Nov 6, 2012 - Visiting in Iowa

It was an 857-mile drive from Elmira, NY, to Cedar Rapids, Iowa. We stopped halfway in Ohio for the night; Faye welcomed us the next day when we got in about 3:00. As we had driven Interstates and toll roads the entire way, it went well (if boring). The rain only lasted about 4 hours on the first day, stopping when we got to Cleveland. Sister Faye has a lovely new condo! It was great to see her new place and see how we were able to set up tables and chairs to accomodate 23 of us at the next day's early Thanksgiving dinner gathering. It was...

Oct 12, 2012 - Wabasha to Cedar Rapids, Iowa

Hi, We left Wabasha today and headed down the river road to Prairie Du Chein where we crossed the river into Iowa. Our first stop was Guttenburg, Iowa. When Susan and I were younger our dad and a very good friend of the family (Ruckles) built cabins next to each other and I wanted to see if they were still there. The pics show that even though they have changed over these many years they are still standing. When we would go to the cabin my favorite 3 places to play were all together in a little area. They were a huge rock pile from a rock...

Aug 1, 2012 - "Take Me Out To The Ballgame......."

From Amana Colonies RV Park – Amana, IA On this August evening we enjoyed America’s summer pastime………….the game of baseball. Upon arriving here we saw pocket schedules for “Kernels” baseball at most establishment checkouts as well as in the RV Park registration office. Then after further research we realized this was the Class A minor league team of the Los Angeles Angels. Our family has had interest in the Angels baseball team for some time………….our son Lance has been a faithful fan of this California team for the past 30+ years. It would...

Nov 14, 2011 - On the road....

Had a little trouble with hooking up the car but finally things were fine so I headed out into winds just outside Verona. That made driving difficult and speeds slow. So I'm at a rest area south of Cedar Rapids tonight. Not very restful though as it's very noisy on the Interstate and the trucks parking on all sides of me can be very noisy too. Well, I'll learn where to stop and where not to stop....tomorrow probably a motel since campgrounds are closed around here. Poor Mollie was so afraid of the ride and then all the noise of the rest...

Oct 12, 2011 - Quad Step Repair

Our quad steps had a weld break so we called our expert in the family, my brother, Paul. He brought a portable welder over to the campground and he and Lee proceeded to fix it. Thank goodness for my brother who has the expertise and the equipment to get it done. I'm sure if we took it somewhere they would find a way to charge us an arm and a leg!

Sep 16, 2011 - Preperation and Anticipation

We're about twenty hours out and both of us are getting very excited for our trip. While Matt finishes up at work, I'm doing some last minute packing. Because we have so many different activities planned on our seven day adventure, making sure we pack everything can get a little bit stressful, but I've made multiple lists and I think I have everything we could ever need for all of our activities. I just hope it all fits in the trunk! Over the next week, follow us as we explore the beauty of the Midwest, from Minnesota to North and South...

Jul 27, 2011 - Meeting Shamus

Today we had a wide variety of things to do. We began the day having blood drawn as a follow-up to our physicals. Next Lee had a chest x-ray at St. Lukes. Then we went back to the campground and dyed Mary’s hair. Once all that was completed, we needed to go do something fun. Our friends Mickey and Mary Hazlett have a new puppy so we decided to go visit. His name is Shamus and he is a West Highland Terrier like their previous dog, Wilson whom we still miss. Shamus is a cutie but has a personality very different from Wilson. We look forward...

Jul 4, 2011 - Cedar Rapids Fireworks

We have been in Cedar Rapids for a few days and tonight we are got together with our friends, the Taylors to watch the Cedar Rapids fireworks. It didn't seem quite the same as in years past when we still lived in Cedar Rapids and pre-flood. However, the fireworks were good and we enjoyed the company!

May 22, 2011 - Farewell At Lori's

Today we had to say goodbye again to our daughter, Lori, and her family. It was fun getting to see our great granddaughter, Kira Nichole Goodenbour, and our grandkids, Holly and Chris. At least it wasn't as hard to say goodbye this time as we know we'll be back in Iowa several times this summer.

May 21, 2011 - Lunch With The Welsh Boys & Families

We had a really nice get together with our grandsons, Julian, Taylor and Mason Welsh at the Pizza Hut on the SW side of Cedar Rapids today. We met Julian's girlfriend, Jade, who seems very nice. We also got to see our Welsh great grandchildren except for Julian's who are now living out of state. Taylor's little girl, Leianna Marie, is just so cute. She reminds me so much of her Grandmother, Sandi, when she was her age. Lee even managed to get her on his lap for a little tickle time! Mason's little boy, Kaleb, is a ball of fire. He is on the...

Aug 26, 2010 - Arrived in Cedar Rapids

Although it was noisy last night, both of us were so exhausted that we did sleep. I woke up this morning after I had a wild dream about Scott being Elvis and singing to Lori. I woke Lee up sobbing. We got dressed and headed out again. We tried to get to Cedar Rapids in time to be with Lori when she went to the funeral home. Unfortunately, we had a devil of a time getting through Fort Dodge because of some construction and the fact that we had to go through it twice in order to get fuel. It slowed us down to the point where we arrived in CR...

May 22, 2010 - Service Week Summary: Inspiration, Love, Learning, Friends--and Muscles

ON FINDING (AND SHARING) NEW INSPIRATION, LOVE, LEARNING, FRIENDS—AND MUSCLES (Copy of Draft Article for Church Rock Spring News) The powdery smell (and taste) of drywall mud being sanded “baby skin” smooth; the whirring sound of the saw as finish boards are cut; the clipping sound of aluminum siding being snipped; the pounding of nails into siding or porch walls; shouts of measurements or questions or answers; and lots of unusually sore muscles---these are among the signs of progress as Church World Service completes its sixth week of work...