It's an important family weekend--the second birthday of our great-granddaughter Olivia Jane. So we are at Cherry Glen campground seven minutes away from them. Our son Pat, wife Jill, and grandson Jack are up from Texas for the event as well. Like most of our camping this year, the weather could be better but the campground is full. That wasn't true when we arrived Thursday, but by last night all of these sites were full and the nearby playground was at capacity.
Yesterday Pat and Jill took Jack for a college visit at Iowa State, Brooke and Nick had to work, and Olivia was at daycare so we had to entertain ourselves. After a leisurely morning, we took a drive around Saylorville Lake, the recent scene of some very heavy rains and still affected by flooding. A number of roads were closed but we did enjoy the prairie flowers at Acorn Valley recreation area.
Yesterday Pat and Jill took Jack for a college visit at Iowa State, Brooke and Nick had to work, and Olivia was at daycare so we had to entertain ourselves. After a leisurely morning, we took a drive around Saylorville Lake, the recent scene of some very heavy rains and still affected by flooding. A number of roads were closed but we did enjoy the prairie flowers at Acorn Valley recreation area.
Later in the afternoon, we gathered at Brooke and Nick's for pizza. Olivia's presents this year from us are all hand-me-downs from our no-longer-used attic playroom: plastic dishes and food and a wooden rocking horse. She found the little toaster a challenge but bravely resisted any attempts to show her how to use it (she is two, after all). She allowed Great-Grandpa to pick her up only so she could supervise her mother's amazing job of putting rainbow frosting on her cupcakes, which she then decided passed the taste test.
Today her grandparents and great-grandparents will be charged with babysitting while her parents go to a wedding in Cedar Falls. I hope we meet her high standards. Fortunately, she thinks her Uncle Jack is pretty cool. Meanwhile this morning a lazy breakfast and some writing. I'm thinking the dumpster dumping truck that came around at 7:20 this morning probably didn't make any friends here in the campground.
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