Deb's Dad in Ottumwa

We left Rushville on Thursday, September 2nd and headed to Ottumwa, Iowa to see my Dad, Les, step-mother, Donna and my brother's and sister.

We had dinner at Dad and Donna's new apartment in the high rise in Ottumwa. I am sure they will not mind me telling their ages. Dad was 85 on February 9, 2010 and Donna was 80 on August 8, 2010. They know so many people in the highrise and are enjoying life. Dad frequents McDonalds and Walmart to have coffee with his buddies.

We went sight seeing with Donna on Friday and went past Grandpa and Grandma Padget's old farm. Connie and I have so many happy memories from "down on the farm."

Soap Creek Bridge. I remember when it was two planks going across it with small boards in the middle.

Soap Creek where Uncle Les, Connie and I would go swimming.

The old barn is still standing.

There is two hay lofts with a drive through in the middle. A pulley system pulled came from the Cupola on top of the barn down to the drive through. You would slip a hook under the twine on the hay bale and pull the hay up to the loft. Connie and I would put a corn cob across the hook, wrap our legs around the rope and over the cob and swing from hay loft to hay loft. We had sling shots made from old inner tubes and tree limbs and shoot corn at each other. After Grandpa got the hay all organized in the loft, we would rearrange it and make forts. We found a nest of chicken eggs up there. It was in July and hotter than blazes. We decided to see if an egg would fry on the hot cement around the well curb. We cracked the egg and it was rotten. We took off running. It was the worst smell we had every smelled in our young lives.

The barn is in good shape!

The stream that went through the barn yard had gray clay like we used for modeling in school.
I would make "mud pies" in jar lids and put rocks in them for nuts.
Uncle Les and Connie would eat them. They still love my cook'n.

The house used to be across the road and above that stand of trees.

Grandma and Grandpa would milk the cows morning and night and carry the buckets of milk up the hill. I can remember Uncle Les swinging the milk buckets above his head and not losing a drop of milk.

We went on to Drakesville, Iowa to shop for fabric at an Amish store. I think I could live a simpler life. I love clothes dried on a clothesline.