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Monday, June 11, 2007 -
We arrived in Waterloo by 3:30 pm and helped Mark set up his booth for the VGM trade show (which is the reason we tagged along on this trip in the first place). After setting up, we checked into our hotel and relaxed before heading over to VGM to attend the annual company pig roast. On site was the newest Waterloo fire truck and firefighters were giving rides up to the sky in the bucket. We, of course, couldn't miss that! Afterwards, the kids took a zip around the parking lot in a big John Deere tractor. A fun time was had by all. The food was delicious, especially the desserts, and the evening was concluded with an unbelievable fireworks show. Wow - it was a lot of Midwestern Heartland USA fun!
Tuesday, June 12, 2007 -
This morning Mark was free until around 1 pm when we were scheduled to pick Diana, a co-worker, up at the Cedar Rapids airport. We headed due east over to Dyersville, Iowa to see the filming location for the movie "Field of Dreams". It was really a beautiful spot and the weather was perfect. The field is actually owned by two different people - the house and infield by one family, and part of the outfield by another corporation. It was free to the public and there was a small souvenir shop there for visitors to commemorate the visit. It was not crowded when we were there, but heard tale of how it was sometimes inundated with busloads of Japanese tourists!
As it turned out Diana missed her connecting flight so we returned to the hotel to rest before Mark needed to set out for the trade show. Jonna found an urgent care facility to have her 8 stitches in her chin removed (which were due to a clumsy fall the previous week) while the kids caught up on cartoons! That evening, after dropping Mark at the convention center, Jonna and the kids drove to the lovely, quaint town of Cedar Falls to spend some time. We found a darling paint-your-own-pottery shop there and decided to paint Mark some pottery for Father's Day. After a delicious dinner at the Brown Bottle Restaurant in Waterloo, we picked Mark and Diana (who had finally arrived on a later flight!) up at the convention center.
Wednesday, June 13, 2007 -
This morning Mark needed to be at the trade show from 9 am -3 pm so Jonna and the kids headed to the Lost Island Water Park to cool off. Unable to get her chin wet, Jonna watched from the sidelines while the kids tried all the slides over and over. It really was a great water park and the crowds were reasonable. We picked Mark up (Diana had already left for the airport) and we headed back to the room for a shower and a rest.
Later that evening, we ventured back to Cedar Falls to retrieve our pottery for Mark and to dine at the Los Cabos Mexican Restaurant in town. We enjoyed strolling through Cedar Falls and showing Mark the cute little town. From there we walked along the Cedar River, enjoying a warm, beautiful summer night.
Tomorrow we head for Minneapolis...
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