Catching up

Mark started combining beans this week, the weather is cooperating and all is well in farm country...for now anyway! You know what they say about Iowa's weather!

I have been winterizing my flower beds and decided this year to chop everything to the ground. We will see how that strategy works out next spring! I am totally done with everything outdoors but I might mow one more time. I sprayed both lawns for weeds, twice, so there better not be one dandelion next summer. :-)

Since I have nothing left to do I may head down to AZ pretty soon. I am going to Peoria this week-end to say good-bye to Drew and Kayley. That should about kill me off! Thank god for Skype. I know I will never make it the entire winter without seeing them so already have a ticket back here for Thanksgiving and I am sure I will fly to see them in January and probably March! They are at the age where changes occur too rapidly and I don't want to miss out.

I won't have any pics or video until this week-end so I will re-post a couple of old ones. Drew looks so little in them!


This video shows Drew starting to get very mobile!

Great visit in Des Moines

I drove to Des Moines this morning to visit my good friend Sue who babysits three days a week for her 3 month old granddaughter Lily. We had such a good time and laughed a lot like days from our past! Her daughter Karen and husband Gabe came home during lunch so I was able to see them, too. Karen, Gabe and Lily make a beautiful family and they have a great home with a big beautiful back yard. I am glad I took the time for this visit! Below are pics of grandma and Lily and one of Karen and her daughter.

The weather has been rather crappy these past few days. Zero sunshine and rainy with wind. These are the kind of days I recall hating about Iowa weather. The lack of sunshine is the worst for me. The rain, of course, is not helping Mark get into the field for harvest. I do believe this state has had more than it's share of moisture this summer so it can quit now...

Pics from DM:

Drew finally rides Thomas the Train!

I spent last week in Peoria painting the inside of Megan and Andy's home. I can definitely say they have a huge home after painting there! :-) Friday night when they got home from work we all took off for the farm and arrived around 10:30 p.m. We had to wake grandpa up and tell him hello!

Saturday morning we had tickets to ride Thomas the Train in Boone. The day was wet and very cool but Drew was thrilled to finally see the "real" Thomas and more thrilled to ride on his train. They had many activities to do besides the train ride but the weather did not cooperate one bit. The weather got even worse in the afternoon when Megan and Andy were to golf in a charity event at the Boone golf course (Cedar Pointe). They didn't get to play many holes unfortunately. They returned to the farm in the late afternoon to get Drew and Kayley and returned to the country club for the dinner and dance that evening. Drew and Kayley had a ball dancing....sure wish I would have been there to capture that on video! Late last night we started watching the Iowa game. I was tired and not impressed with Iowa's play and went to bed at halftime. I was sad to hear they roared back the second half only to lose it in the end.

They left a bit before noon to head back to Peoria. It is so quiet when they leave. Too quiet. I have been spending the afternoon going through my clothes and deciding what I want to take to AZ for the winter and bagging items for Goodwill. This weather makes AZ look very inviting right now. I hope it returns to some sunny days as the clouds and misty rain are rather depressing. Guess I am too used to non-stop sunny Phoenix days! Have a good week everyone.

Happy Birthday Megan!

In honor of Megan's birthday I bought Drew and Kayley bicycles! (I couldn't think of anything for her but knew the kids would like bikes!) We did go out this evening for dinner at Peoria Pizza Works, though. They even had a small band playing which reminded all of us of Fatso's in Phoenix which we loved. Kayley and Drew really got into their groove listening to the music. (Video below...of course!)

I am spending the week with them and helping them paint the inside of their home. I thought I had a big house on the farm....ha! This place never ends. Miles and miles of trimming. :-) It is a good thing I like to paint!

Video of Drew on his new red bicycle:


Peoria has a fabulous bicycle park for kids complete with roads, signs, working stop lights, etc. It is really awesome and I know Megan, Andy and the kids will spend some hours here. Very safe environment for riders and very educational. I can think of some adult drivers that would benefit from learning what all these road signs mean!



Kayley enjoying the live music at Peoria Pizza Works:

Back in Peoria, Illinois

Mark and I left Friday morning for Megan and Andy's home. They were lucky enough to get tickets to the Iowa/Iowa State game so we agreed to babysit for them. What a great game it was...if you were an Iowa fan! I am staying here through the week to help them do some painting. The weather is beautiful so cannot complain a bit! Not a lot of news on this end. Just busy playing grandma and grandpa and having fun!

I had a good laugh over the following video. I have "tried" to put Kayley in time out if I thought the action warranted it, but have never had much luck with Kayley and time out. Drew, on the other hand, had NO problem! Grandma just had to shake her head and laugh!!!

What a FUN week-end!!!

Lake Okoboji...what a great way to end the summer!!! Megan, Drew and Kayley came to the farm late Thursday night. We left the next morning for Jim and Nancy's home on Lake Okoboji. It was so great to see them after several years. They were gracious hosts for our family and I thank them immensely! Matt arrived from Omaha about the same time we arrived at the lake. Jim, Mark and Matt put Jim's fishing boat back in the water and the guys fished all afternoon. We all had Casey's pizza for dinner that first night. Saturday was a gorgeous day. The men fished some more and Rick and Nadine and Nancy took Megan, the kids and me for a boat tour around the lake. Rick cranked up the power several times, much to the delight of Drew and Kayley. I think this was their first time in a boat and they were so good for the full two hours we were out there cruising. Jim and Nancy served us a delicious dinner that night. Chops, potatoes, sweet corn, bread...no one left the table hungry! I had almost forgotten how much fun and how beautiful Lake Okoboji can be. I am going more often next summer...if they will have us! :-) Of course we did the Arnold's Park thing and the kids loved that, too. Thanks again to The Houchins for a wonderful time!

We left the lake Sunday afternoon and headed back to the farm. Megan and Kayley drove to Ames last night to visit an old friend while Drew stayed with us and drove his tractor in the garage. This morning we went to Kevin and Julie's for a Bloody Mary and biscuits and gravy before the parade. This was Drew and Kayley's first parade and they filled their bags full of candy and I am thinking they like parades! They left for Peoria around 12:30 so it is very quiet in the house right now after such a fun-filled week-end! I hope you had a great holiday week-end, too! Several videos below of our week-end.

Video at the playground in Arnold's Park...they loved that "free" area!



Some more fun at the park:



The roller coaster...both Drew and Kayley hopped in, Drew immediately hopped off leaving Kayley by herself. Megan and I were crying/laughing at this simultaneously! We felt awful for putting her on it as she seemed too small once we saw it in action! She never cried but let's just say she did not beg to ride it again! :-) I will say she is a tough little gal.



If you missed the Dayton Parade this morning, this is a must see video. Ha!




A little bit of everything: