The Delights of September

Don't tell the other months, but I think September might be my favorite.

The weather is cool but pleasant.

The trees are starting to turn beautiful colors.

There are so many simple pleasures to enjoy:

Pumpkin cookies

Clever signs at back-to-school nights

Spotting wildlife around (or on) our house

Collecting eggs from contented chickens

And shopping for Conference prizes with Joy

because General Conference is this weekend!

Demolition Service

Remember that picture I recently posted

with a satellite image of a storm "punching" our state?

A nearby city named Leominster received a ton of rainfall that day,

and the resultant flooding damaged many people's homes.

Anna and I joined members of our stake this morning

to help residents recover from the flooding.

We tore out wet a bunch of soggy drywall to prevent mold and rot

while the homeowner arranges repairs for her basement.

It was hard work . . .

. . . and we were pretty tired by the end . . .

. . . but we loved working together to help a very grateful woman

who had felt overwhelmed by the scope of what needed to be done.

It would have taken her days to finish

what our group accomplished in a few hours.

After the service project wrapped up,

Anna and I headed home to do some to do some baking

because today is the first day of fall . . .

. . . also known as the start of pumpkin cookie season!

My First Day at Parker

Several women I know have applied for jobs

now that their kids are all in school and fairly self-sufficient.

I decided to explore that idea too . . .

. . . and today was my first day as a substitute teacher

at Daniel and Anna's school.

Guess who was in the first class I covered?

A sweet girl named Anna!

It was fun to meet some of her classmates

and get a sense of what her new school is like.

I also enjoyed using the wobble stools in some of the classrooms.

They're fun, and frankly, I think they'd be better for my back

than the desk chair I use at home.

Maybe Santa will bring me one for Christmas. :)

Joy Beauregarde

When Mother Nature . . .

. . . decides to punch our state with a big ol' rainstorm . . .

. . . it's time for Joy to put on her

Violet Beauregarde costume waterproof motorcycle gear.

It isn't her most fashionable riding outfit,

but it gets the job done.

Todd's Favorite Things

I attended Back to School Night this evening . . .

. . . in Todd's 4th grade classroom.

The kids had written their goals for this school year,

and then decorated them to look like balloons rising up to the ethereal realm of possibility.

I read Todd's entire paragraph before realizing

that the balloon was decorated to look like Cici.

On my way out, I tried to determine which locker

belonged to my son.

There it is!

Hmm . . . what is all that writing

at the top of his nametag?

Oh, of course.  It's about 100 digits of Pi.

Some kids love sports, or butterflies, or superheroes.

Todd loves numbers.

And Cici.

A Quiet Little Reception

Yesterday evening, after we all recovered from a chilly morning in Draper . . .

. . . Owen and Tal's family and friends gathered at the Utah state capital building

for a small, intimate wedding reception.

Just kidding.

The venue was impressive, the dinner was fabulous,

they had a live band,

and the couple's grand entry was pretty epic . . .

. . . but my favorite part was watching Aunt Lisa and Cousin Owen

share their mother-son dance

while the band performed "Sweet Child of Mine."

They looked like they were having a blast,

and I loved sharing that joyful moment with them.

A Windy Wedding Day

We arose bright and early this morning

to "get buffed and fluffed" (as Red Grandma would say) . . .

. . . then we headed to the Draper Temple for Owen and Tal's wedding.

The forecast called for fair weather,

so we showed up dressed for a pleasant, summer day.

Instead we got rain and big gusts of bitter cold wind.

After the sealing ceremony inside the temple,

we all shivered outside as we waited for the bride and groom.

When they finally appeared, they were so excited that we forgot about the wind . . .

. . . at least for a few moments.