Where Did August Go?

I can’t believe it’s August 31st already! It was another busy month, so it seems to have flown by. A couple of highlights from August were our family vacation and my birthday!

Family Vacation

On Thursday, August 20, we (Del, Nathaniel, and I) drove to Spirit Lake, Iowa, with my parents and sister for an extended weekend getaway through Sunday, August 23. We stayed in a condo that backed to the lake, and although the weather and water were too cool to get in, it was still wonderful to look out on the water and hear the waves lapping the shore.

It was a full yet relaxing trip! We had some things in mind that we wanted to do, and we fit in those activities but also spent time at the condo for meals, visiting, playing games, reading, etc. On the trip up to Spirit Lake, we stopped in Sioux City and toured the Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center and the Sergeant Floyd museum. In Spirit Lake/Okoboji, we went to a drive-in theater and saw The Proposal and The Ugly Truth; toured the Iowa Rock ‘n Roll museum, Maritime Museum, and Abbie Gardner cabin/memorial; played mini golf; went on a boat tour of Lake Okoboji; went parasailing (Kelly and Dad only); did some geocaching; and played in the sand at the condo and at a couple of local parks. On the trip home, we stopped in Le Mars, the Ice Cream Capital of the World, and toured the museum and ate ice cream.

Nathaniel was a great traveler! Between our planned stops on the drives there and home and his naps in the car, Nathaniel did a good job riding in the car, listening to his music, and amusing himself. He also did a great job in Spirit Lake, catching naps in the car each day and then going to bed close to his normal bedtime of 8:30 p.m. The exception was when he stayed awake until 9:45 at the drive-in movie! After we returned home from vacation, he did a good job getting back into his routine as well.

My 35th Birthday

This year, my birthday was on a Saturday, so it felt as though I got an extended celebration! Del and Nathaniel gave me their gifts on Thursday evening, which included the movie 27 Dresses, a digital photo frame for my desk at work, and a gift card to Archiver’s!

On Saturday, my parents came to Omaha and my sister came over, and we went to lunch at Olive Garden. Then, everyone came over to our house for gifts, dessert, and a game of dominoes. I received a teak shower bench from my parents and Mary Kay satin hands gift set from Kelly. Then my parents babysat Nathaniel so that Del and I could go out! We saw the movie Funny People with Adam Sandler. It was a little slow in places, but it was good overall.

On Sunday, Del’s parents came to Omaha, and we met them and Sherry and Alexander at The Durham Museum to see a behind the scenes sneak peak of Disney’s A Christmas Carol. It took 2 hours to stand in line and go through the train cars with the exhibits, but it was really interesting to see. Then we had lunch at Old Chicago, where I opened my gifts. I received two shells for my Miche purse from Del and Sandy and a Michaels gift card from Sherry, John, and Alexander. After lunch, we went back to our house, where we played outside and then visited inside.

All in all, it was a great birthday! I got to spend time with all of our family and received a lot of very nice gifts.