Mari's creations

Happy Halloween! As you all know, i have a slight obsession with mini things...so I carved mini pumpkins! Aren't the cute? Its sad, but Chris and I are the only ones who participated. Way to go guys, way to let me down & not participate in family fun. Before you know it, we will all become "too busy" and all of this fun with the blog etc will fade out. Way to keep it alive. hahaha. Okay, enough of the guilt trip for the slackers! Im pretty sure Chris' skull is more artistic than my simple baby pumpkins, but I love them! But its up to the judges (and no ties mom!!) We hope you all had a wonderful Halloween, Im sure the kids all were adorable! Post some pics!

Alex Turns 1!!!!

As most of you know, Mr. Alex turned 1 on October 26th! We celebrated the big occasion by having a Halloween costume party with his cousins at grandma's house. The kids had a blast at the b-day party showing off their sweet threads! Here are some fun pics of the kids in their costumes.

Here is Alex sporting his Dragon outfit...ladykiller isn't he!



The cousins dressed up in their costumes...look closely and you can see Justin laying on the floor trying to be a "spider" and Jack is the turtle...



See....I told you it was Jack...



Here is our little family. Alex is supposed to be the deadly dragon that I slay (King Carver) while trying to protect Princess Lorena...



Dragon Boy chillin' with his buddy Monkey Boy...



Dragon Boy's wings fatigued....Princess Lorena had to come to the rescue...



I'm sorry ladies, this King is already taken...



The kids had fun painting their own pumpkins while wearing grandpa Carver's old t-shirts...hopefully they were clean :)

Oh sorry, I think my muscles were blocking KK's head from view...maybe I should slow it down at the gym a little...



All the cousins got to take turns releasing their aggression on a poor pumpkin pinata...which I have a suspicion was made out of steel (25 min. to break it).











Here is Alex's birthday cake...





This is Alex's personal cake that he could do whatever he wanted with it...



And this is what he did with it...the poor cupcake didn't stand a chance...



And this is what happens when you hang out with uncle Peej too long...





Love you guys! Hope you like the pictures! Alex (and us) missed all the cousins who couldn't be there...see you soon!

My sad, sad skul

Well, here is my pathetic attempt at carving a skull. The sad part is that this is probably the best pumpkin I have ever carved. But hey, I am the only one to have actually carved an posted a pumpkin so far, which means that i am technically winning as of this point. Since i am winning i guess that means I am the best!

Australia!!!

I finally have a free minute to sit and post some of the pictures we took down under!!! We had such an amazing time! We were in Sydney for most of our trip, climbing the Harbor bridge, visiting the local beaches, seeing the Opera House, and we even had time to visit the zoo (surprise surprise, Ammon wanted to go to the zoo)
We also spent some time in Port Douglas (northern Australia), where we walked the beautiful rainforest and had our first scuba diving experience at the Great Barrier Reef! Words cannot describe the beautiful things we saw, there's a reason why the Reef is considered the 7th Wonder of the World.
Cannot wait to tell you all the stories in person and show you the rest of the photos...but for now, ENJOY!!
love you all
Amms


Yay! Sydney!!!

This was taken at Bondi beach. All along the coast was a mixture of sandy beaches and jagged cliffs.

More Bondi beach.

This fountain was a gift to Australia from France (like the Statue of Liberty in the U.S., or the Christo in Brazil) I was doing a happy dance, because we had just arrived in Sydney before this pic was taken.

Looking upward through the canopy while walking through the rainforest. Beautiful, right?

Couldn't leave Australia without taking a photo with a Koala! These little guys are sooo boring, sleeping 20hrs a day. I was very excited to interact with the Koalas...what a let down!

Opera House view from the Ferry

We were literally standing INSIDE of the trunk of this tree. So cool.
Thats all for now! LOVE YOU ALL!!

Australia!!!

Halloween Fun and Trivia

I just wanted to let all of you know what you are up against with this pumpkin carving contest. Lorena and I have developed a serious talent for creating masterpieces over the years...and below are just a few examples of past creations...some of you might want to back out now...

Hungry? Why wait...



Most pumpkins don't have hair, but we were lucky enough to find one that did...and it also came with a hat...



This one is trying to capture what my hair occasionally looks like in the morning...



Pumpkin cannibalism...



Here is a recreation of Lauren's infamous "plumb" incedent in the back of the Isuzu truck...



Lorena was inspired to create this one a few months after we were married...



This dragon only took a mere 40 minutes to complete...



This one was inspired by Ammon and Cim's "chocolate kiss" experience...




Alright, know that you know that you have no chance at winning, here are some fun trivia questions to fill up your time now that you won't be carving pumkins.

HALLOWEEN TRIVIA
1) What was the most popular Halloween candy in 2004?
Choose Your Answer: A: Snickers, B: Candy Corn, C: M&Ms, D: Tootsie Rolls

2) According to superstition, if you stare into a mirror at midnight on Halloween, what will you see?
Choose Your Answer: A: Bloody Mary, B: Your Future Spouse, C: Your Death, D: Dead Ancestors

3) The first Jack-o-Lanterns were made out of what?
Choose Your Answer: A: Watermelons, B: Coconuts, C: Turnips, D: Pumpkins

4) Halloween is generally considered to have evolved from what ancient festival?
Choose Your Answer: A: Lammas, B: Beltane, C: Samhain, D: Ostara

5) What was the most popular Halloween costume in 2004?
Choose Your Answer: A: Spiderman, B: Witch, C: Vampire, D: George W. Bush

6) How much does the world's biggest pumpkin weigh?
Choose Your Answer: A: 245 pounds, B: 485 pounds, C: 685 pounds, D: 1,385 pounds

7) According to legend, a unibrow, tattoos, and a long middle finger are all signs of what Halloween creature?
Choose Your Answer: A: a werewolf, B: a vampire, C: a witch, D: a golem

8) How many pounds of candy did the average American consume in 2002?
Choose Your Answer: A: 6 pounds, B: 12 pounds, C: 24 pounds, D: 48 pounds

9) How many "witches" were burned at the stake in the Salem Witch Trials?
Choose Your Answer: A: Twelve, B: Twenty, C: Thirty-three, D: None

10) What phobia do you suffer from if you have an intense fear of Halloween?
Choose Your Answer: A: Phasmophobia, B: Samhainophobia, C: Wiccaphobia, D: Halloweenophobia



I have the cheat sheet, so I'll give out the answers when everyone is finished. Happy Halloween!

CARVER CARV-OFF!

Roll up them sleeve, grab a knife (& a cheat kit if you're PJ)and get ready to spill the guts! In honor of the season, I propose we have the first annual Carver Pumpkin Carving Contest! After all, we are 'Carvers' are we not? Anyone who wants to participate just has to take a picture & post it! We will have judging done by Mom & Dad (they don't know this yet..)the first of November! Now don't be lazy or lame, just carve a pumpkin & be apart of the fun okay!? I just want you all to know Im going to win, I know I am not known for my 'artistic' abilities like Cim, Crystal, or Ammon, but I have passion people! Just to get you all in the spirit of things, I will post my pumpkin from last year. Don't be afraid to try once you see it ;) HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!!

Spooner Farms

I have decided to officially change the name of this blog to Josh’s Blog. The way I see it I am the only one who is posting anything on here anymore.

That being said I wanted to share with you all some pictures of our annual trip to the pumpkin patch, Spooner Farms. It has become a family outing that we take every year, usually general conference weekend. As many of you know we are now entering into my wife’s favorite time of year and our house is starting to really look like something out of an autumn catalog.

Anyway we went down to the pumpkin patch between sessions of conference and had a great time. The kids enjoyed helping Jen pick out the different types of pumpkins that we "needed". There were lots of different themes going on at the patch, there was a kiddie corn maze and other activites. There was even my favorite, the pumpkin sling shot. I forgot to upload the photos, but in essence Jake and I bought 6 mini pumpkins for a couple of bucks and then there are these really big sling shots that you use to launch these mini pumpkins at these targets in the distance. It is a blast.

I hope you are all well and that you have a enjoyable holiday season! By the way you are all welcome to come to our place for Thanksgiving if you would like!! Enjoy the pictures!