Midwestern Adventure

The return of fall can only mean one thing: A trip to Vacationland, also known as Iowa. Okay, maybe not the first destination to come to mind, but we had good reason. Teri's Grandma Velma was turning 80. So we packed up and headed east...for 13 hours. Teri's dad is an Ironman, so we drifted in and out of sleep through most of Colorado's eastern plains, and Nebraska's barren, red-flag waving wasteland. The rolling hills of Iowa got us back in a good mood as we arrived in Cedar Rapids. Our hosts were wonderful, and helped us have a great, super-relaxing vacation. My top two achievements of the trip:

1. Eating a tenderloin sandwich as big as my face
2. Wearing spandex for the first time in my life

There was a little farm out of town that was like a pumpkin patch TO THE MAXXXX!!! They had go-carts, a huge balloon buried in the ground, a whole bunch of stinky animals, pig races and tractors galore. Oh, and in Iowa instead of sandboxes, they have corn boxes.
We spent a little time at Mike's cabin in a beautiful spot along the Cedar River. It reminded me a little of my Grandpa Grange's cabin, except I didn't get stung by a swarm of hornets at Mike's place.

We made a quick trip to Chicago to see Teri's old friend, Jill, or Jillinois to be exact. She let us stay in her cool little house, and then went into the city with us. Teri could have spent all day taking photos next to the giant metallic bean in Millennium Park. I'm still pissed we didn't see Oprah, because I'm pretty sure she gave away free cars that day, or at least a year's subscription to O.
After a great surprise birthday party for Teri with every Iowa relative within 50 miles, there was the big surprise party for Grandma Velma at St. Jude's. Let's just say she was not expecting it.

This is the best family picture Teri got. If only that moron hadn't ruined it.