As an enjoyable and eventful summer comes to an end, my family and I will soon
be trading in our shorts and flip flops for sweaters and jeans and the kids
have already traded in their ball gloves for volleyballs and football gear.
The season itself has packed up its sun-filled days and blossoming fields to
make room for colorful trees and cooler nights. As I sit on the front porch,
I wonder where the summer has gone, and as I think back, I recall exactly how
the Kleve family summer went ...
Of course, as many of you know, our summer consisted of baseball games and
dance competitions; but our summer also involved much more than that. It was
a time of shared family moments and memories to last a lifetime. Throughout
the summer, we shared simple moments including many evenings grilling supper
on the porch and we even found a night or two to roast hot dogs and
marshmallows around the fire pit. We had a few movie nights when it was too
hot and we were too tired to go outside, and we had a number of family ball
games in the back yard when our busy schedules and the weather would allow.
The kids and I found time to add an item to our bucket lists (and check it
off) as we spent an eventful evening eating supper with my mother at the
Japanese Hibachi Grill in Prairie Du Chien. Although sitting around a hot,
flaming grill is probably more suited for cooler weather, we enjoyed watching
and participating as the chef did his grilling and we enjoyed trying new foods
and spending some quality time with "Grandma Net".
Shawn and I and the kids especially enjoyed our annual family vacation the
last week in July. The six day trip was too long to describe in detail, but
we had a wonderful time making family memories and checking a variety of items
off of our bucket lists. The items included attending a Kansas City Royals
baseball game at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City; attending a St. Louis
Cardinals baseball game at Busch stadium in St. Louis, Missouri; and touring
Arrowhead stadium where the Kansas City Chiefs play professional football. We
also enjoyed eating at a Brazillian Steakhouse for the first time; watching a
Urinetown production in a Theater in the Park; touring one of only 12 federal
reserve banks in the US; riding a tram to the top of the Gateway Arch; touring
the Anheuseur-Busch Brewing company (our second brewery tour on our bucket
list) and climbing around on a ropes course 19 feet in the air. We enjoyed
quiet, family moments hanging out in our hotel room, swimming in the hotel
pool, playing simple games like air hockey, and ordering pizza to be delivered
to our room after a long day of adventure. We also partook in some traditional
vacation moments such as taking a riverboat tour on the Mississippi River and
going to Build a Bear Workshop where Karissa made her fourth Build-A-Bear
souvenier of our vacationing career.
Throughout the summer, we found time to attend two family reunions -- the Koch
family reunion on my mother's extended side of the family as well as the Bohr
family reunion with many of my aunts, uncles and first cousins from my Dad's
side. We also enjoyed an evening of Kleve family bonding when my
sister-in-law, Nikki, came home from Chicago.
Recently, we enjoyed some family bonding time with my brother, Rob, and his wife,
Jessica, when they came home from Arizona so our family could put on a successful,
scholarship fundraising event in our brother, Adam's, memory. Last weekend, we held
the 2nd annual, Adam J Bohr Celebration and Casino Night. It was an excellent way to
spend time honoring Adam, celebrating his life and raising money to continue funding the
Scholarship set up in his memory. A lot of work went into planning and organizing the event throughout the summer and it culminated into a memorable event with lots of
socializing, casino fun, and a successful silent auction and great raffle
give-aways. I am grateful to all who participated in any way and look forward
to another successful event again next year.
Lastly, as the kids started back to school this week, we gave our summer one
last hurrah as Shawn and I and the kids headed to Des Moines yesterday for a
bonding, family weekend and an Iowa Cubs minor league baseball game. We
enjoyed a four-hour-or-so drive to Des Moines since we forgot our tickets at
home and had to turn around and get them (good thing we had left early). In
Des Moines, we checked out the Iowa Hall of Fame before heading to the hotel.
It was a rainy day and the hotel had an outdoor pool, so we didn't
spend any time swimming on this excursion. Once checked in, we had a nice
meal at Mescotti's, an Italian restaurant not far from the hotel. We shared
good food and some great laughs as we enjoyed our time at the restaurant.
Luckily, the rainy day subsided to simply a cool, damp evening as we headed
into Principal Park for the game. We enjoyed watching the game and hoped for
extra innings (or at least not a rain-out) as the Cubs beat the Oklahoma City
Red Hawks 4 to 1. Around 10 pm, we headed back to our hotel where we settled
in for the night, watched a little TV, and called it a day. This morning we
slept in, grabbed a bite at Perkins and headed back home and back to
reality once again.
Now tonight, as the kids work on their homework for tomorrow, I peel a
few cucumbers and slice a couple tomatoes as we anticipate Shawn coming home
any moment for supper. We will be grilling hamburgers once again and enjoying a
few laughs on the porch. Although summer may have "ended", we are simply beginning
the next season as we look forward to an autumn filled with more family fun. We did have an
eventful and enjoyable summer ... now I better go start the grill so it's ready when Shawn gets home ...
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