Holly vs The Mouse & Ruby vs The Toyota

This week was packed with quite a few exciting (and scary) experiences.

Our great friends, Andy and Erin (Redd) Buteau, were flown in from London because Andy was asked to speak at the USU Partners in Business conference as a representative of Google. He spoke primarily about Google Mobile (his dept.) and the growth and ubiquity of mobile devices globally. Quite fascinating, actually. He’s a great speaker and the place was quite full since so many are interested in hearing about Google from an insider’s perspective. 

On Wednesday we asked Jenny to do a quick photo shoot of our little family since it had been a loooong time since we did anything of the sort. Here are a few shots. Jenny does a fantastic job!

Andy and Erin invited Holly and the girls up for a few days to their cabin above Bear Lake. Holly and a few exciting experiences while she was there. 

First is the story of Holly vs the Mouse. A few glassfuls of water coupled with the natural process of the body required Holly to take a journey to the porcelain throne. Upon completing her royal duties, she suddenly heard splashing beneath her. She jumped up and discovered a poor little mouse swimming for his life following an unpleasant waterfall surprise. In a panic, her immediate reaction was to flush ... so flush she did. Little did she know that mighty mouse took state in the bowl-stroke and swam like a champ to avoid the pipes of death. She quickly recruited the household to brainstorm an alternative solution for the mouse’s eviction, and Myrna (Erin’s mother) grabbed some salad tongs and sent the little fur ball to his snowy white exile. 

The other main event was Ruby vs. Toyota.

All the kids were sledding down the snow-covered driveway and slid slowly down the hill ... then little Ruby tried out a new sled. Turns out it was primed with Clark Griswold’s sledding grease and found herself wedged under a parked minivan across the street, only stopped by her cute little noggin! Check out the video to see the event ... up to the point of Holly’s panic! She recovered quickly ... and hopped happily (albeit cautiously) right back on that sled. 

Friday was Foodie Night for the group we’ve been forming of peeps looking to be more educated about eating healthy, eco-friendly foods. You can get an update at this site: cachefoodies.blogspot.com

Lastly, we have new roomies at our home for a while. Wendy, her mom Barbara, and her son Nicholas moved in to our basement as they had just sold their home and needed a place to stay for a few months. Olivia and Ruby are excited to have a little amigo to play with who is so nearby.

And lastly lastly, our Recipe of the Week. 

No-Sugar Yes-Tasty Peanut Butter Cookies 

 1 cup unsalted butter

 1 cup all-natural crunchy peanut butter

 1 ½ cups honey / agave syrup

 2 eggs

 2 1/2 cups flour (preferably wheat flour)

 1 teaspoon baking powder

 1/2 teaspoon salt

 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

3-5 chips per cookie of SunSpire All Natural Chocolate Chips

DIRECTIONS

1. Cream together butter, peanut butter and honey. Beat in eggs.

2. In a separate bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir into batter. Put batter in refrigerator for 1 hour.

3. Roll into 1 inch balls and put on baking sheets. Add all-natural chocolate chip cookies (about 3) on top, if desired. Bake in a preheated 375 degrees F oven for about 10 minutes or until cookies begin to brown. Do not over-bake.