Monday July 13- Had a big road trip planned today. We had Ashton stay all night and we had planned to go visit the Mississippi River Museum in Dubuque Iowa. We wanted to leave early to get there early. Ashton was a bit hard to wake so we started a little later than we had planned. It took 1 1/2 to get there. It was suppose to be super hot and humid today so we thought the museum with air conditioning seemed like a great idea. Ashton had been there on a field trip with school so we let him be the tour guide. Not only were we going to check out the museum but also the 4-D movie, the Titanic exhibit and some outside exhibits as well. First we checked out some of the inside stuff.
We had to sign up for a certain time for the movie and the Titanic exhibit. When we went to the Titanic we each got a card with a passengers name on it. All of us survived the sinking.
While viewing the Titanic stuff you couldn't take any photos. While we were walking through Ashton touched one of the cases and a alarm went off. Never a dull moment with that boy. We went outside to see what we could find. They had a bald eagle on display with lots of boats and nautical displays.
Ashton managed to have fun doing everything. That made it even more fun for us. After exploring outside awhile it was time to go to our movie. It was a 4-D movie that documented the events of James Cameron making the deepest solo dive to the deepest known place on earth. The Mariana Trench off the coast of Guam. The record breaking depth was 35,787 feet....now that's deep and creepy. After the movie we looked a little more before heading back out to go feed some fish in the river.
After a full day of looking we then headed out to go get some lunch before heading home. Jeff and Ashton had a very special dinner to prepare...they were about to eat like kings. This has been something these 2 crazy guys think they need to do. They picked out some shrimp and crab legs to fix. I don't care for seafood so I had a steak. Ashton has expensive taste.
On the ride home we noticed a sweet corn stand that we used last year a couple of times. It has the best sweet corn, its a bit expensive but so good. We got some of that to complete our dinner. It was a really really good day.
Tuesday July 14-It wasn't quite as hot and humid as yesterday but still hot. I got started with doing chores. Jeff and Ashton decided to take a bike ride. They took some of the trails and when they got back they both were very hot and sweaty. We had some lunch and Ashton was ready for another adventure. He brought his snorkel stuff and wanted to give it a try in the lake. He and I went down first and Jeff joined us later. Ashton did very good at snorkeling and seemed very comfortable.
We had supper and Ashton fell asleep in my recliner. Jeff woke him up because he had talked about fishing. They went but weren't gone long Ashton had a head ache so they came home and he went to bed. A full day for sure.....
Wednesday July 15-Its a bit cooler and cloudy today. The guys tried fishing again but no luck there. We had breakfast for lunch. Went back to the lake but it was to cloudy and cool. We played some bags and just hung around the campground. An easier day today, I guess we needed to rest after our busy day yesterday.
Thursday July 16-Well today it was rainy. We have had about every kind of weather this week. We went into town to get a few groceries. We also dropped off one of our fogged up dual pane windows. Jeff found a place that said they could fix it, we'll see. Jeff and Ashton went to get a sandwich for lunch. The went to Firehouse Subs...they loved the sandwiches. We came on home and watched movies. We fixed some supper for Ashton to eat before going to hockey practice. We had chicken stir fry....it was yummy. We left a little early cause Jeff needed to pick up his prescriptions. After hockey we went by and picked up Noodles. We are watching there dog Noodles because they are heading to Chicago for the Blackhawk convention. Oh boy 3 dogs in bed tonight.
Friday July 17-Oh my my its pretty hot out there today. The 3 dogs in the bed didn't go that well. I think Noodles felt a bit out of place and she didn't settle. We decided to stick around here this weekend because of our babysitting job. Didn't want to trust 3 pups here alone. I did some cleaning around here today. It was super hot and the air conditioner had a hard time keeping up. We only have 30 amp service so we could only run one unit. We watched a movie and heard from the kids that they arrived in Chicago.
Saturday July 19- Another smoking hot day. You couldn't hardly step outside without melting. The kids called and they are having a great time in Chicago. They got to meet Patrick Kane and Jonathon Toews. Even got autographs...they are pretty excited.
We didn't have such as exciting day. We watched movies and I did some quilting.
Sunday July 19-It had cooled off today so I got my walk in. We could even sit outside which was nice because the heat we've had hasn't allowed that. It was kind of a lazy day but I did walk Noodles around the loop a couple times. She walks better when its just her. We tried walking with all 3 dogs but it didn't really work. Seth came out and picked up Noodles around 4 o'clock. The good news is he brought me some carmel corn from Garretts....so good.
Monday July 20-Our house is back to our original 4. Jeff finally found a doctor that would except new patients and his appointment is today. I got an early start so I could clean and walk before going to town. If I don't walk in the morning its really hard to do in the afternoon. While I was filling up the humming bird feeders a guy walked by saying we met them at St Joe Peninsula. I remembered them. I stopped to talk to them because I noticed the Iowa plate with Linn county tags. They live real close to this park. They just got a new camper and are trying it out. Its really nice when you run into people that you have met along the road. That's a benefit of this life style. We headed to the doctors office , we drove right to it. The office was very friendly and we didn't wait either. The doctor was great too. She spent time talking and learning Jeff's situation. She didn't rush and really seemed concerned. The office help were very kind and considerate. I think its going be a good fit. Jeff has another appointment in a week to check his cholesterol. Then we will know more. After running some errands we headed back to the campground. They are mowing today so we moved some stuff to make it easier for them. It was nice enough that we could sit outside and enjoy. We are getting Hailey tomorrow so enjoying the quiet today.
Tuesday July 21-I did my cleaning and walking early again today. Its really nice outside today. I did the laundry and some cleaning. With Hailey coming out tonight I wont have time to do those kinds of things. When we have the kids we have learned to just focus on them. We can clean anytime. Since the weather was so great I decided to ride my bike to the beach. It started out nice but there was one loud obnoxious kid that ruined that peaceful atmosphere. I didn't stay too long. Came back and folded clothes and showered before going in to get Hailey. After we picked her up we had to stop at Walmart to get fabric. I promised Hailey that I would teach her to sew on the sewing machine. She knew exactly which fabric she wanted and then we were on are way home. After supper we got busy sewing. Hailey was very excited about the sewing and even more excited with the results. She told me I was just the best after we finished.
Wednesday July 22-It was really a nice day outside, a few more clouds but real pretty. Hailey didn't want me to go on my walk so we decide to take a walk together. It was a good walk. We saw ducks, rabbits, chipmunks and fish. We heard the birds singing and saw the butterflies flying. It was a great walk.
After we got back we had some lunch. Then Hailey asked papa if she could paint his toes. She and I had already painted ours. Of course papa said yes...it was pretty funny.
We also made cookies today. These kids really keep you busy. It is great. We walked around after supper and all the reservable spots are booked for tomorrow. Its because Ragbrai is coming through here tomorrow. We will be busy.
Thursday July 23- It was a busy day here. The campers started rolling in early. A lot of them had never been here before. They had lots of questions. Hailey and I stayed outside playing and answering questions. The Ragbrai riders rode through Palo and have an overnight stay in Hiawatha. For you that haven't heard of Ragbrai it a bike ride across Iowa. Its around 460 miles. Its a big thing around here. We had to take Hailey back today. We left early and it was a good thing we did. We tried to go the usual way but the road was completely full of riders. We turned around and went the long way. Hailey was suppose to have tumbling but it was cancelled, but Katie didn't know. They didn't let her know. We went to watch Ashton's hockey before heading home.
Friday July 24-It was cloudy to start but I did get my walk in. The ragbrai riders left early and before I knew it the weekend campers are showing up. The bike riders definitely had some rain and wind to deal with today. Katie and the kids were suppose to come out to the beach today but the weather didn't clear up in time. Jeff and I decided at the last minute to go in and see Rod Stewart in concert. We called to make sure there was tickets before leaving. We went in and got our tickets then headed to eat supper. We went to White Star. It was really busy. They told us our wait would be an hour but we were seated in 1/2 hour. Our food was really good. We got a parking spot that was close to the restaurant and the concert. After eating we walked to the concert and found our seats. We were up in the nose bleed section but I wasn't complaining. The concert was good and we had never seen him before. he played a lot of songs that were big hits. I loved it.
Saturday July 25-Happy Birthday to my first born son. Seth is 36 today. I called to sing to him..my tradition. We decided to meet them for a late birthday lunch at Red Lobster. We were ready to get out of here. This campground is full, but somehow feels busier than usual. We left early to go to town. I wanted to make some stops before our 3 o'clock birthday lunch date. We had a yummy dinner at Red Lobster and then went to Seth and Katie's for ice cream birthday cake. That was really yummy. We thought we better get back and check on things since we are so full.
Sunday July 26- Its raining this morning. We were going in to watch the kids. Seth and Katie were suppose to go out in the boat. The weather didn't cooperate again. They still went out to eat and we watched the kids. I got to wash my bedding and use the dryer. Seth also had a project for me. He has a couple autographed jerseys he wants me to put in some frames. I worked on that while papa played with Hailey...playdoh.
Since the sun came out and the temperature heated up we made a trip to Orange Leaf and some frozen yogurt. When we got back Seth and Katie had gotten back. We loaded up and headed home. Wow what a difference, we have 2 campers now. Its so quiet and peaceful.......just like we like it. We had a couple busy weeks but very fun. We got to spend special time with our favorite kiddos. Life is good.
