Dear Friends and Family,

This was a great week, don't get me wrong.  But it was a week where I really needed a Saturday night of eating some good food with our Stake RS Presidency and coming home to watch a good movie with Jeremy and eat some chocolate and then to sleep all night and then all was right with the world again.  It was just a full week and after a very full weekend of kids the holiday weekend before I was ready for a break.

This week Jeremy spent continuing to catch up on his back log of photo work and then get ready for his photography class he taught with some friends Saturday.  It made for lots of late nights, early mornings and restless sleeping as he tried to get everything done.  But it sounded like it all went really well.

He did take a break with us on Monday evening when after cleaning the office we went to play miniature golf.  I realized it was the first time we have ever done that as a family.  I have lots of memories hanging out at Golf-land growing up.  Jeremy schooled us all of course and our kids experienced the gamut of frustration and delight that golf brings.  But it was a very fun few hours and kids were vocal about being willing to have a late dinner and bedtime so we could play again.

No big news this week just lots of little stuff that kept everyone hopping, with a few extras that got piled in.  But the ability to clean out a drawer in my bathroom or spread mulch in our backyard makes me very grateful for school.  I started teaching art in Robyn's classroom this week which I think will be very fun. I go in once a week for 30 minutes.  That same day Robyn and I got to help Allison's class make paper out of paper pulp.  Robyn loved helping to make a paper smoothie in the blender with strips of paper soaked in water.  The girls were both very proud of their homemade paper.  I started organizing the school art program which is always a lot of work at the beginning of the year but then pretty much runs itself.  I got to do a little in-service for the teachers and volunteers which just has to make me laugh.  As a very un-artistic person, I don't feel qualified for this job.  But I have decided that with school volunteer needs its not the person with the skills who does the jobs but rather the person who doesn't say no.  Add in doing a show and tell with Allison's guinea pig this week and I agreed with Allison when she asked me why I was called a stay at home mom if I didn't stay home.

Robyn has such a tough life.  On Friday we got to have my niece Brynn for the day and they enjoyed a picnic outside.  It is wonderful to have CA weather here.  It still gets hot periodically but most of the time its in the 80s during the day and cool in the morning.  My mom made Robyn a sweater that arrived Friday that she loves.  After talking to my mom to say thank you on the phone she came and told us with a big smile on her face that her sweater has hearts because her grandma loves her so much.  She shows those hearts to everyone she says.

Robyn also had her first soccer game this Saturday.  Despite having a few practices she still was convinced that she would be horrible in a game and spent Saturday morning crying about it during breakfast.  But then she went and scored 2 goals and was just beaming about it all day long.

Spencer had a court of honor this week.  He has earned 11 merit badges this summer which he was quite stoked about.  Kids and I spent Saturday afternoon down in Springville as Spencer did his swimming merit badge at a pow-wow down there.  In October he is doing the first aid merit badge at the BYU pow-wow and then he should be almost done with his required merit badges.  Right now he has to build a rocket for school on Tuesday.  It involved a shopping list for me of foam board, spray paint and soda bottles - we will see how it turns out.

Taylor gets his daffos tomorrow which we hope will help with his walking.  He would rather "skate" in his socks everywhere we go right now.  Friday he had a tough day full of grandmal seizures and had to stay home.  But most days have been pretty good.

Allison has started to try out cat fighting with Robyn - not my favorite.  She likes to poke, pinch and then run away and laugh.  Robyn laughs too for the first 5 minutes and then it turns into a whine fest.  Need to nip this habit in the bud!  Otherwise she is busy getting her water cycle diorama done and trying to play with friends whenever possible.

love to all of you and hope you are enjoying fall with its ripe apples and cool evenings,

Heather