Iowa 09 Trip - Mon 7/6

MacBride and Collingwood Siblings Date Night

The day started off with Grandpa loading up their kayaks.

We were headed to Lake MacBride for water fun, a picnic,

and then on to look at the Raptor Center.

Mom and Kevin let Dan and I go for a paddle. It was fun.

Dan decided he prefers the canoe. I think with a better lower back support, I prefer the kayak.
While Dan and I were out on the water, Gpa and Gma took the kids for a short hike along the lake.....


... or a "carry". Whatever got the job done :)

Then we decided it would be fun to all go canoeing (how do you spell that word?)

Canoe One

Canoe Two

(guess who had the camera?)

We stopped off at the outcropping by the spillway.

What a view.

I think Dan was explaining to Ethan how water made the crack over time.

Doesn't Dan look so peaceful here?

He needed a vacation.

Gma took Ethan and Kaylin to the edge

(note the sign in the background ;)

After the spillway, we switched canoe kiddos.

Kaylin was now with Grandma and me.

(Gma found out why Ethan had been so squeely in front of Kaylin before. Her paddling produced quite the splashing!)

After all that hard work we rewarded ourselves with bombpops for the kids and lemonade slushies for the adults.

Quick hop over to the Raptor Center

Great Horned Owl

Bar Owl

Screech Owl

(He looks like he wants to screech at you, doesn't he?)

We also saw a bald eagle. but the pic was blurry.

Also - thanks Mom for several of these pics.

Look how excited my children are in these posed shots!

By now they've learned that it is better to just go along with the shot and get it over with :)

Eagle Ethan

Eagle Kaylin

Eagle Krystin

The walk back to the vehicles.

It was a very pretty wooded trail.

Krystin again managed to hitch a ride :)

Kaylin and I had a really good walk together

... when she wasn't runnin' on ahead ;)

We stopped and looked at the lighting filtering down to the forrest floor
Then we looked up at the massive oak tree just in front of us

Poor Ethan. He was wanting to walk at a bit faster pace. But it looks like something on the trail entertained him while he had to wait for the girls to catch up.

Grandma had pointed out gooseberries earlier. We liked them.

So Kaylin and I stopped again on the way back.

Krystin hitched a ride with me for awhile

Then she walked with Grandma :)

Here's a close up of the gooseberries I mentioned earlier

And here is Gma picking some gooseberries

(Yes. It DOES bug me these 2 pics are out of order.

But with so many pics to post, I am not going to redo it!)

Relaxing back at the house

Kaylin's request of Gma?

Chicken noodle soup.

Here she is enjoying it

While Gpa and Gma fed the kids and put them to bed,

Dan and I had a really fun time getting together with his siblings and their spouses.

First stop?

Carlos O'Kellys

Our waiter was awesome.

I can never choose between the Vera Cruz (seafood enchilada) or the Chicken Picada.

He let me have both entrees as one meal. I got a discount since I said to hold the rice and beans.

I. Was. Happy.

(and not just because of the huge margarita, people!)


The group

Chris and Christina, Jacque and Dave, Dan and Me :)

Second stop?

Back to Mom and Kevin's to play a game in the basement.

What game, do you ask?

One Christina found on Ebay that the 3 of them played growing up:

SOLAR QUEST

I checked on the kids before going to sleep.

Iowa 09 - Tue 7/7

This was a fun, but sad day :(

Our last day in Iowa. I was busy most of the morning and afternoon packing our suitcases.

I did, however, make time for a much needed Chick-fil-a break! :)

(original with extra pickels and waffle fries and lemonade, in case you were wondering ;)

The kids watched a couple videos and rode the horse while I packed, Dan was over at his parents, and Mom and Kevin had a few things to take care of.

Then in the afternoon, Grandpa took the kids out back to use their bubble wands from Uncle Danve and Aunt Jacque. (Grandpa supplied his own bubble wand!)

We held our "goodbye" Supper at Ryan's Steakhouse.

(Trey and Jesse - remember going here with Mom when we were little? Then honey buns, the ice cream bar, and laughing so hard we would make people around us stare?!)

Ryan's had a separate back room that we were able to claim as our own. It worked out very well.

Ethan, Grandma Collingwood, Kaylin

Great Gma and Gpa Van Dee and Grandpa Collingwood

Uncle Chris, Aunt Christina, Aunt Jacque, Uncle Dave

(Dave officially approves of this picture!)

Dan, Britt, Grandma, Krystin, Grandpa


What good is a buffet if you can't fully utilize the dessert bar???

And what do 3 children hyped-up on sugar do?

Why, dance in the middle of the tables, of course!

Mom (Penni) took this side view shot. I think it turned out better than the face-on shots.

We stayed at Ryan's a long time visiting. Fortunately Gma Collingwood remembered the cards.

Ethan re-taught Great-Gma Van Dee Card Golf.

What was Krystin doing while the others played cards?

Perfecting the "spoon-on-nose" trick.

Can I make money off this somehow???

If I do make money, I would owe it all to these two goofies.

(Krystin's instructors in the fine arts)

Cuddles of thanks for Aunt Jacque :)

Group shot of the adult Collingwood Clan

(thanks, Mom)

Still talking

Dan had a nice visit with his Grandpa

Others joined in

I thought it would be nice to get a pic of the kids with their Great Grandparents.

I don't know why I thought this would work. It was getting late and my children were crashing from their previous sugar high....

... but I tried.....

... the following 4 shots I tried.

The only way I got any decent shot at all was thanks to "Chippy the Squirrel" ...

... AKA "Grandma"

This methon somehow worked better than my exhasperated threat of a spanking to Ethan.

Yes - one of my finer Mommy-moments. It was a very good thing Chippy was there!

(Side note: It was Uncle Dave who - trying to help, but only inciting the children-was causing Ethan to make funny faces) ;)

These 2 were oblivious to the picture troubles as they were lost in fun Father-Son conversation


Finally, goodbyes had to be said :(

I choke up whenever I look at these goodbye photos.

It was SO good to see family.

It was so hard to say goodbye. Not just becuase I would miss them, but more so because my children would miss them, too.

I wish my kids could see their wonderful Grandparents and Aunts and Uncles more.

But I am confident that we are where God wants us for the moment, and that is a little consolation.... a little.

Thanks for the memories, Iowa relatives!

We love you and miss you already!