Jeff & Nike + 2

Monday, August 4, 2014

Fairs, Festivals, Golf, and Corn on the Cob!

Summer in Iowa--this is why we moved home! I'm not sure we could cram much more in this summer than all of the swim lessons, downtown Iowa City festivals, county fairs, and hanging out with family that we've been doing. It couldn't be more perfect. Not only are we having lots of fun, we are really making progress on our house. Little by little, it's starting to feel like home. We were lucky enough to buy a house that didn't need any major improvements. Instead, we have been doing lots of little projects--adding ceiling fans, buying curtains, new bedspreads, updating picture frames, and lots and lots of yardwork! The to-do list will never be done, but we've (mostly) tried to balance fun and work as the summer has gone on. Highlights below:

Coralville 4th of July parade at Nike's Uncle Joe's house

Golfing with Grandpa Steve and Jeff at Saddleback

Our view from the kitchen sink where we feed these kiddos every day

Our curly-haired cutie

Spending the night in Grandpa Steve's bed when the highway was flooded and couldn't get home

Lydia coloring--her favorite activity right now. This tub of crayons is permanently scattered on the playroom floor because we have gotten too lazy to pick them up several times a day.

Uncle Jimmy enjoying some corn on the cob while home from Los Angeles

Jack's souvenir from Jeff's trip to Washington, D.C.--an astronaut suit!

Enjoying the pool with Teagan

Johnson County fair

Flemings go to Washington, D.C.!

A few weeks ago, Jeff got the chance to go with his parents and his brother's family to Washington, D.C. for a long weekend. Jane won a scholarship to attend the National Ovarian Cancer Alliance national conference, and the rest of the family decided they should tag along! Neither of his parents had been to D.C., and they definitely made the most of it. While Jane was in meetings, Randy and Jeff hopped on bikes, tour buses, and the Metro to cram in as much as possible. Jeff saw some repeats of places he had seen before, but also got to see many things that he hadn't yet seen. Some highlights below:

The first restaurant they visited: an Irish pub, of course!

Randy at the U.S. Capitol

Washington Monument

Randy and Jeff at the White House

Jane and her friends wearing teal for ovarian cancer

Scott, Connor, and Jane having fun at dinner

Jeff, Randy, Connor, Jane, and Scott at the White House

Randy at Arlington Cemetery

Jane and Connor getting ready to ride to the top of the Washington Monument

Jane and her friends getting ready to meet congressional staffers as part of the ovarian cancer conference

Ready to take on Capitol Hill!

Norman Borlaug, Statuary Hall, U.S. Capitol

Jane's cousin's name on the Vietnam Memorial Wall

The backdrop doesn't get much better than this in Washington!

Monday, July 7, 2014

Herky on Parade

As anyone who is friends with on facebook knows, we have been tracking down Herkys this summer. There are 83 of them, so it may be too ambitious to try to get all of them. It's been fun to try though! We've hit about a third of them so far, mostly just capturing them while we're out and about in town. We have hit almost all of the downtown and Iowa City ones, so we'll have to work a little harder to hit the rest of them. I'm including them here so we can easily go back and see them. (Feel free to ignore this post if you're sick of seeing them on facebook already!)