A Fun Little Trip To Iowa!

November 2-3, 2014 ~ Our friends, Josh and Roni, bought a car hauler from Snappy's Trailer Sales company in Des Moines, Iowa about 8 weeks ago and they called and said it was ready to be picked up. So after they closed up their restaurant and got everything put away we hit the road! We wanted to be in Des Moines that evening so we could pick up the trailer and enjoy several stops along the way back home.

 The next morning I went over to Josh and Roni's room and brought their 11 month old daughter, Alexis, to our room! She's such a happy baby and just learning to walk which is pretty funny to watch!

We ate Cheerios....

We liked putting a lid on our head and letting it fall off! 

(She was giggling but I couldn't ever catch it!) 

We went to a little place called Waveland Cafe for breakfast!

It was a neat little cafe that had a kinds of painting on the wall. (I didn't take anymore as these people could tell we were tourists)  I don't really do breakfast so I figured a ham and cheese with cheesy hash browns would work perfectly!

I guess a big breakfast made her tired... 

Alexis just laid her head on the table for a quick rest! Silly girl! 

After breakfast we headed over to American Dream Machines 

to check out their classic cars. Like two little kids in a candy store!
http://www.admcars.com/ 

They had some sharp looking vehicles in here!

Alexis loved these old cars! 

As we were walking back to the truck I spotted this thing...

It's name is "Plantoir"

So I knew we had to go take a picture with it! 

(I love this kind of stuff)

We had to get a few selfies to get a good one!

On our way to the trailer place we drove by a park that had several things I would have liked to stop and take some pictures of. Guess I'll just have to plan another trip up there! 

When Alexis wasn't trying to steal Aunt Shell's camera she had to free her little piggy's! 

Slight issue with the wrong wheels but Josh was on them making sure they had the right ones!

Finally got loaded up and ready to head back home!

I have a friend, Heather Stewart, that swears these are the best tacos. We thought we would grab a quick snack then get on the road so we stopped at Tasty Tacos to check it out!

I now present to you .... a Tasty Taco!

Alexis was having fun and couldn't wait to try some tacos!

I think she liked the cheese! LOL!

Time to get back on the road....
Just a few random things we saw along the way! 

Josh doesn't like to stop and take pictures which drives me nuts but the cool thing about this horse is that it is on top of a tire shop and make completely out of tires!

You know I got excited when I saw this beauty!
I love me some windmills!

Alexis loved trying to get my camera!

We had enough time to stop by Winterset, Iowa....

Yep, you guessed it....

the Birthplace of Marion Robert Morrison
aka: John Wayne

John Wayne has been a favorite of Brandon's for many many years and it was something we have talked about going to and just never made time until this trip! Josh and Roni have a lot of John Wayne stuff in their restaurant so it was also cool for them to see this place.

We had to wait to take a tour of John Wayne's home so we played!

Alexis tried on hats....

even Uncle B tried on hats!
(I think Alexis is embarrassed!)

She did a great job of waiting patiently!

Of course I wanted a picture of all of us crazy kids!

They are building a new museum that will be open next year and dedicated on his birthday!
Looks like it will be a good time with some great entertainment.
Here's the link if you are interested in checking it out!
http://www.johnwaynebirthplace.museum/museum.html

The Spry's with "The Duke"!

Time to get loaded up in the truck again!
Alexis is trying to figure out this walking thing...

We then went to visit one of the many covered bridges!
This one is known as the Cutler-Donahoe Covered Bridge and we were told that it was used in the end of the movie "Bridges Over Madison County".
Here's a list of the several covered bridges.....
http://www.madisoncounty.com/pages/World-FamousCoveredBridges

So of course we had to take a few more pictures!

The Spicer Family!
(I had to laugh at Josh's face in this one!)

 Love those smiles!

I think this little girl has her parents right where she wants them!

 The Spry's!

A little fun before we leave....

Seriously if y'all knew how much work went into getting a selfie with everyone looking you would have laughed at us! Pretty sure the other people there wanted in on that fun!

Sadly we didn't have time to take pictures at the Iowa/Missouri boarder but it was a fun trip!

Hello November!

November 1, 2014 ~ Happy November 1st! It's hard to believe that in another 60 days 2014 will be over and done. I know I keep saying this but seriously where does time go? I remember waking up January 1, 2014 and thinking this was going to be a great year filled with adventures, memories and fun and somehow it's just around the corner that I reflect on this past year. 

This year has certainly been full of adventure, memories and fun! A goal for 2014 was to see 14 states that Brandon and I have never been to. (My overall goal is to see all of the United States by the time we turn 40... that's just 2 short years away and after the 14 from this year we have 19 states left to see!) We have decided to live a little and do traveling while we can and make memories... I mean we aren't getting any younger and we are both willing and able to work to pay for our trips and we don't know what the future will hold because frankly, we do live in a crazy world that it may not be safe to travel one day or we could be sick and not be able to travel. I want to see and do so many things while we have the opportunity plus I enjoy experiencing our travels and creating wonderful memories with Brandon!

 

A couple weeks ago I found myself getting my growing and ever so long to-do list knocked out. (You know, those list of things that you put off until you just can't put them off anymore... yep that list!) I felt like I all the stars were aligning and it was amazing how easy it was to cross things off my list and getting my stress levels down..... you know, finally seeing light at the end of the tunnel! I finally made a choice that I need to chill out, relax, take things day by day and not worry about the little things and get back to the things I enjoy. With our busy schedule I have missed the small things such as writing notes to friends, recognizing accomplishments of others, attending events and my blog. 

My blog was a great tool for me to tell a story. Several have asked me what's the difference between my Facebook and my blog. My Facebook page is a place to keep up with daily life, check-in, share pictures and tell small stories. It allows my "friends" to see a glimpse into my life yet as much as you all may think I tell you everything I really don't.  My blog on the other hand is a much deeper look into my life and I like to (hopefully) give the reader a much better sense of why I am passionate about something or tell a story using pictures to help me describe something. For me, when I create a blog post I am, in a sense, talking directly to you. I am including you in a conversation that captures what I see, hear and feel. I'm ready to get back to writing on my blog but before I could do this I had to let go. You see, I have a tad bit of OCD. It drives me crazy to see such a large span of time since my last blog post. In fact it drives me crazy! I have so much to tell you about but if I really took the time to tell you the stories that are marked on my calendar I would never get caught up. So I have decided to pick up with November 1, 2014 and start my blog posts again. I will get to recap with you soon enough about the things that I experienced, where I went and all that fun stuff. 

So today is a new day! Today I start fresh and get back to the things I enjoy! Happy November 1st y'all... We've got a lot to be thankful for and I'm baaaaack!!!! {insert big ol' smile here}

Happy 13th Birthday Midway Electric, Inc.!

It's hard to believe that 13 years ago on November 1, 2001 we opened the door on a dream and turned it into a reality. We were two crazy kids that knew what we wanted to do (own a business) with high school diplomas in hand and when the opportunity knocked we took a chance and haven't looked back! I can't even tell you what a wild-not-always-easy-but-it-has-been-fun adventure these 13 years have been. The dedication of so many employees, our loyal customers and our supportive family and friends have allowed us to grow our business to where it is today and for that we are very thankful. 

Here's to the next 13 years!