The day we arrived in Oskaloosa Stephen managed to ride a bicycle without training wheels for the first time. He enjoyed riding around while we were in Iowa.
One day Grandma Boender went to Des Moines to be with one of her sisters for her sister’s birthday. Grandpa Boender and the rest of us also drove to Des Moines and went to the Science Center of Iowa (http://www.sciowa.org/). They have lots of hands-on stuff you can do and Channel 13, the NBC affiliate in Des Moines, even does some of their weather broadcasts from there. During the mid-day news, the kids got on TV and Grandma Boender saw them. During times when they are not broadcasting they also let you play around with the green screen and you can see how you look on TV doing the weather. Kind of fun.
We also heard a talk from one of the weather people on storms and stuff. Lightning is 25,000 degrees Fahrenheit. The surface of the sun is 10,000 degrees. Who knew? They also had things where you could play with bubbles, work with magnetic tracks for balls, see giant bug replicas, work with hydroelectric power, and other stuff.
The Southern Iowa Speedway (http://www.rlpromotions.com/oskaloosa/) is located in Oskaloosa and on June 27 the boys and I attended the races. The night we went they were having the Preacher Feature (or the Faster Pastor as the announcer referred to it) where local clergy race in an exhibition. Brian Oschner, our nephew, is an ordained pastor living in Michigan. He and his wife Becky (Beth’s brother Steve’s daughter) were visiting and he raced in the race. He took 3rd. There was also a prize drawing for kids and Jim won a prize so that was good, too.
Beth’s brother Steve has a 3 acre pond that he has built on his farm. A large new building was also in the process of being built and it provided a good place for the many cousins and some other kids to ride bikes one night when the family gathered at Steve’s place. One afternoon our kids spent some time with some cousins swimming in the pond and their cousin Mark gave them rides on a jet ski. The kids had a lot of fun.
Our family also went to Mark and Stacy’s farm where we had a cookout and the kids did some fishing at Mark’s pond. His pond is quite a ways off the beaten path and you have to drive through an old coal mine area to get there.
Aunt Julie (Beth’s brother Bill’s wife) had a Cousin’s Camp one day at their farm. The kids had a good time. The painted big pictures on the wall that told a story, they made pretend lava lamp things and they made log cabins with popsicle sticks. Elizabeth would like to have another Cousin’s Camp.
The boys and I played Monopoly. Will won. We also played a game with all 6 of our family (which is rather too many for Monopoly). Jim won that one.
On July 4th I worked with Beth’s brother Doug on putting metal sheets on the door frame he had built for his building. No one died and it actually has held up since that time. Given my substantial lack of ability on this sort of thing, this is really something.
Kids in the whirlpool at the hotel in Nebraska
Stephen on his first day ever of riding a bike by himself without training wheels. Elizabeth and Jim in the background.
The Science Center of Iowa. Grandpa Boender and the kids pictured.
Jeriann Ritter, meteorologist for channel 13 in Des Moines. Trumble kids in the foreground.
The little picture in the center on the right side shows Ms. Ritter and the kids.
Trumbles doing the weather.
Elizabeth with the big bubble thing.
Clear Toilet
The Southern Iowa Speedway…very loud!
The prize that Jim won at the races.
See the last entry under the results for June 27 to see the Preacher Feature results. http://www.rlpromotions.com/oskaloosa/results_article.asp?NewsID=3768 . The results are also pictured from the newspaper below. Brian is married to Beth's niece, Becky (and they are pictured below).
Below is a picture from the summer of 2005. Brian (indicated by the arrow sitting in the bulldozer) was not technically part of the family yet but married in within the next couple of days (he married Becky who he is pictured with above). The various shirt colors indicate the different sibling’s families.
Gray: Mom & Dad Boender and Brother Dan
Red: Steve and Jan’s family including Brian (mentioned above), 3 other sons and their wives and families plus the twins (currently in their senior year of high school) pictured on top of the bulldozer.
Orange: Donna and Roger’s family. Donna lives in Colorado and only Devin made the trip with her. Roger and the other 3 boys in the family are the only ones in the Harry & Elizabeth Boender family not pictured (Harry and Elizabeth are Beth’s folks).
Blue: Doug and Ginger’s family – since this picture, Doug and Ginger have added a 4th child.
Green: Bill and Julie’s family and their six kids.
Yellow: Beth's family and our four kids.
Brother Doug (on the big bike) and some kids riding in the unfinished new building.
Kids riding. Sun setting.
Mom and Stephen playing some baseball.
Elizabeth, Stephen, Jim, Will (all Trumbles). Amelia & Ethan (Mark and Stacy’s kids). This is the pond at Mark and Stacy’s farm.
Fishing at Mark & Stacy’s pond.
Mark giving a ride to Elizabeth.
Brother Steve’s pond in the background. Boender and Trumble kids in the foreground.
Farm stuff and Jim.
Cow and Dan. If all goes well, when we visit Iowa in November or December, Cow may be available to be consumed. Good for Dan, bad for Cow.
Here is the garage door I helped Brother Doug with. He lifted that brownish metal thing up with the fork lift and we climbed up there to do the upper level of the panels.
