Dear Kids,
          Ten new houses are being started in our neighborhood. They dug all the foundations this week. They’re those government-mortgage sweat-equity homes, where you commit to doing hundreds of hours of work, and you save about $10,000, according to Tom. Tom and Kim looked into that program when they were house hunting, and they decided it wasn’t a very good deal. So did Donna and Bevan, which makes me wonder, where did they find ten families that would go for it? Especially here in Kamas Valley, where there isn’t much growth. Maybe they’re just starting the houses and hoping somebody will be interested in them. They’re sort of cracker-box types with no basements. Well, at least our neighborhood is filling up.
          Yesterday Donna came to give us more help with our sprinkler system. The hardest part is the beginning, where you have an anti-backflow valve and a blowout valve and the sprinkler valves. We’re just doing what Donna tells us to do. It’s lots of fun. We’ve dug out lots of rocks. Dad and I are also still working on our window wells. The second one is almost done. While I was laying block, the wind kicked up, and I got a piece of grit in my eye. It didn’t bother me much until my mortar was gone and Dad was cleaning off my tools. Then I realized it really hurt. I called John and he said to come in right away. He was still in his office, just finishing up for the day. He put some dye in my eye, which highlighted the grit, and he got it out very easily. He said it had scratched my eye. In third world countries, he said, people sometimes go blind from something as simple as that. I’m glad for our good medical care, and for John’s great service to our family.
          Remember the baptism on the 31st and the baby blessing on June 1st! I’ll put addresses and times in my letter next week. Also, we got an update from Barbara about the Allen family reunion on June 28th. She would like all the families to dress in the same color. We’re blue. She said it doesn’t have to be a solid color, and the clothes can be any version of that color. I think we have the easiest color because we’re the biggest family. Mark and Kate have Teal, and Jane and Joe have orange/peach. So we’re lucky.
          So much fun coming up! Lots of love, Mom