Until 1952, Flo and John lived in Providence, Rhode Island, while John studied at Brown University, earning a Master of Arts degree in English in 1951. Around 1950, Flo began working a research chemist for Technic, Inc., in Cranston, Rhode Island. The company specialized in developing plating solutions for precious metals. In 1952, Flo and John moved to Lawrence, Kansas, and John began teaching English as an Instructor at the University of Kansas. David Michael Butler was born in Lawrence on March 31, 1953. From 1953 to 1956, they lived in Amherst, Massachusetts, while John taught as an Instructor at Amherst College. A wet patch in the backyard of their Lincoln Avenue house in Amherst became a skating rink one year, beginning an ice rink tradition that continued through the New England years. In 1956, they returned to Providence, so that John could pursue further doctoral study at Brown. In 1957, they returned to Amherst, where John became an Assistant Professor. In 1959, they moved to Williamstown, Massachusetts, where John began a 2-year assignment as Visiting Assistant Professor at Williams College, filling in for a professor taking a sabbatical. Robin Ann Butler was born a few miles away on April 10, 1959.