Like Cousins

Lauren Behr got married last weekend! She's now a Wadzinski, wife of Patrick "Wad" Wadzinski.

We arrived at the chapel on the gorgeous St. Olaf campus in Northfield, MN with plenty of time to spare, but many people had been seated. I was the first of our group to be greeted by the usher. As he walked me up the aisle, he awaited word on where we'd like to be seated. "We're, like cousins," I blurted out. And he delivered us to a row right behind the groom's family. I wasn't going to complain that we were the bride's pretend cousins.

I have known Lauren since pre-birth. So that qualifies as cousin material - right? I've been around her through all stages of her life, especially when she was young and our families got together more frequently. Even later, when our family's paths didn't cross as often, I have kept track of Lauren through her mother and now on social media. She's grown up to be such a lovely young women. We were so happy to be able to attend her wedding.

Paul and I arrived in Northfield on Friday in time to go out for supper with friends Ann and Steve Hauser and Kay Wilt who was awaiting her husband and daughter Alyssa. They were flying in from a mission service project in Georgia. Over barbecue, we caught up on kids' activities and each other's lives.

Later, Paul and I headed to Froggy Bottoms, a fave Northfield pub to see the wedding party, post rehearsal. It was great to talk to Lauren and Patrick and hear about their honeymoon trip to Cuba! It sounds fascinating and I can't wait to see photos and hear about it - no credit cards, wifi or cash machines. Kinda sounds like my childhood - substitute the Cuban culture for Atlantic, IA. haha

catch up with our friends, the Behrs and family - especially Vicki's folks Barb and Jon whom I've known since 1976. Also, Vic's sis Krista who invited me to her 10th birthday party, noting that they'd pick all attendees up, but not me. Probably because I lived in Ames and she was in DeWitt. Yes, she's a bit younger than I am.

On Saturday, Wilts, Paul and I were on a mission to check out the new brew pubs in Northfield. They were great. In between, we did fit in a bit of shopping and lunch. At the second one, we were joined by Kay and Moose's daughter Jaime and her fiance Mike.

Then we were off to the wedding. We cleaned up nice.

Wilts with Mike

Hausers

 After the wedding, we briefly went back to the first brew pub - joined by the new Mr. & Mrs! The place was packed. The reception was lots of fun. My favorite moment was seeing the bride dancing with her mom and grandma. It makes me sad that my mom wasn't here to see Jud & Kara and now Amy and Corey get married.

After the meal at the reception, when all the speeches were done, the groom spoke. He said someone had told him to look around. So he did. He said they told him to drink it in that all of these people are here because of you! And that is overwhelming. Patrick got a little choked up at this point, and I did too. And that is what weddings celebrations like this are about.

One week from today Paul and I head out for Amy and Corey's wedding. They'll be surrounding themselves with people they love. I can't wait!

Giving

Paul and I are learning the joy of PodCasts. They have opened up a whole world of listening! Joy.

If you follow our lives, you know Paul just completed a project. The guy's woodworking projects just keep getting better and better. We made a quick trip to Saint Louis Friday night to deliver his latest project to Kara and Jud. It's a desk, oak, stained black - not his favorite color to do, but the kids and I are wild about it. Kara works at home over half the time and she loves it!

Jud also got a couple totes of his "stuff". That's what happens when you buy a house. You get your baby stuff, reports cards, trophies and other things your parents socked away. I admit, there were a few things I couldn't part with like the calendars from his first two years. I kept a diary on there of all the cute things he did. Awww.

It was a nice visit with the kiddos. They are doing such a great job making their house their own. Jud is learning how to install things like a wine glass rack and shades. Kara has a knack for decorating! Odie was like - "What? these knucklehead dogs again"? We went to our favorite deep dish pizza place, Pi. With things to do back in DSM, we headed home early Saturday. Denver wedding is in 3 weeks!

During the trip, about six hours each way, we listened to a few podcasts. My favorite was from a TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design) Talk on giving. The one that really spoke to me was a segments talk linked here:"A life lesson from volunteer fireman" by Mark Bezos.

The gist of the story is Mr. Bezos had visions of being a superhero firefighter - rescuing maidens, or at least puppies from burning buildings. He ended up being sent into a building to collect a lady's shoes. She had run out of her smoke-filled home barefoot, and the Chief sent him in to grab some shoes for her. A co-worker got the glory of securing the dog. A few weeks later the victim sent a heartfelt thank you note to the fire station. She even mentioned the shoes. Now that's a grateful fire victim.

As a result of this incident, Mark Bezos figured out that little things are big. I get it. People dream of the big stuff! Giving charities big bucks, volunteering many hours for non-profits and sponsoring a stretch of river for cleanup.

We're not all Bill Gates, businesses or independently wealthy (#Lottowinners). But we can do the little things. I'm going to look for more ways to "get the shoes". Paul and I started on our way home from STL. We witnessed a litterbug tossing trash out of her car near Knoxville on Highway 92. I remembered Keep Iowa Beautiful has a Hotline. That lady will get a letter from them. Take that!

This morning we stopped by a littery sandbar while kayaking. Why do dopes leave litter? Where do they think it's going to go? It will be recycled and properly disposed of now.

How can you help get the shoes from the fire? They are many more ways - not just trash-related. Reach out to that co-worker who seems down. Smile at the young mom that others are frowning at because her children are shrieking. You get the idea!


Hotline info (Iowa only).

1. Call 1-888-NOLITTR (1-888-665-4887) Press 1 to make a report.
2. Please provide as much detail about the incident as possible in your report including:
• License plate number (The plate number is critical to any follow-up action.)
• Time and specific location the litter was thrown from the vehicle
• Description of what was thrown from the vehicle
• A vehicle description (color, make and model)

Independence Celebrated, Family loved

Ahhhh. Summer. I'm sad that my fave holiday is in the rearview mirror. This year Independence Day landed on a Tuesday, resulting in a "dangling holiday". That means we didn't have a 3-day weekend. Paul and I went to work as usual on Monday but took vacation at noon after some six hours of hard toil on the rock pile. (insert cubicle).

We spent a couple hours at home and hung out with the pooch. Paul loaded the bikes on the car and we packed some water and bag chairs. I got Odie's kennel out because when the fireworks started flying, she would find that comforting.

July 3rd was a big night in DSM - we headed downtown to ride north on the Neal Smith Trail - past the Botanical Garden. The trail runs through a neighborhood and along a park. Then it goes by Birdland Marina, noting a bar called Capt. Roy's. After we missed the trail turn, we ended up...guess where. Back at the bar drinking ice cold (not for long because it was really hot out) Ruthie lager in tallboy cans.

Birdland Marina - before they put boats in

The bar overlooks the marina - a place I'd only seen one time before, and that was during winter. This seemed like a whole new place - bursting with activity. Birdland Marina was full of boats. People were on them. They were sitting by them grilling and chatting. And people were sitting to the right at Capt. Roy's under umbrellas, watching the boats. It was grand, like being at a tiny LOTO (Lake of the Ozarks). People came and went, overloading boats - heading up river and down.

The bad part about hanging at the marina was the uphill ride back to downtown DSM. We conquered though, loading the bikes back on the car back downtown. We decided to walk to Guru for barbecue. There was a bit of a wait thanks to all the activity - an Iowa Cubs game, live music at Nitefall on the River and the big deal - Yankee Doodle Pops.

Our view at Nitefall on the River

After eating we settled into our bag chairs for live music and then after dark, fireworks. The first couple bands at Nitefall on the River weren't that great, but the headliner was good. People watching was great. Paul and I liked watching families throwing Frisbees and eating together. Fireworks were fabulous! I think they've invented new colors and shapes. Kudos to the shooters.

check out the root systems - good discussion with Paul about this

Love paddling with my honey

On the 4th of July, we put the kayaks in the truck (much easier loading that putting them on top of a car) and drove to Raccoon River Park. It was nice a quiet. We shared the water with ducks, a few other boats and a blue heron. The rest of the day was pretty quiet until out neighbor began to shoot their own cache of fireworks. Odie and her parents weren't entertained. Leave it to the professionals. We had to work on Thursday, so the late night sound effects sucked. And then there was the whole back to work thing.

At least we got to look forward to the Friday arrival of Jud. Kara traveled Thursday to Denver for Amy's bachelorette party weekend in Nederland. We got the "boys". Jud, Henry and Archie, the yipping puppy. They were great and hey, Odie's kennel was already out for her to huddle in.

Jud wanted to ride bikes, so we took him to the High Trestle Trail. We hadn't been there all summer. It was a beautiful summer morning, not too hot. It was fantastic to get a chance to spend time with our favorite boy doing something fun. It sounds like the girls had a grand time too - all 13 of them.

Summer. Don't you love it?