Ryan, Ryan, Ryan

Our little Ryan has said some funny things lately. Here are just a few of his recent and best:

When asked to say the prayer for dinner, he said he didn't want to. Mom asked him again to please say the blessing. "I can't," he said. "Why not?" asked mom. "Because," he said. "Well, why don't you try and mommy can help you if you need it." Ryan folded his arms, closed his eyes, and sat for a second. Then he looked up and said matter-of-factly, "I can't. See. I lost all the words."

One day he was playing downstairs on the kiddie slide we borrowed from Julie and Joe (thanks guys!). He came upstairs while I was washing dishes. He waited there until I looked over and with hands on his hips said, "Mom, I just fell off the slide." "I'm sorry," I said. "Are you okay?" "Yes, but next time I need a helmet."

On Monday night for Family Home Evening we were talking about things we could do to build and strengthen our testimonies. We were drawing things on paper like read the scriptures, help someone in need, be kind, etc. I was helping Ryan decide what he wanted to draw. He decided he needed a Helpful Robot for be kind. And it had to have the following: head, neck, body. long arms, long legs, back, front, middle, hands, fingers, eyes, ears, mouth, feet, footprints, and a grab-nabber. "A grab-nabber?" I asked. He looked at me like, of course mom, don't you know what that is?

Just before bed, he started singing his own version of The Muffin Man. "Do you know the butt-butt man, the butt-butt man...." I told him I would prefer that he doesn't say that word, hoping to stop the song altogether. I should have known better because he smiled and started singing, "Do you know the bum-bum man, the bum-bum man, the bum-bum man." Can you just hear my big SIGH by now?
Other funny things about Ryan:

-He likes to fill up the bathroom sink when he is "washing" his hands. He then sticks his head in to get his hair all wet and combs it over with his hands and smiles in the mirror.

-He is a child of habit. Every night we sing in the exact order Pioneer Children, Oxcart, and I Hope They Call Me on a Mission. And every night he asks the same questions and every night we have the same answers: What does kept mean? (The pioneers kept the sabbath day. They did what Jesus wanted them to do.) What does creak mean? (The wheel on the oxcart was squeaky. It needed oil.) What does -ary mean? (It goes with missionary. They tell people about Jesus.)

-While making his bed, both he and Matthew like to lift their sheets and create a bubble of air. They like to jump on it which they refer to as Air-Pops.

On a different note, Zachary wasn't feeling well yesterday so Kevin gave him a blessing. Later that night, it was Ryan's turn for family prayer and Kevin told him to remember a special blessing for Zach. Ryan immediately walked over to Zachary and put both hands on his head. We had to teach Ryan that he couldn't give blessings until he was older, but it was really sweet that he wanted to help his brother.

Random Blessings

Awe and amazement as our children learn about the world & everything in it	Mischievous, daring, strong willed, brave, and curious children	Brothers and examples
Wonderful mom and amazing wife	Smiles with drool and unconditional love	Friday night family movies with popcorn and PJ's
Children who love computers as much as their dad

Matthew's Primary Talk

Matthew was asked to give a primary talk this week. Amy helped Matthew write the talk and he decided what he wanted to talk about. He did a great job and even Ryan listened. Here is a video of him reading his talk after church.

Temple Square

We went to see the lights this weekend with Grandma and Grandpa Tuft and the Andrew cousins. It was pretty cold, but we had a great time (aside from getting separated once or twice).

The temple looked so pretty with the lights and a small covering of fog.



Matthew said his favorite part was the Nativity and the Christus statue.

Ryan liked everything. When asked what color of lights was his favorite he responded, "Blue, green , red, pink, purple, orange...." Glad he liked it!

Zachary wasn't quite sure what to make of the whole thing. I think he would have liked to get down and run around, but he was too bundled up to move.

Afterward we went to IHOP for some hot chocolate and pancakes. The kids had a great time with their cousins, but I didn't bring the camera in, so no pictures. It is finally starting to feel like Christmas. Are there really only 5 days to go?

New phone number and address

We have our a new phone number and our new address. We want to share it with our friends and family, just not the rest of the Internet. So if you would like the new info, give us a call at our old number...it will forward for two more days. Or send us an email or make a comment below.