This week Spencer had his high adventure with the Priests.  They went to Flaming Gorge to river raft, go boating, fishing, hiking and tour the dam.  He had a great time and came home happy and tired and cranky.  So we decided it was a great day to celebrate 7-11 with slurpees and a trip to the pool.  Somehow splashing around in cold water for awhile always cheers everyone up.  And I learned a secret.  If I take Taylor out to the deep end and hang out with the kids they actually play together pretty nicely in sort of a loose circle around me.  It was fun watching Robyn like a limpet on Spencer's back as he tried to throw her off or Allison and Robyn having water fights with noodles.  Taylor thought it was great.  And where was Jeremy?  Slaving away at home to fix a toilet.  What a great guy.


Taylor is having a busy summer.  He started back at school three days a week for three hours each day (I go there to work too but only two days a week). When he doesn't have school he has been going to a camp from 9-3 where they do activities and field trips.  He seems to be enjoying it.  And his masseuse still comes to our house twice a week which he loves.   Jasper is always very concerned when Taylor is getting a massage.  He jumps on the bean bag to watch everything carefully and is usually licking Taylor hand while she rubs his feet or visa versa.  Guess he wants to participate.

Robyn and Allison spent one day deep cleaning their closets and dressers.  It was a really big undertaking.  Getting rid of clothes that were too small, passing clothes down, finding hidden treasures that needed to be tossed.  Making a list of what they would need for school.  This has required re-outfitting Allison with pants which has meant a couple of trips to stores.  To celebrate their clean rooms we went out on a girls night Tuesday night.  Our babysitter cancelled so Taylor joined us.  Jeremy was able to meet us for taco Tuesday and then we went to see Tomorrowland.  Girls thought the night was worth the work to get there.


Robyn still has swim team every day which she loves.  And a day where Allison will help her do all her dolls hair for a tea party is heaven.  This week she got her bottom retainer glued in so she has been learning how to talk and eat with that in place.

Allison has been doing tennis twice a week this summer and two dance classes back to back once a week.  She fills her days figuring out new crafts or activities to do by herself or with friends.  We ran to Hobby Lobby this week to figure out a type of bracelet she wanted to make.  She is extremely inventive.  She has been learning thanks to a mean mom how to bike to friends houses to play.  On Monday she taught a lesson about service with a really cool object lesson with milk and food dye to show how a small action can make a big impact and then took us to weed a neighbor's house.  Spencer thought it was great digging up big clumps of weeds with a shovel and talking a mile a minute.  Thursday night for Beehives we got to go shelf at the Bishops Storehouse.  Its been neat this week to see who Allison is turning into (interspersed with mood swings that still take me aback!)

Saturday night Jeremy and I drove up Emigration Canyon in SLC to a place I wanted to try called Ruth's Diner.  Its this really old dinner next to a creek where its shady, lights in the tree, a little band playing and was just an awesome relaxing place to be for awhile.  Jeremy has been busy taking on side projects for different companies to build up his network of contacts.  Its been good but challenging and busy for him as he has to learn new things and try to fit everything in.


This week I have been working on painting the shed.  I have the main coat finished and now I need to do all the trim.  Eventually it will get done!  I also started studying for my teaching test.  There are five tests I have to do in five different areas.  I was feeling pretty good about it after two tests thinking I need to study but this is totally doable.  And then I hit the reading test.  Its about the science of literacy and teaching reading, something I have never studied.  I didn't even recognize a bunch of the words used.  So I will have my work cut out for me there.