This and That

We had another wonderful week!! It started off with the boys trying to wrap each other up in blankets as "presents." They would then unwrap themselves and be a variety of different toys. Linden decided to join in on the action. He let the boys wrap himself up and when unwrapped proclaimed he was a robot. Anton and Zackary found his "On" button and discovered they were in trouble because they didn't know where his "Off" button was. They discovered it quickly, though, amidst squeals and giggles. The rest of the day, they had fun with the on and off buttons on Papa.

We discovered that we have a true Russet in the family this week. Our darling little Isabel REFUSES to eat anything besides potatoes. We started giving her rice cereal over a month ago. She did really well at eating that for the first few weeks. After that she did not want anything more to do with rice cereal. Next we tried carrots. They worked for one feeding. Squash was next on the list. She opened her mouth ONCE. One night for dinner we were having mashed potatoes. I gave her some. She gobbled all of them up and wanted more. The next day at lunch we gave her a few more of the leftover potatoes. She was one happy baby. That night at dinner I got some squash ready for her to eat. She saw the spoon coming and opened WIDE with a smile on her face. She closed her mouth and had the most disgusted and disappointed look on her face I have ever seen. She looked completely broken hearted. I quickly got out her potatoes and gave her some and got the BIGGEST SMILE. Hence we have a true RUSSET in the family. (She also takes after her Papa and Grandpa, potatoes being one of their favorite foods.)

Our darling little COUGAR,who eats Russets for dinner.



I've had a few different things keeping me busy this week. First off, I have the privilege of teaching the Gospel Doctrine class. I thoroughly enjoy studying each lesson. I learn so much. It has been so wonderful. All year long I have been looking forward to Isaiah. We are finally there. I am enjoying the challenge. Surely, there are those that know more and could share more as they teach Isaiah. I am working hard at learning and gaining a better understanding of Isaiah. It is wonderful. I love the imagery, symbolism, and poetry of Isaiah. What an amazing prophet. I encourage all of you to truly study Isaiah and feel of the great message he shares with us.

Next up, PLUMS!! I went down to my Uncle Andy's and picked a box full of plums. They kept me busy making jam and drying plums. I finally got them all done. During the time that I was doing plums my hands looked like I hadn't washed them for a few weeks. The wonderful purple skin had stained my hands. And now, a week later my hands FINALLY look clean, again. We also have lots of yummy plum jam.

I have continued running. I am now running two miles and doing much better on the hills. It has been a long process. This last week I got a workout in everyday except Sunday. It feels great to be getting back in shape and feeling the soreness from working on toning my muscles. I still have a long ways to go. With winter coming I just hope that I don't wimp out and quit. I have never liked running in cold, windy weather. Linden is also doing quite well with his running and workouts, better than I am, actually. He runs about 3 1/2 miles a day and then does sit-ups, push-ups, and lifting weights. Maybe one day I will start following his example.

About a month ago Mom and I started a new project. It is now finished. We got a baby quilt all made to send to Jimmy and Lin as they welcome their first baby into their home. It was a fun project to do together. I think it turned out quite well, also. I made Mom do the flowers. I stuck to the straight seams. And here is a picture of the finished project.



One of the best things about being a parent is the built in entertainment that we get from Anton, Zackary and Isabel. This week Zackary was particularly entertaining. One day he was playing with the little toy computer we have. He was pushing the different letter buttons and then repeating the name of the letter, the sound and word that started with that letter. He was quite proud of himself and knew that he was getting them correct. He would dance around as he said the letter, sound and word, acting out each, such as lion, dance, queen, etc. It was so fun to watch. My favorite one though was K, kuh, KISS!! He would make the biggest kissing sound with a HUGE grin on his face. It was adorable. The most adorable part was that he is pretty good at gettting the sound MOSTLY correct. He just makes the K sound a little like a P. Anton picked up on this and was repeating kiss with a P at the beginning, over and over. We had to explain to Anton that this wasn't an appropriate word to be saying. Children truly are WONDERFUL!! I am so blessed to be a mother.

Sunday morning we had some mini-Tom Cruises running around. Saturday night we had gone to a wedding reception and then to visit Jen, Steve and Sadie. We had a great time. However, the boys were in their Sunday pants. Needless to say they didn't stay clean. We ended up throwing them in the washer and then having to get them dry Sunday morning so they would have something to wear to church. (I know, I shouldn't do laundry on Sunday.) In the meantime the boys got their shirts and socks on and were enjoying running around the house as such.

Anton refused to let me get a picture of him on Sunday. (He was quite grumpy from being up to late the night before. Another thing I shouldn't have done, keep the kids up late.) However, Zackary was quite willing to pose for the camera.



After being gone visiting Mt. Rushmore, the Iowa Butlers and the Colorado Butlers Grandpa and Grandma finally got home. Anton and Zackary really missed visiting Grandpa and Grandma. So, we joined them for dinner and FHE tonight. Grandpa also missed Anton and Zackary and Isabel so much that he took us out to ice cream after FHE. We are glad to have them back home after being gone for a week and a half.



Until next week.