It’s hard to believe that I flew home from Montana just one week ago today.  Flying into the Des Moines airport last Wednesday, I was struck with the beauty of the patchwork of rolling hills, the enormous farms visible from our descending height and especially with how superbly green everything was.  Granted, there are no snow-capped mountains here in Iowa but the Iowa Heartland is beautiful all the same.

It has been a very busy week – filled with a few technicolor Midwest storms, torrential rain and today there was sunshine with cloudless, clear blue skies and a high of 85 degrees.

On Sunday afternoon, we celebrated my granddaughter’s 15th birthday.  Her paternal grandparents were there, I was there, her parents and siblings…and about about ten of her friends who wanted to turn the special event into a surprise party!

My assignment was to get my granddaughter out of the house while the friends arrived and the house was decorated.  I decided to treat her to several books at one of her favorite stores:  Barnes & Noble.  Unknown to her, we were on a time schedule and I had to have her back home in time for the surprise.  My daughter warned me to let my granddaughter enter first.  I did but I still managed to get my share of “silly string” too!

My daughter made a huge pan of her delicious Penne Rustica.  I made a gigantic tossed salad and three loaves of french bread.  My granddaughter had requested my daughter’s homemade delicious chocolate cake with vanilla icing.  Scrumptious!

All in all, it has been a busy week with a lot crammed into it.  I love traveling but, for now, I’m glad to be home…

Above:  with her younger sister in 2014.

Below:  one of my favorite pics of her as a toddler.