4th of July

We had a v. good 4th of July. Patricia, Chris, Patrick, Paul Jr. and I took a road trip - flew to Minneapolis on July 3; landed around 6p after a short delay. But the flight was easy. Patricia did some work on her Grand Canyon photos; I slept a bunch; Patrick had some trouble finding a new friend to yak with.

Picked up our car and headed up to New Brighton. The House family proved to be excellent hosts per usual. Last visit, we enjoyed their new deck; now we looked out from the deck over the new landscaping project. Fantastic weather, at least for our purposes - dry so no (or at least few) mosquitoes; warm; very fun to sit out there and eat and drink. Margaret took the boys out for some local fun later in the evening.

Next morning was a bit of a delightful repeat - drank coffee on the deck. Then switched to lunch on the deck - 4th of July type picnic. Paul & Lois stopped by; also Dan, Barb, Emily & Allison Haag; Nick Gales; Therese Gales; so this was a legitimate 4th party. Dan's dad had put together some kind of PVC pipe outfit along with golf balls on a string; this entertained us mightily. Except Patrick had some difficulty with launching these things onto the cable lines. Emily Haag knows how to hit a wiffle ball.

That sounds like fun, but our day was just getting going. The five of us hit the road for Iowa and the Capesius seed corn shed for their annual 4th of July party. Saw too many folks to try to name here; good food and drink (the pork patties were great, typical baked goods etc.) Also watched the Algona fireworks from there. It's a nice event, especially as it gives us a chance to catch up with a lot of people in one place. Caught up on info regarding the new Gales Law Office in Algona; Spud was entertaining; Capesius folks are great hosts; etc., etc.

Then down to my parents' house in St. Joe. More fun to come. Happy 4th.