Texas 2015

Kirk and I left Albia on 9/17 and headed to Texas.  We had made several Dr and Dentist appointments and had 4 days to get there.   Our first night out, we stayed over at Cedar Valley RV Park.  The park is a Passport America Park which is wonderful, because if you are a PA member the rates are 1/2 off.  We drove into town (Guthrie) and ate at a unique BBQ place called Stables.  Good eats!  The next day, 9/18 we arrived at Paradise RV Park in Argyle, TX just down the road from Rudy and Bev's place in Denton.  We stayed at the park one night, and then spent two additional nights in the RV in front of Rudy and Bev's home, which was much more convenient.  While at their place, we kept busy touring their retirement/golf community, shopping at Costco (of course), attending their grandson, Henry's T-ball game (and also seeing Dustin, Courtney, and Owen), ate supper at Christina's Mexican Restaurant (where we received a complimentary shot of coffee liqueur at the end of the meal), golfed at the golf course they live on, had a cookout at their home with Dustin's family attending.  Whew!   We really love and miss my brother and his wife!  They are awesome hosts.

 Little Henry's T-ball game (he just happens to be an awesome treasure hunter also)

Dustin, Courtney, Owen, and Henry

Early 9/21, we left Rudy and Bev's and headed to San Antonio, TX.   We arrived at Greentree Village RV Park that day, got settled in, and drove over to the old neighborhood.    After talking to several of the neighbors, we made dinner plans with Dave and Karin, Ava and Dylan, and Dave's mom, Doreen at Aw Dangs in Schertz.  We had a wonderful feast!  These people are our SA family, and even though we don't keep in touch like we would like to, we are always able to pick up where we left off.  

The rest of week we also visited and had dinner with Jan and Bill, our other awesome neighbors.  Kirk also golfed with Bill at the Bandit in New Braufels where Bill works and had a great time.  On Friday night (9/25) we met the Vollbrects for supper at our favorite Mexican restaurant, Chuys, along with some friends of theirs, and Karin's mom and dad, Frank and Peggy.  We had a great time and  "several" margarita's.  

 Aw Dangs give awesome kid treats.  Owner, Dylan, and Ava

 Chuys!  Kirk, Frank, Dylan, Dave, me, Peggy, Ava, and Karin

 After the margaritas!  Outside of Chuys

 Kirk photo bombing sweet picture of Bill and Jan.  Love these two!

Saying goodbye to the Vollbrecht Family! :(

On 9/22 Kirk had his first of several Dr appointments at the dermatologist.  He had several spots nitro'd, and several biopsies done.  Later finding that most were basal cell cancers (follow up would be in Florida).  I had my "yearly" appointment with the gyno that afternoon and everything was great.  Two down, more to go.   The next day 9/23, we both had dentist appointments, and later that afternoon, Kirk saw his Pulmonologist.  We were a little more worried with this appointment as Kirk hadn't been feeling well lately and we were thinking it might be related to his Sarcoidosis.  Dr Syed ordered a pulmonary function test and chest x-ray to be done the next day.  All the results came back negative.  What a blessing!  

The evening of 9/23 we decided it was time to relax, and drove down to the RiverWalk.  One of our favorite places in SA.  We ate at Bourbon Street restaurant and took the taxi boat ride on the RiverWalk.  We had a great time.    The next day I stopped at my old workplace, Northeast Methodist Hospital, to visit with some of my old peeps.  Always great to see them all.  

 Kirk's in Heaven, Bourbon Street Gumbo

 Pic of newer part of RiverWalk taken from Bourbon St restaurant

 RiverWalk from the boat taxi

 Seeing Tower of the Americas from the RiverWalk

 Cool pic from the boat taxi

More of the RiverWalk, just a beautiful place.

On 9/27, Kirk and I took a ride to Wimberly, TX.  Earlier this summer, Wimberly experienced a devastating flood from record breaking rains.  Houses were destroyed, and several people were killed.  Even after a few months, the damage is still unbelievable.  We watched the Super Moon/lunar eclipse/blood moon this night.  Won't appear again till 2033.

 This wasn't even the worst of it.  Floods slanted the trees.

 Click on picture and see the damage close up :(

 More flood damage

This guy was roaming freely around near the road.  Time to call the farmer

Of course, the camera never does it justice...Lunar eclipse/super-blood moon

After staying at the Greentree RV park for a week, we decided to move to Hill Country RV Resort in New Braufels on 9/28.  This was a much nicer park and a lower rate as they accepted Passport America.  I also found out that my next assignment would be in Boynton Beach, FL and would start on 10/13.  So, we had more time to spend in TX, and also to take a few short trips on our way to FL  On 9/29, we said our good-bys to our neighbors/friends, and got our flu shots (work requirement) which I will opt out of from now on.  I forgot to mention, that we also visited with Larry and Carmen.  When we lived in the neighborhood, I could always count on Carmen to make me laugh.  I'm thinking if we ever decide to settle down and live in a stick home again, our old neighborhood may be in the top contention.

More of Summer time in Iowa 2015

Kirk and I had a very busy summer in Albia with family being so close in almost all directions of us. Aside from worrying about Kristy and Robyn getting lost on their hike at Zion National Park (all is well), and Ben and his family enduring a severe thunderstorm while camping in Chippewa Falls, WI that same weekend (again, all is well), I am doing well myself now.  No matter how old our children get, we parents will continue to worry about them, just like we did when they were small.  It never stops.  Of course, praying for them is always my number one go to.  Nothing above that!

Kristy and Robyn at Arches Canyon in Utah before the hike!

Then there is my husband, Kirk.  On 7/30 he started having pains in his abdomen.  It was bad enough, that he thought he should go to the ER.  It has to be bad for him to want to go there.  Being in the small town of Albia, Iowa, we were able to get in right away.  After many, many tests (blood, x-rays, CT, etc), everything was negative.  He does have a history of pancreatitis, so they did give him a shot of pain meds which made him very nauseated (did take the pain away though), and we went home.  We've had a couple of small bouts since that time, but they seem to be manageable, especially when we know there isn't much they can do (so, I get out my essential oils :) ).

Adyson's birthday party was the weekend of 8/7-8/9 in Minneapolis.   She had a wonderful, fun party at Kristy's place with lots of friends and family present.  Then we (Kirk and I, Kristy, Robyn, Ady, Ben and Nicki, Bella, and Isaac) went to the St Paul East RV Park in ST Paul and stayed in a cabin, with Ben and Nicki also having their camper there.  What a fun birthday weekend.  Oh yeah, Ady is now 12 years old.

 Adyson and her mommy, Robyn at Ady's 12 year old birthday party.

 Camping in ST Paul with these crazies!

End of an awesome birthday weekend.  Happy Birthday Ady!

On 8/11 Kirk's mother (Mavis) had a slight, yet scary mishap while downtown Gladbrook.  Kirk hopped on his motorcycle the next morning and rode there to check on her.  Again, all was well with Mavis.  Another reason it was nice to be this close to family.   The next day, Kirk got a call from Lindsey (Nate's wife) to say that Nate was in the hospital due to some ongoing numbness in his left foot.  I don't believe they ever did find any reason for it, but it sure was a scare and he seems to be doing fine.

On 8/15 we attended the Iowa State Fair.  I had gone many years ago with my son Ben.  We went to see the Moody Blues play in concert.  Afterwards there was a fantastic fireworks display.  However, at that time, I didn't really get to see all the fair stuff (or at least I don't recall).  Aside from that, Kirk and I had a great time there.  I had my first ever Iowa famous Guinnea Grinder, which has now been changed to the Jennie Grinder (due to being politically correct ).  It was pretty good.  We also visited the cows, pigs, butter cow, rode the sky tram, did a lot of walking (it was extremely hot), had fried oreos, turkey legs, and probably other stuff I'm not mentioning.  We also met Nate and Mason there and spent a little time with them.  Mason loved the oreo.   This particular Saturday just happened to be when all the republican candidates (or at least most of them) were there to speak on the Soapbox Stage.  Trump flew over the fair in his helicopter and walked through the streets.   All in all we had a great time.    The fair lasts for 10 days, and on 8/21 while I was at work, Kirk rode his motorcycle back to the fair to see Nate and his band (Nate Nelson and the State Street Band) play on the Bud Light stage early afternoon.  Earlier in the day, the band had an interview on the television morning show in Des Moines.  Kirk said they did a great job.  They were allowed to play for 45 minutes which is typical of the bands playing at the fair and had a good amount of people attending.

 Riding over the Iowa St Fair; kinda nervous on this ride

 Selfie at the State fair

 Yummy fried oreos

 Mason enjoying his first fried oreo

 Look for the red hat....Trump!

 Three generations of Nelsons.

What's a fair without a butter cow.

 Kirk and grandson, Damon enjoying Nate and band playing at the fair.

Nate and the State Street Band at the Iowa State Fair.

That same evening after I got off work and Kirk was home we ate out in downtown Albia at the Albia Brewing Co.  I had my very first "flight".  It contained 6 samples of the beers made there.  There was only one of the six that I really could have done without.  Sure glad Kirk is my designated driver.

My first "flight", and that would be because I'm not a big beer drinker.

On 8/25 Nate met Kirk in Pella, Iowa where they spent the day golfing.  Kirk says they had a really good father/son day.

Bos Landen Golf Course in Pella

On 8/28 Kirk and I drove to Wonewoc for the weekend to Chapparal Campground.  Dennis and Diane (owners of the campground) have been good friends of ours since we first stayed there 5 years ago.  We were able to visits with Kurt and Laurie, Tracy and Michelle, and several other seasonals.  We also made it a point to visit with Ron and Arlene at their home.   Ron took us to his garden and gave us some of his homegrown tomatoes, and jalepeno peppers.   We stayed in one of the cabins as we didn't take the RV this trip.  Also that weekend, Ben and Nicki were DJ'ing at her cousins wedding, so we took Bella and Isaac and had them spend the night with us in the cabin.  We had a great time.  Those kiddos love to camp.   On our way home to Albia, we stopped at the Costco in Coralville, Iowa.  This was a neat Costco as ALL their customer parking was in a single floor garage. Great concept.  Especially since they get lots of snow in the winter.  Costco treats their customers right.

 Breakfast with our good friends from Chapparal Campground.  Sure do miss those guys!

 Got our cheese fix.  Nothing like Wisconsin cheese, especially with these ladies!

 One of two favorite things these kiddos love to do at Chapparal.  The other is having blue moon ice cream.

My first batch of pickled jalepenos.  Thanks Ron and Arlene.

Our last weekend in Albia (9/12) we drove to Monmouth for the day to see Robyn and Ady.  They were staying with their grandma/great grandma for a couple of months.  It just happened to be the weekend of the Prime Beef Festival.  When I was growing up in Monmouth, the PBF was a huge event, starting with the parade on Wednesday.  We did have a good day.  I ran into a couple of old school friends, had ribeye sandwiches, and enjoyed a ride or two.  I was really looking forward to the Industrial tent, however, it was a huge disappointment.  Anyway, this day was about Robyn and Ady which we ended with dinner at Petey's.  As always, it was hard saying good-bye.  We would be heading to Texas in a few days.

 Stopped at the church tent for pie...ate it all up!

 Ady trying to win at bumper cars

Robyn having fun at the PBF.

Pella trip 2015

I have driven by Pella more times than I can remember and had never stopped.  While staying in Albia this summer, we were so close that we decided to take a day trip there (8/1).  Every year they have a tulip festival which is known all over the world and draws thousands of people ( we did not get to attend that festival). Kirk and I enjoyed the history of the town, it's quaint shops, and the bakeries famous for their Letter pastry.  I recommend visiting Pella if you're ever in the area and taking the tour of the Windmill.  

Posing in front of the oldest working windmill in the nation.  

Kirk on the top of the windmill. 

The making of the wooden shoes!

Did not know that Wyatt Earp had lived here.  I am from Monmouth,Illinois where Wyatt was born. 

The straw thatch hut once lived in by the settlers from Holland. 

Nelson Reunion 2015

It's not very often that we get all of Kirk's kids and their families together in one place, but we almost succeeded minus one granddaughter.   Kirk's children are Nate, Heather, and Cartie.  Carrie and her family from Utah came to Iowa in July for a week.  Carrie is married to John.  They have a total of 6 children.   Nate and Lindsey live in Iowa and have a son.  Nate also has two grown daughters.   Heather and Charley also live in Iowa and have a daughter.  Heather also has a son.   So, since we were still in Iowa for the summer we thought it would be nice to get everyone together.  Kirk and I got a room at the hotel in Marshalltown the weekend of 7/25.  We rented the room next to the pool area and ordered pizzas.  The kids had a ball swimming, playing together, and just getting to know all their cousins.   Grandma Mavis was able to enjoy it all.  

Front row sitting: Austine holding Mason, Grandma Mavis.  Second row: Brayden and Dakota. Third row: Kyler, Taylor, Kael, Damon, Jasmine.  Back row: me, Kirk, Lindsey, Nate, Carrie, John, Heather, Kaylee, Charley.  

Papa Kirk with jasmine, Taylor, and Brayden.  

I think John is praying for them all.  What a crew!  What a proud papa!

Cousins!

Cousins loved getting to know each other.  

Grandpa Kirk and Austine.  What a beauty. 

Jordan was the only grandchild not able to attend because of a prior commitment. We sure did miss her.  

Mavis Time 2015

While staying in Albia, IA, we were fortunate enough to be close to Kirk's mom (Mavis).  Gladbrook was just around 2 hours from us.  It was easy for Kirk to hop on his motorcycle to go visit her while I was at work, or take me to work, and drive the truck there if he needed to.  I could go with him on my days off.  On 7/18, we both went to Gladbrook, and took Mavis to see her sister, Eleanor.  Eleanor was in the hospital in Marshalltown and was not doing well.  I know they both enjoyed their visit.  Kirk was able to visit with some of his cousin's while there.  Chuy went with us and stayed in his kennel at Mavis's apt.  On the way back to Gladbrook, we stopped and picked up some fresh sweet corn (our first for the Summer) and had it for supper that night.   On 7/30 Kirk's aunt Eleanor passed away :(    Kirk drove the truck to take his mother to the funeral on 9/3.

Sisters, Eleanor and Mavis

Visiting Eleanor in the hospital.  Kirk, Mavis, me, Gene (Eleanor's husband), and Redge (nephew of Eleanor).

What a nice surprise, when Kirk brought his mother back to Albia after the funeral to stay with us for a couple of days.  That saturday, we all went for a ride to Melrose and ate at The Red Barn.  Great tenderloins and reubens!   Then went for a nice ride around Rathbun Lake.   On Sunday, we took Mavis home, by way of Nate and Lindsey's house in Granger.  Mason and Kaylee were celebrating their birthdays.  Mason (Nate and Lindsey's son) turned 3, and Kaylee (Heather and Charlie's daughter) turned 1.  A beautiful day for a party.   After taking Mavis to her place, Kirk did some work on the house she has for sale.

 The Red Barn in Melrose, IA.  Middle of nowhere, and great tenderloins.

 Kaylee and Mason birthday party.

The after picture was much better, but I didn't get that one.

Albia/Ottumwa 2015

We headed to Albia, IA where we would stay while I was working in Ottumwa.  My job was at the Good Samaritan home, with the rehab provided by Aegis.   I started there on July 20th, and after arriving found that they weren't  expecting me until the following week (even though my contract said the 20th).  Caseload was extremely low, so while I was building caseload, which was very difficult as nursing staff and doctor are not on board with Speech therapy, I was very bored.  Regardless, I enjoyed by assignment there, and met some awesome people, mostly, but not limited to the therapy staff.  On my last day of work (9/16),  my co-workers brought in lunch, and gave me an Ottumwa T-shirt.  They are GREAT!

FYI fact:  co-op is what they call potluck in this part of the country.  

 The nursing home trapped these cuties and then released them in the country.  Lots of coons at the nursing home in Ottumwa becoming a nuisance.

 Co workers bought lunch my last day of work.  The famous Ottumwa Canteen.  Very close to Taylor's maidrites in Marshalltown, IA

 This was our site in Albia, IA at Indian Hills RV Park.  There is also a motel and restaurant on the site.

Co workers in Ottumwa also brought in Graham's ice milk.  Yummy!!

While in Albia, we had a few visitors.  Rudy and Bev came to visit 8/4 - 8/7 and were able to park in the site next to us.  We ate at a fun place, Bubba Q's in Ottumwa.  While I was working, they and Kirk golfed in Oskaloosa,   We cooked out, watched the Republican Debate on TV, and played with Rudy's Bug A Salt.  We really do need to get one of those.

Charlie and Kathy, our friends from MN whom we had met in Yuma, AZ last winter also came to visit on 8/l0 for the night while on their way to the Knoxville Sprint Car Races.  We had a nice cook out and visit.  The Sprint car races are a huge thing every year with thousands of people coming from all over.  They brought their new motor home.  

Robyn and Ady visited on 8/31and spent the night.  They were on their way to Illinois to stay with Grandma Ryner for two months.  Robyn is also going to home school Ady this school year.  We had a fun visit.