Straw Poll in Ames

In order to vote we had to make a visit to the drivers license bureau which is alway's interesting. I have had work done at the dentist that has been more enjoyable than visits to government ran entities.

We had been looking forward for weeks to attend the Straw Poll and be a part of history. It was a great opportunity to teach our children about this blessed country we live in and how we can all make a difference by being involved and voting. The longer we live here in Iowa, the more I realize this truly is the heartland of America.








We took this while waiting in a very, very long line to vote. I had a swell idea to dress in red, white, and blue as a family. Tyler came home from basketball that morning, and must not have noticed us all decked out. Since I am on an anti-nagging tour, I was not bossy and didn't make him change.

Patriotic outfits for the family: $75
Wife that didn't nag: Priceless.





Tyler was excited to get his picture with the kids and Mitt. Logan was trying to catch up and kept getting blocked out from the crowds. At one point somebody walked up to Tyler and asked him, "which Romney son are you?" We got a good chuckle out of that and signed a few T-shirts ourselves.





You wouldn't think that at a political setting there would be such fun things for kids to do. There was even a ferris wheel there as well. I felt like we killed 2 birds with 1 stone. It might have been the straw poll, but we called it the "fair" *wink, wink*, and our kids were thrilled.





This medal I am holding is Derek Parra's gold medal from the 2002 Olympic Games. He was the gold medal winner in the 1500 meter speed skating. He was in Ames helping the Mitt Romney team. He came on the bus to give us our packets and tickets and brought both his gold and silver medals which he was kind enough to let us handle.