Monday, June 24, 2013

Sold the Boat to Mitzi

I bought this nice boat in early 1989.  I've had quite a bit of fun using it, but I guess our boating days are over.  So I've been trying to sell it, and I have offered it several times to family members.  Well Mitzi and Al decided they wanted to take advantage of our great deal.  They bought it for $1.00, but there is a catch to it.  The boat has been in storage for three years and it needs some TLC.  So knowing that, they still decided to try it.  It is a good deal.  BUT.....  When they hooked the boat up to their vehicle to tow it to Omaha,  the lighting did not work on the trailer.   Al worked and worked on it with no results so they had to leave it here until they figure out what is going on.  We had the wiring redone a couple of years ago so this came as a big surprise to me.  Mitzi's experienced dad, Joe, shed some light on the  problem.  He thinks the wiring for older and newer vehicles is different so you need an adapter to make it all work.  So hopefully that's all it is.  They plan to take it to a marina sometime in the near future.  We'll follow along behind them to be sure they're safe to get to the marina in Le Mars, only a half hour away.  Then they can, at least, get the boat to Omaha.  Then the task of cleaning it up and getting it water ready is the next step.  We may have a boat next summer for our big family reunion that Mitzi is planning for all of us, hopefully in Omaha.  Thanks, Mitzi.  Good luck with the boat and have fun with it like we did.





Thursday, June 20, 2013

GROUP Get Together

Every summer my GROUP of friends and I get together at one of our places.  This year they all came to Sioux Center.  In memory of a Boone visit with Marilyn, we greeted the last two arrivals showing them we were having fun riding in the convertible while waiting for them.  It's an inside joke


I served them lunch on the ping pong table which doubled as our dining table for the weekend.




Lots of candy which is tradition.


Then we had a retirement party for our youngest friend, Gina, who is the last on of us to retire.


Her gifts.
 

We sang about 13 verses of a retirement song to the tune of "If You're Happy (Retired) and You Know It"



Opening her crazy gifts.












We were lucky that Le Mars Ice Cream Days was going on so we went to the free ice cream social and band entertainment for the evening.






The next day we drove to Sioux City.  We stopped at a couple of antique stores on the way.



Lunch at Bev's on the River.  Great view of the river while we enjoyed some good food.



Visiting Palmer Candy Store.



Then we drove to Vermillion, SD to visit the National Music Museum.  That was VERY interesting.  Lots of really nice instruments galore.






The next day we went back to Le Mars after it stopped raining.  We went to Art in the Park first.


This is a magician friend of ours, Jerry, who was performing in the park.


This is Lynn, Jerry's wife, who is a clown and was doing face painting.


The all bassoon band was Marilyn's favorite.  I have to admit I really liked it too.



Then we went to the museum in Le Mars.  It is very interesting and has lots to marvel at.



Everyone bought a root beer float for a dollar at the museums authentic soda fountain room.



A retired school room for a bunch of retired teachers.



Doll display.


Church display.



Rest stop at the Well's Ice Cream Parlor.  No ice cream this time, but we came back on Sunday for ice cream.




Supper at the Blue Mountain in Orange City where the dining room is essentially a museum.  The owners of the restaurant are world wide travelers and have brought back many artifacts for us to enjoy.







Time to toast Gina's retirement with champagne.




Sunday morning was the perfect morning to have breakfast outside which we did.  This is just outside our side door.  It was nicely shaded for the morning.




Ice cream stop in Le Mars on our way to Sioux City to attend the Sioux City Municipal Band Concert. 


We enjoyed great music and nice weather.



The next day we said good bye.  But we have plans to get together again.  Love my GROUP.  Thanks for a great time once again.