Dear Kids,
         We had a blast with the McGettigans at the Frontier Days rodeo.  Jana noticed on the schedule that there was a children’s rodeo in the morning, so we walked over and watched the sheep riding (some of the kids rode backwards) and the steer riding (they actually rode calves that were barely big enough to have horns) and some foot races.  Lots of the kids in our ward were there and it was really fun watching them.  Jana said it brought back lots of good memories from her childhood.  She grew up in Clawson, down in Emery County, and rodeo was really big.  She did it all.
         In the afternoon we went back for the bull riding, bareback riding, and saddle broncs.  Most of those cowboys are professionals, not local boys at all.  Every time they got thrown (and sometimes trampled) I cringed.  Their poor necks and backs!  But they only called in the ambulance once.  We totally got our money’s worth!
         On Wednesday I had cataract surgery on my left eye.  It’s been ten or twelve years since I had my right eye done, and things have changed a lot since then.  For one thing, it was a total surgical setting.  I had to put on a hospital gown, which was really hard–not the gown itself, but the whole atmosphere of surgery. I’ve done that at least six times in the last few months.  I had an IV.  They gave me a “sedative,” which was some kind of general anesthetic, because I was unconscious most of the time.  (General anesthetics destroy brain cells–I’m sure of it.)  In spite of all that, the surgery was a total success, and just two days later I had 20-20 vision in that eye.  Hurray for modern medicine, even with its hospital gowns!
         It’s only four weeks until October Conference.  They’re doing the Saturday night session differently now: In October, it’s the women’s session, instead of the priesthood session!  That means if we have our traditional soup dinner here, all of us women will go off to the conference session and the men can stay home and watch the kids!  Of course we’ll still have ice cream and brownies afterwards.  It will be an interesting change.
         I hope you’re all doin’ great and lovin’ it!  Love, Mom