Dear Kids,
      Dad and I had a great time at the cabin last week. Dad worked at re-wiring the garage, and he found lots of dead mice in the insulation (which he removed.) My only goal was to get the rest of the front yard planted, so I worked nonstop for 3½ days, chopping up the ground, hauling topsoil, and raking in the seeds. By Thursday afternoon I was finished, and it looked great. All ready to grow. It only needed water. Which came that night in the most violent thunderstorm I’ve ever seen. (Not to be confused with the sort-of-violent storm we’d had Monday night.) Lightning flashed, thunder shook the cabin, and rain came down in sheets. It washed away all my seed and most of the topsoil. So I’m done for the year. I don’t have enough dirt to do all that again, and by the time I go back to the cabin, it’ll be too late in the year to plant. I’m sort of wondering, because I’d been hoping and praying for rain, like everybody else. So, did the Lord answer my prayer? It sure didn’t turn out very well for me.
      Friday evening, as Dad and I were packing up to leave the cabin, Tom showed us the spider bites on his foot. They were swollen and itchy, and he’d covered them with Caladryl. Things went downhill from then, and you can read all about it on his blog, how he started to develop necrosis and had to have it dug out, and his daily IV’s of antibiotics. His blog address is tom-kim-kids.blogspot.com. You can also see a gruesome picture of the hole in his foot. I thought only brown recluse spiders in the south caused that kind of trouble, but Vanessa says that hobo spiders can do the same thing. So watch out.
      Nora (and kids) and I drove to Pocatello Sunday night, and had a fun time staying over at Vanessa and Trent’s house. Monday we went to Lava Hot Springs, where they have a big outside pool with water slides, diving platforms, lots of grass–it’s a total family reunion destination. So naturally we planned a family reunion there for next summer. We’ve wanted to start having an annual Ackerson family reunion anyway, and it’s the perfect place. But weekends it’s totally jammed with people, so we’re going for a Monday, July 28th. Since it’s a whole year away, we hope you can all somehow arrange for that day off. We can try.
      And speaking of family reunions, naturally, we hope to see some of you this Saturday (August 4th) at Riverwoods Park in Provo/Orem. If any of you can’t remember how to get there, call me on my cell. The park is reserved from 8:30 am until 2:00 pm, and we’re supposed to bring our own lunches. (There’s a Subway close by.) I have no idea who all will be there.
      Grandma and Grandpa Allen have decided to move to the Seville instead of to Summerfield. Remember the Seville? We used to visit Grandma Murphy there. They have three meals a day instead of two, and a higher level of care. Also, they can move in next week. No waiting around for a room. They have church there, a hair salon, bus trips to the temple . . . it’ll be good.
      Paul is enjoying his job with Mygrant glass. At least he’s not outside. He drives a Ford F250 and delivers windshields to auto shops around the valley. He’s working on getting his forklift certification, too. Now there’s an important life skill!
      I’ll be calling you soon for your Mike Rogers orders. Or you can call me. We need to get it done! Life has been so busy!
      Lots of love, Mom

Dear Kids,
      Bonnie sent out an e-mail asking me to remind you about the family reunion-picnic on August 4th. She says: We have the Riverwoods park (this is the much improved nicer version of last year's park) across from the Riverwoods shopping area, (just west of University Avenue) for Sat. August 4th from 8:30 a.m.-2:00p.m. This will be very casual, no program, just bring your own lunch and visit. We will set up a slip and slide on the hill for anyone who wants to get wet, also a wading pool for the little ones. Hopefully we will have nice weather. Jane and Brendan will be here and I'm sure they would love to see as many of you as possible. See you in a couple of weeks!
      So that’s the word from Bonnie. I hope at least some of you can come. Dad and I will be there for sure.
      Our July 24th holiday was lots of fun, since we’re at the cabin this week. Bevan took off on his bike and rode around the Jordanelle Reservoir, 36 miles all together. (Donna had to work. Park City likes to snub its nose at the pioneers.) The rest of us went to the parade in Kamas, which lasted about 15 minutes. The floats are sponsored by the various wards, and they all throw candy. Or otter pops. Behind every float, there are kids on bikes, and moms pushing strollers. Bentley rode his bike behind the Francis 2nd ward float, and Kim pushed Emma and carried Ali in a sling. John’s family was there, too, just for the fun of it, and Heather pushed Aubrey in a stroller while Jacob and Aaron rode their bikes. Now that’s my kind of parade! When it reached the end of town, it turned around and came back. And then we were out of there and on our way home, along with all the pickup trucks and horse trailers. When we got back to the cabin, the Salt Lake parade was on TV, still going, and I felt sorry for the poor suckers standing out in the sun watching it, hour after hour. And they weren’t getting candy and popsicles, either.
      Nora and Paige came to the cabin Tuesday afternoon, while James took Addie and Ben to Lagoon for a “bounce back.” I guess Nora didn’t feel much like bouncing. We sat around and talked and ate and had a good time. Paige thinks she’s so smart, walking around. Emma was wondering why Ali can’t walk yet.
      We’ve had some wild weather this week. Monday, a big black cloud came over the hill, and pretty soon the rain and hail blew in sideways. Resin chairs were flying through the air! We were pounded by rain for about 20 minutes, and then it blew over, leaving the yard looking like a lake. The same thing happens almost every afternoon, now, but not quite so violent. It must be a monsoon pattern. It’s lots better than last week, when we were broiling in the heat every day.
      You know how they’re building Victory Ranch down on the Provo River, just south and west of Francis? They’re also working on the golf course, up on top of the bluff. On Tuesday, Dad and I drove over there, and we convinced a man standing guard to let us in. We drove to the top of the bluff, and watched the big earth movers grading the side of the mountain. That’s going to be one beautiful golf course! You can see Mt. Timpanogos, Deer Crest, Kamas Valley, and up into the Uintas, all at once. It’s almost enough to make me want to get rich and learn to play golf.
      Life is good! I love you all! Mom

Dear Kids,
      I’m up to my ears in books, literally. Grandma and Grandpa Allen are getting ready to move to Summerfield, a nice retirement center, and I volunteered to handle their books. Yesterday we went through everything, and they chose out a few to take with them. The rest are on our dining room table now, and I’m sitting at my laptop making a list of them. And they really are stacked up higher than my ears. I’ll be sending the list to all my brothers and sisters so they can tell me what they want. The rest will be up for grabs by others, probably you kids. Some of them are really nice. I listed a few of them on half.com just for fun, and I’ve sold two already.
      Did all of you notice the cool slideshow of Monca’s wedding that Tom uploaded? It reminded me how much fun it all was. And how nice everything looked. Especially the flowers! And how cute Monica and Neil looked! I showed the pictures to Grandma, and she said Monica looks like Lauren Bacall. (Old-time movie star.) Not all of us are in the pictures, of course. Tom got most of us, but not everybody. Nora’s friend Marissa, the official photographer, probably got everybody. I heard she was supposed to upload the proofs to her web site, but I don’t know anything more. Monica, do you?
      Our Relief Society had our annual retreat at the cabin Friday night. Everybody commented on how clean it was, and when I said we had two married families living there, nobody could believe it. (I guess they could have looked in the closets, but they didn’t.) Anyway, we had a lot of fun. They played a lot of games. There are a lot of serious card sharks in our ward, and they really got going, about 11 at night. Dad and I dragged our mattresses out onto the front deck, and went to sleep. We haven’t tried that before. You can really see a lot of stars, because there’s no roof to block your view. We heard later that the laughing and talking went on until 1:30 or 2:00. I heard some good gossip but I can’t pass it on, since I don’t say anything insensitive on my blog anymore. I’ve changed totally and now I only write nice, uplifting things about people, especially people in our ward.
      Saturday night there was a 50th Wedding Anniversary party for Howard and Karen Condie, at the lighthouse church, where they had their original wedding reception 50 years ago. We had lots of fun talking to all the old timers who showed up. Here are the people who told us to say Hi to all of you: Brent & Delores Anderson, Cal & Maradon Anderson, Bob & Louise Pistorius, Roy & Nancy Pistorius, Bruce & Nelda Brooks, and Jack & Gwen Simpson. They all wanted to know how you kids were doing, and of course I bragged up the fact that we’re going on 19 grandchildren, with 16 of them five-and-under. We also gave lots of run downs on where you all are, and what you’re all doing. These old timers really wanted to know! All the grown-up Condie kids were there, with their families, and they all introduced themselves. President Monson (Howard’s cousin) came, and told lots of old stories, some of them quite startling. But of course, I only send out uplifting stories now. Nobody gets a pass on my blog, even general authorities.
      Sharon and Seth went home Tuesday, so we’re all back to normal now. Paul’s enjoying his work at Mygrant Glass. He drives a F250 pickup and delivers windshields to auto body shops. He says that at least he’s not working outside.
      Lots of love to you all! Mom

Dear Kids,
      Wasn’t Monica’s wedding spectacular? It seemed like everything turned out perfectly–the food, the tents, the games, the weather–how about that cloud cover that came over just in time for the ceremony? And the two mountain bluebirds that flew up behind the arch just as Monica and Neil were saying “I do.” And Matheny’s goats not bleating–they could have been really obnoxious, if they’d had better timing. It was all good. Thanks to all of you who helped, especially with the clean-up. If any of you Ackerson cousins are reading this, thanks for all your help, too. Thanks for goin’ the distance, or coming the distance–it was great to see you.
      Mike Rogers e-mailed our proofs to us, and I think Dad’s forwarding them on to all of you. Also, you can see them on Ackerson.org: there’s a link on the home page, right near the top. I listed them by number. They’re all low-resolution jpegs, so people can’t just download them and print them at Walmart. So if you zoom in on them, you don’t see much detail, but at least you can tell if your kids are crying or not. Let me know asap what pictures you want. Mike hasn’t raised his prices in years. (4 wallets: $6.00, 4x5: $4.00, 5x7: $11.00, 8x10: $16.00, 11x14: $53.00, 16x20: $119.00) We’ll pay the first $25 of everybody’s order, plus the sitting fee, if he charges one. Dad and I didn’t look our best–I think we were really stressed. The rest of you looked really good. I think it’s a miracle the big mob scenes turned out as well as they did. Anyway, let me know what you want.
      A couple of days after the wedding I called Patty Paxman, to explain why we didn’t come to Chris’s wedding, which was the same day. She dropped by later that morning to give me a present for Donna, and we sat and talked about all the things that have happened over the years. She said it was hard having Chris get married in the Catholic Church by a priest, but his wife is from a great family, and they’re rich, too! Patty asked me about all you kids, and she admired the grandchildren’s pictures in our kitchen.
      My broken toe is still giving me a lot of trouble, and it’s been two weeks now. Everyone says it takes much longer than that. I was so mad, because the day I broke it, I’d decided to do everything right, since I needed all the blessings I could get. I studied the scriptures that morning, did my visiting teaching, went to the temple with Dad, and paid my tithing. I was just waiting for those blessings to roll in. And what did I do? I walked down the hall in bare feet, and stumbled into the heavy leg of a bar stool. There’s a lesson there. Do all the good things you’re supposed to do, but don’t be stupid.
      Our apricot tree was loaded this year, and luckily, Jana McGettigan wanted to pick them. She said she was going to dry them, and I imagined some fruit dryer churning away in their kitchen. But since it’s been so blazing hot, she just laid them out on card tables, out on their driveway, next to the hot brick on the side of their house. They dried in record time. Dad and I sampled a few, when we were out on our Sunday night bike ride. I was proud they turned out so well. Maybe someday I’ll try that myself.
      Paul is getting a job a Mygrant Glass, where he worked during Christmas. He might be driving a delivery truck. At least, he says, he won’t be outside. The pay isn’t as good as his drilling job, but at this point, he doesn’t seem to care.
      Well, it was great to see all of you last week. I’m so proud of our big wonderful family! Love, Mom

Dear Kids,
      It’s one big party at the cabin these days. Kim and the kids have moved in full-time, and the fun never stops. Somebody’s always bringing home ice cream. There are trips back and forth to the swimming pool. Nobody ever goes to bed at night. I ought to know, because I’m practically there full-time too, until the wedding. I’m still mixing up cement and mortar, and raking rocks and dirt. My rock wall is almost done, and I’m making a little patio on the west side of the greenhouse. The yard doesn’t have that “finished” look yet, but every day it’s looking a little better. Bentley is my little companion. He follows me around, quoting from Charlotte’s Web. It’s always the same lines: “The rat is desperate! The rat is trapped! The rat needs to stop calling himself ‘the rat.’” Bentley is way more entertaining than my audiobooks.
      Paul gave his 2-week notice at his job. He’s finally had enough. A couple of days ago, a 150-lb. hammer fell from three feet up and barely missed his head. It grazed his shoulder and his leg as it fell. He was lucky. But he had already given his notice before that happened. Yesterday, his “driller,” Dean, heard about it. He was really ticked off. He said, “Paul, Winston Churchill always said, ‘Never give up!’ Think about it, Paul. Never give up!” Fortunately, Paul is wise enough to know when it’s time to give up. He may go back to a glass company he worked at for SOS–at least it would be inside.
      Donna and Bevan are house sitting at her boss’s place this week. He was delighted to find house sitters that wouldn’t be drinking his wine, and he’s given them gift certificate to some nice eating places. Their main responsibility is taking care of the dogs. Donna has lots more phone calls at work, too, since she’s the head honcho while the boss is out of town.
      Last Saturday Andy showed up at the cabin. He had taken Renae to teach a quilting class in Midway, and he was heading up to the Uintas when he remembered we were close by. So he stopped in and talked for a while. He has a new truck that he’s very proud of. It’s a Dodge Dakota with a quad cab, and he demonstrated how the back doors open all the way, and the back seats fold up to make more room for stuff. He says his truck is way more sensible than my brother Ben’s, because it’s not a “monster.” He said it drives like a mini van.
      Dad and I have a new Sunday night habit: riding our bikes around the neighborhood. Now that the new homes are built in Dorothy Grant’s field, you can ride all around our ward without going out onto 40th West. And other people seem to be out on bikes, too. Last Sunday night we were toodling down Sugar Beet Drive when Lonnie and Gail Yeaman went sailing by on their bikes. Lonnie called out his home teaching report to Chuck as he rode by. Hey, they report home teaching by e-mail and phone and fax, and now it’s cool to do it by bike.
      We’re really looking forward to the wedding next weekend. I’m anxious to see everybody, and it’ll be fun to hang out with Neil’s family and friends, too. Till then, we’re “doin’ great and lovin’ it.”
      Love, Mom

Dear Kids,
      Dad and I had a wonderful time at Lake Powell. Blue sky. White clouds. Red rock. Clear water. Not very hot. In fact, the water was so cool that Dad and I hardly ever jumped in. I like lake water when it’s about 98.6°, and this water was about 25° cooler than that. But we still had lots of fun. We climbed Hole-in-the-Rock, rode up the San Juan River, went to church in Ticaboo, talked a lot to the Ulriches and the Smiths, and ate a lot of good food. There were giant ravens that swooped over our houseboat, and their wings sounded like helicopter blades. We climbed on the rocks and watched several great sunsets. At night, we slept on the top deck under a million stars. My souvenirs are a piece of driftwood, a raven feather, and lots of colored rocks.
      On our way home, we stopped in Price to get gas at the Mavrick. I told Dad that if we stayed in Price longer than 20 minutes, we would see either the Larsens, the Bentleys, or Brad King. Turned out it was Brad King, with his wife, at the Chinese Buffet, where we ate dinner. He said to say Hi to all of you.
      After we got home, we both swayed back and forth when we walked, from the rocking of the houseboat. We had 568 unread e-mails. Sunday night, Dad and Paul were both pumping up their bike tires, to get to work on Monday morning. It seemed pathetic, after the grand vehicles we’d ridden in all week. But we’re glad to be back to our real lives. I’ve already been back at the cabin, raking rocks and mixing cement.
      On Sunday we went to the missionary farewells for David Tregaskis and Austin James. Then we visited both houses afterwards, and I think we saw almost all of my family, in one place or the other. Grandma and Grandpa were at both, with Barbara as their chauffeur. I got to talk to Suzy and Whitney. Max has long blonde hair now, and it’s wavy.
      There was a police shooting in Centerville last Sunday morning, the only one they’ve ever had. It was a drug house, although the neighbors they interviewed on the news said “They were such nice people!” Allen was sitting outside in his cop car, filling out a report, when it happened. He said he didn’t even hear the shots. You can look it up on desnews.com or sltrib.com. It happened on the 10th, but the news stories were on the 11th.
      There’s a phone at the cabin now. If you want to surprise Tom and Kim, you can call them on it. Nobody ever does, except for telemarketers. The number is 435 783 6239.
      You know those Texas muffin tins, that make really big muffins? Some of you have them now. Monica gave me some for Christmas. I finally bought the muffin papers that fit in them, at Orson Gigi, but it was a sleeve of 500. So if any of you need the papers, make sure you get them from me. It’s fun to make the giant muffins, and of course you can make giant cupcakes, too.
      We’re looking forward to seeing everybody at the wedding. It’s coming up fast. In the Deseret News this morning, there was a news story about all the people getting married on 07-07-07, for good luck. It’ll be a great day.
      Lots of love, Mom

Dear Kids,
      I’ve just been online, checking the 10-day forecast for Lake Powell. Middle eighties, that’s all. But it’s lots better than here. I think it maybe got up to 50 today. Maybe not. The snowline on the mountain is down to about 5,000 feet. But then, it’s springtime in the Rockies. Of course I drove home from the cabin in a snowstorm yesterday, at least over Parleys, where it was a combination of snow, sleet, hail, and wind. Lovely.
      But Dad and I are leaving for Lake Powell Saturday morning, for a week of relaxing and water skiing and just loafing. It isn’t our whole study group any more, just Ulriches, Smiths, us, and maybe Laura’s sister. But we’ll have fun. How could we not have fun? And Paul will take care of the cats and the bird and the mail here at home.
      Speaking of Paul, he’s about had enough of his job as an assistant driller. It isn’t the hard work, but the driller that’s getting on his nerves. This guy sounds really nice to me, but he says things like, “Now Paul, you don’t have your hard hat on. What would happen if something fell on you right now?” So Paul has considered not working there any more. He'd like to transfer to a different part of the company, or else he’ll find a new job. Sounds OK to me.
      LeAnn Parker came by to deliver my Avon order yesterday, and I asked how their wedding plans are coming along. (Shaylynn is getting married in August.) She spends most of her time in the back yard raking rocks and hauling dirt. Humm–sounds like me! She wants to get their back yard finished before the wedding, and build a deck, too. I wish I had time to help her, but I’m busy raking rocks and hauling dirt at the cabin. Let’s hope we both finish in time!
      Speaking of the cabin, I checked on the baby robins in their nest up in the roof of the playhouse. They already have feathers! They just sit with their beaks upward, staring. Tom took a picture, and I hope he’ll upload it into his latest photo gallery. I thought the wind Tuesday night might blow them down, but it didn’t. I guess robins know where to build.
      I’m still excited about everybody’s blogs. I discovered I can pick and choose from your pictures, and save them in high resolution. They print up really nicely! I’m going to use them in my photo albums, because when our family gets together, I get too distracted to even pick up the camera. Tom’s galleries are a great resource, too!
      I visited Grandma and Grandpa today, and they’re doing fine. Grandpa was having lots of trouble with his asthma, because of the cold weather, and he has to use his “breathalizier” every four hours or so. It pumps steam into his lungs, and helps clear them out. Grandma and I went to Walmart, and she bought yarn for new afghans. She needs to make at least three more (for Melissa, Rylee, and Katie Brooke) before she retires from knitting.
      I won’t be uploading a letter next week, because I doubt we’ll have wireless internet on the houseboat. But I’ll be thinking of you all! Love, Mom