Baby Rossman, etc.

But first a message from our sponsor. I just had to include these two cute shots of grandkids reading on Caroline's bed when they lived at our house. Reading is Fundamental. Actually, Jonathan is playing a video game on his mom's phone. What's wrong with this picture. Hopefully he'll get the hang of Caroline's good example and become a reader. Technology. What's a person to do?

Casey and new little Corbin.

Such chubby little cheeks. Katie has noticed that Corbin may just have a cute dimple on his right cheek just like Casey's. Corbin isn't really smiling a whole lot right now (he's only 10 days old), so time will tell. He's cute regardless.

And Hayden. He's really growing up.

He's intently staring at a really cool train set he got. Below is a photo of Hayden and his dad assembling the set. Thomas the Train is the big hit in this house these days. Everything is all about Thomas and Salty and the others. I've learned a lot about that bunch of happy train folk of late. :-) Toot, toot!

And this shot (below) is one that I really like. Casey and Hayden have the same posture when sitting on the floor. Katie had never noticed this before! But, one knee up, sitting on the other foot on the floor . . . it's quite cute.

Katie found her swing (in case anyone wondered from her post on Facebook a while back), and Hayden was trying to turn the switches on. He's precariously perched on a fire engine toy and

r - e - a - c - h -i - n - g for those elusive buttons to turn it on. Good thing the baby wasn't in the seat (this time!).

Oh, Corbin has this interesting birthmark on his head. It's a blond spot! I thought it was some damage from childbirth, but the hairs are blond and the skin is lighter in this spot on the top of his head. Unique, eh? [that's Hayden conked out in the background]

And when it's dark at night, that's when he's more alert. On one daytime errand, even driving under the freeway overpass (a very long and dark bridge), he automatically opened up his eyes! But the warm, bright, sunny mornings--forget it. He just sleeps and sleeps and sleeps.

It's going to be hard to leave and go back home next week. So, Please Katie, please post more regularly! Love, Mom.

I've been having a wonderful time. Casey's mom was here before I was and she cooked up a storm! We're still working on left overs. But I think I have been helpful, keeping an eye on Hayden. He is a hoot! It' been fun spending time with him, too.

The weather has been mostly cold and snowey, so we're inside most of the time, save a couple of brief errands. Katie's getting stronger every day and the baby appears to be growing before our very eyes. What a cutie he is! So mild-mannered, too. I'm so jealous! How come none of MY babies were ever like that?

Saturday's project

I signed up to take a "Quilted Holiday Table Runners" class a while back from Continuing Education. It was supposed to be in February, then they bumped it back to March. I was about the only person there. There were two others besides the teacher, but it was the person from Continuing Education who sends out the the information on them, and her married daughter. But the daughter, Sammie, (who was actually one of Nick's HS classmates) was new to quilting, too.

It was "strip quilting", which I had done once before about 30 years ago. Yeah, when Gail was about 2...so not QUITE 30 years....EGADS!!! Where does the time go?????

Anyway, most folks going to a quilting class would go the fabric store and purchase new and coordinating fabrics in a holiday print. Not this cheap...ahem...frugal gal. I went foraging through my stash of fabric. [Tandy, be sure to remind Lexi that I HAVE to show her my fabric collection when she's here later this month! We keep forgetting.] My idea of quilting is to be like my grandmothers on both sides of my family and use fabric scraps to make something useful or pretty. Preferably both useful AND pretty. But I couldn't decide what holiday colors or themes, so I called on my color/design talented daughter to help me out. I brought a full laundry basket to her apartment late one night to help me pick something from among the many choices. It's so amazing to see how her brain just clicks into gear when it comes to colors and designs. Truly amazing. My brain grinds to a painful halt while hers whirs into high speed and she says, "Well, you could do this and this and this...or that and that and that..." etc. Truly a talent. So we selected a "Spring" theme and it can stay on my table for a long number of months. February, March, April, May, June. Till about the 4th of July, I'd think. Then I'll put out some flags.

I had to take one from above, too, so one can see that it is truly semetrical. I don't know if I'll do any more, but it was fun to sit down and do some sewing for myself. I hadn't done much in a very long time. I actually made 2 baby blankets and two burp cloths last week, too! It's amazing what I can do with a little time off from work. I have been spending some productive time at home in the mornings, trying to use-it-or-lose-it with my plethora of unused annual leave hours before July 1.

Truth be told, I made a table runner to inspire me to clean off the kitchen table. It worked for as long as it took to take the photograph. We'll see how long it lasts. ha.

Besides the quilting workshop, I also attended a baptism for a little Primary boy that I teach, and a wedding reception. That's it. Three main events, one day. Now I have to get my lesson ready for tomorrow. I'm tellin' ya, I truly think teaching Primary is harder than teaching Gospel Doctrine!

I love laundry

Weird, I know. But I do enjoy doing laundry. Lately, with just Mike and I in the house, it doesn't stack up very quickly, so it's an easy job. I enjoyed it when all the kids were home, too, and they didn't have to do their own because I preferred to to it myself. I DID, however, teach them how. I'm not a totally slacker momma! ha.

It's easy, too, because we live in the 21st century and have lovely modern equipment that does all the work for us. I mean, really, I don't think I'd enjoy the task much if I had to haul water, chop wood, make a fire to heat the water, make the soap, scrub everything by hand, wring it, hang it, iron it. We do have it easy, and for this I am very grateful. I survived quite a few years with no dryer and minimal complaining, too.

But now-a-days, have you SEEN the washers that are out there? I've heard of some of those fancy-schmancy things that steam clean your clothes, and even know a person who has one. I keep forgetting to ask her how she likes it. Well, when Gail and family moved out, they took their washer with them. My 17-year-old one wasn't quite up to the task for two family's worth of duds, so they took my old one out and replaced it with their newer one. Now it's gone and I needed to shop for a new washer. Huh? Me? Shop? You have GOT to be kidding. So Mike shopped for a washer. He found a really good deal. He took my by to see it and I was really amazed at all the changes. All for the sake of technology and safety, I suppose. Guess what? Washers no longer have agitators! Washers use WAY less water--a good thing when you live in a desert with restrictions. And they even get the clothes clean. At least, that was my experience with the new model we got. Looks ordinary enough on the outside,






but is kind of naked on the inside.




And it looked positively empty on the inside with all the clothes Waaaay down at the bottom with very little water--not even enough to cover them up!! I'm tellin' ya, I was very surprised. It doesn't fill up and agitate the clothes clean, but sits there and goes "wheep....wheep....wheep" as it "infuses" (??!!??) the clothes with water and kind of moves them around. Anyway, I have clean clothes and now you know I'm obsessed with laundry!

[Where's my agitator?]