Reconnecting


Emily and Mitch


This first week back in Iowa has been a time of reconnecting with my boys. We did see Mitch on Mother’s day for a short time but he called and wanted to go to dinner on Wednesday evening as his girlfriend Emily was in town. Emily is from NE Iowa and goes to school near here in Iowa City. Classes are over so she is spending some time at home and some time here with Mitch but soon will be off for a semester abroad in Spain. 
We went to dinner at our favorite mexican restaurant: Haciendas Las Glorias. In all the time we have spent in the southwest we have seldom come across food as good and have never come across margaritas as good as this restaurant has. I will say John now makes a margarita to rival theirs but it might be a toss up. It was excellent as usual and the time with Mitch and Emily was great.
John and Gabe at Kernels game
Thursday Gabe came to town to talk to his insurance agent. He can no longer be on our insurance in June and they were going to charge so much for him to get on Melissa’s insurance after they get married that Brandon (his agent) is looking for a basic policy for him that he can actually afford. I know there are lots of opinions out there about the healthcare issue but if anyone prior to the healthcare act had to find insurance for someone with a pre-existing condition they know how difficult it could be. Brandon says at least now they can’t turn him down and there are some incentives for them to give him an affordable policy. The last time we went through this we had one year where the rules were still at 24 to get off our policy and we had a tough time finding a company to even give him a policy. For us, the healthcare changes mean Gabe will have insurance and that is a relief.
Since he was here we decided a baseball game would be fun so we headed to a Kernels game (A minor league ball). John and I love going to the games and the boys enjoyed it when they were little but then went through a time they really didn’t like to go. Luckily they are now enjoying watching an occasional game again. This one went into extra innings and the Kernels pulled it out at the bottom of the 10th for a win.  I have really missed the boys so this time together was great.
I also had time with my friend Trudy this week. We had our first weekly coffee at Panera’s on Friday morning. We did this every week for a lot of years so when I am in CR we try to continue the tradition. Tomorrow instead of Panera’s we are going to the casino in Hills, Iowa. May is Trudy’s birthday month and she gets a free buffet. The month is winding down and she doesn’t want to miss out on the freebie.
John and Mike taking in the bed frame
Trudy and her husband Mike bought a 2005 Mako 5th wheel by Gulfstream. It was in a weather related accident and had some damage but Mike loves to fix things so this is his new project. We went over Sunday afternoon to see it and ended up staying long enough for John to help Mike weld the bed frame and slide mechanism back together and get ready for all the new parts to make the slide work again. They almost had it working but it appears they need a new switch so it will have to wait another day. I foresee John helping with other parts of this project too. They will have a nice rig once Mike is finished. We ended the evening with dinner at the Star Bar in Fairfax, a little local joint with good food and it is close to the DQ so on the way home I talked John into a little treat. I grew up (Dad owned one) in a DQ and it is still my favorite treat!
Today we got moved across town to Squaw Creek, the other Linn County park we frequent and have a great site for the next two weeks. John’s brother Walt will be joining us so it will be even more family time. Hope everyone out there has a great holiday weekend. The weather here is great and the park is already almost full, so I also hope you have a site if you are on the road.
Happy Trails..........................

Comments

  1. Kevin ReadMay 21, 2012 at 9:36 PM

    We love going to Minor League Baseball games. So much fun, and affordable too!

    www.travelwithkevinandruth.com

    ReplyDelete
  2. John and CarolMay 21, 2012 at 11:03 PM

    It looks like you have had a wonderful time reconnecting.

    Thanks for telling us your personal story about obtaining good and affordable health care for those with pre-existing conditions. So often, this part of the story is lost with all the out cry against recent health care reform.

    ReplyDelete
  3. BobMay 22, 2012 at 12:50 AM

    Interesting comment about your changes in healthcare.
    As Canadians I suppose we tend to take it for granted (which is pretty foolish I must admit very sheepishly) and have no clue about some of the issues that Americans have had to face in order to be "free". Well, I didn't mean for that to be a cheap shot, but there are those who think that allowing access to healthcare for everyone is some sort of infringement on freedom. Not so sure I need to be 'free' to go bankrupt because of some illness that puts me in the poor house. Just saying.
    How does a person have control over a "pre-existing condition"?
    If I'm a bad driver and my rates go up, well ultimately I can choose some other means of getting around, but the unfortunate alternative to getting fixed up health wise is rather dire.
    I'll stop now....

    Our system still has it's issues, as each Province can manage it within a certain framework, but the fact is, it's all inclusive.
    Hopefully your situation will continue to improve, both for those near and dear to you, as well as for everyone else.
    Now...the economy? Not quite so cut and dried. Let's not even go there....

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. UnknownMay 22, 2012 at 7:47 AM

      I usually hate to open this can of worms because people have such heated opinions on the subject but I am firmly in your corner on this. Sometimes I think the people complaining about the health care act have never had to pray someone would cover them because they weren't perfect or worry that they were going to lose everything because of medical bills. I've seen both those issues in our families. Our congress has the best healthcare money (ours not theirs) can buy so they have no clue what it is like. Time to get off my soap box but it is a subject dear to my heart.

      Delete
  4. owensontheroadMay 22, 2012 at 5:54 AM

    Glad you are getting some nice times with your sons! DQ sounds good about now too :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. RV Khronicles of KevelynMay 22, 2012 at 7:20 AM

    I hear you on the health insurance. I'm kind of surprised Gabe would be charged so much on his wife's policy. Teachers usually have very good coverage. Times are sure changing. So glad you're enjoying your boys and other family and friends. Our weather has been really nice too and our park has been quite busy. We are fully booked for the upcoming weekend.

    ReplyDelete

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