Normal....

Underfoot Says: I made my own sandwich at Joy School. I went to a baptism and watched how a baptism went. It went well. I put all my cars in a new bag. My trailer fits in the bag too, and I zipped it up.

Our week followed its normal activities. Piano lessons, Joy School, 11 year old Scouts, and our daily  habits.... One thing that is remarkable is that we got the kitchen floor and chairs washed and cleaned. Very  clean. We no longer stick to floor or the chairs. A common phrase in our home is “we are doing the best that  we can.” I’m sure we can do better and be happier - that is the goal we are working toward.

The rodeo is in town. The school district gives 2 days off of school for this event. On Friday we took a  neighbor girl with us so we could attend the temple together. Usually when we attend the temple, we trade  spots because the temple is so far from home that to pay a babysitter is expensive. We went to the Gila Valley Temple. We enjoyed being together as a family. Usually when we go together it is an all day adventure.

L4 and I have been talking about getting a new vehicle for him to commute to work. We have talked about  getting a motorcycle, a pick-up truck, and a car. The conversation has developed over the past 2 years. One  year ago we bought a new car for our family because the Honda Civic we were driving was having transmission problems. We decided to buy a bigger car rather than a small car because we hoped that our  family would include a new baby in the near future. Well almost one year has gone by and there isn’t a new  family member but we are still having the discussion about getting a more efficient car. We have started to  look at a Toyota Prius. We have not bought one but have started the hunt. We are looking for a car that will  get better gas mileage than a minivan, truck, or SUV that in a pinch can be a 2nd family car. So do you know  of anyone selling a nice Prius? Keep us in mind. We do like to take road trips in our family.

This morning we woke up to snow. Yes- real live snow. There was about an inch. It melted before we left  church today. We continue to worry about our citrus trees and we hope that the cold has not killed them. Correction from last week: Our friend, Adam, in response to L4’s reading of “Why Gender Matters?” by Dr.  Leaonard Pax, shed some light on the subject of the book. Adam is getting a Ph.D. in the childhood  development at Penn State. (Adam - PLEASE forgive if we have oversimplified your training. It is not  intentional.) He suggested the book “Pink Brain, Blue Brain: How Small Differences Grow Into Troublesome  Gaps – And What We Can Do About” by Lise Eliot. We’ve requested it from the library so we can read it.  We are learning so that we can be better parents.

Last thought for the week: Four of our five Ladies (our chickens) have started laying eggs again. We had sought out help to slaughter them. It is a good thing they are back to work, because otherwise, they would  have lost their heads.

Be Well.