My Little Miracle

I just got home from the evening session of Stake Conference. Our stake president spoke about the miracles that fill our lives and the steps that we can take to more fully recognize the blessings from our Heavenly Father. Monday, May 3, I was very grateful for a little miracle that occurred in my life.

I had just gone outside to haul some wood inside when I noticed that I had a little boy that followed me out. I got Zackary back inside and Isabel was a bit fussy. So, I stayed inside and got her calmed down, fed and sleeping in the cradle. I was headed back outside to get more wood, but didn't want the boys to follow me out so I snuck out the back door after I got them interested in books AND Sesame Street.

It didn't work. Halfway through getting my arms full both boys were coming out the back door, wanting to help me. I can't forget to mention that this was a cold, WINDY, Idaho spring day and they came out without coats. To make them feel like they were helping I had them each carry a small piece of wood. After the three of us were loaded up we headed over to go back inside.

Unfortunately, the boys were trying to be helpful and locked the door for me as they came outside. I tried to get it open, but couldn't. I knew that the front door was locked up tight, I had double checked it before I went outside. What to do?? I was outside with two little boys without coats on a cold day, and worse, little Isabel was INSIDE!! I headed back to our neighbors house hoping they would be home and I could call mom to come over with our spare key she has.

Thank goodness for neighbors. They were home and let me borrow their phone. I called mom. She didn't answer at home, so I tried her cell and just left her a message. The next call was to the office. The secretary there said she was at the cannery. Hence, there would be no help from mom for a few hours. The secretary volunteered to go find the keys, but I told her that I had no clue where they would be or even remembered what they looked like.

Meanwhile, my mind is hoping and praying that Isabel was allright and that we will be able to get back in QUICKLY. The neighbors gave me a screwdriver and instructions as to how to break into a house. I knew that the back door never seemed as secure as the front door, so I attempted there first. No luck. I went to the front door, praying more earnestly that I would be able to get in. I got there and barely touched the door and watched it swing open. My prayers had been answered. I KNEW that the door had been closed and closed tightly, yet when I went to open the door it practically opened itself for me. How truly grateful I am that I was able to get back inside so quickly. Isabel was just fine, in her cradle sleeping, and Anton and Zackary didn't get cold from being outside in the wind. That was a huge miracle for me. There have been so many times and ways that our prayers have been answered, this is just one of the many miracles that we have in our lives. How grateful I am for a loving Heavenly Father.

Happy Anniversary

On April 29, 2005 Linden and I were married for time and all eternity in the Idaho Falls Temple. Five years and three children later we are more in love than ever. I am so grateful for this wonderful man that I have married. He is truly amazing. He is very kind and thoughtful. He makes me laugh. He loves playing with the boys and Isabel and is a great father. They love him. What a huge blessing in my life to also have a worthy priesthood holder presiding in our home. I love him so much and fall more in love every day. He is not perfect and neither is our marriage. Just like anyone else we are learning and growing together. I just feel extremely lucky that I have a man that is willing to look past all of my faults and see the real me. (I especially feel lucky that he doesn't care when I don't make dinner.)

Where Linden proposed to me February 5, 2005.



We have LOTS of family to help us throughout our married lives and raising children. Thanks to everyone, and all those not in the picture, also.



Hamming it up for the camera.



What a HANDSOME guy. How lucky am I???



All ready to go over the threshhold with my new bride.



OH!! She is so HEAVY!



We will be a Forever Family!!!

Isabel's Blessing

Sunday, April 25, 2010 when she was exaclty one month old we blessed our darling little daughter. It was a special day. Linden kept teasing me that he just might be "inspired" to give her the name Matilda instead of Isabel. He stuck with Isabel in the blessing, though.



Since we opted to not use my blessing dress I spent the week figuring out a patern and sewing the dress. I was going to put some baby blue gussets in the dress also, but ran out of time, so it is just white with the blue ribbon for trim. I was hoping to find a nice turquoise or lavender fabric for the gussets but there just wasn't the right shade so we went with my favorite, blue. I think the dress turned out well. It is hard to sew something so small, but I managed. I prefer blankets and such with straight lines, it is much easier. The dress isn't perfect but I think Isabel looked really cute in it. I also managed to finish her blessing blanket. I made one for each of the boys and now Isabel, also.



We had lots of family and friends there for this special day. I won't name them all because I know I would forget someone. Just a big Thank You to everyone for taking the time to come. It means a lot. There were also lots of others that we know wanted to come but couldn't because of time, distance or other commitments. Thanks to you also. We know everyone will have a special role in Isabel's life.

Mother and Daughter

We were thinking of using the dress I was blessed in for Isabel. There were a few reason why we didn't, though. Since it was more than thirty years old all of the elastic needed to be replaced. Also, Linden was hoping for a dress that was a bit longer for his daughter and I was hoping for something that wasn't quite so pink. The Sunday night before she was blessed we tried the dress on her just to see how it fit. Here is the picture of our adorable little girl in a dress that I wore 30+ years ago.



Here is me in the same dress. I dug out the old picture and scanned it in so I could share it. I was definitely more chunky than Isabel. I think she is a lot cuter than I was, too. (That is a great face I'm pulling.)

A Plethora of Fun and a Plethora of Pictures

I am still playing catch up. Although, thanks to Edwin posting a new poll on the family website I have a new title for our blog. I might decide to change it again. LIZARDS won the poll, last time I checked, getting 75% of the vote. Only one other option even received votes. So for now it is LIZARDS: Linden, Isabel, Zackary, Anton & Rachel do stuff.

Isabel's first real bath (after she lost her umbilical stump). She was very wiggly and unsure of the water at first, but settled down quickly and loved it (hence she is sideways, don't worry I was very carefully taking the picture with one hand while the other was poised to rescue her if needed).



She is our sunshine. Thanks for the cute outfit Aunt Rachelle.



Anton and Zackary love being on the floor by Isabel, especially during her tummy time. For this picture they were asking to go outside to play, hence Anton has his hat and scarf on and Zackary has his coat and mittens on. Now they just need to get the four items together.



Anton got all ready for bed in his Buzz pajamas and then insisted on wearing my coat also. He then promptly fell asleep on the couch while we were getting Zackary ready for bed.



Zackary loves his baby sister.



Linden has fun fixing the boys hair. He is much more creative than I am. Here is an example. The boys like it when daddy fixes their hair. Luckily when he fixes it on Sunday mornings he does a nice conservative combing job. Even if he didn't their hair is so fine that it goes back to the same old flat hair within a few minutes of drying.



Bath time bubbles. Enough said. They love their bath time, even more when they get bubbles AND bath toys. Notice the nice yellow tub from the 70's. Maybe in a year we will be in a place where we no longer have a yellow tub, and a yellow toilet, and a yellow kitchen sink, and a yellow refridgerator.



Anton all ready for lunch. Taken the same time as Zackary was pouting (see below).



The day would not be complete if Zackary didn't show off his bottom lip at least once. This trick appeared the first day he joined us here on earth and he has now perfected the cute little pouty lip with big sad eyes with gorgeous eyelashes. I'll try to get a better picture that does his bottom lip more justice in the future.



One rainy afternoon we had this cute duck couple hanging out in our driveway all afternoon. The boys enjoyed seeing the ducks.



JAZZ!! We are Jazz fans in this house. Here is the proof. Even the stuffed puppy has a Jazz outfit to wear. Watch out for next year, Lakers. We'll get ya. Go Jazz. Thanks to Aunts Claudette and Brook for the outfits for the kids.



The three days before Isabel was born Linden decided to play "Waltzing Matilda" and nothing else. It was a constant song in our house those days. Linden was hoping that if I heard it enough I would consent to the name Matilda, if we had a girl. The boys now LOVE the song. It is one of their favorites. We end up playing it several times a week now, and listen to it several times each time we play it. Zackary loves to dance and insists on dancing with Matilda (a doll that we have that is named Matilda) each time we are listening to the song. Well, it has now morphed into dancing with as many dolls/stuffed animals as he can possibly carry. In his hands you can see Matilda is still there (the doll with the legs sticking up), along with a Cookie Monster backpack, a Tickle me Ernie, and a stuffed Cookie and Elmo.



As a couple of side notes, Matilda the doll is without clothes because Zackary refuses to let her wear clothes. Matilda has become Zackary's doll ever since we got her to help with potty training Anton. We named the doll Matilda so that Linden would feel less comfortable naming a daughter Matilda (obviously didn't work). And the last side note. I now like the song "Waltzing Matilda." This really surprises me because I had to listen to it for almost three days straight and then it was stuck in my head the ENTIRE night before Isabel was born as I was waiting to go into the hospital in the morning for our scheduled C-section. I couldn't sleep partly due to the anticipation and partly because of the song. For those of you that haven't heard the song before (I hadn't) we listen to Slim Dusty's version on You Tube. I would put in a link, but my computer illiteracy is now showing through quite brightly. So on You Tube I type in waltzing matilda, chose the one that has suggestions to the side and find the slim dusty version. It starts out with a guy singing the song at a campfire. Enjoy!!

My Easter Thoughts

I love Easter. The coming of new life. I love visiting the cemetery and knowing that through the sacrifice of my Savior I will be together with my family again. That we will all live again, being reunited with our bodies. How grateful I am for this knowledge. My words are imperfect at expressing exactly how I feel. I would like to share words from someone else. Words that have great meaning to me and as Elder McConkie stated, "True it is they [the words] were first proclaimed by others, but they are now mine, for the Holy Spirit of God has borne witness to me that they are true, and it is now as though the Lord had revealed them to me in the first instance. I have thereby heard his voice and know his word...

"And now, as pertaining to this perfect atonement, wrought by the shedding of the blood of God—I testify that it took place in Gethsemane and at Golgotha, and as pertaining to Jesus Christ, I testify that he is the Son of the Living God and was crucified for the sins of the world. He is our Lord, our God, and our King. This I know of myself independent of any other person.

"I am one of his witnesses, and in a coming day I shall feel the nail marks in his hands and in his feet and shall wet his feet with my tears.

"But I shall not know any better then than I know now that he is God’s Almighty Son, that he is our Savior and Redeemer, and that salvation comes in and through his atoning blood and in no other way."

Elder Bruce R. McConkie, “The Purifying Power of Gethsemane,” Ensign, May 1985, 9.

I also have some hymns that I love. I wish we sang them more often than just at Easter.

He is risen! He is risen!
He hath opened heaven’s gate.
We are free from sin’s dark prison,
Risen to a holier state.
And a brighter Easter beam
On our longing eyes shall stream.

He is Risen, Hymns, 199, Third verse.


O Savior, thou who wearest
A crown of piercing thorn,
The pain thou meekly bearest,
Weigh’d down by grief and scorn.
The soldiers mock and flail thee;
For drink they give thee gall;
Upon the cross they nail thee
To die, O King of all.

No creature is so lowly,
No sinner so depraved,
But feels thy presence holy
And thru thy love is saved.
Tho craven friends betray thee,
They feel thy love’s embrace;
The very foes who slay thee
Have access to thy grace.

Thy sacrifice transcended
The mortal law’s demand;
Thy mercy is extended
To ev’ry time and land.
No more can Satan harm us,
Tho long the fight may be,
Nor fear of death alarm us;
We live, O Lord, thru thee.

What praises can we offer
To thank thee, Lord most high?
In our place thou didst suffer;
In our place thou didst die,
By heaven’s plan appointed,
To ransom us, our King.
O Jesus, the anointed,
To thee our love we bring!

O Savior, Thou Who Wearest A Crown, Hymns, 197.

I know my Savior lives and I will live again, also!!!

What will it be?

Yes, life is busier with three children than it is with just two. First things first. I really need a new title for my blog now that we have a little girl in our home. Me 'n the Boys just won't work. I am open to suggestions. Please send them ASAP.

I was hoping to get this post done two weeks ago (I think that's when it was), but our internet was down for three or four days. So now I am finally catching up. We are loving our little Isabel. She is a very well-behaved baby. The boys love her also, sometimes a little too much. Also, Anton and Zackary learned very quickly that is hard for mom to stop them from doing something they shouldn't do while she is nursing Isabel. I am adjusting to this development, as is Isabel. Sometimes she gets set down in the middle of a feeding so I can referee her two brothers. She just patiently awaits my return so that she can finish her dinner. What a perfect baby.

A self portrait taken one morning during our first week home with Isabel. Linden took it with his camera. I thought it was really cute. Linden truly loves having a daughter and is going to spoil her.



Our first full weekend home was General Conference and Easter. We were busy. Linden took the boys to an easter egg hunt so Isabel and I could have some peace and quiet to listen to Conference. I am grateful that he was willing to brave the cold and SNOW and WIND. In the picture it doesn't look like that much snow. Don't be deceived. With the snow came lots of wind, meaning the snow was drifted. Anton and Zackary got a good haul at the easter egg hunt. They actually didn't "hide" the eggs for the hunt. They just handed out the eggs and prizes to all the kids that showed up so that everyone could get back inside and out of the cold.



Saturday morning while Linden and the boys were braving the cold Isabel and I were enjoying Conference and a visit from Aunt Leonora and Uncle Kevin. It was great to have them here to meet Isabel and just visit.



After the afternoon session of Conference on Saturday we enjoyed a visit from Aunt Claudette, Aunt Brook, Grandma, Shaun and Uncle Alex to dye eggs. Some of them turned out really cool. Sorry, no pictures of them though. As for eggs I dye, I stick with solid one color eggs. I know very boring, but also safe.



Anton pulling a face for the camera. I couldn't resist posting it. Sometimes he does the cutest face when he makes funny faces, this one though looks unique.



The boys at the table contemplating what color to put the egg in next.



On Easter we got all packed up and went and visited Grandma Nielsen and Grandpa and Grandma Butler. I was really glad to get out of the house. We enjoyed watching Conference (when we weren't refereeing the boys) Maybe next Conference we will go on a drive so that we can listen and maybe make it through a whole talk without getting interrupted to help the boys with something.

I found one! While at Grandma Nielsen's the boys had an easter egg hunt where they actually got to look for eggs. Thanks, Grandma Nielsen.



Hmm, where could another egg be found?



Are there any eggs under this tree? Luckily the weather was a bit warmer on Sunday so the boys didn't need to put on their snow pants, boots, etc.



Isabel in a dress on Easter. Since ALL of the dresses we have for her to wear are short sleeved we put a long sleeved onesie under it. It didn't quite match, but that is OK.



One thing I discovered with this post: It takes three or four times as long to type a post when you are nursing a baby. How grateful I am for little Isabel. It is so fun to have her in our lives. We are truly blessed. I don't even mind the more hectic schedule. I just hope that everyone is willing to overlook any typos as they probably occured while I was holding our precious little bundle.