#248 Nomad Diary. 19-25 July 2025. Week 3 of 3 Our 'Slow' Road Trip Washington to Alabama. Papillion, Nebraska to Visit Darrell's Brother. BnB Muscatine, Iowa. Noblesville, Indiana to Visit My Sisters. Arrive Madison, Alabama Airbnb.

Darrell's Brother Jeff and Jeff's Son Tony at Home in Papillion, Nebraska

 

Doing Our Morning Exercises in Papillion, Nebraska on Jeff's Deck.

Jeff and Gaye's Deck in Papillion, Nebraska

Phone Call Screenshot with Son Jeremy and Grandson Quinn in Brazil!

Following Tony on Our Evening Walk in Papillion, Nebraska

Newton, Iowa at This Store was Nancy. She Makes Jams! We bought the Best Juice Sweetened Blueberry-Rhubarb and also Blackberry Jams! General Store on the Square.

Go to This Store on the Square in Newton, Iowa and Buy Nancy's Jam!

Newton, Iowa Square. In This Town, Find Maytag Blue Cheese!! 

Strawberry Farm Bed and Breakfast in Muscatine, Iowa

Inside Our Strawberry Hill BnB in Muscatine, Iowa

Our Muscatine, Iowa BnB Bedroom.

Me Next to the Big Sculpture in Town!

Downtown Street Muscatine, Iowa. Known in the Past for Making Pearl Buttons from River Oyster Shells!

Owner of Strawberry Hill BnB and Breakfast Cook and Morning Conversation for Us Too!

Saturday. 19. In Papillion, Nebraska at Darrell’s brother Jeff’s house. Visit and enjoy being together. Evening walks in the neighborhood. Getting to know our nephew Tony and what’s he doing now. He’s an engineer with the largest pipeline company in the US. Pretty impressive! He’s living at home and looking for a deal on a house to buy and possibly fix up for himself.

Sunday. 20. At Jeff's house. Go to worship with them. Darrell preached at the evening service. 

Monday. 21. Leave Jeff’s after breakfast. On our drive through Iowa, we stop for lunch at Newton, Iowa. While here, we go to Maytag Dairy and buy some local cheese. I had learned from reading online, that this is the same Maytag family name belonging to the original Maytag washing machines. The family lived here. This dairy was a business was started and run by members of that family. In the 1940’s they had award winning blue cheese that rivaled French blue cheese! We bought some of their blue cheese. I’d never noticed this company or brand of blue cheese in my life. It’s very good cheese! Also while in Newton, we went to the town square and into a little store. The owner makes and sells jams! We picked out some of her fruit-juice sweetened blackberry jam and another flavor of blueberry and rhubarb jam. Drive to Muscatine, Iowa. Arrive for overnight stay at Strawberry Farm B&B. Check in and meet our host who inherited this farm or bought it from his family estate. He’s lived here for about 30 years and unfortunately his wife had passed away some years earlier. 

My Sister Annette with Husband Ron, and Sons Adam and Wil at Their House in Noblesville, Indiana

My Sister Linda in Noblesville, Indiana

Stopped in Indianapolis at Side Door Bagels to Buy Some. We Wanted to See Our Nephew Josh Who Owns This Amazing Place, But He Wasn't Here Today.

Side Door Bagels in Indianapolis

Arrived to Madison, Alabama and In Person with Granddaughter Esther

In Person in Madison, Alabama with Grandson Owen!! I'm Happy

Tuesday. 22. Fabulous omelets and coffee for breakfast and way too much other breads and fruits at our BnB. Drive to my sister, Annette’s house between Noblesville and Westfield, Indiana. There we find an open guest room and long-time family memories with Annette and brother-in-law Ron. Their youngest son, Wil is currently living at their house. Wil and his older brother Adam, an RN, are at the house to greet us and all go for dinner together. 

Wednesday. 23. Today we got my sister Linda at her house and went for coffee and visiting in Noblesville. Linda retired this year. She was the front desk person for decades at Annette and Ron’s Cargioli Center in Fishers. In the evening we went to the Fishers church of Christ where my dad and his wife were members for years. We meet a couple of people who we know while we are there.

Thursday. 24. Today we get my sister Linda and drive over to the Cargioli Center for appointments for each of us. After our treatments, the three of us go for lunch and more visiting. Dinner out with the Cargioli’s.

Friday. 25. Head out after breakfast. Stop in Indianapolis at Side Door Bagels. Our nephew Josh’s wildly popular sourdough Bagel shop. We get bagel sandwiches for our lunch later. We drive to Alabama to our airbnb in Madison. On our way to our house we stop at Eric and Erin’s house. They are in the middle of a house crisis. They had been having their house put back together through an insurance claim from a plumbing back up that happened several weeks ago. Today the finishing was happening and then a water leak was discovered. They had to have their water turned off to their house at about 5pm. The crew that was finishing up the walls and painting in their master closet and laundry room left. We arrived right as all of this was happening. It was a major disappointment and a major issue to have no water to their house at 5 pm on a Friday. We gave them our address and they came later and stayed the night in our 2 extra bedrooms. They didn’t sleep all that well as their children were not in their regular routine. We all ate breakfast together and they went on home. Friday night they had a plumber come and discover what caused this new water leak and document it and get the water to their house turned back on. They are very ready to have their house back together and working smoothly.

Nomad Notes.  Arriving here for a 2 month stay feels like a big exhale. I’m so excited to visit with our grandkids Owen and Esther. We’ll also visit with friends we have in the area and be able to clean all of truck items out and get set for our next adventure. Our airbnb house in Madison is a very comfortable house for the two of us. We have a kingsize bed, and two bathrooms. We appreciate this extra room. We have a concrete patio just out a back glass door. We are able to do our morning ddp Yoga with our mats out there most mornings. It is quite hot and humid this month in Alabama. We live in our air conditioned space. We go out in the early morning or the evening to be outside with less heat.