It

It's time to start planning for the Lavalle Family Reunion 2007

COUNTDOWN to Family Reunion 2007 - Destination Iowa

Lavalle Re-Union 2007 Schedule of Events

Wednesday August 8^th –

6:00 till ????

For those arriving today please join us at Centro Restaurant (one block north of the Host Hotel on corner of 10^th & Locust) for a NY Style Coal Fired Pizza & Pasta buffet hosted by the Iowa Lavalle's.

Casual Dress

Thursday August 9^th –

Sleep in today put on your Coney Island apparel and Lets go to the State Fair! Since 1854, the Iowa State Fair is the country's most famous state fair and Iowa’s largest tourism event. The annual August extravaganza inspired the internationally-acclaimed novel, “State Fair,” three motion pictures, plus Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Broadway musical. Join us August 9-19 and see why the Iowa State Fair earned a spot in the New York Times best-selling travel book, '1000 Places to See Before You Die.' Once you visit, you'll see why more than 1,000,000 visitors ooh and aah about it each year. “Sounds Like Fun”! The Fair offers more than 20 different kinds of delectable food-on-a-stick and nearly 200 food stands for you to chomp, munch and crunch your way through. However we are making arrangements for a cool place to prop your feet up and all of us enjoy the evening meal together on the Fairgrounds. It really takes much more than a day to see it all but with our many years of attending we will have lots of ideas for you to get the most out of it!

Friday August 10^th –
It’s a Day in the Country! Our Bus departs 9 am for the one-hour trip to Lisa Mills-Lavalle’s family farm. This Iowa Natural Heritage site is over one mile of Iowa River Valley timberland surrounded by lush Iowa Crop Farm. We will have a hayrack ride on the Timber Trails with commentary by a Biologist and Forester from the Iowa Dept. of Natural Resources.
After a “Farm Lunch” catered to the family picnic spot on the Iowa River bluff a choice of activities centered around riding on farm equipment, searching for fossils, hiking or bird watching or just plain relaxing are yours.
Our transport will depart mid afternoon for the 45 minute trip to see his Majesty the Mayor of Iowa Falls! We will visit Auntie Ann’s grave site, travel down Rocky’s Road and ( not sure from this point?? Ride Iowa Falls riverboat (eat on it too?), visit the old pizza house? Have dinner Camp David ? Rocky Looking for some imput here before we leave to come back to DSM.)
Music fans Alice Cooper and Blue Oyster Cult play the grandstand at fairgrounds 8:00 PM for those interested get your tickets at Iowa State Fair website.

Costs:

Wednesday -Dinner reception -(hosted)
Thursday - Group Admission to Fairgrounds and coupon book plus your own incidental expenses with Dinner at fairgrounds approx. $20 per person with children half price.
Friday –
Bus fee for the day divided by attendees, Catered Lunch at Farm $15 per person, Dinner with boat ride $35 ? Per person adults with children at $___
Saturday-
Lunch at Des Moines Art Center (hosted)
Dinner at club that evening $35 per guest with children 15 and under half price.

Saturday August 11^th –
Choices are yours for the making.

First stop today could be the Des Moines Farmers Market?

How about some golf on The Glen Oaks Country Club course?

Afterward Chef/Owner (Lisa Lavalle) of the Des Moines Art Center Café has arranged a delightful lunch at her cozy spot with a docent guided tour (for those wanting), of the World Renowned Des Moines Art Center.

But don’t eat too much we have a big dinner planned for you at her husbands Club at 801 Grand Ave. 41^st floor location! We will be enjoying a grand meal prepared by the Club Chefs featuring Italian foods and wines!
While we watch the sun set over the Iowa landscape we will reminisce, remember, and toast our family as we wrap up Reunion 2007 and plan Re-Union 2009!!

Sunday August 12^th –
For those interested and able to attend a casual brunch is being planned on Sunday morning. Many nice churches in the vicinity as well.
I can give you many suggestions for those wanting to extend their vacation and travel on. Badlands/Mount Rushmore is 8 hours west, Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado is 12 hours west, Kansas City 3 hours Southwest, Chicago 5 hours east and Minneapolis 3 hours north. The Amtrak California Zephyr departs to Denver at 8:00 pm (Approx) each evening with arrival at 7:00 AM the next day and the beautiful trip on from there too Glenwood Springs via the Colorado River valley we have done 3 times as a family. Once there rafting, horseback riding, hiking you name it.

Let me know as soon as you can if you are able to attend. Some costs are dependent on attendees to some degree as we get better rates for more participants. Other than transportation to Iowa, Lodging (Room Rate $105 per night) and some transportation costs while here, the expenses look like the following:

Email Contacts:

Mike Lavalle roccolaval@msn.com

Rocky Lavalle rblaval@iowaconnect.com

Kevin Lavalle lavallek@hotmail.com

Phone Contacts:

Mike Lavalle - 515-244-1413 x201 wk

515-710-2360 cell

515-277-5052 hm

Rocky Lavalle - 641-373-0463cell

641-648-3514 Hm

Kevin Lavalle - 323-251-5282 cell

Greater Des Moines Convention and Visitors Bureau: conventions, meetings, attractions, events, weekend getaway, vacation

This is the website of the Greater Des Moines Convention and Visitors Bureau. Here you'll find information on Hotels, Attractions in Greater Des Moines.


	Hotel Fort Des Moines Call to Reserve a Room 515-243-1161 Request the "Lavalle Family Reunion" rate. Select the "Book a Hotel Room" Button above for Hotel Details

For those Art History majors... Grant Wood - American Regional Painter, 1891-1942 was born and lived in Cedar Rapids, Ia.

Examples of his work are only 30 miles from Des Moines in Ames, IA. at the Iowa State University library. The murals were painted several years after his now famous painting "The American Gothic", at the height of the Great Depression, the advent of President FDR's New Deal Public Works of Art in 1934 paid the artists. Artists were employed to paint the Grant Wood-designed mural "When Tillage Begins, Other Arts Follow" for ISU's library.

Bruce Thiher is the current tenant of the house in Eldon, Iowa, that served as the backdrop of American Gothic.
NPR 'American Gothic', Present at the Creation

Seen in this 1942 photo, Nan Wood Graham, Grant Wood's sister, and Dr. B.H. McKeeby, the family dentist, served as the models for American Gothic.
Photo: Cedar Rapids Museum of Art archives

Grant Wood, right, and fellow artist John Steuart Curry in Stone City, Iowa, in the summer of 1933.

Bridges of Madison County are a short 33 miles from Des Moines, near Winterset, Iowa, Winterset is also the Home of John Wayne (born Marion Morrison in Winterset, Ia on May 26, 1907)