Dear Kids,
      First off, some news I would rather not pass on, but here's an e-mail that Amber sent to Sharon and Monica: “I have some sad news that I felt that your family should know about. Please make sure the rest of the family is aware of the situation, if they haven't heard already. My sister Theresa is 9 months pregnant with her 9th child. She is due on the 14th of February. She found out yesterday, the 20th of January, that her husband Jonnie had commited suicide. She is now alone with 9 children. Please keep her in your prayers. There will be a funeral held at the LDS Chapel in Longview, WA(30th street) at 4pm on Saturday the 24th of January. If you have any questions please feel free to write me back at this email address (amberackerson@hotmail.com) or you can contact me on my cell 253 576 4283 or my home number at 253 847 8150. Theresa’s address is: 4306 Ocean Beach Hwy. Longview, WA 98632, 360 425 4555."
      Here’s something more upbeat: Nora and Stu took off this morning for Michigan to spend four days with the Thackersons in Michigan. I drove them to the airport at 5:30 am. Go, Nora! It takes a lot of guts to get on a plane with a baby, a backpack, a car seat, and a large carry-on. Luckily they were flying nonstop. Paige and Ben are here today, playing with toys and watching movies. Addie is at school. A babysitter is lined up for later in the afternoon, and I think James will be taking charge after that.
      I’ve been riding the inside bike every day, training for the Great Utah Ride. I’m up to half an hour a day. John is planning to do some of the ride, from Thursday to Saturday night, with his family tagging along and staying in the motels. I think Justin will be in on it, too. You’re all welcome, of course. Let me know if you want the training schedule. It’s brutal!
      I’m counting down to February 17th. You didn’t know it was an important day? Well, if you have cable or satellite, or a digital TV, it won’t affect you. But all these ads from Comcast and DishNetwork keep warning us that if we don’t convert, we won’t have any TV signal after February 17th. I’m thinking, “Is that a promise?” I would love a world without TV. Right now Dad and I are watching a lot of Perry Mason and Twilight Zone videos from the library, and it’s much better entertainment than anything on TV. I’m hoping Dad won’t notice when our signal disappears. Anyway, he can watch TV at UTA when he gets off work. And there’s always the internet!
      Here’s the info from Brad King about our Ackerson Scholarship student: “His name is David Potter from here in Price. He is a great young man who is trying to decide between Dentistry and Optometry. I thought that would be a good match. You should hear from him in the next couple of weeks. I will have him give you more detail. Because he was not here last semester, the money will stay in your account and will be available in the future. Because David did not go to school before his mission, it is his intent to be here for the two years.” We look forward to hearing from him.
      Life is good. Hope you’re all doin’ great and lovin’ it. Mom