.  We have a big party with my family Christmas Eve and then spend Christmas with the Broughs.  It works out well and we get to spend a lot of time with everyone.  

Well that's our update.  We are heading back to KY at the beginning of January and Eli and I will be back to Utah at the end of January for good.  I hope everyone has a great Christmas. 

Countdown to Christmas

Last Saturday Eli told me that on Sunday I could tickle him, Monday I could spank him (soft spanks), Tuesday I could bite his toes (tickle bites of course), Wednesday I could hug him.  Then he told me that I can do those things over and over again and on Christmas I can do all four things!  So I guess these will be my countdown to Christmas.  I can't wait until the day I get to do all four things.  What do you do to countdown to Christmas?

Ramblings:

Tonight I watched Home Alone with Eli.  First of all I LOVE Home Alone. I think it's so funny although I like Home Alone 2 better. (Tim Curry rocks.)  Anyway it was SO fun to watch this show with Eli. He was laughing SO hard. He said "I laughed my breath away" and "I laughed so much I couldn't talk." It was also funny that he kept calling the boy in the movie "home alone." He would say "my favorite part was when home alone put the spider on the bad guys face." We had so much fun eating popcorn, and cookies and snuggling. The only part that he got scared of was at the end he knew that someone would yell "KEVIN" and he left the room before "home alone" got in trouble.

I love Christmas time but it's not as much fun when you don't have a beautiful tree to look at!  I LOVE a Christmas tree they are so beautiful and I think that mine is the most beautiful of all. :) All of the ornaments on my tree are meaningful and special. I LOVE it and I miss my tree.

This Christmas season has been awesome because I have not heard that damn Christmas Shoes song once!  It's freaking amazing.  I hate the Christmas songs that try to pull sentiment tooth and nail. "Where are you Christmas? Why can't I find you?" BLAH  

On the other hand I LOVE some Christmas music. 'Oh Holy Night', 'Oh Come all ye Faithful', "Silent Night'. YEA! I love beautiful songs that are about the true meaning of Christmas.

And my last thought for the night.  I am so excited to come back home.  My plan is to spend every second that I can with Eli and Stewart over this Christmas break. We have about 2 weeks during Christmas before Stewart leaves for a few months of training, and after this week and 1/2 of being without him I am going to OD on him.  

So there are my ramblings. Enjoy!

Christmas Letter 2008

Here is is in all it's glory! The Brough Family Christmas Letter!!!

Dear friends, family, and anyone we may have mistakenly sent this to,

Once again it is that time of year when I invade your homes with my propaganda, spreading holiday cheer and putting a positive spin on all the stupid things I’ve done over the last 12 months!

This year, I am writing the infamous (as in “more than famous”) Brough Family Christmas Newsletter from Fort Knox, Kentucky.  In case any of you didn’t know, Kentucky is the land that time forgot - if you listen very closely at any given time, you can faintly hear “dueling banjos” playing somewhere off in the distance.  Also, it is impossible to drive more than a few miles in any direction from the base without seeing at least 5 strip clubs, adult book stores, or less than classy looking pawn shops.

We’ve had a pretty busy year - let me give you the run down:

After enduring a few years of Becca putting me down because she was a big shot college grad and I was pond scum, I finally decided to finish my degree.  This entailed several semesters of online classes while I worked full time, and culminated in taking an entire online physics course in 8 days. 

I commissioned into the Army as a 2nd Lieutenant on May 2, 2008 and graduated  from Utah State with a bachelors degree in business and Spanish the following day.  The Army pretty much put me to work immediately, since July 2nd, I have been in training.

My first training was at Fort Benning, GA, where I attended BOLC II.  Currently I am with Becca and Eli at Fort Knox, KY, where I am attending the Armor Officers Basic Course.  This course has been fairly strenuous, both academically and in terms of field conditions.  I’ve spent many late nights completing homework.  Likewise, I’ve spent more than a few sub freezing nights attempting to sleep while sitting upright with all my gear on in a humvee.  By the time Becca sends out this letter, I’ll be in the middle of our “full spectrum FTX”, also known as “the gauntlet”.  Perhaps the most difficult aspect of my training has been trying to explain how it is that I am a Cavalry Officer, and the fact that I “don’t ride around on horses”.

Living in Kentucky hasn’t stifled the growth of our boy prodigy and developing super villain.  Eli has taken advantage of the wealth of knowledge and equipment here to develop his technical and tactical genius.  Most of this development has taken place at the local preschool, where he has organized his classmates into what will become the future political cadre of his regime.  Fundamental to his role in world domination, Eli has learned how to color inside the lines, how to read, not to run with scissors, how to share, and the importance of not butting in line. 

Becca Jo, mother of the future ruler of the world, has been happy to be living in Kentucky - mostly she’s just happy that she was able to quit being the apartment manager at the complex where we lived in Sugar House, Utah.  Shortly after we vacated the premises and she left that position, one of the more “interesting” residents attempted to burn the place down.  In any case, we’re glad we moved.  Becca has been working as always - keeping up her reputation as a great mother and wife.  Eli has been lucky to have a full time mother who takes him to museums and the zoo, reads to him, and takes him hiking.

We’ve loved the experience and the fact that our entire family has been able to participate a little bit in my training.  Becca and Eli were able to watch my class as we assaulted a small city.  They threw grenade simulators (baffling, since this is something that I’ve NEVER been allowed to do) onto the engagement area and after the operation, they were both able to fire a .50 cal machine gun from the gunner’s hatch of a Stryker (a wheeled armored fighting vehicle).  Becca took a turn firing every machine gun we carry.

It’s amazing to see how much things have changed for us in the last 12 short months.  As always, we look forward to hearing from all of you and we are anxious to see everyone one in Utah very soon!

Merry Christmas

Christmas is Coming?

Here was my Eli Says: moment today

"Mom I have something to tell you and I'm afraid you are going to be really mad."

"What is it?"

"Ok, but will you cover your ears because I don't want to hear you scream."

"I promise I won't scream."  I don't scream anyway! I promise I'm not a terrible mother.

"I actually ate more of those little chocolates. Sorry mom, it was an accident. Am I going to get coal now?"

Apparently Eli didn't learn his lesson last year.

Both years he didn't make it past the 3rd before giving in to temptation. This year he got his calender on the 3rd though so it shows he has his mothers impatience.

I personally think that Eli thinks that if he can open all those doors early it will be Christmas sooner.  He has asked about when it will be Christmas non-stop since Thanksgiving. 

Black Friday

I love Black Friday.  When I look in the ads and I don't see anything that I need/want I start to panic a little bit.  This year I did pick up a few little things. Like a Wii and an LCD TV.  The TV was an impulse buy!  I shouldn't be left alone with a debit card on Black Friday.  I'm not usually an impulse buyer but this is one day of the year that I can't help myself!

I went with my Uncle Larry and cousin Rebecca. It was a little hectic because the Walmart wasn't setup very well and nobody knew where things were setup at.  They didn't even have everything out that was in the ad!  But I got everything that I wanted and did some price matching.  I even got the last of 2 different things right as someone else was reaching for them! YES! That's why I love black friday. 

Thanksgiving

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving.  We headed to Ohio where Stewart's aunt lives.  We were welcomed with open arms and were treated like royalty!  Eli now thinks that he should get special treatment because "he's the guest." I had to tell him that he still has to share and doesn't get everything he ever wanted because at one point in his life he was the guest somewhere. I don't know if he totally understands the word "guest" but he knows he likes it!

The little kid table.

Stewart was in charge of mashing the potatoes. He is proud of the piling technique that he used.

The spread! It was all SO good.

We went to the zoo. it was so much fun. Here is Noah and Eli with the gingerbread people. Is that PC?
We had SO much fun on our little trip. There is nothing like being with family.  I can't wait to get back to Utah where we will be surrounded by family!

The Truth

Stewart, being the sucker that he is, recently bought Eli cereal straws. They are, of course, ridiculously unhealthy and the worst thing that you could eat after finishing off a bowl full of frosted flakes. Anyway, Eli had had about 4 of them out of one of the two packages that comes in a box. When Stewart got back from the field yesterday Eli was so excited to "share" them with Stewart. He really knew that if he shared with Stewart he'd get to have some himself. 

This morning when I woke up I noticed that the package was empty. I went to throw it away and saw another empty package in the garbage. Stewart had stayed up late so I figured that he had finished off the cereal straws and was happy that they were gone! Eli came in and asked who ate all his cereal straws. I said that dad must have and Eli said that he was going to spank him when he got home.  So tonight before bed I was giving Stewart a hard time about eating a WHOLE package of the cereal straws. Stewart said that he didn't think that he did and I told him to tell the truth. We were teasing of course. I thought that Stewart was joking when he said he couldn't remember. Eli started saying "Dad you have to tell the truth." Finally Stewart said, "I probably did eat your cereal straws. I'm sorry." At this point Eli said, "Mom I have to tell you something. When I was playing star wars I snuck over here and I cut the open the package and I snuck some straws." He had eaten them himself!  Of course he said, "Dad and I did it Mom!"

So that was a really long blog post for a story that probably doesn't read as funny as it was. I was crying I was laughing so hard! Poor Stewart began to think that he really had opened the package and eaten all the cereal straws.

Blogger Etiquette

So I'm wondering what the "rules" of blogging are?  Do you just add people to your list even if they don't know that you read their blog? Do you have to tell them that you are adding them to your list?  If someone adds you to their list do you have to add them to your list? Seriously, what's the etiquette in these situations? 

Blogging is so funny because it's like you know people that you maybe never even talk to.  I met my sister in law's sister through blogging and when I met her in person I already felt like she was my good friend. I'd never talked to her in real life!  It was so funny and strange. I have a lot of blogs that I read of people that I never really knew except through their blogs and now I feel like we are friends.  It's such a strange dynamic.

What are your feeling about proper blogging etiquette?

Proper Motivation

A good parenting skill figuring out what motivates your child then using it to your advantage. Calling broccoli "green trees" motivated Eli to eat them. Promising a glow stick motivated Eli to be good when he was getting pictures taken.  

So my dilemma was how to motivate him to clean up the plethora of toys and shoes that had collected in the front room?  Music usually works for Eli but I found something better! If Eli picks up or does any other job we assign him he GETS to wash the dishes.  It's so awesome 

because he loves to do the dishes and he does a good job too.  I love it.

My Wordle!

You can click on it to see it bigger and clearer.

The Plan

Eli's becoming a sneaky crafty little boy. While I was innocently taking a nap yesterday Eli came up with this plan to trap me.

Me1 is me before the encounter. The trap is set with candy in the middle. Notice the rope and pulley system with Eli at the other end ready to pull the rope. Me2 is me caught in the trap.

Before I saw this plan Eli asked if we could go buy the things for his plan. I asked him what he needed and he told me.  I said "no." Eli then showed me the plan.  I was a little shocked to be the prey in this scheme of his!  He then said, "Mom are you ever going to buy me the things to make this plan?" I said "no" and he said, "ok, then just don't eat my candy!"  Hmm I didn't think that I'd eaten that much of his candy!

Don't you love my hair though?! Pretty crazy.

Mammoth Cave

We have had a fun day today!  Stewart has been home yesterday, today, and he will be home tomorrow!  We went to Mammoth Cave and had so much fun. The bonus was that it was free because it was veterans day. We didn't know they were running a special so it was a nice surprise. Eli had fun in the cave and he was extra good because we told him that we'd buy him a deer stuffed animal. Stewart and I got hugs, cuddles, and kisses the whole tour!  I was told many times that I was the best mom ever and he loved me so much.  He probably was working on me because he knows that Stewart was for sure in the bag.  Stewart is the biggest sucker alive.  What Eli didn't know was that we already had bought the stuffed animal and had it in the car! :)

Once we got home Eli was so tired! We knew that he had had  a long fun day because he was manic. Laughing and crying at the same time. The crying was from my noisy typing because he couldn't "take it anymore." The laughing was because I had said something "funny." Poor little guy. I cuddled him for a few minutes and he calmed down, ate dinner, and went right to bed. 

How Posh

I feel so lucky! I am going to have designer cards for my Christmas cards this year! You may have seen the link to the right for a Christmas card sale. My friend Jeri designs cards and so I had one all picked out and was just waiting for my family pictures to get taken to order and what did I find in my inbox today?! A card that she made with us in mind! It's very cute and perfect for what I wanted for our "theme" Christmas card this year.

Oh I can't wait to send my cards out!

You should check out her website before the sale ends on the 13th.

Eli Says:

We have had a few good ones lately.

While racing with Eli tonight, I was talking smack about how he is slow and he was going to lose. He said, "No I won't. I have 2 things to help me! Mr. Arms and Mr. Legs."

While eating dinner Saturday Eli said, "my brain wants healthy dinner but my mouth keeps thinking about candy!"

On Sunday we were practicing the primary program. Eli LOVES talking in a microphone. After he said his part he hurried and said "I love my mom."  I hope he really does that in the program! It was so cute. After his second part he said "I love my dad." Of course everyone was laughing.  I am NOT going to encourage it of course but I'm not necessarily going to go out of my way to tell him NOT to say it. :)

Shoot there was one more funny thing but now I can't remember it.  One of my friends says that she writes her son's funny sayings on a post-it note. I need to do that! 

Edited to add: Oh I just remembered!  Eli has been playing Lego Star Wars. His favorite character is T.T.2.tar. That is his way of pronouncing R2D2. It makes me laugh every time!

Giveaway

My friend Jeri is doing a Christmas card giveaway! Her blog is HERE. She does the cutest designs and is so creative. She also is starting a photography business and is very reasonably priced. Check out her blog and see what you think.

Halloween was a smashing success this year. I love how the older Eli gets the more fun the holidays are. This was the best Halloween we have had and Eli had so much fun trick-or-treating this year. He wanted to keep going and keep going. It helped that we went with a friend from preschool so they could run around together. 

Eli wasn't so sure of his choice to be a vampire after I had put the makeup on him. He has decided that he'll be a ninja next year because you don't have to wear makeup when you are a ninja. Once he got to school and everyone thought that he was so cool he cheered up.  The 1st picture below is him not having fun before preschool.  The princess below is Eli's friend Grace.  Grace pretended to be scared of Eli so that cheered him up too. 

After trick-or-treating we went to a party that a family in our ward threw. Tonight we are going to the Fall Festival that our ward is having. This is the Halloween that we don't want to end!

Halloween Fun

As you can see we carved pumpkins finally.  Well we carved a little pumpkin that Eli got from preschool.  It turned out to be the cutest pumpkin ever.  He loved scooping out the seeds and he really liked how it felt to stick his hands in there. He drew the face on the pumpkin and I cut it out. It's a "ghost mouth with pumpkin eyes" pumpkin.  

We also made a spooky dessert. Eli called it "chocolate snake haunted stones cake," but really it was pudding and cool whip topped with mashed up Oreos, gummy worms, and Milano cookies.

 I have to say I love the picture of Eli holding the dessert. His skinny neck, cute smile, and raised eyebrows all are SO cute.

200!

I logged on to post tonight and I saw something interesting... this is my 200th post.  Pretty crazy. And what do you think that my 200th post will be about? If you can believe it, it will be about Eli.

Eli and I went to Dinosaur World last week. It was so much fun. Eli loved the statues... from afar. I tried to put him over the white rope and he freaked out. I tried to get him to sit on one of the statues feet and he freaked out.  He keep saying that he was afraid that they'd come back alive. 

Here is Eli in the head of a T-Rex. With 1 being not scary and 10 being really scary this was  a 3. Being on the other side of the white rope with this dinosaur was an 8. I was showing Eli that is wasn't scary but he still wouldn't be on the dino side.

Sitting on the dinosaur whose foot you can see in the background was an 11. The baby wooly mammoth was a 1. 

Love Our Enemies? Really?

In this scene a little boy is watching VeggieTales "Minnesota Cuke." A re-telling of the bible story about Sampson. His mother is sitting on the couch folding laundry. (Hard to believe but true!) The little boy runs to his mother with a look of incredulity on his face.

Little Boy: Actually, we are supposed to LOVE our enemies!

Mother: Yep

Little Boy: But that's CRAZY! They have spears and could kill us! They are bad guys! Why should we love our enemies? 

Some commandments are harder to obey then others.

*In case you didn't figure it out the little boy was Eli and the mother was me and I really was folding clothes.

Fun Times In Kentucky

It might seem like we haven't been doing any fun things lately but we have! Right after I got back from Utah we had a 4 day weekend and this past weekend we had a great Saturday out and about.

We have been to the Kentucky Derby Museum, the Louisville Slugger Museum (SO FUN), we went on a boat ride on the Ohio River, and we went to a farm and did a corn maze.  It's been SO fun when Stewart's home and we can go do fun stuff. Unfortunately, he's going to be out in the field this whole week! BOO. I think I will have to go do some fun things without Stewart other wise the week is going to drag.  

Another new development is that I am now Primary Chorister in my ward. I'm really happy about it because it's my favorite calling and now I don't have to go to boring sunday school. :)

Oh! the red car that it looks like Eli is going to smash was hilarious.  It had red glass stones plastered onto it. It was crazy! I don't know why anyone would think that it is classy.

Eli Tag

Thanks for the tag Deidra.

5 things I love about Eli:

(Since this blog is basically a shrine to Eli I'm sure you all know what I love about him but I'll play the game.)

1-He makes me laugh everyday. Today it was by saying: "I like snakes a little but I hate them a lot." He always contradicts himself in the same sentence it's so funny. 

2-He is loving and sweet. He always says: "I love this whole family!" or "I love you and Dad, Dad loves you and me, you love me and dad." He loves cuddle bugs and still gives me big hugs and kisses. 

3-He is so social.  He can make friends with anyone and loves to have friends. 

4-He is very worried about who he is going to marry.  He really wants to marry his Grandma Brough's neighbor girl and often wonders "what if she chooses Landon?" Yeah, he's already kissed her... well, she kissed him but he liked it and wants to kiss her again. He played at her house over conference weekend and when I picked him up I asked him if he kissed her. He said "no" then he smiled and whispered "I should have kissed her."

5-He has THE cutest BUM! And he pretty much lets me pinch it whenever I want.  He wore his footie jammies last night minus undies. SO CUTE!  I spent the morning pinching his bum. 

I tag Alicia, Stacy, Michelle, Laurie, Georganne.