We had an exciting weekend. We went to the BYU-Eastern Washington football game. We let the kids take a couple of friends and so we had quite the crew. It was raining lightly when we got to the game but it stopped about half way through the first quarter. Things got really dicey after the third quarter when it started to snow really hard. We bailed because the Y was up 35-7 and I went to get the car while the crew hung out under the stadium. It was fun times. Peter Gordon started pre-school last week and absolutely loves it. The picture is of him with his backpack already to go into the school. The other picture is of the kids busily drawing pictures on a quite Sunday afternoon. Emily is quite funny. She loves drawing but has to use pens or pencils--no crayons. Becca is busily preparing for a sonatina recital this next week (Nov. 3) and has memorized two parts of the sonatina. She is getting quite good at memorizing music. Hannah has started putting both hands together in her piano class and is having a great time. She really likes playing the piano. Chantel and I are surviving. Chantel has started doing puzzles again and Peter Gordon has been helping her. Special Collections celebrated its fiftieth anniversary last week and so I was part of a presentation talking about our collections. My Designing BYU exhibit opened earlier this month. It covers the philosophical and physical underpinnings of the campus.

A Snowy September Day

We woke up this morning to a driving rainstorm. It had calmed down a little by the time of Peter Gordon's soccer game and so we took him over to the park to see if they were going to play. He did play and got rather wet playing in the rain. The kids looked like they were having a blast--water and dirt combining to make every kids' favorite mud. Their only complaint was that it was cold. It was even colder by game time for Becca and Hannah. They both had their games called at the half because it was so cold. Now I am sitting in my office looking out the window and it is snowing. We have a good dusting of snow on the front yard. It has been snowing pretty consistently for the last hour or so. The kids have been having a blast as you can see from the pictures. Emily wasn't too sure about the snow and was finally starting to play with the kids when she fell down. Peter Gordon had great fun trying to catch snowflakes on his tongue and Becca and Hannah enjoyed twirling around with their friend Shayne. The weather in Utah never ceases to amaze me. We always transition so suddenly.

Gordon's 35th

I had a nice birthday one week ago. Chantel and the kids had a little party for me on Sunday. We enjoyed lemon meringue pie and I had fun opening presents. Mom had been down that week to visit Grandma Galloway and so she took me and the family out to dinner at the Red Robin. We enjoyed eating out on the patio. The highlight of the week for Chantel and I was getting to see President Hinckley at the BYU Devotional on Tuesday (Sept. 18). We were down on the floor about fifteen feet away from him when he came in. He talked about the 13th article of faith and it was really inspiring. It is a neat thing to have a prophet so close to us. Emily even got to shake Elder Hales' hand at a luncheon we went to afterwards--I'm a judge for the Brimhall Essay Contest and we were honoring Karl G. Maeser. Turns out that Elder Hales' wife is a Maeser descendant.

Daddy works for Cosmo

We have had a good week. Emily and Peter Gordon came up to campus on Tuesday to eat lunch with me and it was great to hang out with them. We sat out on some grass by the Talmage Building and enjoyed a little picnic lunch. Peter Gordon and Emily played with a little ball. They thought it was great to eat lunch with Dad. Dad thought it was pretty cool as well. I have been working on an exhibit at work that will talk about the history of Brigham Young University and one of the panels that I have put together is on the BYU Experience. It features images of athletics, mentored learning, and students enjoying the campus scene. It also has an image of Cosmo and, as you all know, Peter Gordon is obsessed with Cosmo. He saw the picture when he and Emily picked me up for lunch and spent most of his visit with me talking about Cosmo. He informed me that I work for Cosmo and that when he gets big he is going to work for Cosmo as well. My colleagues got a kick out of that. He is a pretty funny kid. Hannah is doing awesome at the piano. This week she is learning how to play with both hands. Part of her piano practice is singing along to some songs that will help her learn proper pitch and tone. The whole family joins in the singing--maybe we'll get lucky and it will help me learn how to sing as well. Becca is enjoying soccer but doesn't like chasing the ball all that much. She can really boot it though and so makes a pretty good defender. She is memorizing a piece to play in a recital on Saturday and is excited about it. She is more like her Uncle Brad than her Dad in the fact that she enjoys being on the stage. Chantel is trying to stay sane and was up until the wee hours of the night last night finishing the final installment of Harry Potter. I am having loads of fun with my digital camera and have been playing around with an electronic book that I checked out from the library. I've decided that I like the physical book better than the e-book. There is something about holding something tangible in your hands. Besides I like to skip around in a book. Yesterday we went to the Springville Art Museum after the soccer games and participated in a scavenger hunt. They had a list of clues and we had to find the right painting or sculpture. It was pretty fun. The kids also got to do an art project. A couple of the pictures are of the kids at work on their projects.

Life is good

I was in Chicago all of last week attending the Society of American Archivists annual meeting. It was fun to be back in the city and to wander through Hyde Park. I wish that I'd had my new digital camera last week but it didn't arrive until yesterday. I have had fun taking pictures and thought I share a few with you all.


We put Becca, Hannah and Peter Gordon to work this evening doing the dishes and cleaning up the kitchen. As you can probably tell they rather enjoyed themselves.

Emily danced on the coffee table while the other kids worked.

Here are some cute pictures of the kids. My camera came with software that lets me edit the images however I want to and it has been fun to play with this utility.

Soccer adventures

Today was the first day of soccer! Becca (blue 4)had a morning game. They did great--won by 2 goals. Hannah's game wasn't until noon (it was about 90 degrees) and they only had seven players so she played the whole game. She was hot with a very red face. She was like a wilted flower by the second quarter! Becca helped out Hannah's team, her face was red too! We love watching the soccer scrums!!






Peter Gordon is growing canadew melons--he loves to help in the garden and is the main harvester. The great thing is that if it grew in the garden he will eat it (with the exception of the beets!). He has his first soccer game Tuesday! He can hardly wait.

Emily just hangs out and follows after her siblings and is almost as fast as they are! She loves to eat (especially cookies) and loves drinking from her cup like the rest of the family. She was done with sippy cups around her birthday.

All else is great. I have had several quiet afternoons now that the girls are in school. I guess it is time to get my projects out.

School has begun once again

School began today for Becca and Hannah. Becca is a third grader and is actually beginning to enjoy school--even though she will tell you that she doesn't like it. She was up before I was this morning fully dressed and ready to practice the piano. Hannah is a first grader and continues to believe that there is nothing better than school. She is excited about everything. Becca and Hannah both are heading out the door to soccer practice.

Peter Gordon is all boy and loves being outside. He has a neighbor friend behind our house and they play in the dirt together. Emily is a whirlwind. She is always walking all over the place and she is convinced that the world owes her something (and maybe it does after her horrendous first year of life!)--her tantrums are something to behold. She spins around and drops on the ground before yelling and glaring at you.

Chantel is busy trying to create some order to our life and keeping everyone out of trouble. She wasn't sure what to do today with a quiet house--Becca and Hannah at school, Emily sleeping and Peter Gordon off playing with friends.

I am busy at work with various projects. It seems like I am always in a meeting or writing something. I never have an opportunity to catch my breath. I head off to Chicago for a week on Sunday for meetings--I hope they are interesting. I am excited to wander around the city.