Iowa and Beyond

We spent a night in Des Moines, Iowa, at Shirley's boyfriend, Shane's house. It is a nice house, and he is a good person. He hunts, fishes, gardens, and cans. Owen enjoyed chatting with him, as obviously, they share some common interests, since those are also some of Owen's favorite pasttimes. Shane sent us off with some venison jerky and a quart of his homemade, homegrown salsa. It makes me feel like home, and a little less sad about all the homecanned foods I had to leave behind in Alaska.

Iowa City is only a two hour drive from Des Moines, so we essentially had the next day off the road. Iowa City is an absolutely charming small city. Mike and his family live in the beautiful, historic section of town. Their house is gorgeous. Mike and his significant other, Cornelia, have two children, Amelia, who is Owen's age, and Kaehleb, who is 8 years old. Mike has remained in my memory for years, as one of the nicest people I have ever known, and a visit with him completely reconfirmed this memory. He has not changed from that memory and to add to it, Cornelia seems a perfect partner, as she is equally as nice. Owen and Amelia, both Montessori kids, were instant friends. It was a necessary, happy break for Owen, who is a very social kid, to have a friend to play with again. Their family story is one worth mentioning (and I hope that Mike will not mind my sharing it), because I felt like my heart was overwhelmed by the story of the resilience and strength of a family. Kaehleb, is Mike's sister's son, and is the youngest survivor of the September 11th attacks, during which time, Mike's sister worked at the Pentagon. He was 6 months old at that time. Mike and Cornelia took him in once they became settled in their home there. He said that it was a decision that the entire family supported. It is a good story, and I believe is a happy ending to a terrible tragedy. I am proud to know Mike and Cornelia, and I am proud of their decision, and I wish them all them all the best in this world. The sweetest moment of the trip was watching the three children snuggled together under blankets on the couch, Kaehleb in the middle reading a book to Amelia and Owen. They are all beautiful children.