And I say to myself....

Well mother nature has once again shown us who is boss (like every good woman). Just when I thought I could enjoy summer and work in my yard, BAM 49 degrees. So instead of cleaning inside, I sat down at my computer to check on a few friends. I should warn you now, I am already crying so prepare yourself!

I have a dear friend, Becky, from college, I hadn't seen or heard from her in over 13 years. One evening I got a call from our other mutual friend letting me know that Becky had been diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer. Immediately my thoughts turned to her husband and children. How can some one so young (my age) have something so devastating happen. Through the power of the Internet I have been able to keep close tabs on how she is doing. We also attended a fundraiser event in her honor back in April. I just have to tell you, she has absolutely taken the high road with this. She has allowed it, the cancer, to bring her closer to her Heavenly Father, her family, and her friends. When I just checked on her this morning, she had just reported on her mastectomy procedure. And again, I say to myself...... to young! Go here to see what an amazing person she is!

Over the last few months I have been able to spend a little more time with my sweet ten year old. She had a big year in school this year. When I say big, I mean BIG! Through it all we discovered that she may need a little help moving forward in her education. Some how the stars aligned and we found a wonderful program to help us out. It requires a lot of time and training on her part and mine. But as we take each step and level I can see what a wonderful talented daughter I have been blessed with. She is changing right before my eyes both mentally and physically. And I say to myself... pre-teen what?


She has also discovered a love for the guitar. Her guitar teacher tells me she is the most talented guitar student she has. Ellie surprised me the other day when she heard a song and went to her guitar and figured out the cording so she could play it.

I am sure many of you have heard, mostly heard me complaining, Tim and I are going on the Stake Trek. We were called as Ma's and Pa's. It really is a calling! So for six months we have been going to meetings and training and somehow the time is at our back door. In the meantime, I have been trying to prepare myself spiritually for this Trek. I have such an appreciation for the Pioneers and my ancestors. I am beginning to feel excited for the experience. Instead of complaining about my "summer vacation" being spent in sagebrush-ville Wyoming, I have realized it is going to be a perfect week for me. NO CELL PHONE, no computer, no tv, no distractions. Just my sweet loving and gorgeous husband and I spending all day everyday together! (Minus the ten children pushing the handcart) but still. And I say to myself.... Charles Ingles!

Last but not least, you may know if you are a face book freak. I AM NOT! But, if you are friends with my sister Giselle you know that she and Noah are moving back to Utah!!!!!!! I have been begging, pleading, crying, screaming, more begging, and praying that Giselle would return to me. Just when I had given up, the heavens opened up and brought her back. I can not wait for fall, BMDC has been growing and I have been killing myself trying to keep up with it. NOW the dynamic duo will take on the world. And I say to myself.... worth the wait!

These are just a few of my random thoughts while "enjoying" today's weather. And here are a few pictures of my adorable children because after all that is what I have been doing, being the mom!

AND I SAY TO MYSELF..... WHAT A WONDERFUL WORLD!

Beauty Mark???? and the Price of Beauty

Every since I can recall, I have had a "beauty" mark on my right cheek. With age, and a whole lot of sun loving, I had more and more "beauty" marks pop up. About four years ago I had a few moles scrapped off. It was NOT a lot of fun! On a scale of one to ten of thing I would never want to experience... it would be a 10. In fact I think I would rather give birth to all three of my kids again, with of course the help of modern medicine.
Over time the "big beauty" on my lip has resurfaced and I had to face the decision weather or not to have it scrapped off again or let it take over my face. (I can just imagine all my cute little boy nephews squirming as their old and smelly Aunt Jo Jo comes over to kiss them with her big ugly mole.) So in order to save myself some emotional pain, I decided to take on the physical pain once again.

This morning my stomach started spinning as I remembered the feel of the needle injecting numbing agent into my upper lid. It was by far the worst part the last time around. Since the mole and now scar tissue have grown into my lip. The Dr. made the decision to cut into my lip and remove it entirely instead of just scrapping off the top. I made sure Tim was around this time to drive me to an fro. If you can imagine the intense pain you experience when you accidentally bite your lip, just imagine the feeling of the tip of a needle going into it three times. (Again, wishing they made epidurals for your face!) My eyes did water up again and my toes managed to slice through the leather covered surgical chair. Tim choose not to watch the procedure, probably best for both of us! There was a point and time when the nurse asked him if he was doing ok. Even though I was numb I could feel the tug on my lip while the sutures were being put in. 45 minutes later I walked out of the office looking like a mummy. Hope the price of this "beauty" was worth it. Thanks to all of you for prayers, meals, and calls of well wishes. We will post an after picture in the next few weeks once the stitches come out! Right now this should give you a good laugh.

Happy Birthday Mr. Idaho

I thought this looked like a model pose!

Another year has come and still I wonder who this young strong hot guy is that I wake up next to. With each passing year my love for him deepens. (I usually am not a fan of the list, but this post would go on and on so I had to LIMIT it to 35 things I love about Tim!)

1. Just watching him with the girls, especially when he smells their clean hair. He loves it and he truely loves them!
2. His desire to give me whatever I want. (except the TV in the bedroom)
3. His STRONG work ethic.
4. His desire for clean things and his ability to clean.
5. His dedication to any calling he has.
6. His bowed legs!
7. The way he loves my cooking and tells me what a good cook I am.
8. How he walks into our bedroom or runs up the stairs not to flatten the carpet.
9. The way he eats HUGE scoops of peanut butter out of the jar. (and still stays trim)
10. The way he takes a drink and gives a refreshing AAAHHH at the end.
11. His bright smile.
12. His singing, even though he doesn't do it publicly.
13. The way he can spend hours fixing something til it is fixed the right way.
14. How he smells when he kisses me good-bye in the morning. The smell lingers for a while and I LOVE it. I smell that on his pillow on the nights he is gone.
15. His support to endless hours of dancing!
16. His trust in me. (Like leaving the new boat in my care for a week while he was gone!)
17. His priesthood abilities anytime we need them.
18. The way he plays with the girls when they want some attention.
19. His sensitive side when we watch movies or hear a cute story.
20. How he worries about his mommy.
21. How he is willing to incorporate some of my silly traditions in our family.
22. Filling up my car when I have let it drop below a quarter tank.
23. How he loves Lady GaGa songs!
24. His ability to make everything perfect!
25. Calling me ten times a day while he is gone to check on me.
26. How he takes care of others. (even a pregnant waitress)
27. The image I still have of his Wrangler back side.
28. His thick hair. Thanks heavens he has passed on those great genes to my girls!
29. Which leads me to the tolerance he has, or has to have, with the amount of hair on the couch, floor, bathroom cupboard, clothes, etc.
30. The crepes he make for his girls!
31. His passion about things he believes in.
32. The way he loves smelly things. (Must be a Butikofer trait)
33. How hard he works to provide for our family.
34. Snuggling with me (even though it is forced!)
35. Just trying to be my everything!

Again I could go on and on. Happy Birthday Tim, you are the best husband, father, partner I could ask for. You complete me!

This is how we do it......

I hope you are all singing that tune right now. (I know you are Chelsea)

Valentine's this year was perfect. I had a huge week (surprise) and it all came to a conclusion with the thing I love most... time with my family. Tim surprised me Saturday when he called to tell me "get ready and be in Park City by 3:00 for a massage at Massage Envy!" (Trumpets, playing dadadadah!!!!!) He got me a 3 month membership. Best present EVER! He then brought the girls over and we all headed to Olive Garden. This seems to be the girls favorite place to eat. We came back home and stopped at Cold Stone in Park City for dessert.

Sunday morning I made heart shaped pancakes and eggs. (I promised myself I would use the molds if I bought them!!!) It seemed to make the pancakes more delicious. I wouldn't normally blog about silly heart shaped food but the end of the day brought a funny little event which I thought was blog worthy.

The girls had called their Grandma Butikofer to wish her lots of LOVE. She and I were talking after and Tim brought a chair right next to me on the couch. (Background story: Tim has been asking me for a week if I thought I could stand on his shoulders and change a light bulb on the vaulted ceiling) Next thing I know he had Ellie on his shoulders. While I explained to Janis what was going on she QUICKLY prompts me to get off the phone and get them down. What do I do... Grab the camera! They still weren't tall enough so Tim found my old antique shipping crate and boosted them up enough to get the job done. Maybe Tim will be getting a ladder for his birthday this week??????

Winter Fun

Despite most people's dismay with the snow, we found there are many ways to beat the white stuff. This Christmas and winter gave us many reasons to celebrate. Between tubing, skating, Ellie and Tim's ice fishing trip, and feeding cows with Grandpa Mac and the McNeil cousins; we find our winter fun is only part of what we are up to!




Our kids are really loving life and learning new things. We have quite the routine around here. The girls are up to their necks in all kinds of lessons: DANCE, school, DANCE, violin, ACRO, guitar, and even a little more DANCE. Since Ellie got her guitar for Christmas we had to take the next step and get her in guitar lessons. Tim and I both love the violin and have wanted to have a child who could play it. So with that in mind we found a teacher that could instruct Ellie in guitar and Tess in violin. It is really exciting to see the girls learn new things and find new talents. The routine for us however is a little grueling.>
With all the girls taking every dance class available to them (and why NOT) our after school schedule is jammed. So we do piano, guitar, and violin before school! They do not complain at all and even beat me out of bed on some mornings. As long as I have Tess' clothes laid out for her the night before we are all good to go. So what about Mia you might ask??? Well this little socialite has a pretty full schedule herself. She attends two different preschools. She does jazz and acro and shops at Kamas Food Town! She also gets playdates every Wednesday with Reece.

Even if it is freezing cold outside and we are longing for the days to pull out the boat, the weeks pass quickly with this kind of crazy schedule! Here is a peek at some other things we have been doing!

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The greatest place on earth with the greatest people on earth!

Keep reading below, my computer went crazy!

Where did my babies go?

We recently had our family pictures done and all I could think about when I looked at them was; Where did my babies go? It seems like the girls have grown up over night. Especially Ellie! If you look at the picture at the top of the blog and compare it to one year previous, it blows my mind.


For my own record I needed to document the lives and time of these three girls.



This year in school Ellie has had a tremendous teacher who appreciates her nature. It was a blessing for me. Ellie is very artistic and can often focus more on the outside of the box rather than the content inside of it. Her teacher has told me several times that Ellie is a brilliant child with lots of potential. Many days I see the potential and encourage it... other days I am just the mom who nags at her to pick up her room and get her homework done without getting off track. Ellie is in a phase of peace sign and hoodies. She loves wearing hoodies and tries everyday to tie one into her attire. I have tried to embrace this fashion statement and find as many different and hopefully dressy hoodies as I can. She is on comp team this year and loves every minute of it. I can honestly say she is really good at hip hop and has the swagger that it takes! Yeah! She is still in piano and is getting much better at reading music. If her Christmas wish comes true she will start adding a little guitar music in her life. Again, when did I get old enough to have a kid who wants to play guitar?

Ellie at Stadium of Fire

Moving on to my big girl Tess. First grade phenom. We were also really blessed when Tess was placed in her first grade class. Tess' teacher is the most positive and kind person I have ever met. She loves her students and really does all that she can for them. Tess is my quiet thinker. She doesn't often say things out loud but she definitely lets you know how she feels about things. Last year I wasn't allowed to help in Tess' classroom because she would never talk if I entered the room and then she would cry when I left. So when her first grade teacher asked me to be the room mother this year, I told her I would have to check with Tess first! She agreed it would be ok and has been very excited when I show up. Her teacher has had a hard time finding things to give Tess that are a challenge to her. She does her assignments and asks what is next. I completely understand. When I give Tess a list of chores/work at home, I can guarantee it is done and she usually comes down stairs and asks me what else she should do. Tess is also doing really well in piano. She keeps right up with Ellie and plays more by ear. She can read the notes but once she has heard the tune she really excels. If all works out she will start violin after the New Year.

Tess losing her first tooth.

Last but certainly not least...MIA. She has grown up and even moved into 4T clothing. This kid cracks me up everyday. She goes to two different preschools to keep her occupied and cries if it is a day when she has no where to go. She also told me the other day that her favorite store is Kamas Food Town. When I asked her why she simply stated- "well I get a slushie when I go there." Whatever makes her happy while her sisters are at school. She has really taken a liking to acrobatics. Dancing is good but I think this one likes the wild adventure she gets in acro whereas in dance she actually has to listen to me and do what I say! She can do a cartwheel and land on her feet. This may sound like nothing big but some 4 year old can't do a forward roll. She still like to snuggle and she and I could sleep in til 8 if anyone ever let us. I have to also throw in that she is the best colorer (is that a word) She stays in the lines better than the 6 year old and she is always drawing and coloring me a picture.

My preschool doll!

So even though there had been no update of a while, we are alive and I am just trying to keep up with my growing babies! Life in good on Country Lane!

A few other occurrences in our lives: From my previous post you know that we lost out 23 month old nephew. I need everyone to know that we understand the "plan" and we all are still working on accepting it. His parents are valiant and the rest of us are encouraged by their strength. Three days after losing Luke, my grandfather pasted away.

From the time I can remember things I have always had my grandfather in my life. We moved next door to them when I was only 4 years old. I watched him work the cows and the crops. Sometime he would even let us go along for the adventure. He was a very hardworking man and expected anyone that worked with him to work just as hard. I think that could be where I got some of it. He also loved my grandma VERY much. They always had a smooch for each other and sat hand in hand. After my grandma died you could tell a part of him died too. He loved her so much and had such a desire to be with her. The Monday before he pasted I was able to spend the afternoon with him. I always felt like it was a blessing to spend time with him and when I left that day I honestly knew it was probably the last opportunity I would get. I told Tim that night about how I felt and really cried for what I knew was to come.

His funeral was such a testimony to all that he was. His big family and the legacy that he left made me realize how important the "plan" really is. I felt the veil was very thin on that day and both he and my grandma where sitting there by their children as proud as they could be.

Between losing Luke and my grandpa so close, I saw the gospel in its fullness. I have never been more sure of anything in my life. So while my "babies" are growing and changing the one thing that will never change is the importance they are in my "plan."