Mark and Hilde were happy to attend the installation and the welcome luncheon for St. Paul’s new minister, Jim Douglas. We had Pastor Douglas, wife Sara and little two-year-old Emma out for lunch at the end of the month and enjoyed our discussions and getting to know them better. We also had a visit from Paul and Rachel Fritz. We all picked raspberries together and had a great afternoon. The main social event of the month was a black belt corn roast here. It is always good to have those gatherings!
The hot, wet weather continued and resulted in great garden growth, lawns that just didn’t stop and some really healthy weeds. When we talk about weeding all the time, it is in an effort to avoid any the size of this lambs quarter which we finally chopped off at around 10 feet! The intense heat led to some really noisy storms, including the one early August 11 when lightning struck Mark’s antenna tower. That was "shockingly" loud! While the tower is grounded, the one rotor cable formed a pathway for some of the charge. The rotors, the cable, Mark’s digital interference filter, the internet card for my computer and our cordless phone and answering machine all got zapped. Getting things replaced, fixed and remounted took much of the rest of the month.
Right at mid-month, Jim and Kayme informed us that the new Henkel will help even the numbers---sonogram shows a GIRL! They are going to name her Rhiannon. We got to see Jim and Kayme down in Watertown, with John and Evie meeting us there for church, lunch (thanks, Naomi!) and lots of talking and hugging.
Although the month really focused on the harvesting and preserving of corn, berries, tomatoes, onions, crab apples and other good things, Hilde has also had some extra meetings and tours, including a celebration of ADRC CW, a thank you lunch for the library parking lot , election workers training and a fascinating conservation tour to a farm with robotic milking -- the cows co
me in to be milked and the farmer reads the yield and data without touching the cow. Mark and Hilde both attended a day of taekwondo referee training and enjoyed the annual Edgar Steam Engine show.Mark has been working long hours on the preparation for a big trial, doing depositions, motions and briefs. In among all the business travel, we found time for a special visit to Madison to meet Kathy and Tony Williams, Evie’s parents. We all went out for dinner together and then on a walk. There, with all parents witnessing, John asked Evie to marry him, and she accepted. It was a very special evening for all of us. While dates and details are not settled yet, the joy in both their faces left us misty-eyed and glowing. As an odd coincidence, John actually proposed outside the house Mark had lived in back while in law school. It has been quite a month!
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