Road Trip #1

We got back from our first summer road trip on THU after spending time with Nathan, Laura & Calvin in Eagan, MN, & Mark (my brother) & Christy in Garrison, IA. Highlights:

• Playing with Calvin at the playground while Nathan & Laura ran a 5K.
• Fishing with Nathan @ Blackhawk Lake. We actually caught fish for a change (though none of the five fish were keepers).
• Lois, Laura, & Calvin walking home from the Lake. (They saw a deer!)
• Supper at the Rainforest Cafe @ Mall of America.
• Driving through torrential rain on the way to Mark & Christy's on Monday. (Maybe not a highlight; maybe more like memorable)
• We drove through an area that had a tornado touchdown around the same time, though we saw no evidence.
• Enjoying lunch at our favorite Chinese Restaurant in Vinton on TUE.
• Walking along the Old Creamery Trail in Garrison & barely making it back to the car before it started raining.
• Visiting the National River Museum & National Museum of the Mississippi in Dubuque on WED.
• Eating supper in the Amana Colonies on WED evening.
• Barely 15 minutes after we left Amana, a tornado was sighted in that same area, resulting in a tornado warning that lasted over an hour. Had we left 15 minutes later, we might have had to spend time in the basement of the restaurant, assuming they had one.

Our next road trip is JUNE 10-13, when we take our grandkids Brianna, Hadley, & Bentley "glamping" at Platte River State Park, which is located just off I-80 between Lincoln & Omaha. Besides spending time in the park, we plan to take them to the waterpark at Mahoney State Park & attend a mellodrama, also at Mahoney State Park, & spending the day at the Henry Doorly Zoo in Omaha.