Quick trip to the frozen tundra

Last weekend we decided to go spend a few days with our daughter in Ames, Iowa.

We made the drive to the Denver airport as the weather conditions were deteriorating.

The flight was delayed an hour and a half or so.  After loading up we made our way to the deicing zone.

This is always the point where I hope they're doing a good job of deicing.  It was a quick and uneventful flight to Des Moines (or as the flight attendant said repeatedly Dez Moynes).  Jillian was there waiting for us and we made the short drive north to Ames.

Little Kitten was not happy to see us although by the second day she was chilling on her Pappy's lap.  Her and I have never been friends so I kept my distance because she's often crabby and unpredictable.

Diesel, on the other hand, was thrilled to see his grandparents especially his Grammy.  He spent the entire four days in my lap and sometimes laid inbetween Irv and I in the bed.  He thinks he's a little puppy although he's grown to about 78 lbs.

On Saturday we ventured out to enjoy a barbecue lunch at Jethro's BBQ Steak & Chop.  It was delicious!  Then we went to the theatre to see What Men Want.  The movie was a little disappointing and not nearly as good What Women Want.  I gave it 2.5 stars.  The popcorn was wonderful!

We headed back to Jillian's place before the weather changed and boy did it change.  The winds were howling at about 50 mph and it was snowing hard.  Before long everything was covered with a fresh coat of white and the drifts were 1-2 feet (or more) deep.

By Sunday morning the snow had stopped, but the wind was still blowing.  Irv decided to give Jillian a break and do some of the shoveling.  Luckily, he survived without having a heart attack.  (He's 60 years old now so we have to worry about those kinds of things.)

So what do you do during an Iowan blizzard?  Your order pizza for lunch and Chinese food for dinner.  Then Jillian decided to make us some of her homemade bread.  We had it for breakfast and it was very yummy!

I-35 was closed all day on Sunday due to the icy roads and especially the drifting.  We were thankful we didn't have to leave until Monday.  On Monday morning they reopened the highway south from Ames to Des Moines.  The northbound lanes were still closed so we passed lots of semis parked on the side of the road waiting for it to open. 

The conditions on the highway must have been horrible before the closed the road.  We passed a total of 42 vehicles off the side of the road in the short 35 miles between Ames and Des Moines.

I didn't get any pictures of them, but there was a semi spun around facing the wrong direction as well as one that was jackknifed.

Our first stop in Des Moines was the Goodwill Outlet.  Everything is sold by the pound there.  Jillian has an eBay store and has a nack for searching through the bins for things that sell well on eBay.  She might spend a dollar or two on an item that sells for $20 or more on eBay.  I followed her around and learned as much as I could since I want to enhance my own eBay store.

We had planned to visit the local art museum before heading to the airport, but it was closed on Monday.  The only thing we could find that was open was the state capitol so we stopped for a look.   I think the architecture is beautiful, it reminded me of a Greek Orthodox Church.

We ventured inside and were told we were free to wonder around.  I loved these big round radiators.

There was also a display of dolls of the first ladies of Iowa.  Since the current governor is a woman we wondered if the male doll in the center is the first man.

There was also a large model of the USS Iowa (BB61).  One the back of the case was a plaque in honor of the 47 sailors who were killed on the USS Iowa in April 1989 during a training exercise.  That accident did not ring any bells with me so I had to look it up.  Apparently there was a huge fire and explosion in one of the gun turrets resulting in the death of all these sailors.  Incredibly sad.

The inside of the capitol was very ornate.  Here's the Governor's office.

I especially liked this quote--especially meaningful these day.

The rotunda was beautiful.

We even took a step inside the House.  They weren't in session so we were told it was okay.

Me and my beautiful daughter!

Final stop was lunch at the Hessen Haus which is German style beer hall in downtown Des Moines.  Life is always good when a Jager Schnitzel is involved.  I thought I'd give the purple cabbage a try, but it was very yucky.

Jillian had the Black Forest Schnitzel which has some ham, spinach, mushrooms and spaetzle.  Yum!

Jillian then dropped us off at the airport and we spent a few hours reading our books and people watching before heading home.  

I miss Diesel and Jillian already!  In future years there will be no trips to the frozen tundra of the midwest during the winter.  I also pledge to never complain about the cold here in Colorado ever again!

**If you've enjoyed my blog how about leaving me a quick comment?   I know there are people out there who regularly read my blog (and in some cases study every word of my blog), but have never left a comment.  It's not that difficult--please give it a try.**