September 2012

Megan returned home from USU for the Labor Day weekend and we really enjoyed having her home for a few days.  Since the younger kids hadn’t seen her dorm or even been to USU, we decided to drive her back to school on Labor Day and on the way, go to the Brigham City temple open house.  Turns out you should NEVER go to a temple open house in Utah on a holiday, even if you do reserve tickets beforehand.  We spent more than 3 hours in line on a very hot day, but the kids were all patient and decided it was worth it in the end – the temple is beautiful!!  After the open house, we all enjoyed a tour of Utah State with Megan – it’s fun to see her excited about all the places she knows so well already.

We attended Devin and Seth’s court of honor where Seth was awarded tons of merit badges and was also promoted to the rank of Star scout. 

Seth completed his triathlon summer with a 50 mile bike ride with Bryce and Seth that started way up Provo canyon and ended at Thanksgiving Point.  Here they are getting ready to go early in the morning.

We attended our nephew Zach Caldwell’s farewell (he is headed to the Oklahoma City mission, which is the same mission his dad served in many years ago) at the beginning of the month and then drove to Boise, Idaho for the last weekend of the month to celebrate our nephew, Ben Buttar’s, homecoming.  He served an honorable mission in Vitoria, Brazil and had some great experiences to share of his time there.  One of his areas includes the most violent city in the world, so he had quite a few experiences with shootings, drugs, etc, but was still able to find humble people looking for the truth.  We are glad he is home safe and had a great weekend in Boise with family.

Seth is in the middle of another season of flag football and has had a good season so far with his team.  Since he is in 7th grade, he plays in a Jr. High league and the kids playing can be in 7th, 8th or 9th grade, so there is a huge difference in the size of the players.  Seth somehow managed to get placed on a team of all 7th graders, and they often play teams much bigger in size then they are, but Seth’s team is full of kids who are quick and athletic, so they have definitely held their own, winning the majority of their games.  Seth plays running back most of the time on offense and goes after the quarterback on defense – he is quick and tenacious and really enjoys playing football.

Devin has decided to join a fencing club and is in his 3rd week of an adult beginners class.  He is the only teenager there and is fencing grown men, but he is holding his own, learning a lot and having a ton of fun so far.  I’ll have to take a picture of him in his fencing gear to include in next month’s blog.  Devin is also taking a digital photography class and is loving that – here are a couple of his pictures so far. (He also took the picture of Seth’s tackle above).

Autumn has been busy as usual with dance lessons, piano lessons and school work.  She decided a few days ago that she doesn’t have the time to practice 2 instruments on top of homework and dance lessons, so she decided to give up playing the violin.  It was hard for her, especially because she has loved her violin teacher, but there just aren’t enough hours in the day for everything she wants to do.  Autumn also participated in her school’s annual fundraiser, the Hawk Walk, and walked 4 1/2 miles to earn money for her school.

I spent a weekend in Park City with some close friends and had a great time enjoying the beauty of the fall mountains in Utah – my favorite season, for sure!

Bryce celebrated his 45th birthday and our clever children decided to give him the “gift of laughter” by dressing up in their old Halloween costumes. :)

After months of working to accomplish the goals he set at Wood Badge training back in May, Bryce officially earned his Wood Badge beads at a special Beading Ceremony.  Once again, he donned his full scout uniform and we all headed to the mountains to witness the historic event.  It was a gorgeous fall evening, and we were entertained with cheers from each of the groups before Bryce and his fellow Owls (along with Buffalo, Foxes, Antelope, Eagles, and a few other animal groups) were awarded their beads.  I have video of the Owl cheer and the Wood badge song, but won’t post them – have to keep the marriage intact.  :)  We are proud of Bryce and his work to become a better leader.

Have a happy October!!