Dear Kids,

Holy cow, Sterling comes home tomorrow!  Too bad it’s so late and far away for most of us!  He lands in Idaho Falls at 9:08 pm.

And this afternoon is Super Sunday at Paul’s at 5 pm.  We’re having it later so there will be more shade in Paul’s back yard, which will be good, since the temperature is supposed to be around 100.  Whatever–there’s no stopping the fun, where this family is concerned.

Speaking of which, Dad and I drove up to Mirror Lake yesterday afternoon to partly get it on the camping trip that Donna organized.  Besides Donna’s family, there were Nora’s and Tom’s families, and Allen besides.  Dad and I had already had a really long day, starting with working on the tile in the cabin’s pantry, so we didn’t stay long, but we ate lunch with Donna’s family and hiked around the lake with Bevan, Donna, and Al.  It was absolutely gorgeous, and cool enough that I had to wear my fleece.  Most of the kids were out on the lake in kayaks and paddle boards, and we waved to them as we walked by.  When we got back to camp we were absolutely worn out, so Dad and I headed home.

Two weeks from today we’ll be winding up the family reunion, and I hope you all received the agenda.  If you have any questions, contact Donna.  Thursday night, after the family pictures, we’ll sing happy birthday to John if he’s good enough to bring those chocolate cakes from Costco.  We’ll sing to him anyway even if he doesn’t, but we all know how much John likes going to Costco.

Other upcoming events to have on your calendar: Bentley’s wedding August 10, Vanessa’s combined meeting August 13, and book club here on August 20.  Nora suggested we read Bunnicula, which is a crazy and fun book about a Dracula bunny.

Looking ahead to school starting this fall–Although Dad and I turned our backs on BYU almost 50 years ago, we’ll have three grandchildren going there: Bentley, Adelaide, and Charlie.  We wish them well, along with all the other college, high school, middle school, elementary, and preschool kids.  What a family!

Love, Mom

 Dear Kids,

What a summer we’re having!  It’s just one event after another.  Book club is this afternoon at 5, and we’re reading The Sign of the Beaver.  I hope you’ve all had a chance to read it, but I know most of you are in the middle of hectic summer activities.  Anyway, we’ll be discussing it.  Then, next week (the 16th) is Super Sunday at Paul’s.  Before, we’ve always met at the park, when we’ve gone to Layton, but this time we’re meeting in Paul’s back yard.  For that reason, Paul wants us to come at 5 instead of 4, because there’s more shade then.  Also, that will give Donna’s family more time to get there, since they’re on such a late schedule.

On Monday, the 17th Sterling comes home.  He’ll fly into the Idaho Falls airport at 9:08 pm.

Then, the next big event, which I keep forgetting to mention, is the family reunion starting Thursday, July 27.  Donna is working on the agenda, and she’s planning to get it out asap.  Each family reunion seems better than the one before it, and I’m sure this one will be the best of all, so far.  I know we’re having pictures taken Thursday evening, so make sure you don’t wait until Friday morning to show up.  Because it’s so close (Huber Grove), Dad and I will be there the whole time.  I’m really excited about it.

The next big event after the family reunion will be Bentley and Cambree’s wedding on August 10.  I’m sure Tom’s family will give us the whole agenda when it gets closer.  And then, the Sunday after that (August 13) most of us will be driving to Pocatello for the combined homecoming and farewell of Sterling and Sarah.  By the way, Vanessa’s ward meets in a different church now.  The address is 1701 Bartz Drive, and since there are two churches together, it’s the east building.  I’ll keep repeating this information as it gets closer.  The meeting starts at 9 am.

One further item: Josh’s baptism will be Saturday, September 2, so you can put that on your calendar, too. 

I got through my week of chemo OK, and I even felt good enough to help Dad prune trees yesterday.  Then we went to the cabin and he did some good work on the gas tank of the Yerf Dog.  It turned out so well that we were able to take the yerf dog on a good spin.  I know a lot of you have been missing driving it.  That’s all OK now. 

I hope you’re all doin’ great and lovin’ it!  Lots of love, Mom

 Dear Kids,

I’m sure you’ve all heard about John “landing out” in Bedford, Wyoming.  Dad had been following John's flight on his phone, but when he saw that, all of a sudden, John wasn’t going anywhere, we were afraid of the worst.  Luckily it all turned out OK.  John’s group chose Afton for their fly-in because it’s surrounded by fields, and the field John chose was very soft.   He said it was the softest landing he ever made.  One funny thing–on Sunday John went to church in the Bedford ward, and one lady said, “You look like the guy who landed in our field yesterday!”

Sterling is definitely coming home on the 17th.  That’s only two weeks off!  He’ll be landing in Idaho Falls at 9:08 pm, which makes it nearly impossible for any of us Utahns to be there, but it’s still great that he’s finishing such a successful mission.  The combined sacrament meeting for Sarah and Sterling will be August 13 at 9 am.  Vanessa’s ward meets in a different building now, and I’ll have the address when it gets closer.

Book club is a week from today at 5 pm here at our house.  We’re reading The Sign of the Beaver.  I started reading it a couple of days ago, and I couldn’t put it down.  I had forgotten it was so good!  I’m looking forward to hearing everybody’s comments.  

Paul and Stefanie are in charge of Super Sunday this month, and they’ve chosen to have it on the 16th, just two weeks from now.  I’ll let you know the location in my letter next week, but I’m guessing we’ll meet at the park we’ve gone to before.   The time will probably be the same–4 pm. Like always, you bring what you like, and we’ll put it all together.  BTW, Josh will be getting baptized September 2, so we’ll have that to look forward to.

Dad and I laid the last of the tile in the pantry of the cabin, a job I had put off for ten years.  I wasn’t sure I had enough energy to do it, but I definitely had enough adrenalin.  Dad mixed the mortar for me, and got out the lumps, so all I had to do was spread it and put down the tiles.   Our next job will be doing the grout, and then putting the doors back up, if they still fit after 10 years.  I love projects.  I don’t care if I’m 75!  I don’t care if I have cancer!  If there’s a fun project, I’m going to figure out how to get it done.

Which reminds me–I have chemo again on Monday, but it’s the last of four infusions, and then I have eight weeks of freedom. Onward and upward!  Love, Mom

 Dear Kids,

I hope summer is going well for all of you.  There’s no end to the adventures!  Donna and Anna went to camp, and John towed his glider to Afton, Wyoming, to a fly-in, where he spent a full week.  Dad looked up Vanessa on his phone and found out she was in Island Park.  I’m sure that’s only the beginning of the fun you’re all having!

Our next book club will be July 9, and we’re reading The Sign of the Beaver by Elizabeth George Speare.  I read it several years ago and really enjoyed it, but I’ll definitely be reading it again so I can answer the questions.  It will be the sixteenth book we’ve read together.  Thank you all for making book club such a success!

We’ll probably be having Super Sunday on July 23 or 30th, depending on what Vanessa’s plans are for her kids’ farewell/homecoming.  I’ll let you know when it gets closer.  Paul will be in charge.

Sonia is still totally crazy about tuna.  While Dad is dishing it up, she dances around on her hind legs like a circus animal.  When he puts it down, she gobbles like there’s no tomorrow.  We keep wondering if she’ll get tired of the stuff, but so far it’s not happening.

Dad and I are totally immersed in summer projects.  Dad spent more than two weeks on the cabin’s watering system, because all the things that can go wrong with plumbing, went wrong.  He ended up getting a new manifold and new valves, and endless small parts, but finally it all worked, with no leaks.  I’m glad it’s finally working, because we’re supposed to have warm sunny days for at least two more weeks, with no rain.  Our bushes and shrubs at the cabin finally need our water.  My summer project for now is pruning shrubs at our house, but I haven’t been able to do much this week because of chemo.  

I’ve been having a lot of trouble breathing lately, but my oncologist couldn’t see what was causing it, when I saw him last Monday.  He advised me to buy a pulse oximeter, the gadget they put on your finger in the doctor’s office to see if you have enough oxygen in your system.  Naturally I ordered one off Amazon, and now Dad and I have fun checking our oxygen levels.  Yesterday morning, when I was absolutely gasping for breath, my score was 100 percent.  Dad, who breathes just fine, came in at 94.  Crazy!

Too bad there’s nothing more exciting in our lives!  But we love you all!  Mom

 Dear Kids,

Happy Fathers Day to all you sons and sons-in-law of mine!  I’m so happy with the way you’re raising your families, and the good examples you set for them.  I’m sure you know how important fatherhood is, and when you get to be senior citizens like Dad and me, you’ll see it even more clearly.  Thanks!

We’ll be having book club this evening at 5 at our house, and we’re talking about Superfudge.  Donna’s family will be at the Hawkins’, but they said they finished the book anyway.  The rest of us will have a good discussion, and great refreshments, of course.  This is the fifteenth book we will have read together.  We won’t be having Super Sunday this month because of the events of last week and this week, and I’ll let you know about July.  

I was sorry to miss Adelaide’s homecoming last week, but I had been in the LDS Hospital ER all night long.  I had a bowl blockage, and it was terribly painful.  They gave me two units of morphine and then cleaned me out.  When the morphine really kicked in, I got terribly groggy, and when we got home I slept all day Sunday.  Dad did, too.  We couldn’t go anywhere.  My abdomen has been hurting for most of the week, but it’s finally feeling better.  All’s well that ends well, and I thank you for all your prayers for me.  It could have been so much worse.

Dad is really excited about the new phone that some of you went in on for Fathers Day.  He can connect it up with the Apple watch John gave him a little while ago, and do all those twenty-first century things that most of you are doing.  Dad offered me his old I-phone, but I prefer to stay in the twentieth century with my simple little android.  If any of you want his old I-phone, I’m sure he’ll give it to you.

Now that we’re into summer, we’re into cabin projects.  Dad is working on the watering system, which is a challenge every year.  I’m working on the pantry, getting ready to lay the tile we cut a couple of weeks ago.  We had to trim off the bottom of the door into the water-heater room, so it would fit over the tile.  It’s been lots of fun.  By the way, thanks again for all your help in raking out the gravel last week.  It turned out better than I ever imagined.

What a family!  We love you all!  Mom

 Dear Kids,

The gravel-raking party was a big success.  Thanks to Donna, Nora, Tom, and their families, along with Allen, and also Chandra and Natalie Garcia.  Thanks especially to our nice neighbor with his tractor, who saved us hours of work.  It looks really good–nice and level and even.  Thanks again to everybody.

Adelaide is home!  Lots of you came to the airport Thursday night, but Dad and I couldn’t come because I was having a bad chemo week.  Donna showed me her pictures, though, and it looks like it was really wild and crazy.  We’re glad she made it home safely, and hope her re-entry into real life will go smoothly.  Her homecoming is today at noon in Nora’s church.  Nora’s having lots of chances to play hostess these days.

Because of the homecoming, book club is being pushed back to next Sunday, which is also Fathers Day.  No matter.  We’ll meet here at our house at 5 pm, and have our usual great discussion.  And there will be goodies, too.   The next week, the 25th, would normally be Super Sunday, with Paul hosting, but because of all the events, we’ll push it back to the end of July, or even August, because of Sarah and Sterling’s farewell/homecoming.   We’ll see how it goes.

We went to Jana McGettigan’s funeral last Tuesday, where we ran into the Fultons, the Littles, the Brian Parkers, and the Barbutos, along with several other people from our old ward.  We saw Glenn, Tyler, Sam, and Kara, too.  It was fun talking to everybody, even though it was such a sad occasion.  Actually, Dad and I really only went to the viewing, just before the funeral, because I was wearing my chemo pump and needed to stay close to home. 

On Goodreads, I reached my goal of 1,000 books this past week.  I’m going to reward myself with a one-pound box of dark chocolates from See’s or Cummings’. Naturally I won’t stop writing book reviews.  Onward and upward!

Lots of love, Mom

 Dear Kids,

Adelaide is coming home on Thursday.  Yes, this Thursday!  Her plane lands at the Salt Lake Airport at 8 pm, coming from Atlanta.  Everybody is welcome to come to the airport.  Dad and I won’t be there, since I’ll be having a bad chemo day, but we’ll see her next Sunday.  Her homecoming will be at noon in Nora’s church, which we’re all familiar with.  The after-party will be at Nora’s, of course.  You can call her for a food assignment.  And since book club was going to be this coming Sunday, we’re pushing it back to the 18th, Fathers Day. (It’s funny, our last book club was on Mothers Day.)  As you all know, we’re reading Superfudge.  It’s hysterical.

And our gravel-raking party will be this Saturday at 9 am at the cabin.  Bring your rakes and your muscles.  Lunch will be at the Food Town Deli, paid for by Dad.  If there’s any problem getting the gravel, I’ll let you all know in time.  If you have any questions, text me.  I assume everything will go OK.

Jana McGettigan passed away on Memorial Day.  We had visited her nine days earlier, and I had no idea she was getting that close.  She seemed comfortable and alert, so things must have moved fast at the end.  I’ll have to ask Glenn about it.  The funeral is this Tuesday at their stake center in Lehi.  Jana and I had been friends for 28 years, and she knew all you kids, so this is a big loss for us.  I had been hoping she could make at least one more trip to our house, and that we could go down to the Provo River and I could watch her take pictures.  After all those years she had cancer (22) I still can’t believe it finally happened.

Dad and I had eye exams at John’s office on Wednesday.  Aaron did a scan of my eyes, and Jacob took our orders for lenses.  Heather was there, supervising the office, and John did our exams, of course.  The office is truly ACKERSON eye care.  Next thing you know Aubrey will be in there helping out, although last I heard she was happy with her job at the UPS store.

Super Sunday for June will be on the 25th, three weeks from today, and Paul will be in charge.  There will be more info when it gets closer.

Our lives are busy but good.  We love you all!  Mom