Dressed to Thrill

Everywhere they went this year, Ross and Marlee made a grand entrance. From Prom to Homecoming, their fancy attire and stunning looks were envied by all.

Sweet Times at Sugar Lake

A very well choreographed trip to Grandma Arline's took place the weekend of July 26th. After several emails circulated first trying to find a weekend everyone could make it and then coordinating who would bring what for food, all the grandkids and great-grandchildren assembled at her home in Annandale for fun in the sun, water play, and plenty of delicious victuals.

In late September, Joel and Mary and I made another trip north to visit with grandma one beautiful fall weekend.

Out on the dock, Joel gave Mary some pointers on her fishing techniques. Casting, setting the line, hooking the fish when the bobber starts to dance—and Mary’s favorite part—naming the fish before Daddy threw it back in. Bill, Stripes, Stripes Jr., and a host of other names were given as Mary caught one fish after another. She would no sooner get her line in the water and a fish would begin to nibble. When Mary came up from the lake to report her progress, she exclaimed, “I caught some sunnies, a ‘purse’, a crappie, and a bass!”

Exhibits, Dinner Theatre, and Concerts--Oh, my!

The Force was strong with us this summer when we visited the Science Museum of Minnesota. On June 23, we met Joel's brother Bruce and friends, Jon and Kristine, to experience the Star Wars Exhibit on display during a limited time. A special effects film in the Omnitheater and a simulated ride in the Millenium Falcon was a great way to add to the Empirical day. Joel-B-Wan even stopped to pose for a picture with a couple of storm troopers.

The Chanhassen Dinner Theatre's production of "Married Alive!" was hilariously funny with parts that were almost too true to be funny but we laughed anyway. It was fun to attend this dinner and show with friends Alden and Sheila on September 20th. We're also looking forward to seeing "Spam-A-Lot" in late December in Des Moines at the Civic Center.

Lorie Line has been bringing her piano concert tour to Mason City every year for 19 years. I've talked about going to see this concert for several years, but never purchased tickets. This year, we finally experienced this holiday concert. With the costume changes, Lorie's talented pop chamber orchestra, and audience participation, it's definitely a seasonal event that we will have to make an annual tradition!

Ross Begins NIACC and Moves to an Apartment

College classes began for Ross on August 25. Enrolled in the Engineering program--Pre-Calc, Chemistry, Speech & Comp, and an Engineering course made him a full-time student.

The 7:40 a.m. Pre-Calculus class was one of the reasons Ross wanted to be closer to campus; so on September 7, we moved Ross and his high school friend, Jake, into an apartment in Mason City.

Ross continues to tend bar at the Diamond Jo Casino, but is hoping to find a job closer to his new home. If you would like to send Christmas greetings to him, his address is 340 S. Yorktown Pike Apt. 14G, Mason City, IA 50401.

Ask him to show you his tattoo sometime.

Ross's Most Excellent Motorcycle Adventure

August 1 - 9 from Northwood, Iowa, to the Sturgis Rally, to Cody, Wyoming--Ross traveled over 2,500 miles of the open road on his 1999 Yamaha V-Star and experienced "freakin' awesome" scenery including Devil's Tower, Yellowstone, the Grand Tetons, Deadwood, Needles Highway, and Spearfish Canyon.

The weather cooperated most of the time except for some really scary riding in high winds one day. (I'm glad I didn't know about it at the time.)

Even though Ross lost his debit card early on in the trip and had no extra cash with him, his dad covered his expenses and he had a great time he will not soon forget!

Ross Graduates from High School

May 18--
What a fabulous graduation day!!
Beautiful weather and over 135 guests attended the reception including family and friends from Arkansas, Missouri, Minnesota, and Central Iowa. Ross's 99-year-old great grandma even attended the festivities!

We had prepared an abundance of delicious food and recruited amazing help from family and friends so Ross and Joel and Mary and I could enjoy the day.

Ross collected over $9,000 in scholarships--one in the amount of $2,000 we had no idea he was receiving until his name was called during the commencement ceremony!!

It was a memorable day, and we want to thank everyone who took part in any way to make this special achievement for Ross one we will remember for years to come.

Prodigious Buckets on Tour

Ross and buddies, Michael and Brock, got a lot of mileage out of this percussion production. They debuted in the Northwood-Kensett Pops Concert in March to a wild, screaming crowd of their peers. In April, they played an encore performance at the 4-H Share-The-Fun competition winning a trip to the Iowa State Fair to perform there in August. Before traveling to the State Fair, they were invited to play at the State 4-H Conference in Ames in June and at the North Iowa Fair in Mason City in July. By July, they had groupies that would follow them around cheering and leading the audience in cat calls and screams--Okay, so I was a proud mom out of control, but it was freakin' awesome.