Dear Kids,

If you’re reading my letter you know that typing in just ackerson.org won’t get you here any more.  You have to type blog.ackerson.org.  But I don’t know how to get the word out to people who have been shut out.  I sent a text to all you children of ours, but there are only nine of you, and I sometimes have as many as 35 readers.  This is one of those problems that doesn’t seem to have a solution. 

Meanwhile, we’re all looking forward to Super Sunday at 4:00 at Tom’s this afternoon.  I’m looking forward to the good company, including Charlie Thacker.  I hope his plans work out OK.  I hope most of you can be there.  Like always, you can bring whatever food you want.  There’s always plenty.

And we’ll be having our next book club on November 12.  We’re reading My Side of the Mountain, which is the twentieth book we’ve read in book club.  It’s hard to believe we’ve been going this long.  I hope as many of you as possible are reading the books together as a family.  From what I’ve been studying lately, that’s one of the most important things you can do for your children’s success in life.  I wish I had done it longer with you kids, but I figured once you could read on your own, you were good.  I could have done better, although all of you have been extremely successful.

I guess you all saw the pictures of Allen traveling to Wisconsin (including his flight with Aaron) and canoeing with Monica’s family.  Go, Allen!  Do it while you can!  I wish Dad and I could still travel, but it isn’t possible for us any more, so the lesson from that is you should have fun while you can.  Our lives are really good, but we just can’t do all we used to.

Speaking of which, my radiation starts tomorrow, and we’ll be driving to Salt Lake every day until Friday.  We’re going to listen to Gone With the Wind.  The radiation department gave me a whole folio of information, and I read it all, but nothing told me how I’ll feel being radiated.  I guess I’ll just have to find out.  When I had it before, it wasn’t so bad.

Three weeks from today we’ll be having our family Thanksgiving dinner at John’s house, and nearly our whole family will be there.  I just assumed John would have plenty of places for us to sit, without counting how many of us there were.  I don’t mind standing up to eat, and if some of us have to do that, it will still be great.  Sharon is in charge of the meal, and it might not be too early to contact her and see what you can bring.

So much is going on!  Life is good.  Love, Mom 

 Dear Kids,

John is wrapping up his soaring for the season, since his insurance runs out the end of this month.  Yesterday we went to the airport to help him with his glider, what little we could.  My contribution was to wipe the dead bugs off his wings.  It was surprisingly easy.  He gave me a spray bottle and some paper towels, and I wiped away.  

Next Sunday, the 29th, is Super Sunday at Tom’s.  (And Kim’s birthday, too, you’ll remember.)  I assume we’ll be eating at 4pm, like usual.  I’m pretty sure Tom will be cooking up one of his barbecue specialties, like usual.  I’m sure there will be plenty of food–there always is.  Charlie Thacker is coming!  I’m really looking forward to talking to him about school.  We won’t be having Super Sunday in November, because of our two Thanksgivings, or December, because of Christmas.

Our next family book club will be on November 12, the week before our big Thanksgiving bash.  We’re reading My Side of the Mountain, one of my all-time favorite outdoor books.  I first read it at Tom and Kim’s house many years ago.  I never wanted to run away from home, like Sam Gribley, but it’s fascinating how everything works out for him.

We were sorry we couldn’t go to the temple Thursday night, but it was too late for us.  I’m sure it was a wonderful experience for Emma.  Won’t somebody upload pictures on the family thread?   I want to see how happy everybody looked.

I start radiation a week from tomorrow.  It’s about time for me to experience something new, and I don’t think it will be too bad.  BTW, Dr. Newbold prescribed Valtrex (valacyclover) to try clear up the cankers on my lip, and I started with a massive dose.  (I’m only telling this story so some of you can escape the same result.) About 36 hours later I had unbearable cramps, and it was like my insides exploded.  I fainted, and I threw up.  It took me three days to totally recover.  So, if your doctor wants you to take Valtrex, beware.  You have to be a really large person to tolerate a heavy dose.  

Such pleasant stuff!  Sorry to bore you with my troubles, but I’m hoping to save someone else from the same fate.  Luckily most of our lives are pleasant and free of pain.

Lot of love, Mom

 Dear Kids,

Book club is today at 5:00, and we’re talking about The Great Brain.  I finished reading it a couple of weeks ago so I don’t know if I’ll be able to answer any questions, but the book itself is definitely a winner.  I baked some brownies in honor of JD’s dog Brownie, and Nora might bring ice cream, so we’ll be having great treats.  Be there or be square.

Two weeks from today, the 29th, is Super Sunday at Tom’s house.  Charlie Thacker is planning to be there, so we’ll have a lot of fun talking to him.  I called him to see about his plans, and it sounds like he’s doing fine in school.  We can question him more closely when we see him.

And our early Thanksgiving dinner is just over a month away.  We’ll be getting together on Sunday, November 19, for a real turkey dinner.  Sharon will be in charge, and I’m sure she’ll be making assignments.  (Yes, the Thackers will be here--all of them.)  We’ll meet at John’s house, so it will be a very elegant meal.  Then, on the real Thanksgiving day, we’ll be having a barbecue-type dinner at the cabin.  All of you who are having your “on-year” can get together with us.  Donna will be in charge.

Too bad the eclipse yesterday was such a bust!  I hope it was sunny down south, where it was “total,” but here it was just cold and dark.  In fact, I had mostly forgotten about it yesterday morning, and the dark sky was getting me all depressed.  I called Nora about book club, and she reminded me that the eclipse was going on.  I was so glad to know the sun would be getting brighter again!  By afternoon it was warm enough that I could go out and prune shrubs.

I just finished a week of chemo and my next challenge will be radiation, from October 30 to November 3.  I’ll be going every day for the five days, so that will be a lot of driving for us.  I had a pre-radiation scan last Wednesday, and they gave me a bunch of pamphlets to read, which I haven’t gotten to yet.  I don’t need to know every single thing–only if it’s going to hurt or not.  I had radiation 5 years ago, and it wasn’t too bad.  I’m hoping for the best this time.  If it works really well, I might have more time off from chemo, time enough for all my “hurts” to heal up.  Right now it’s my left foot, my back end, and my lip, besides some neuropathy in my fingers and toes.  In fact, it’s hard to type, so I’ll end this treatise.

All my love, Mom

 Dear Kids,

Book club won’t be today, but next Sunday, the 15th.  We’re reading The Great Brain, and it’s a relatively long book, compared to what we usually read.  Some of you needed more time, and it would have only been three weeks since our last discussion.  By the way, it’s the nineteenth book we’ve read since we started our book club.  If anybody wants the complete list of what we’ve read, let me know.  Congratulations to all of you for keeping it going so long.  

We’re moving Super Sunday back, too, to the 29th, because of complications with the 22nd.  We’ll be meeting at Tom’s house, and the 29th just happens to be Kim’s birthday, so we’ll all get a chance to wish her well.  I don’t know how long it’s been since we’ve been doing Super Sundays, but they’re sure working out nicely.  Thanks to all of you for opening your homes to us.

And our family Thanksgiving will be at John’s house, for sure, on Sunday, November 19th.  I’m warming up to the idea of celebrating on Sunday because we can have another dinner on the real Thanksgiving, the 23rd.  I’ve heard rumors that Tom’s going to cook a brisket that day. We’re going to have barbecue food–mac ‘n cheese and BT cake for dessert, so if you don’t have any other plans for real Thanksgiving day, you can put that on your calendar.  We’ll be eating at the cabin.  I was hoping our construction there would be finished by then, but we haven’t heard anything from our contractor this week, and we’re running out of time before winter.  By the way, are all contractors like that–they promise you everything, and then you never hear from them again?  At least when you do the work yourself, you can start whenever you want to.  I’m glad for all the years we were able to do our own work.

This last week was my good week, (I’m doing chemo again, starting tomorrow) and on Thursday afternoon we drove to Smith and Morehouse with our ministering couple, to look at the autumn leaves.  They were a really bright yellow!  It was perfect weather, and we walked part way around the reservoir.  That was the end of my fun for the week, though, because on Friday Dr. Engen burned some pre-cancers off my face, and yesterday I had a root canal where a bridge had fallen out of my mouth.  I was in the chair for more than two hours, but Dad held my hand the whole time.  He didn’t even look bored.  I was definitely not bored, with all the pain.  Dr. Condie kept having to inject more anesthetic into my mouth.  But it’s all healing now, so I’ll be in good shape for my chemo tomorrow.

Aaron goes into the Provo MTC on Wednesday, and Andy and Renae, who are greeters there, will be looking out for him.  I’m not getting Sarah’s letters, so I’ll have to contact Vanessa and get on her list.  I’m so proud of our missionaries!

Love to everybody, Mom

Dear Kids,

Hasn’t conference been great?  Dad and I watched yesterday’s morning session just fine on our main TV with our powered antenna, but by afternoon we couldn’t get a signal.  We tried the library hot spot but we couldn’t connect up, so we ended up huddled in front of my little computer screen watching it on YouTube.  It worked fine, though.  Just as inspiring.  Better than the days when Dad used to listen on short wave in Virginia.  I’m looking forward to today’s sessions.

You all seemed to get Sharon’s text about Thanksgiving.  We’re delighted that she and her family are coming.  Since they’re going to the Thackers’ house in Upalco for Thanksgiving day, Sharon came up with the plan of having a pre-Thanksgiving dinner with our family the Sunday before.  When it gets closer we’ll figure out what time.  Sharon will be in charge of the meal, so I’m sure she’ll be assigning out the food.  I’m doing pies, even though I swore off from that job last year.  I should be in better shape this time around.  We need a place where everybody can sit down, so that means either the cabin greenhouse or John’s house.  I vote for John’s house, because the setting is so elegant, but if Heather says OK, we’ll all have to bring our foods pre-cooked.  More about this later.

Book club should be next week, unless I hear that some of you haven’t had enough time.  I’ll call around and see.  We’re reading The Great Brain, and I’m enjoying it just as much as the first time around.  Nora will be leading the discussion.

And then, when shall we have Super Sunday?  Since we have five Sundays in October, we could either have it the 22nd or the 29th.   It’s Tom’s turn, so I’ll check with him and let everybody know.  

Dad and I never did put up the half-log siding on the bunkhouse, and it’s been more than ten years, so we’re going to hire it out.  This is the first time we’ve ever had other people work for us.  We also need to have work done on the cabin, where the wood around the edge of the roof (fascia) and soffit under the eaves are all decroded.  We got a bid for both projects, and Dad was horrified, but I wasn’t too surprised.  Needless to say it’s going to cost us a lot, but that only underscores how much we’ve saved over the years by doing our own building and landscaping.  I wish we could do the work ourselves, but people in their late seventies need to slow down.  We just can’t do what we used to.

Still, life is plenty rewarding.  We love you all!  Mom