Does everyone

have 50 gazillion things going on at the same time? I am the enrichment leader in our ward and we have been planning a super Saturday since March. It was time consuming. Understatement. It probably didn't help that I was out of town for five out of the ten weeks of summer. We made these ABC Quiet books that I had to round up all the materials for. The bows were made for my granddaughter, Kirsten, by a gal in the ward that has a four year old son. She told me to tell Kirsten that they were from her future mother-in-law. Her boy has a long distance crush.
Super Saturday was fun but I was super relieved when it was over.

Eric had his wisdom teeth out two days later. I wish I had taken a video because he was so entertaining. I didn't think he would ever wake from this stupor.

We packed up Geoff, so he could leave two days later. All this time, for three weeks, Emily has had evening dance camp. School by day, dance by night. I woke up Eric for the next four days every 4 hours to take his medication. He finally woke up for a couple of days but then we packed him up and sent him back to Provo. School starts for Geoff and Eric tomorrow. What happened to the summer months where everyone slept in late and had nothing to do all day?

I fear we will never go back. It will never be the same. Geoff has plans for next summer, Eric will go on his mission and Emily will finally have the pool to herself.

GeoffT. Left

He was home exactly 5 months and it was time to go back to school. He got this in the mail yesterday. I am sure he would have preferred some actual cookies over the cutter but at least he won't make me send this to him.

I doubt he will even know he's not at home. He'll have Justin and Eric there. And others. I was wondering if we should get a discount for having three sons at BYU at the same time. Or maybe a free shirt you know "my child and my money go to BYU." We have never had three of our children at the same school until now. We have hardly had two at the same school at the same time. Maybe we will just get a free cookie cutter.

Cousins

I love the cousin pictures. They look like they like each other. Could be deception, who knows?

I have always liked this picture of the cousins below, although some eventual participants have not made their earthly debut in this early attempt at gathering. There was much crying and whining just to get the photo. It was taken on Whidbey Island 13 years ago and look how much they have grown since then. Thanks goodness three girls (and only two boys) were added at the end because they are seriously outnumbered here.

Emily survived

her first day of the seventh grade at Jenks Middle School. She ended up having many of her friends on her "team." Let's hope it lasts and she lives happily ever after.

Summer's over.

No more bare feet in fields of clover.

No more boys gouging their brother's eyes out. Actually this is a clear memory from days gone by. I was so surprised to see they had made a statue out of the event.

No more rides on the zipline.

No more rides on the Alpine slide.

No more produce placement for Eric.

No more stopping. . .again. . .at another and every alpine slide along the road and across the country.

No more jerking your brother around,

and trying to maim him,

or your sister.

It's time to settle down and get back to school. Whhhhhhheeeeeeeeeeeee! Heard from mothers around the world.

Here's the key

to the awesome view and

to our room at this hotel in Fussen. We're just glad they had some rooms because we told them we were coming in July but we showed up a month early. Oops. We all thought the woman who ran the place was the German version of Grandma Townsend. She was small with short white hair and ran around doing all the work. She showed us which spot to park in, checked us in, showed us to our room and the next morning told us where to sit and then spread out the breakfast buffet. And she reminded us everytime we saw her that we were fortunate to have a room.

When you walk in the front door, the nice man offers a beer, although he didn't seem disturbed at being turned down repeatedly.

And then you walk down this hall and out of the building, across the parking lot and up three flights of stairs (no elevator) to the rooms with the dormer windows on the top left.

When, what do you know? The view out the window was of this castle, originally the summer home of the Bishop of Augsburg.

We walked up this nearby hill

to the castle courtyard where every architectural detail was merely painted on the flat surfaces.

These hooligans, that usually prefer not to be captured on film, were in rare form on this particular day.

Kunst, means art in German and they say it's subjective but I'm not really buying it.

Eric has spent the summer employed in the produce department of a local grocery store. I'm guessing he didn't learn these skills there.

We enjoyed staying here. The streets were so narrow, it felt like we could be driving on the sidewalk.

Another painter, making a living, another carpenter without a job.

Wake up,

and get to practice. Emily was in the ballet Sleeping Beauty last night. The director commented on how the performers had spent their summer preparing for the event. Emily not so much. She had only attended two rehearsals until this past weeks marathon sessions of "figure out your part or forever be embarrassed." Official pictures are pending. For now this ballet loving imposter who thinks he's Prince Charming with his mouth full will have to do. It's the best that we could come up with. Sorry.

Happy trails

to you if you can endure this. We decided the day after visiting the "Disney" castle to stop on the way to Salzburg at the Ehrenberg Ruins. We thought it was four ancient castles grouped together, and they were, only on four separate peaks. We chose one to explore.

It was a beautiful day to visit an old castle. A don't forget your water bottle day. A slight dig to the family for not wanting their own water because they could drink mine without having to carry it.

There was not much left since it's heyday of the 13th century.

And hard to believe that an army or two could invade with a cannon pointed in their direction.

Here's a view from where we stood, across to the road less traveled (by us anyway)to the castle on the adjacent peak. Can you see why one castle was enough for the day?

Put on your hiking boots, or flip flops in Emily's case, and you can see the valley far and wide,

and the restored turret below,

which previously held a cannon.

With our feet back down on the ground, we found the moat.

Everyone knows what a troublemaker Eric is, finally his comeuppance.