Dear Kids,
          Our two metal deer, the buck and the doe, have been standing proudly out on our corner for more than three years now, but yesterday I noticed that the buck had been knocked over on its side. That was no easy feat, since it had been anchored by two 14" stakes driven into the ground, attached to the buck’s legs by metal cables you can only cut with a grinder. One stake was pulled up, while on the other side, the metal cable had been broken. We figured right away it wasn’t human vandalism, especially since there were deep hoof marks around the defeated buck. Our neighbor, who’s a wildlife expert, said our buck was probably taken down by a real buck in a fight over the metal doe. I didn’t know real deer were that strong, but our neighbor said they are. He’s spotted some bucks as large as four points just down the hill from us. Dad and I loaded our downed buck into a wheelbarrow and took him to the garage. I wanted to put him back up right away, but out neighbor said we should wait until the end of the mating season.
          Dad has been recovering from his heart procedure really well. Yesterday we were walking up the sidewalk to the Provo Temple and he had to slow down a little bit, but mostly he’s doing his normal activities. He went to "cardio rehab," where they evaluated him on a treadmill and set his exercise limits: 3mph, at 3 degrees, for 30 minutes. So he’s doing that. He’ll have a cardiologist watching him closely from now on.
          I’m really enjoying the Messiah practices this year. Even though we aren’t home Sunday evenings now, we’re there in the afternoon, from 2:30 until 5:30, when we have to leave for Heber. So come by and drink our chocolate milk and eat our gummi bears!
          Wow, Thanksgiving is only a week and a half away! We’ll see some of you "orphans" at the cabin, thanks to Al’s hospitality! I’m sure you’ll contact him about food assignments. And naturally we’ll be waiting eagerly for word of the birth of new baby Hawkins!
          And remember the "Grinch" memorization challenge for Christmas! Parents can do it, too. You can recite in groups of two or three, if you want to. You can pass it off at the family party, or on Christmas, or any time in between. I’ll have a stack of $10.00 bills ready.
          Love to you all, Mom