4 Wheels 4 Girls

On Thursday, August 4th, we met our friends from Hood River, Lori and Sarah, to go inner-tubing with them on the Little Iowa River.

We met them at Lori’s sister’s house, and then Lori got in the camper with Jean and Dad while the four kids got in the pickup with Sarah. We drove to Decorah, the town where we would be tubing. We met everyone else at a picnic area. I was pleased to see that there were actually people around my age there. There was Gara, who was going to be a freshman in high school, and Miran and Chloe, who were going to be freshmen in college. Then there were Adam and Logan, who were going into seventh grade, and Keaton, who was going into eighth, like me. Lastly there was Summer, who was going to be a first grader. Then there were a bunch of adults, and that’s the people we went tubing with. Oh, and I forgot to mention, Gara had to go to choir practice, so she didn’t get to tube.

We ate lunch, and then we played a big game of Toilet Tag. It’s basically like freeze tag, except when you get frozen, you squat down like a toilet and wait for someone to “flush” you. After we were all exhausted and ready to tube, we took a group picture and then put our tubes in the water. It was freezing cold at first, but it was easy to get used to. At the beginning, the boys and Stel and I were at the front, but then I think she got bored with us and she drifted back to hang out with Lori and Sarah and everyone else. It was really fun, with all of us trying to flip each other over and whatnot. Then we came to our first set of rapids, and they were SUPER fun! Then we passed under our first bridge, and then we realized that everyone was so far behind that maybe we were supposed to get out there. We kinda waited for a minute, but then we finally saw them coming, so we continued down the river.

We came to a rope swing hanging high in a tree and lots of other kids were doing it, so Keaton, Logan, Adam, and I decided to try it too. It looked like a lot of fun! Summer and her dad, Greg, floated up by us while we were watching people on the swing, and Summer did it! She jumped into the water from the rope swing! Well, that just cinched he deal for me. I thought, if a six-year-old can do it, I can do it! So I did it; three times. It was great!

Then we decided to continue tubing, since everyone was way ahead of us by then. We hit some more great rapids, and, just as we were having a ton of fun, we had to get out! Aww, dang. We tugged our tubes out of the water and gave them to the adults, who went to return them while Lori stayed with the kids. We didn’t have much time to play in the water though, because all too soon the adults came back and we had to go. We said our goodbyes and then got in the RV and made our way back to Lansing. It was an amazingly fun day!!! 😀

Early Thursday morning, May 12, after a long night spent seemingly in the middle of one of the runways, I crawled out of the RV and hopped on the shuttle to go from the long-term parking lot to departures at the San Francisco airport to catch my flight “home”. I went to Lansing (Iowa) to attend, and help out as much as I could, with a benefit that was being held for my brother and his family on Saturday. Greg was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor several months ago. He’s doing great, and given the effectiveness of the treatments so far and the importance of general good health, hard work, and strong will he will, no doubt, continue to do so for a long, long time. The treatments, though, are rough so it is difficult for him to work and get done all that needs to get done on the beautiful organic apple orchard that Greg and his wife own in Wisconsin. So. . . my siblings, mom, and several friends and coworkers have been meeting regularly for the past few months to plan a day of fun and fundraising to help them out. The benefit was a huge success. And I was really grateful to be there, to work closely with my amazingly organized and hard-working siblings, their spouses, kids, and extended families to do all that had to be done to make the auctions, raffles, and great dinner happen. It was really wonderful to be among so many who know and love Greg, and to experience the extent to which friends and family in that small community work together, to give of their time, talents and financial resources to help out when help is needed.

On our way to the airport, Mom and I took a detour through Viroqua, WI so I could see the house that my sister Barbara has rented and is using for the counseling business that she has just started. It is a gorgeous home, with lots of nice workwork. Though she is still in the process of furnishing it, etc. it already feels warm and comfortable. The requests for appointments are already rolling in so from the looks of it, the new counseling center is going to be a busy one.

One more post regarding our three-week stay in Lansing, IA. We spend many hours at the Lansing Library whenever we are in town. This visit was no exception–the cozy library was a favorite spot for reading, working, schooling, and occasionally napping (it was just me doing the napping). Greta even did some volunteer work, helping them transfer their catalog into the computer system.

Hanging out at the library.

Thanks, Lansing Library.

When we were kids, one of our few and favorite treats were Mom’s cinnamon roles. It has been year’s since she has made them but the day before we left Iowa I asked and she agreed to do her best to remember how she used to make them, and to teach me and the girls her magic.

Learning How to Make Grandma's Cinnamon Rolls

We mixed up a huge mound of dough, let it raise, punched it down, and let it raise again. Stella, Ellie, and Luciana helped us role out the dough, spread the melted butter and cinnamon, and role it all up in a nice even roll. Missing the kind of the string she used to use to cut the dough, Grandma taught us how to cut the dough with a scissors and to make nice even rolls. We then baked them up and frosted them. They were as delicious as I remembered them being!

Grandpa Bill taught the girls this chicken song one summer. They sang it all summer long, often as quickly as they could.

A few nights ago, many family members joined together to sing songs at Grandpa’s bedside, and someone started the chicken song. Bill, who had been speaking very little that day, suddenly burst forward with the chicken song at breakneck speed, to everyone’s surprise and delight.

Grandpa passed away Thursday morning. We shot this video of the girls singing it as a tribute to him.

Last summer (2010) we went out to our Uncle Gary and Aunt Kim’s farm. There was a photographer on the farm for Organic Valley, so we went out there with Grandma and Grandpa. The photographer was really nice. He took lots of pictures of the piggies and the cowies. We didn’t get a picture of the cows, but here is one he took of the pigs.

Piggies on the Farm

While the photographer was busy taking pictures of the pigs, Ellie, Greta, Ana and I got our picture taken on the fence in front of the manure pile. It smelled really bad but the picture turned out good.

Hanging Out by the Manure Pile

Dad says they use the manure to fertilize the crops. It’s gross! I didn’t know that all the carrots I’ve been eating are planted in stinky poop! But Dad says all the best vegetables are planted in poop.

We arrived in Iowa exactly a week ago! It’s so different from Atlanta- yet I like it. School is nice; not nearly as big as Shamrock/Druid Hills. The middle school has less than a quarter of the people at Shamrock/Druid Hills, but my school here is middle AND high school. There are also trimesters here instead of semesters. Some of my new friends are Alanna, Rylee, Naomi, Emily, Erin, Nicole, and Sydney. But don’t worry, Atlanta friends, you’re not being replaced! I miss y’all a lot. (sob)
It was the end of the trimester on Thursday, so we celebrated by watching Secretariat and having popcorn and soda. My Granddad is in that movie, and so everyone around me was asking me to point him out. It was a good day.
On Friday, we did a little schoolwork, and I thought of a good survey question for all you blog readers:

Which comes first: the chicken or the egg?

Jean thought I should write something in Spanish for the blog, so soon, I will figure out how to say that phrase. As for which one you think, just leave your answer as a comment under this post, and the results will be posted in a week.
Here is what a few people I’m hanging out with right now think about this question:

Ana: the chicken
Dad: the egg
me: I think the egg just fell from space, and it hatched the first chicken.
Stella: the egg
Ellie: the egg, “since the chicken HAD to come from an egg”
Jean: the chicken
Aunt Janice: the chicken
Aunt Mary: the chicken

Grandpa, who’s sleeping, would probably say something like, “the cow.”
Miss you all. Bye!!!

Thursday was first day of school in Lansing, IA. There were some girls in my class I already knew from our summers here and from the swim team. But I met lots of new friends, too. Since my teacher (my Aunt Lisa!) wasn’t there on Thursday, we had two substitutes and I didn’t know their names.

My friends had to help me through the day. They helped me open my locker. I’ve never had a locker before. And they helped me with my lunch tray at lunch. I had never bought a school lunch before. It was kind of scary. They went really fast through the lunch line and I didn’t know my lunch number so Ms. Mary told me that she would give it to me later.

We played a division game and my table won.

At recess, my old friends and new friends invited me to play jumprope, four square, and volleyball. I had fun. Jumprope was my favorite. After recess, we went back to the classroom and got to read a book.

Then we went to the gym to watch a movie called Secretariat. I was excited because my grandad had a small part in the movie. I pointed out to my friends where my grandad was in the movie. They thought it was so cool. But other people in my class told me the movie was just a dumb horse movie and it kind of hurt my feelings. There were a few boys that were picking on me.

When I went into the school, I saw a drawing by another student of Taylor Swift. It was posted in the hallway. I thought I could draw one, too. So, yesterday Greta and I went to the library and got a magazine with a picture of her on the front. I want you to know I did not trace it. I drew it. This is my drawing…

My Drawing of Taylor Swift

I had fun at my first day of school.

Yesterday was my first day of school in Iowa. My school is in New Albin, Iowa. We have to take a bus to get there and get back at the end of the day. Me and Ellie’s friend, Nell, takes us to the bus in the morning and the afternoon. Sometimes we might get confused and get on the wrong bus. That’s why she helps us on the first two days.

Lansing and New Albin are towns on the Mississippi River. The river is frozen right now and our camper is winterized since it is so cold and there is lots of snow.

The Frozen Mississippi River

I got to buy lunch in the cafeteria at school. I have never bought lunch before. The lunch is better than the lunch in Atlanta. The lunch in Atlanta was like hot dogs and fries, but the school lunch here is better than hot dogs and french fries at my old school because hot dogs and french fries are bad for you. We have lettuce and french salad dressing and we have hamburger thingys that were kind of like hamburgers but they were not hamburgers. At our Iowa school we get to go for seconds.

I met a friend named Regan. My teacher is very very nice. She lets us get up and get a tissue if we want or do something else. We do some work that is just right for me.

On Thursday (today) school was delayed because it was really foggy outside.

Lots of Fog on the River Today

I was sort of glad that school was delayed so we would have half a day, so soon it would be lunch time. I like lunch time.

This last summer, my uncle Mike took me, Ana, Stella, and Greta tubing on the Mississippi River, right in front of Lansing, IA. It was really exciting.

Me, Ana, and Stella tubing on the Mississippi River

The day was warm and the water was freezing. Stella fell off the tube. It was super fun to watch Stella fall off the tube. But I felt bad for Stella because I always think catfish are going to bite off my toes.

Me and Ana tubing

You can tell from me and Ana’s faces that we are having a blast tubing on the Mississippi.