MY CUP RUNNETH OVER!

We were so busy enjoying family and friends while in Iowa that I didn't keep up this blog. Sometimes it's best to enjoy life, getting away from the computer and (once in a while) putting the camera down. We had such an awesome time with everyone that our hearts are full. Let's see if I can recap....

SUNDAY AND MONDAY
Staying at Gabe and Missy's was such a blessing! Getting to know Forest and Willow was wonderful. Everything went so well...we felt right at home (THANK YOU!!!). We had fun working together, baking, cooking, playing, doing devotions, shopping, WII-ing, eating, going to church, catching up, etc.


Steve and Gabe did lots of odd jobs with the help of John.


Sarah and Forest loved playing on the trampoline together.


Aunties Grace, Moriah, Sarah, Maggie and Uncle John had lots of fun with all their neices and Nephews. Willow gave them good baby practice. What a happy baby.


There were many precious moment during our visit with family...Forest was very cooperative with picture taking.


Another precious moment.


Gabe taught John to play Redemption...how great!


And then Brei arrived from Alaska!!


We got to spend time with Ben and his beautiful family...Carter has grown and changed so much in just a year.


Kaely is a real beauty! The kids had fun playing with each other...just like old times.


Will Stand For Food. Joseph is as happy-go-lucky as his Daddy was when he was little and loves to eat just as much! We had a great time getting to know Joseph. I thought he might be afraid of us, but somehow he knows that we love him and we're Grandpa and Grandma.


Everyone loves Joseph including Maggie:~)


Mommy (Rebekah) giving Joseph his first taste of Sloppy Joes.


Ben helping Sarah with the Wii Ski Jump. I think everyone has a Wii except us...hmmm.


How fair is this?

TUESDAY

We got to watch our grandsons, Logan and Jacob, and our nephew, Luke, play football.


Moriah and her good friend Emily.


The kids got their wish to eat at Pizza Ranch. Friend Emily joined us.

WEDNESDAY

We went to Kalona to the Bent and Dent, Cheese Factory (yeah--fresh cheese curds!), and then to an Amish bakery where Forest helped me eat a yummy pastry.


Forest helping Grandpa be brave and touch a horse:!)


I braided Sarah's hair and Maggie did the beading--THANK YOU MAGGIE!!


Auntie Moriah and Willow.


Forest helping Moriah blow out her birthday candle.

THURSDAY, A Rainy Day

Sarah reading to Forest.


Passing time with the Game Boy.


Maggie decided to bless Missy by cleaning and organizing. Where would the world be without 'Type A's'?


The guys worked in the basement setting up Gabe's new wood working shop.


Forest trying on his new Big Boy Undies and giving Grandpa a 'high five'.


Moriah got Willow to take her pacifier for the first time while Missy and I were out shopping for Forest's new undies.


The rain stopped so we got to see Kaelyn play soccer! She wasn't afraid to get right in there and kick the ball even though most of the players were boys.


It was great to see Abby again!


All the kids had fun kicking the soccer ball around, including Carter and Maggie.

FRIDAY

We went to Vinton early so I could go shopping with my friend Holly up in Hazelton at the Amish stores we love. Steve and the kids went to his Mom's to visit and help move some of Izzy's things for her.


John got to play in the Redemption tournament at Gabe and Missy's Friday night...what a great experience for him.

SATURDAY

After a family meeting at Marion's, the girls and I picked up Karla and Phaedra for a trip to the Alpaca Farm Open House.


A fun ride in the Llama pulled cart. It was a cold day but this place is so much fun that we hardly noticed.


Our friends, the Deardens, were there too!


Phaedra makes a cute Llama.


My friends, Ann(-e) and Christine, were at the Alpaca Farm...I was so happy to see them.

Then we met the rest of our family at Dan and Kim's where more than fifty Isbell family members spent a day enjoying each other, eating, reminiscing, hiking on the sandbar, canoeing, warming by the woodstove, collecting shells, playing football, etc.




Steve hiking with neice Kelly and her little ones, Karly and Nolan.


Karla and Aaron giving Grandma flowers.


Alex, Logan, Jacob, Luke, and John playing football in the background, Gabe and Forest playing catch in the foreground, and Dave and Sheila getting back from a hike.


A nice family pic of Gabe, Missy, Forest, and Willow.


Our nephew, Justin.


A sweet picture of Karly.


Uncle Matt helping Moriah with a flower arrangement.


We celebrated Luke and Moriah's 14th birthdays, just six days apart.


Karly, Sarah, and Phaedra washing shells the found on the sandbar.


Our 'crew' with their "Pirates For Hire" T-shirts from Valdez, Alaska.


Visiting on the porch.


Grandpa and Phaedra climbing up the river bank.


My awesome sister-in-loves, Kim and Sheila!


This is a moment and photo I will always treasure...my son, Aaron, loving on me..ahhhh.


Ben and Rebekah enjoying family.


Uncle Dan took anyone who wanted to go, for a ride in the canoe.


Aaron added some background music inside while some of us warmed up.


The brothers...Matt, Steve, Dan, and Dave.


Marion and sons.


Moriah and cousin Connor.


Nolan singing for the ladies.

SUNDAY
We honored my Father-In-Law, Izzy, at a memorial sevice at the Presbyterian church. Many friends and family attended. It was a blessed time to remember a very loved man and appreciate his life. Dan read a beautiful story he'd written to honor his father about the passing of heritage from one generation to the next and the impact one life makes on so many others. Before the service we took family pictures since getting so many in alarge family together is rare.


Most of us.

MONDAY
Our friends and old neighbors, the Dearden's, opened their home to us and let us stay with them Sunday night through Wednesday. What a blessing. Monday a.m. Steve and the kids, Mark Dearden, Dave, Matt, Dan, and Tom Garwood all met at Marion's to help clean out Izzy's work rooms in the basement. It was a good time spent together with family and friends. Dave, Matt, and Sheila would fly back to Montana that afternoon.


A little work...a few old stories...


The Dearden kids meeting our kids after school.


Friendship is a wonderful thing!


Girlfriends baking in the kitchen.


Moriah and Emily share a birthday so we had to celebrate while we were together.


Brei stopped by...nice surprise.

TUESDAY--Goodbye Brei :~(

Karla and Phaedra and the Dearden family went with us to see Brei off to Fairbanks, Alaska at the Cedar Rapids airport.




Goodbye hugs...


and kisses.


Time to go..Steve, Brei, and Phaedra.


:~(


Mark and Minda opened their home not only to us but to all of our family. They are such dear friends. While Steve loaded the Suburban for our departure Wednesday morning, Mark and Minda fixed a wonderful meal for our family. Jake and family, Brooke and family, Ben and family, and Marion were all able to come for supper.


Steve is warning me not to bring one more things out for him to load. As it was, we had to borrow an extra car top carrier from Mark.




Joseph and Grandpa.

WEDNESDAY--Home to Ely, Minnesota


Some well-seasoned travelers.


With a few inches to spare, we stopped at Sam's in Duluth to stock up a little more on groceries. There's only two small grocery stores in Ely with the nearest larger stores (WalMart, Target, Super 1, etc.) all one to two hours away.

We drove up the North Shore to Two Harbors and then up to Ely. If you've never driven the North Shore of lake Superior I would highly recommend it.


Rose Lane...our new home. Come and see us!

Thanks you everyone for your love, hospitality, friendship, and the time you took out of your busy schedules to spend with us. We are truley blessed and my cup really is running over. We'll be back for Thanksgiving...hooray!...so we'll see you soon.

Home, Day 1

After what seemed like a short driving day, 8 hours, we arrived in Waterloo to buy some much needed hair supplies for the girls. Before we were five miles outside of Waterloo we had made plans to stop and see Jake and family (right on the way) and then Brooke and family (in Garrison), then Aaron and family in Vinton. After that we stopped at Marion's where Jake, Sherri, and Jacob met us...and all this in two hours! We headed to North Liberty a little late where we would be staying at Gabe and Missy's. Ben and family were to meet us there also. On the way Steve thought we should drive down our old gravel road. We decided to turn up the lane and see our friends, the Dearden's, for a couple minutes. I thought it might be traumatic for us to see our old acreage but the yard was in such disarray that it didn't look all that familiar, which made it easier. Before we left Dearden's some other neighbors, the Patton's, stopped by. Whew! Seeing everyone was wonderful!!!

We finally made it to Gabe's, greeted by a houseful of happy people. It was so wonderful to meet Joseph and Willow, our two newest grandchildren, and chase Forest for hugs--a very energetic 2-year old. Even Noah the dog was excited to see us. Gabe and Missy had their basement all set up for us to stay in and we are grateful.

We are a very blessed family...wonderful children...beautiful, awesome grandchildren...not to mention extended family. We didn't expect to see all our children and most of our grandchildren on the first day we were here but God had other plans for us and we are thankful.

Jake and Steve


Jake, Sherri, and Jacob


Logan, John, and Alex


Grandpa and Phaedra on the Sit and Spin (didn't work :~)


Grace, Sarah, and Phaedra


Aaron and Karla


Steve and Marion


Maggie, Grace, and Emily


'At The Rock' the old neighborhood meeting place between our acreage and the Dearden's.


Good friends Moriah and Mikayla.


John and Eden, the two friends with all the sisters.


Sarah and Annika


Ben, Rebekah, and Joseph


Moriah and Willow


Forest loved our dog Mac.


Ben and Mo

Homeward Bound, Day 14

Not much going on today but laundry drying, indoors due to a little rain. There's no dryer here. No big deal since I've air dried laundry for years. Having left both drying racks in Alaska, I was very happy to find a decent one at a local hardware store in Ely. Steve cranked up the wood stove to get all the laundry dry so we could pack for our trip to Iowa tomorrow. We got all the things done we wanted to do today and this afternoon, watching laundry dry, I was wondering why we weren't on the road already. No pictures today, but Steve accidentally took a short video of Moriah feeding a squirrel.



We don't plan to sleep well tonight with all the excitement of seeing family and friends in Iowa whom we've missed so much these past 10 months! Not to mention meeting our two precious new grandchildren, Joseph and Willow, whom we've never seen (except in the great pictures their parents have shared with us, of course!). Planning on an early start. See you soon!!!!

Day 13

It was wonderful waking up in such a quaint cabin this morning. The wood stove had kept us warm all night (it's a soapstone but a little old). It was a bright, sunny morning. We finished up most of the cleaning and enjoyed exploring the cabin, taking in the art work hanging on the walls and interesting pottery, reading titles to books on the shelves. It's a little strange moving into someone's home. We moved a few things around, added a partition for John, and moved in a few of our things this afternoon.


Settling in...







Yesterday after we arrived at the cabin, Steve and I were checking out what was in all the garbage cans in the garage. Each one had a different kind of feed for the wildlife. When we looked in the can of sunflower seeds a chipmunk looked up at us in surprise, dove into the seeds as if it was water and swam around just beneath the surface, popping just his head out every few seconds to see if we were still there. He was very cute. Steve put a container in the can so the chipmunk could escape.

Steve and the kids discovered today that our landlords have made many friends here that are willing to befriend us also. Today John held a chickadee in his hand and had squirrels in his lap eating sunflower seeds. Some of the others got to do the same. There was a bluejay and a chipmunk that kept me company while I hung laundry outside. We watched deer at the feeder while we ate our supper. Steve has been reading 'The Living Forest' series by Sam Campbell aloud to us for quite some time. It's all about befriending and taking care of the animals of the north woods. The kids are just loving all this. The problem...a bear cleaned out the squirrel feeder by the garage last night. We've decided there will be no more feeding of wildlife, except by hand, until the bears hibernate.












Rose is enjoying the wildlife too from the low windows.


The crabapple tree the bear destroyed a few days ago just ten feet from the house. He also tore up a cherry tree just six feet from the house.

Tomorrow we will finish a few things in the cabin and pack for our trip to Iowa on Saturday!!!!! It was hard to wait these few extra days but we wanted to come home to a clean, settled cabin.

As I write this, Steve has a crackling fire in the wood stove and the smell of Moriah's sugar cookies in the oven is wafting it's way up here to the loft. Think I'll make some tea and do a little taste-testing.

Homeward Bound, Days 11 & 12

How wonderful it was to be but one hour away from our destination when we started out today. It was good to see familiar landmarks from past trips here. We arrived in Ely mid morning. The Mosers wouldn't be home until late in the day so we dropped off the trailer at their country home, drove around Ely, went to meet our new landlord and see the cabin, and then stopped at the park so the kids could burn off some energy.

We ate supper out, the first time since we left Fairbanks (Moriah and I cook some pretty good meals in motel rooms). Then we went to meet the Mosers. We had never met Jim, yet he greeted us with a big hug. They're a generous, friendly family. We felt right at home. We have some important things in common that helped us form an instant bond. After touring their house, which they built themselves over a period of time, we grown-ups sat down to tea, popcorn, and good conversation while the kids watched a movie.

Jim is letting us leave the trailer at his place for a while. He also gave us some wood to get us started at the cabin. Jim has a business building log railings and furniture...a very talented man. Lynn, a nurse, had a class in Duluth Wednesday. Jim and their son, Christopher, let us hang out for the morning. The girls had fun on the trampoline while I played the piano (hadn't played for almost a year). Steve, John, and Chris hauled wood to the cabin. Jim grilled deer brats for lunch, a first for us and delicious, and also served sweetcorn, the first we had this year! Then we headed to the cabin.


Fun on the trampoline.


The reward of a little work can be sweet!


Jim and Christopher

The cabin--ahem--was a little sobering. It's a beautiful old log cabin at the end of a very steep hill and a half mile lane. The owners are naturalists so the yard is very native (unmanicured for us type-A's) with flowers, trees, and wildness that attracts lots of wildlife. Steve and I both like this kind of thing, yet have the urge to edge sidewalks and weed-wack around trees (detox, detox). The owners are animal lovers, of course, and had many pets indoors. I got to see my first Chinchilla, nine in fact. There were also a few bunnies and cats, and a gerbil. The sweet lady that owns the cabin had her hands full trying to wrap things up to pass the cabin on to us. She managed to do pretty well by the time John and Steve hauled wood over Wednesday morning, Day 12. They helped her load up her animal cages and a few other things, picked up keys and went for more wood.

We went to the cabin in the afternoon, cleaning products in tow. The girls jumped right in and dug deep. While Sarah, Maggie, and Grace scrubbed floors and the bathroom, Moriah explored the kitchen via cleaning (this cabin has a gourmet kitchen with lots of fun gadgets and a gas convection stove!). While I directed, vaccumed, and scrubbed, Steve and John organized the outdoor areas. The cabin owners feed the wildlife here, (chipmunks, squirrels, deer, birds) which draws in bears. One of the crabapple trees was destroyed by a bear just two nights ago...hmmmm. By evening time things were looking good. We decided to watch a movie and finish up the cleaning on Day 13.


One of the awesome views going out to the cabin.