Cooking and Yummy Treats

Let me just say, Travis is an excellent cook!! He lived with his dad growing up, and if he wanted to eat something besides cream of mushroom soup or frozen burritos, then he had to make it himself. So, needless to say he started cooking when he was quite young (like 8 or something!) Due to his years of experience, he is just a natural in the kitchen. Half of the time he doesn't even follow a recipe, he just whips up yummy yummy things on his own. AND....he likes to cook!!

Now, lets talk about me...
My mom taught us how to make cookies and things growing up, and when we were older we had a night that we were in charge of fixing dinner. So, when Travis and I got married, I was confident enough that I would be able to feed my new little family. I knew that I was by no means a chef, but I was adequate. And I did enjoy cooking.

Well, in the 5 years that we have been married, the majority of the time I wimped out and just let Travis cook. I cooked here and there, but Travis was the real "cook" of the house. I fought with feelings of inadequacy, but also just knew that if I wasn't in the mood, that he would take care of it. He is incredible!!

The past couple of weeks I have decided to "step up to the plate" and start being the one to cook the majority of the time. With things that I feel unsure about cooking or that Travis could do WAY better, I just have him teach me. And, it has been great!! I have really enjoyed it, and have felt like I have more worth as a wife and mother.

So, now to the "yummy treats" part of the title, fall is definitely in full swing around here, and with it has brought the desire to make yummy treats. I heard a friend talking about how good her caramel apples turned out, and decided that that would be a fun treat to learn to make. So I did!! And they turned out oh so good!



I also decided to make cake pops, which turned out pretty yummy as well!!!

An Early Christmas Present!

A couple of weeks ago, Travis and I were going to go for a drive for our date night. We didn't know where we were going to go, we were just going!! Well....

We ended up at the pet store in Tooele!! We went inside to look at the cute little animals. They had bunnies, guinie pigs, hamsters, birds, and some yucky snakes and things! They also had a couple of cool tortouses that just roamed around the store! They were aWeSoMe! Anyways, we have talked about getting a guinea pig for the kids when they get older, so we paid special attention to them. We picked out our favorite one, and asked to hold it. And then......

I fell in LoVe!! He was soooo cute!!! Oh how I wanted to take him home right then!! But, we had to walk away. So sad. We got back in the car, and made it to Wal-mart, still thinking about that adorable little guinea pig! And that is when we decided to just go back and get the cute little guy!

So now we have a new member to the Brown family. His name is Gus!! And....the kids LOVE him!!!
Reasons I love Gus:

1. He is SO cute!
2. He stays in a cage which means no pet hair all over the house, AND no messes(if you know what I mean!)
3. He is quiet!
4. He is small, but not so small that he could get sucked up by a vacuum! (Travis' pet hamster got sucked up when he was a kid)
5. He doesn't bite!!
6. The kids LOVE him! I love to see them happy!

Well that pretty much sums it up!!
And now introducing Mr. Gus Brown....

It's Time

I don't know if anyone even reads my blog, but I am going to try to be better at updating it regularly. I know it is important to document things, so I am trying to improve in this area!! Anyways I have decided to make my blog private. So...If anyone wants to read my blog, leave a comment with your email address, and I will add you!!

My Baby's First Day of Preschool

Parker started preschool this year, and he loves it. He gets to ride the bus and everything!! (which he also loves!) His first day was a little emotional for me!! I wasn't even sure that he would ride the bus, but he did!! I helped him on, and got him buckled in, and he waved to me and said "bye"! As I watched the bus drive away, the emotions caught up with me!! My sweet baby boy is a big boy!


Waiting for the bus.


Playing while waiting.


Mommy is a little nervous and emotional!


All buckled and ready to go!!

Two Months Later (Almost)

Oh my!! It has already been almost two months since the last time I wrote anything. So, I am trying to remember what has happened since August 1st. Well....Travis is home!!!! Hooray for that!! It has been Great having him back, but it did take a bit to get adjusted and get back into some kind of routine. The hardest part for me has been dealing with wanting so badly to spend every minute of the day with Travis, but not being able to due to...

1. His job, more specifically the night shift. Yuck.

2. Kids! Not saying that I don't want family time, but they have a lot of needs that require our attention.

3. Life in general. Life is busy!

It is ImPoSsIbLe for us to spend every minute together, but oh how I wish!!!

I LOVE my very amazing (not to mention very hansome) soldier hubby!! And I am SO grateful that he is home with me and our kiddos!!

Here are a couple of pictures of us picking up Travis from the airport.


Waiting for daddy to arrive.


Yay! Daddy's home!


Getting reunited!!


A Sweet reunion.


A happy family.