Holiday Road

While the floors were being installed throughout the main floor of the house, we needed to leave. We could have stayed and worked around the men without a stove or refrigerator, but why? We decided to to travel to Iowa City and visit our friends there. Originally we planned on bringing home a puppy from a breeder in Solon, IA, but since we already had two puppies and Tom was not thrilled with the idea of a third, a nice visit was all that was planned. It was Isabelle's birthday and when we asked her what she wanted she said,"All I really want is to play with my friends from Iowa." How could we say no? We scraped the last bits of glue off the wall Wednesday morning, took the dogs to the kennel to be boarded (so sorry), threw everything in the car and hit the road around 5pm. Some dear friends of ours own a hotel in Iowa City so we always stay there when we're back. It's great. They have a wonderful staff, comfy beds, and a 100ft waterslide the kids love! We arrived late on Wednesday night and went right to bed. We had a lazy morning on Thursday then hung out at the mall across the street. We grabbed lunch for the adults from one of our favorite places--Jimmy Jack's Rib Shack--and headed back to our old neighborhood. Shelly told her kids that they had dental appts. that afternoon and took them out of class for our visit (Unbelievable, I know). The kids had a great time playing with their dear friends all afternoon.


Isabelle and Claire making mud pies on the deck. This was their favorite thing to do when we lived across the street. Claire hasn't played since we moved because "no one plays mud pies like Izzy".


Here is Teresa sharing her afternoon snack with her buddy Dexter. They have a special relationship.

Thursday evening we headed back to the hotel to swim. We invited many of our friends to join us. There were 17 kids in the pool in all and a few adults, too. It was so fun to watch them all playing together. They even had chicken fights. Daddyies were on hand for the obligatory launching across the pool and the waterslide was a hit--again. Unfortunately, I didn't have my camera--GRRRRR. It probably wouldn't have made a difference as I was occupied most of the night catching Teresa as she jumped off the side over, and over, and over, and over. Let's just say the kids slept well that night!

Friday morning Tom headed back to the mall with the big kids while I stayed with Jesse at the hotel. He needed a nap and the boys wanted to play games at the arcade. It wasn't all fun and games though. Isabelle had been complaining of a stomach ache all morning and she finally threw up in the arcade. Poor Izzy. Poor Tom. I was supposed to meet them for lunch at Red Lobster and since we don't have cell phones-yet-we kept to the plan and dragged Izzy along. Poor Izzy. It was short and sweet and then back to the hotel to rest. We had planned a party for Belle at the hotel that afternoon. I thought she might perk up after some rest but when she was still asleep at 2;30, we had to cancel. Poor Izzy. She seemed to be doing better that evening and even decided to swim. The girls had planned a sleepover and since all seemed well we went ahead. Bad idea. Belle threw up all over the bed around midnight. Claire is such a good friend that she even slept with Izzy after the incident. Hattie had a few friends stay over, too. I think she took these pics around 2 am.


Hattie and Megan Teets


Hattie and MacKenzie Conlon

With all the excitement overnight, we decided to cut the trip short and headed home Saturday morning. The weather forecast called for blowing snow and accumulation of 3-4 inches across WI. Fun. Fun. Fun. We finally made it home Saturday evening around 5:30 pm and were surprised to find the flooring guy still at our house! So we headed to the mall--again. The floors were finally completed Sunday morning. Whew!

We picked the 'boys' up from the kennel Sunday evening. Unfortunately, they didn't have a very good stay and were in desperate need of a bath. Who knew a whirlpool tub could be so handy? In they went. With everything I'd been cleaning up all weekend, what's a little dog pee?




All things considered we had a great time in Iowa. We saw alot of friends, visited many of our favorite places, and just had a wonderful time. Thanks Iowa City! We miss you!