Introduction

I have lived on the Western most edge of Iowa my entire life. It's a beautiful part of the state and also the forgotten part. We live near the Iowa/Nebraska border. For some inane reason, folks think of us as Nebraska. I suppose that's in part because we are just a stones throw away from Omaha, NE. That is where our television and radio stations are located and also the larger newspaper we can receive daily. Lincoln, NE is also close by and is known for their college football champs "the Huskers". I have lived in Neola my entire life. The population is just under 1,000 but has two churches, two bar and grills, a tire shop, bank, three beauty shops, small town "gossip" newspaper, volunteer fire dept., US Post Office, grocery store/butcher shop/catering business and the newly constructed Community Center. All this packed into a 5 x 5 block radius. Our school system, Tri-Center, is a conglomerate of towns and is one of the best in this side of the state. With the larger city of Council Bluffs being only 25 minutes away we really don't have to worry about going without anything. It is right on the Missouri River so if we want we can still cross over into Omaha and not have it seem like we have taken a vacation just to shop.

I met my wonderful husband Rick (Dorothy Tweedt's grandson) 22 years ago this May. Rick is the General Manager for Landmark Aviation in Omaha, NE. I have one son, Corey, daughter in law, Dawn, and three grandsons; Drake (2 1/2), Zachary and Cody (9 year old twins). They live just a stone's throw away from us so we are always in contact with each other. Dawn does daycare in her home, so I am Grandma Patti to all her daycare kids, too. It's so cute to walk in the door and hear at least seven other little voices besides Drake's screaming "Grandma Patti's here!" while they are all running at you.

I have lots of interests; a little sewing; nothing major, cooking, crafting, cross stitch, flower arranging. I have helped my husband with remodeling our house and building our shop and my potting shed. I also have discovered a passion for planting "antique seeds". I have found that they grow nicely between our fence and the alley. Living in town, I don't have a lot of space to plant things. But I try to make due with what I have and change my plants ever so often.