Two precious boys

It was so fun to be with the two little boys. We all had fun with them and they had fun with each other. We did find it almost impossible to get a good picture of them together. This morning I am feeding them both breakfast at the same time. Jonathan kept trying to feed Josiah his eggs. The news on Jonathans shirt is now common knowledge. We are all excited.

All Dressed Up

While packing at Beck's we discovered some of Great Grandma's leapord clothes that Becky had kept as a costume. Here is Alise dressed up in them. Becky also dressed in them and asked Chaun to take her to the Firemans dance that night. He declined.

Packing

Sarah and Josiah also came to Becky's to help with the packing process. Aunt Donna came also, so we had a fun day of working together. Aunt Donna would not like me to publish the picture that I took of her. Sorry Donna. I'll get a good picture next time.

Fancy Playground

Toward the middle of the week of Alise's visit, she and I traveled to Waterloo to help Becky pack. On the way we stopped at a fancy new playground in Storm Lake. It was really fun. We even took a dip in the lake on our stop.

On The Paddle Boat

Paddle Boat Ride

Something fun we did on Alise's visit was to go on a paddle boat ride at Spring Lake Park. This is something we hadn't done with any of the kids. We had fun, even if Grandpa did have to do most of the work. Here is Grandpa fastening the life jacket. It was a beautiful Sunday afternoon.

Alise visits

It was time for Alise's visit, July 12-20. We had alot of fun. Here we are playing Five Crowns. Alise is now old enough for this game. Grandpa and I got a kick out of her however when she was trying to hold 12 cards. I do believe Grandma won this game.

Dad's Hobby

Dad finally has a full blown hobby. Here is a picture of him in his work shop. He has fixed up the back garage quite nicely. Note his shelves with the organized little bins. Here he is working on a project for Sarah ( she requested) He really enjoys working out there. He enjoys all the saws and tools you kids have given him. Lots of evenings he will go out and work awhile. Tonight Alise is with him. She is using his new vacumn to vacumn up his saw dust as his makes it. They are both happy and it is neat. So if you have requests, get them in.

Getting Ready for the Big Move

This past week-end we went to Dave's. We loaded our van and a trailer with items they can't take with them to Chicago. We brought them home to store in our basement. Here are the kids posed in front of the load. We also brought Alise home for her visit. She will be here for a week. Dave and Anita have one more week left in their house. They are making good progress.

Lousiville

We met Chaun and Becky in Louisville after our days in the Smokey Mts. We got to see the Seminary and help them find an apartment to call home. It was great to see them and their new world. (We also confirmed that it is along ways from Meriden) :( Here is a picture of us in a fun restaurant eating spaghetti. Sorry Chaun, we almost cut you out. Now we have returned to Meriden and it is sooooo good to be home.

A Glimpse of Southern Seminary

Porch swing

We really enjoyed the delightful porch swing at our cabin. There was also one on the back deck. Another fun thing was the hot tub on the back deck. One again, so relaxing!

Our Little Cabin in the Woods

We had a delightful cabin in the woods. It was just right for the two of us. We loved the wrap around porch. We usually spent the mornings just relaxing at the cabin, reading etc. The afternoons were spent driving around the National Park. So relaxing.

Beautiful Hikes

Everyday we spent the afternoons driving and hiking around the National Park. This fall was one place we hiked to. It was really neat. How thankful we were to spend this time together.

The Beautiful Smokey Mountains

After conference we spent 4 days in the beautiful Smokey Mountains. We saw lots of beautiful scenes. It caused us to praise God who is the creator of all things.

Flood damage

At the beginning of our vacation travels we drove through some of the areas that had been damaged by the Iowa floods. This is a picture of the damage to the Iowa City Evangelical Free Church. What used to be a beautiful church has now been completely gutted. The church is in many piles out in the parking lot. It was sad to see. In Cedar Rapids houses were piled up on the curb, house after house. It looked hopeless.