Once school finished, summer kicked off at full speed ahead. No sooner had we wrapped up the school year, then Tim was off to Atlanta for a technology conference. Emma had the kids at home doing a few summer things before she took them to the farm. Judah started his summer with a ear rupture and antibiotics for an ear infection. He still put all his legos sets together from his birthday by himself. And Krissy who was not sure what to make with Judah home all the time, went around singing the ABC's (the whole song for the first time). Emma also changed the nightly routine to singing two songs before bed after lights out followed by a good night.
The kids settled into a long weekend at the farm while Emma traveled back to Des Moines to pick up Tim at the airport and for her Ultimate Journey Class at church. Then we turned around and traveled north in Palmer, Iowa, to celebrate with Isaiah and Sarah (Cutshall) Janssen at their wedding. As a bridesmaid, Emma played dress up with the girls while Tim did whatever was needed, decorate, run errands for the girls, or eat the food available. All the festivities including the rehearsal dinner, the ceremony, and reception were very special and a lot of fun.
Staying in Fort Dodge, we drove up to Forest City Sunday morning to see our nephews baby dedication and pick up our kids. We had a nice family dinner before hitting the road to Des Moines all tuckered out from our long weekends.
It was while Tim was in Atlanta, that Emma called Tim to say she was feeling nauseous. Before this time she had been unusually tired but with feelings of fighting to get food down, the writing was on the wall. Thus started the beginning of pregnancy with Baby Boo. The first person to guess was our friend Robin who saw Emma at her Ultimate Journey class on June 4. She took one look at Emma and knew why the food she was eating made her cringe. The secret was out right away. Slowly the neighbors were finding out as well.
We barely had a week to do laundry and repack before we were off on our family vacation to Hannibal and Branson, Missouri. We left on Friday evening in time to reach our Best Western on the River in Hannibal to turn in. The next day, the four of us explored the downtown museums featuring Mark Twain. Judah and Krissy were our very own Tom Sawyer and Becky Thatcher going from building to building learning about the various adventures. That afternoon we took a break from the heat and storms to go swimming in the hotel pool and have a leisurely supper out for pizza.
On Sunday, we took a riverboat ride on the Mississippi learning about Hannibal history. The kids were not impressed with the sights as much as eating from the concession stand. So then we played at the park for a while and found a place downtown to eat. Perhaps the highlight of the trip was going to visit the Mark Twain cave later that afternoon. While Tim carried Krissy who asked every other minute when we would be done, Judah stayed up front with the tour guide taking in every word. Afterwards, the kids then panned for their own gems and treasures.
Monday, we loaded up the car to begin the second half of our road trip to Branson where we stayed at Table Rock Lake with all of Tim's family. Our house was big enough for each family to have their own room and bathroom. Each family took a meal to cook for everyone. The adults could visit or play games while the cousins ran around or played in the theatre room.
Tuesday, Papa Larry rented a pontoon boat for us to be together on the lake. Those who wanted a turn to ski went in Andrew's boat while those who wanted to stay dry from the rain, went underneath the cover of the pontoon boat. Before we got caught in the rain, we all took a dip in the refreshing lake water. Much of the afternoon it rained so we found some indoor activities for the kids and just relaxed enjoying each other's company. Some of the kids went swimming later in the rain too.
Wednesday, most of the troop went swimming the beach house. All the boys (of all ages) enjoyed playing, wrestling, and jumping of of the big water mat. After a big lunch, the kids took a quiet time while the moms walked around the shops at the Landing. Then everyone went back out to the lazy river for some pool time.
Thursday we cleaned up the cabin and loaded back for the long, tired drive home. We had to get family pictures before we left and it was at this moment we told the Rittgers family our news of Baby Boo. We made it home for supper and ordered pizza to share with those still on the road.
By the weekend, everyone was exhausted, Emma especially. In spite of rest that weekend and all the next week with lots of help from Tim, Emma came down with a severe cough and cold. She started vomiting enough that the doctors put her on nausea medicine. She recovered slightly enough to see Philip who was in town for his Okoboji 200 bike ride. Unfortunately by the time Philip left, he not only got sick but the rest of the family was on antibiotics as well.
Tim spent most of the end of the month taking care of the family so that Emma could recover. Judah took swim lessons at the Urbandale Public Pool. Several times the kids played with friends so mommy could rest. Krissy finally got to go with daddy to pick out her new big girl bike. she was so excited to find a My Little Pony 14 inch bike. She even helped daddy put it together she was so proud. Practically bigger than her, she still rode around the neighborhood to show off her rainbow dash tassels of hair hanging from the handles. Such good kids!
June also marked one of the wettest parts of the season. Late June, we had continuous storms all night long. The next day, Tim found that all the roads around us to the East were closed for flooding. Come to find out, Walnut Creek had flooded the entire area. Our own dike kept the water from flooding us but still was five feet from the top of the berm. Our long-time neighborhood resident, Jim, came by to make sure we were ok and said this was the worst flood in our neighborhood since they built the dike. They even had the flood gates closed. This started our rainforest summer. Can't wait for the mosquitoes.
