Daboul Maunzie

Jordan got a chinchilla this past week. He called us on the web cam on Wednesday to show us. Sometimes our connection is poor and we just had a slow motion, blurry picture, so we couldn't see very well. However, we could tell that he is a fast little thing and held up close to the camera he had a very darling face. Jordan got a baby and one of his roommates got an adult who is much larger and quite strange looking. They heard an african name "Daboul Maunzie" that they liked and so Dillon named his chinchilla "Daboul" and Jordan named his Maunize". They are nocturnal which works well for the boys lifestyle right now, but you know who will inherit it as soon as Jordan takes off to college and his mission don't you? Mikayla is already claiming ownership. I'm just trying to gear up for the guilt that will accompany an uncommon animal with "special needs".

Fred leaves for Florida on Tuesday morning and will be gone until Saturday night for a business convention. He tried to talk me into coming with him, but I just couldn't rationalize the cost of the plane ticket when we had just had an anniversary retreat last month. I'm not looking forward to his absence; I don't like having all of my men gone. I'm not complaining--well, just a little. Poor Abe is in for a long week with a house full of girls. I'm afraid without the structure of Fred's work schedule to keep us sensible there are going to be some late nights and a lot of "foraged" meals. Maybe I will make a dent in "Ivanhoe" at night, since I can't go to sleep while Fred's gone until I just sink from pure exhaustion. Of course with Fred gone exhaustion may come much quicker than usual:)

The kids are loving the pool as always this summer. It is starting to wear out and needing pumping and patching constantly. I hope it holds out a few more years because it is such a fun part of our summer memories. Though our school year always seems to get hectic, we have been successful, so far, in keeping our summers very low key and relaxing and I love having things that keep the kids wanting to stay close to home for fun. It's a great way to unwind on family night at well, at least when we have warm weather. This summer has been uncommonly cool, which is great for working in the yard, but not so great for swimming in an unheated pool when you are a cold blooded adult.

The battery on my camera has run out again so while I try to talk myself into investing in a rechargeable battery and recharger, my blogs remain pictureless for yet another week. I miss that part of journaling. I love Becky's pictures every week and the pictures that Mom and Dad are always sending. I'd love some pictures from everyone else.