Day 34 - Aunt Ruby and Four States in 3:35

Sunday, 25 September

Today I got the opportunity to visit with my Great Aunt Ruby and her husband Darrel in Portage, IN for the first time ever.  She is my grandmother's younger sister and is the only sibling that is still living.  She is 91 and he is almost 96.  They are the sweetest people and it was a real thrill to be able to hear her tell me stories about my grandmother who died in 1996.  I was amazed at the number of dates and events she remembered (and she was spot on).  We only visited for about 3:30 because she is very feeble, due to her fight with cancer.  Though quite a bit smaller, she reminded me a lot of my grandma Edwards.

After leaving their home, we snuck into Michigan (one mile) just to say we had been there and then turned west to travel to Iowa, which we entered 3:35 later (MI, IN, IL, IA in a little over three hours!)

When we got to our hotel in Iowa, it was about 2200, and the sidewalks were rolled up.  The only place to eat was a restaurant called Ross'... Apparently this dish is famous, so I tried one... I could not eat it all (should have taken a photo) but it was tasty... the "snow cap" made for a rough night though!