Well, it's only a month late.  Which is pretty much on time by my standards lately!  But I definitely learned some things about my family and myself at this year's reunion:

• When there is someone missing at any/all times during the reunion - Gene, Jacob, Mary, Dad, Steven, Michael - it doesn't feel quite right or as fun as it could be.
• I like sleeping.  I like sleeping without doors slamming in the middle of the night.
• Sage likes chipmunks and will obsess about chasing them for hours on end, even if she is leashed and unable to budge an inch.
• Noah is going to be a lifelong fan of Rice Krispie treats - if you don't believe me, just look at the pictures of his first time with one.

• I should have timed how long it took before a pinochle game started, because it seems to happen quicker and quicker.  Pinochle should be renamed the "official game of the Spencer family". 
• We've got to remember that we have an effective weapon with Rebekah, Emma, and Olivia's screams for pesky neighbors or what have you....  Just start a game of tag between the kids (add in an uncle or two for extra potency) and everything else takes care of itself!
• Bringing a disposable camera for each of the kids was one of Dad & Mom's best ideas EVER!  I can't wait to see the results.
• Mary, Rebekah, Olivia, Emma, and Rachael spent an afternoon making bead necklaces and bracelets for everyone.  My 'A' necklace came to me courtesy of Olivia and I love it!
• Putting up tents will never be listed among my many talents or skills.  I'm okay with that.
• Defense was never an issue for our campsite with all of the foam swords and sword practice going on. 
• Camping + reunion = high likelihood of braids in Amy's hair

• Escaping the reunion without one mosquito bite is one of my major accomplishments this year!  Granted, I pretty much dosed myself in bug repellant, so...
• Elias, Ben, and Isaac spent many happy hours trying to figure out how to get into the shed across from our campsite because there were "Indians trapped inside", according to Elias.  He actually tried to get me to unlock the shed, thinking I had a key.  There is a reason we call them the "Triple Threat"...
• We need to have a sign made up that says something like: "Warning: Spencer Family in the Vicinity.  Drive at your own risk."  But then the idiots who ignore speed limits through campgrounds with children playing wouldn't get it anyway.
• I love watching my nieces and nephews play with one another, regardless of the age or activity.  It's probably why most of my photos are of them playing together this year!

• I miss having a campfire in the mornings and evenings with all of the fire restrictions. 
• Mom should have been a lifeguard with the way she watched over her grandkids - wait, she was for most of our childhood years while we played at Sanders Beach each summer (where there were no lifeguards).  My apologies, Mom.  In my eyes you have earned your lifeguard status and then some!
• Even if I am bone weary tired by the end, no vacation will ever measure up to the level of fun I have when we are all together!

So Noah is turning one year old today, true evidence of how quickly the past year has flown by!  Nadine would probably agree to a point, since she has spent much of it sleep-deprived while battling with his reflux and milk-allergy issues (bless her heart). 

Nathan and I have been working together on a Drafting merit badge for Scouts over the past few months, which has been very fun.  I have enjoyed talking about something that interests me with my little brother and I think he liked getting to see a little bit of what I know how to do.  Anyways, for him to complete the merit badge, he measured out his bedroom, its furnishings, and drew up a plan to scale on graph paper.  While he and Pa were up at our house this weekend, he put the plan into CAD software (Chief Architect) to finish the requirements for the merit badge. 

We were almost finished with the room when I mentioned that we could add more details like his television, lamp, curtains, video game console, etc. if he wanted to.  Nate was having a good time and he had picked up using the software very quickly.  As he scrolled through the TV catalog in Chief Architect, the wall-mounted flat screen TVs appeared and his eyes grew very wide.  It was pretty obvious what was going to happen next, and I thought "what the heck - he's learning and enjoying himself - just go with the flow, Amy".

Funny story: the title of this post made me want to start singing 'Rockin' Robin' while I was posting.  Blame it on my YW leaders, who had us learn the song for a skit at Girls Camp one year.  How appropriate that Rachael is YW President in her ward and was just at Girls Camp last week!  (Cue music from the Twilight Zone or something equally creepy, 'cause I know I'm weirded out now...)

Rachael has always had a knack for coming up with cool phrases that she uses to express herself.  When she was in college at BYU-Idaho, one of my favorites was "For the love!" when she was exasperated or impatient.  Currently, she uses "You rock!" a lot and I love this about her because she means it when she says it.  In this day and age where sarcasm and satire abound, it is refreshing to hear Rachael tell someone meaningfully and in a fun way that they are doing a great job or are wonderful in her own original way.  I love that about her!  Rachael, you rock!

One of my favorite things about living in Salt Lake was my visits from Rachael when she was at college.  She always brought an of vitality with her and lots of laughter - as she always does anytime she steps in the room.  Rachie was not born to sit home (although she does like her sleep), she likes to be out doing things and meeting people.  I am consistently blown away by her talents in organization and multitasking.  I really think she could have her own HGTV show on helping people declutter and organize their lives and homes;  she would be so different in many of the tv hosts out there because of her genuine compassion and desire to help people.


When we moved to Cedar City, it was so nice to have Rachael and her family a few short hours away in Las Vegas.  It didn't really matter if we were playing games, watching movies, or walking up and down the Strip seeing the sights - it was just so much fun to be together, enjoying each other's company.  Although I think all of us (Milnes and Duncans) are in agreement that none of us ever want to live in Las Vegas, either as a first for us or again for them!  Too many crazy drivers and way too much heat!  But it was sure nice to have each other to hang out with while we both were down there.


There are so many things that I admire about this incredible woman that I am lucky to call my sister.  I think she is an awesome mother, giving guidance and setting rules with so much love.  Her life is focused around living the gospel each day and it shows in how she treats everyone around her, how she approaches the struggles that life hands her, and in the priorities that she sets each day.  I adore my Rachael Lee Lou Lynn  - she rocks!

The inside joke behind Isaac's initials never fails to make me smile.  Isaac Bruce Duncan or I.B.Duncan.  Because I don't think Waylon and Rachael had any idea of how absolutely true this phrase would turn out to be for Isaac's personality at the time of his birth, they were just having fun with his name.  It didn't take long - although I can't remember how many months it was exactly - for Rachael to start laughingly describing her youngest son as "crazy". 

Isaac does "crazy" in such a fun way, too.  He has a gut-wrenching deep belly laugh with huge blue eyes.  Sometimes he will get this fun little twinkle in them and that's a warning that something unexpected is coming: like an eruption of sound or flurry of movement or something else unexpected!  Because of his similarities physically and unpredicability in any given situation, Isaac has earned the nickname "Dennis" within the family, after the cartoon character Dennis the Menace.   I love his funny, always ready to go play and be involved, easy-going temperament.  He has a fun sense of humor, too, and is never takes anything too seriously unless he's tired (and who is fun at that point anyway).



The love of games and sports didn't pass Isaac by - he has it just like his siblings and his parents.  He's already so tall for his age, I cannot wait to see him continue to grow up and what he excels at.  Waylon and Rachael are so good at giving their children lots of opportunities to try out different activities and sports, and with Waylon coaching school sports Isaac gets plenty of exposure that way, too.   



As part of the Triple Threat (which I think needs to be renamed because Landon and Noah are not that far behind, but the adjectives starting with Q are far and few in between, so right now it's a moot point), Isaac is always full of surprises and funny times.  Mainly because they are all lightning-quick little boys with active brains who can always find something to do together, allowed or not.  I love watching those three together, though, it's never dull!


So maybe he's a little too short to be able to dunk right now - although he is very tall for his 4 years - but I know as soon as he's able, Isaac will definitely be "dunking" and I will be watching!

June 9th is World APS Day.  Who decided this was the day for this event exactly I am not sure, but it has gotten me thinking this week about the impact that having APS has had on my life.  And I was thinking that it would be easy to sit back and have a pity party, because this is a chronic disease that has affected my life in ways I couldn't have even begun to have imagined before I knew about it.  (And still could affect my life in ways I still haven't imagined, but that's another post for another day!) 

Thankfully, I skipped the pity party and let the second thought take residence in my mind:  being grateful that I was diagnosed with APS when I was.  A lot of the reading I have done leads to a general belief in the medical community of doctors who are educated on the disease that there are many more people who have it than are aware of it.  There are probably several reasons for this, I think. First, because it is a fairly recent autoimmune disease (mid '80s) to be discovered.  Not all doctors know or are educated about it.  Also, the main symptoms can hide behind other more common diseases or issues.  The blood test for the lupus antibodies is not entirely accurate as a diagnostic tool due to the body's normal fluctuations of the antibody levels.  So usually something like a stroke, heart attack, or several miscarriages has to happen as well for doctors to really start taking a look at causes.  And even then it is not the first place they look. 

I was very blessed to have a cardiologist in southern Utah who had a oncologist for a husband.  She was perplexed as to why all of my tests kept coming back normal, on everything.  But she kept digging anyway and happened to mention it to him one night, which led to the blood test eventually coming back positive.  I am lucky - I suffered no damage from my cardiac event leading to my diagnosis and  this puts me in the minority.  I am grateful for a doctor who took the time to help me and not just dismiss my problems.

I have been so blessed with great doctors, both here and in southern Utah.  Since I take blood thinners everyday to reduce the chance of blood clots occurring, I see some of them fairly often.  I am grateful for their knowledgeable help and patient concern with me as I struggle through this disease with my allergies, asthma, pituitary cyst and the host of everyday issues that always seem to come up.

One of my greatest blessings throughout this has been my husband.  He has patiently and lovingly taken care of me and been my constant support in every way.  I have the hardest time asking others for help because I like to be independent and do things myself.  Learning that I can't do everything and that I do have physical limits now has been difficult.  But David and I are a team more now than we have ever been before because of it and I am grateful for that. 

I am grateful for my family and their unconditional love and support.  They are always willing to jump at the chance to help us out in any way possible.  I am learning firsthand about the ways that service knits people together and that being the one who is being helped is also a growing experience.  I am grateful for the example of perseverance in my father, who is struggling through some even more major health issues, in my opinion.  Yet his example stands in front of me daily and I know if he can do it with the kind of pain he lives with, then surely I can do it too.  Dad has always been a great example to me of doing what needs to be done, even when it's not fun or enjoyable. 

I am grateful for the Savior's Atonement and for a Heavenly Father who is always ready to listen when everything just gets to be too much.   I can go and lay my struggles at His feet and know that the Savior has already struggled through this for me and that I can make it.

These tremendous blessings that I am so grateful for make any reason for a pity party look so, well, pitiful!  It's almost like seeing the rainbow after the rain -  although I know that there are still struggles to come with the APS, so I think I will just keep looking for the rainbows.