Dear Kids,
      My letter is late this week, or maybe this is next week’s letter, because we don’t have a computer right now. Dad thinks our motherboard is fried, probably caused by a failing power source. Or whatever. I’m typing on the laptop, and it’s giving me a hard time.
      Sharon and Seth left for Michigan yesterday morning, and they made it to North Platte, Nebraska, by last night. Tonight they’re supposed to be in DesMoines, Iowa, where they’re staying with somebody they know. Tomorrow they’re driving to Chicago, and then on Saturday to Ann Arbor. Their new address will be: 2831 Sagebrush #208, Ann Arbor, MI, 48103. Their phone number will be 734 913 7982. It was hard saying goodbye to them (and Charlie,) but they’ll be here for Christmas, and time goes by fast.
      Cathy called Sunday night. She and Amber are settled in Buffalo, New York, and we’re already making plans to visit them next summer, hopefully about the time of the Hill Cumorah pageant. (Hopefully Sharon and Seth and Charlie will be with us, too.) Amber and Cathy’s address is 96 Heather Rd., Cheektowaga, NY, 14225. Their phone number is 716 837 1076. There. Any more address updates? I don’t know of any.
      Over the weekend, Dad and I and the Study Group went to Ulrich’s cabin down by Manti. It overlooks Palisades reservoir, which has a 9-hole golf course that costs $9.00, and sometimes the golf cart rental is free. So Dad went golfing for the first time, with the guys. He said he had a blast. We also went four-wheeling, with the gang. There’s a dirt road that goes east of there, and if you go about 35 miles, you come out in Ferron. We didn’t, but it was sort of fun, riding through the pine trees and aspens. My neck didn’t like it, though, especially when we went over rocks. So I figured it was probably my first and last 4-wheel adventure. Ulrich’s cabin, as you can imagine, is super deluxe. Five bedrooms, four bathrooms, two family rooms, a big rock fireplace–it’s really nice. It also has a fabulous view of the reservoir, and several rows of mountains behind it. It’s sort of desert country, vegetation like Albuquerque. Not what I imagined, but very beautiful. Of course we also got caught up on everybody’s news. Shanna Spencer is pretty serious with a guy in Washington, who was staying at Spencer’s house for a few days. He works for Quest and earns a lot of money, according to Martha. Ralph Spencer was very involved in the “Extreme Makeover–Home Edition” they recently did in Bountiful. He said you can see him marching in the parade at the beginning, in their yellow shirts and hard hats. I had lots of questions for him, like how did they get the cement to dry so fast, and ditto with the joint compound, and what did they do with the family’s furniture. (D.I.) He talked about it nonstop for over an hour, which is more talking than I’ve heard Ralph do in 27 years, but he was very excited about it. The show will be on in September.
      We’re up to our ears in Cat Wars. Here’s how it happened: Monica and Neil have moved to Tucson, and they’re allowed pets. (Funky older home, it sounds like.) So Monica’s here to get her stuff, and Ramona. Grandma said if she had to give up Ramona, she needed a new cat. So yesterday we went to the animal shelter in Orem, even though Grandma has hardly been able to walk in the last two weeks, and we looked over a wonderful selection of cats. She picked out a black one with white tufts coming out of his ears–very elegant. We took him home to Grandma’s house, and Ramona threw a fit. She sat under the deck and hissed at me whenever I came close, and Grandma finally had to go out and get her. I stuffed her in the cat carrier, and the new cat walked by, and Ramona let out a howl/shriek/hiss that would have curdled your blood. The new cat jumped about two feet in the air. Not to worry–Ramona was coming to our house, OK? Not OK. Because we have this new fluffy gray kitten, who’s not the least bit afraid of Ramona. Or the other cats. They hiss at her, and at Ramona, and Ramona hisses at everybody. So the hissing and growling and yowling has continued. Last night, the kitten slept on Monica’s face, while Ramona sulked in the curtains. Today it’s been one fight after another. Monica and Ramona will be leaving on Monday, however, so maybe there will be peace in the house again.
      Last Saturday morning we had a lot of fun here–Leah was getting married, and all four sisters had slept over the night before. Early Saturday morning they were all up early working on Leah: Amanda was painting her toenails, Heather was doing her hair, and Jenny was putting makeup on her. I took a picture, is was so cute. Leah left early for the temple, and Heather was in charge (with 101 other responsibilities) of making sure Jenny was modestly outfitted for the temple grounds. She appeared wearing a very short skirt, so Heather borrowed a long skirt from me, and made her put it on. I overheard her saying, “I can’t believe this!” But it was all good. Dad and I went to the reception that night, at Uncle Richard’s house in Mapleton. Hey, it’s even bigger and grander than Mark Ulrich’s house! It was a beautiful evening, and Leah was a beautiful bride. The groom, Jason, played Uncle Richard’s grand piano and sang to Leah. It was very touching. Dad and I ate way too much cake and ice cream, but it was so fun!
      I’m going to the cabin for a couple of days, because I can’t do anything here without a computer. I hope you’re all doin’ great and lovin’ it.
      Mom