For my birthday I commissioned a talented neighborhood teen to build me a library for our front yard.  Boy did he deliver!  It makes me happy every time I see it.


It was such good timing too.  The day I came home to him installing the finished product was the day we learned Jeremy's latest CT scan showed new tumor growths.  So Jeremy had a biopsy done on a tumor on his lung.  His brother spent the long day at the hospital until I could get off of work.  We are saving my personal days for when we really need them!  Jeremy's day was longer and more painful as he developed a pneumothorax (air pocket in his lung) and had to wait to make sure it would start going down and not require a chest tube.  A really long, tough weekend for him.


But...a few hours later early that morning a friend took him surfing at the lake just to give a little more oomph to the day and sort of spit in reality's face a bit.


We are still waiting on the results of the biopsy but in the meantime Jeremy is back on Gleevac with its lovely side effects as we wait to see if we need to change medications.

I had planned for school to start for me right after our California trip BUT my room was still a construction zone.  So two days before school started I was able to put everything back in my room.  I was very grateful as originally it wasn't going to be ready until the night before school started!  I am a little OCD about having everything squared away so that was stressing me out.  Luckily I also got blessed with three amazing aides this year, two of them returning from last year.  AND the district decided to pay for me to train them before school started.  Starting the year knowing what I am doing and having my aides know what they are doing makes life so much better.  Second year teaching is so much more fun than first year.  I have greater confidence, knowledge and just an overall sense of what I am doing and friendships with the people I work with.

With my room under construction my hours were pretty flexible as I did paperwork at home.  This meant I could go with Robyn to her before school started field trip and hike to Timp Caves.  It was fun to meet all the kids who will be in her ALL classes.  There were all the open houses and school tours that went along with Robyn starting at the junior high.


Spencer continues to enjoy his mission, moving from the family history library's discovery zone up to the British Isles and Australia research section.  And do some fun things like hikes and baseball games.


I got to go to youth conference with Allison.  It was just an over nighter up Provo Canyon.  Friday night we played games and did a very cool sensory story of Christ experience...and then play ping pong till midnight.  On Saturday we did a devotional and tubed the Provo River.  Shortly after I was released and called into Relief Society so it was a little bitter sweet for me to know this was my last activity.  They are just amazing girls and even more amazing leaders and it was a privilege to be with them.


Jeremy got to have a daddy-daughter campout in Diamond Fork which now thanks to the fires is gone.  Robyn's friend Nylie went with them and the two disappeared which is why they don't appear in any pictures!


Taylor got a stander.  Its been a long process to get it here!  We have been keeping it at his day program so he can use it there every day.


The kids and I with friends in tow got to enjoy the Timpanogous Storytelling Festival.  It is one of my favorite traditions but really hard to describe.  Both girls just check in periodically with me, mostly to get food or money, but they both are emphatic on how much they love going.


Girls started back up with piano (Allison), guitar (Robyn), theater & tap (both of them) and all the other school craziness.  Robyn is trying out volleyball this year and seems to like it.


Jeremy's sister came into town for a convention so we were able to get together for dinner.  Always good to catch up and wish we didn't live so far away from each other.