Sam visited Stacie and cute baby Mercy in Washington for a few days last week.
Mercy would poke her head up over the couch whenever she finished feeding and she always got a big smile on her face when she saw Sam sitting at the table.
I stayed home with the children while Sam was away. Everything went well except when Penny got knocked down by a nasty illness. She threw up all night during one of the nights and was lethargic for the next two days because she couldn't eat much.
Diana and Penny using my camera to take selfies.
I had to wash Penny's sheets and blankets after she vomited on them. So, we took advantage of the opportunity to arrange her "stuffies" (stuffed animals) for her.
We visited Granny and Grandpa this past Sunday. Here the children are helping Granny fill her nut/candy feeder.
Later in the day, Diana accidentally knocked the feeder onto the floor. Granny wanted photos before we cleaned up the mess.
Penny has vision therapy sessions each week (with accompanying daily homework assignments) in an effort to help improve her ability to read/learn. Below are some of the activities she does, which often produce laughter, and sometimes a bit of frustration, in our home.
Penny and I flew to Sacramento, California to visit Brian and Kelly Zufelt for a couple of days. Kelly is my cousin and Brian is her husband.
Penny liked playing on the moving walkways at the Salt Lake City Airport.
Penny and Kelly making chocolate chip cookies.
Dinner on the first night. Kelly made some delicious ham and beans, and she also made pancakes with Nutella for Penny.
Kelly reading to Penny before bedtime.
Petting Lilly, one of their two cats.
Penny and I played at various parks yesterday morning.
Brian took us to Donuts and Cinnamon for a treat after lunch yesterday. This donut shop was voted the #1 donut shop in America in 2023, according to this article:
Later yesterday afternoon we prepared to visit the Feather River Temple, which is located approximately one hour away from Rocklin.
Brian, Kelly, Penny, Daniel at the Feather River Temple.
This is the first temple I've seen with small groves of olive trees on each of the four corners. I love the olive trees!
Kelly and Penny
Brian and I went inside to participate in some initiatory work while Kelly and Penny enjoyed time together in the waiting room. Kelly, ever the Mother and Grandmother, brought coloring books, toys, and other activities for Penny. We came out of the temple a short time later to this beautiful sunset.
We returned from the temple and Brian, Kelly, and I enjoyed more of Kelly's fabulous beans and ham while Penny ate more pancakes and Nutella.
We played a fun game of Rook.
Kelly, Brian, and Penny played magnetic chess.
Showing off the page they colored in the temple.
This morning Kelly spent time playing with Penny before Penny and I drove back to the airport for our return flight to Utah. Kelly even got out her stuffed animals for Penny to have more friends to watch them play. Brian picked up some delicious breakfast burritos for us before he left for work.
We fit in a five-minute run to the river to get some fresh air and exercise before heading to the airport.
Cool baggage tower in the Baggage Claim area of the Sacramento Airport.
Thank you, Brian and Kelly, for being awesome! As always, we love the time we get with the Zufelt family.
