Made it to Iowa!

Alice writes:

Well, we have made it to Spirit Lake, IA with no mishaps and all still in good spirits! The boys camped in WV - Kanawaha State Forest - up a "holler", as we would say, although a windy road, JP negotiated the WV hills with aplomb and then headed on to KY.

An overnight at Twin Knobs Recreation Area proved to be wonderful fun for them. I met them on 8/17 in Columbus, IN where we were able to have a fantastic visit with our most beloved babysitter and her husband, Patty and Mark Hilebrand! We had quite the competive game of touch football with Travis directing who should "tackle" whom each and every play! Trying to play football at dusk and not violate the campground "quiet hours" was quite the challenge with our teams, but all turned out just right - the game ended in a tie.

Up early and off to Parkersburg, IA to stay with Bernie and Bob Poppens on their farm. Oh my, what a marvelous experience. Rides on giant tracotrs, JP behind the wheel of a combine - now that was a sight! Dairy farm, corn and soybeans, Akita puppies, town parade, they even had fireworks that evening that we watched from the farm. Amazing to be able to see fireworks that are 2 miles away as if they are right in your front yard. JP and boys had their first experience walking into a giant cornfield - you can get lost very quickly if you are not paying attention. We all needed this rest as Bernie and Bob put us up in "real beds" for the night - what a treat! They have promised that we can come back on our next trip "west" - we are already thinking about that one!!

Arrived in Spirit Lake, IA 8/20 - we are camped right next to the lake with a beautiful view and a fantastice breeze. No need for a/c around here right now. We celebrate Clayton's 7th birthday today! So wonderful to have Jim with us - his nephews are in heaven! Looking forward to spending the next few days settled down here and exploring - an interesting and different area of the country for us.