Clearwater Beach

We went to Clearwater Beach last weekend for Curt's niece's wedding. Stacey and Scott live near Tampa and decided they would get married on a yacht down in Clearwater with just a few friends and family. We stayed right on the beach and had a wonderful time. Curt's brother Dean and his wife Betty, our nephew Marlo and his wife Stef came with us.

We got there Thursday night and went straight to a great restaurant on the pier, Crabby Bills, I highly recommend going if you ever get down there. I started in on my seafood diet, and I was in heaven!

My pictures are backwards but here are some highlights.

Curt and I on the beach at Frenchy's restaurant on Saturday night Friday morning we all met on the beach and enjoyed the 95 degree, 150% humidity weather. I have never felt humidity and heat like this, Iowa summers have nothing on Florida's.

This is before I got fried from being out there 3 hours, ignore my icky white legs! :-) i have a great tan now, too bad it's 60 degrees now here at home!

From left-right: Stacey the bride, Stef Van Wyk, Betty Van Kooten & Me.

On Saturday we went on a boat ride for dolphin encounters and shell finding through the bay. Here is the island we stopped at and picked up some great shells. This isn't just the tip of the island, that's the whole island. :-)

At the reception on the dinner cruise after the wedding. We had a 3 hour cruise around the bay while we ate, danced and enjoyed a wee bit too much champagne, wine etc... :-) Lucky for us the hotel was down the street and within walking distance. :-)

Stacey, the bride, taking pictures in the beach before the wedding at sunset.

view on our beach Friday night right before the wedding and then we walked to the Pier where the yacht was docked.

View from our balcony in our room Friday AM, I think it was 85 degrees already at 8 AM.

Labor Day Weekend

Turkey Roost Cabin and our camper

Family pic in front of the cabin Red Oak Cabin, the main food head quarters for our weekend

Water Wars at Fun Land in Prarie Du Chien

Bumper Cars at Fun Land - Shelley out for blood :-)

Mom racing Go-Karts




Curt & Nate dueling it out

Enjoying the campfire with our local bats

Kate & I in front of the Mississippi

Curt & Nate taking a break on our 2 mile hike through Effiggy Mounds

I had no idea NE Iowa was so beautiful. We headed to Monona (north of Strawberry Point) this past weekend to stay at Natural Gait Cabins. My whole family shared two cabins and we pulled up our camper loaded with food, drink and just a few more sleeping areas. :-)

The weather was awesome and we had a great time going to Effigy Mounds and a lock & dam on Saturday & Prarie Du Chien to an awesome go kart/minature golf place on Sunday, which ended with a concert at the lodge at our cabins by a Western singer, TJ Casey. It was pretty cool sitting outside by a campfire listening to old time Western music.
We had to drive 10 miles down a gravel road to get to the cabins so you woke up to no traffic sounds, horses neighing and beautiful scenery.

It was fun watching all the cousins hanging out and playing and catching up with family.