The five grandkids in their now traditional photo by the pool

On Tuesday of this week we began our annual trip to Iowa. We stopped halfway in Kearney and we pulled in to Marcy’s parents house in West Des Moines, Iowa around 2pm on July 4. Less than a minute after arriving, as usual the kids were in the pool and they spent a good chunk of their time there for the rest of the week.

Lighting sparklers on July 4

The kids have loved being here and I think the cousins have gotten along better than what is typical. On Friday, they all went to Adventureland, the local amusement park with Baba and Grandpa. They stayed out all day, leaving at 9:30am and not getting home until 12 hours later. They went on rollercoasters, spent time in the water park, had lots of treats and had a great time. Needless to say they were all extremely tired, Anna slept in until 10am the next morning.

Watching a movie together

Jude is still very much focused on the World Cup and while he missed Friday’s games he was able to watch the Saturday games. Baba even joined in and watched one with him.

Watching England play Sweden in the World Cup quarter final

I have played golf with Nathan a few times, including 36 holes yesterday. Both Nathan and I took out Jude for a Par-3 this afternoon and then we had dinner at a sports bar with Grandpa for a boys night. Meanwhile the twins and Lily have gone away to camp so Jude and Anna will have their grandparents to themselves for the next couple of days.