September comes in like a hurricane...

Dear family--

So the likelihood that I will be aware enough to remember on September 27th (Happy Birthday, Jeff, btw, on that day) to write in the family blog is so minute that I am going to dash off a quick entry now.

We are enjoying a beautiful September in Utah. We have had summer-like temperatures and with those our garden is kicking into overdrive. We have canned and frozen peaches until we are about sick of them. Luckily, Mom and Dad came down from Hayden Lake and hauled a bunch away with them. Otherwise, I don't know what we would have done. And for the first time ever we have had enough tomatoes out of our own garden to make my Grandma Wise's chili sauce.

We have a triple batch done on the stove, just waiting to be bottled.

Along with that, we are struggling to get back into the swing of the fall schedule. The kids are busy...piano lessons, voice lessons, hockey games, tae kwon do practices, ballroom dance practices, homework, etc. And I am trying to get used to still being the one mainly responsible for getting them to all those places.

Holly is a senior this year and just had her pictures done. We are still editing the files, but here is a quick look at one of our favorites....

Yeah...our little Boo is definitely growing up. And we hardly ever see her anymore with her busy schedule. Thank heavens she can drive herself places now!

Sierra is in 9th grade and is now one of the "big cheeses" in Jr. High. She is taking her first college-credit course (geography) and is busy with choir, drama, and art. She is also in "Annie" this year, the musical being put on by her school. She's also being stalked by one of her male co-actors, but that's another story.

Lincoln is also in Jr. High. Hard to believe, but true. He has just begun to play the trombone. He's not sure if he likes it or not, yet (although he can already play The Teensy Weensy Spider AND the Superman theme...I mean, how much more does he need than that?). But his school requires a musical arts credit so he is in band. And the school has exactly one year to prove to him that he should love it.

Mackenzie is now our last kid in both primary and in elementary school. But, like most youngest kids, she believes in her heart that she is too mature for either of them anymore. And she still has two full years to go! The horror! She is trying to figure out if she wants to be like her other tween friends and start putting pictures of David Archleta up in her room. Some days they're up. Some days their down. Some days her stuffed animals are all arranged on her bed. Somedays they are all in a plastic bag and in the basement storage room. I tell ya, being raised in a family of boys doesn't prepare one for a 10-yr-old girl...

Mary Lou is still working at Center for Change counseling with the eating disorder girls. She shared a funny letter yesterday from one of her former patients who wrote her a note now that she is out on her own. In it, she said something like "when I first met you [meaning Mary Lou], I wondered how you could ever teach me anything. I mean, you didn't even seem to understand fashion."....and that sums up the eating disorder mind-set in a nutshell. The operative word, here, is "nutshell." It does make Mary Lou appreciate the normality of her own daughter's daily challenges.

For me, well, I am flying to Geneva to pick up my third Nobel Peace Prize.....in my own mind. Really, I am getting ready to build and release my next product. It will either be a custom one for my old employer or an IRA-instructional piece we will sell through the place where Holly used to work. So plenty of good potentials out there. Also, I have a couple of old guys who want me to buy their dumpster rental business. That could be a giggle a minute!

We hope you are all well and enjoying the beautiful sunshiney days of September. We look forward to hearing from many more of you in this blog!

David

Blue Salvia and Golden Barberry in our front yard.