Hello from Dez Moinez

I haven't updated in awhile! While I'm in Des Moines letting my parents deal with my children I have some time to do some updates. Pictures to come later!

Pool Weather! We have been to the pool a few times this summer so far. It was nice to be back and basking in the sun since we had such a looong winter and lousy spring. The boys start swimming lessons next week and we're all excited for lazy afternoons at the pool. I'm hoping to repeat last year's routine - swimming lessons right before the pool opens, lunch at the pool, and then staying to swim until about 3pm.

A/C Issues! So the other day we had record highs in Eau Claire - I believe the temperature reached 102 degrees. Yikes! And of course, our a/c (or rather, our blower) decided to break! Yahoo for the fabulous timing! Yahoo for sarcasm! Anyway, Mike had coincidentally had appointments lined up tomorrow for heating companies to come out and give him prices on a new furnace/blower since ours was circling the drain. We thought we would be able to take our time and get it installed sometime before fall but it's looking like the replacement will be happening sooner rather than later. Thankfully the kids and I only had one night of no a/c before we left for Des Moines but it was still miserable. Henry made it until about midnight and then headed to the basement to sleep with Mike while Georgie and I toughed it out upstairs which by 6am was essentially a sauna. The next morning we left for Des Moines and the kids were so happy to get in the car with the air conditioning.

Speaking of the basement, we actually have furniture down there now. A sectional and new TV! The kid pit is getting a makeover. It's looking less like a ghetto Toys R Us and more like, well, more like a frat house but that's okay. I'll take it.

On the ride down to DM, we stopped twice for potty and snack breaks. I no longer stop for meals because they don't eat them anyway. So the 2nd time I stopped was at a truck stop in northern Iowa, somewhere between Mason City and Ames at the same exit where that Boondocks Cafe is. It's kind of a frightening little exit but I feel like it's a new cultural experience for the kids. Anyway, the truckstop was hopping with truckers and travelers and the boys went in to use the men's room while I waited outside the door. George comes running out of the men's room, pulling his pants up (flashing the truck stop patrons), and saying, "There were TWO urinals in there, so Henry and I peed at the SAME time. It was fun. But then Henry had to poop so he went into the toilet." I heard muffled laughter from the rest of the truck stop. Then there was an issue with getting into line to pay for our snacks - the guy in front of us stepped out of line for just a moment and I nodded at him to retake his place in line. Henry was appalled. "Mom, he's CUTTING!" Then he proceeds to PULL on the man's shirt and say, "You can't CUT in line." I had to explain that it was okay, that this wasn't first grade, that sometimes people step out of the line for a moment and it's okay to let him back in, I had made eye contact and nodded with the guy to let him know it was okay, etc. More snickers from the truck stop crowd. I think we were great entertainment at the Flying J yesterday.