I spent Saturday and Sunday at Ben and Jill's house with Yoshi while they went to Iowa for a family reunion on Jill's side of the family. I got packed up and ready for my road trip to Des Moines on Monday, June 15. On my way out of town, I stopped by Eric's garage to have the oil checked in my car (I forgot to have Ben do it before I left his house) and then I headed south on I-35 for about 220 miles. After four stops along the way, three at rest areas and one at a gas station, I arrived at our destination of the Stoney Creek Resort in Johnston.
Bob, Penny, and Randy (I shared a room with him) were all checked in and Rita and Denny followed shortly after. We mostly hung out in a nice patio area, catching up on the last two years before heading out to dinner. We all packed into Bob's car so we didn't have to take 2 cars and went to Zeke's Rooftop Grill for some casual American food. It was a bit breezy but nice to sit on the outdoor deck. Back at the resort, we hung out in the bar for a while before retiring for the night. I was all settled in for the night when Rita came knocking on our door and just wanted to hug me, snuggle and tell me how much she missed and loved me. We reminisced about having to share a bed the whole time we were growing up at the house on Hamilton St in Stoughton and then Randy escorted her back to her room.
On Tuesday morning, Randy and I had breakfast at the hotel, Bob & Penny went to a park to walk, and Rita and Denny took their time getting ready for the day. We met up at the same gazebo/lounge area as the previous day and visited for a while.
We had a late lunch/early dinner at the Soggy Frog Marina on Saylorville Lake and enjoyed some great conversation next to the water. It was a beautiful day! When we got back to the resort, we gathered in the lounge and watched some videos that Rene shared of past family reunions that were held at Rita and Denny's lake house in 1992 and 1996. We then looked at photos (I have kept an album of pics of all of my siblings, going back to school days, aunts, uncles, grandparents, etc. through the years. We also told lots of stories, shared memories, and had lots of laughs. Bob and Randy cracked me up with their boyish antics - stick teasing each other and giving noogies and Dutch rubs. The guys all did some card tricks. A gal from Pisces Beach, CA who was at the table next to us joined us at our table and we all had a nice time. Unlike our gatherings in years past, we were all ready to retire for the night by 9pm. That might be age related - ya think?
After breakfast on Tuesday morning, we all loaded up and headed back to our respective homes. I am so glad that we had this gathering and that we planned to keep it going every year on the 2nd week of June - next year the week of June 24, 2027 . We aren't getting any younger and have all had health issues over the last two years.
