Greetings inhabitants of planet Earth

   Chuck and Susie, Melissa and Dallas, Mike and Chris, Linda and Mac
   We won't bore you with our ride into Wichita... There was some hills, some wind, some more trees, and a lot of airports...
   WICHITA! Destination of relaxation! We cruised up to Linda and Macs place in Southeast Wichita on July 3rd. They are friends of Nates parents from when they lived in Louisiana and they were kind enough to allow us the status of guests for the past few days! Just so happens, we fit right in, and it has been some outrageous fun these past few days!
   We lumbered in all smelly on Tuesday and with quick introductions and a lunch already ready for us, we couldn't have asked for more! With some quick showers after lunch, we all hoped into the truck for a ride to meet the "framily" (friends that are family) and for a day at Kaw lake in Oklahoma! Drinks in hand and happiness in tow, everyone had smiles on their faces as introductions began. We met most of Linda and Macs framily right there at the lake! Susie, Melissa and Dallas, and Mike and Chris (with the exception of Chuck, Susie's husband whom we end up meeting later). After introductions, the fun just hasn't stopped rolling!
   The lake consisted of lots of drinks, laughs, tubing, floating, drinks, swimming, naked Nate, and a cookout!  We all hung out on Dallas's pontoon boat and basically just floated, drank, and shared stories! With most of the conversation being quite in the "adult" language, I wont share what happened for the stories and stuff... After the floating, Dallas and Mac took us out for a bit of fun and tubing under the sun! This is where naked Nate comes in... Nate's swimsuit is a tad bit big on him and for some odd reason he likes to be dragged in the water as opposed to being on the tube. So every time he was on the on the tube, he just lost his swimsuit! Dallas had to keep cruising around dragging naked Nate to find his suit somewhere off floating in the water! The best part was when Matt and Nate were tubing together, and even then Nate would lose his suit... So for a little bit Matt was tubing with naked Nate, muwahaha! The rest of the lake consisted of floating and drinking, just overall having a great time with our new found framily! After our drive back to the house, wonderful sleep ensued!
   The next morning didn't start at 4:30 as it usually does but instead we got the opportunity to sleep in for the first time in weeks. We took advantage and awoke to Panera Bread bagels and cream cheese. Thanks Mac!  With a full belly and no evidence of a hangover Mac and Linda took us on a tour of Wichita and showed us some of the downtown and some of their cool architecture. 
   After the exploration of the city we came back to the house and decided that swimming was the next thing on the agenda. Since Mac now has a civilian job on the Air Force base he got us onto the base and took us to their swimming pool. The pool was pretty great with a rock climbing wall over the water and a set of water slides. We conquered the routes on the rock wall except for the last one, which was by far the hardest. The slides were fun and fast exspecially the purple corkscrew one that sent you swirling faster and faster until it spat you out in a torrent into the pool.     
   After the pool we went back to the house, but stopped at the liquor store to pick up supplies for the ensuing 4th of July party. With Kansas brewed beer in tow we got back home, packed up the cream corn, and set out for Mike and Chris's house.  
   The party was full of good people, great stories, and fun times. At Mike's house we got the opportunity to meet Chuck who is Mac's brother from another mother as he put it. Chuck was loud, obnoxious, and loads of fun, just like the rest of the framily. They all made us feel more at home than we have in a long time and we can only hope that we are still partying that hard when we have kids. 
   The rest of the party was full of great food including buffalo chicken, cake, potato salad, cream corn, sandwiches, shredded chicken sandwiches with barbecue sauce and booze. Booze being the most important aspect. 
    Once it got dark the fireworks started and they would not stop for over two hours and included 360 degrees of greatness the entire time. This was just outside of Mike and Chris's house and wasn't the city setting off fireworks but instead the whole neighborhood basically having a fireworks fight to see who could set off more and be louder and be brighter. We all agreed that this was one of the best fireworks shows we had ever seen. With the fireworks dying down we got back in the truck and headed home to pass out and get up the next day to go to the bike shop and explore downtown. 
   The 5th started out with eggs and bacon for breakfast! After our feast, we started out into the heat of Kansas for our ride around Wichita and to the bike shop. Once there, naked Nate didn't find a suitable new saddle for his bike (bike seat), and Matt and I got new handlebar tape! Now, Matt and I are stylin' hard! Matt rolling with yellow to match his waterproof stuff sack, and me rocking red, yellow, green, and black! Soooo we're pretty cool. The guys at the shop were especially nice and very helpful and interested in our journey. Thanks for your support Darrell and his co-worker! We hope you follow along on our journey!
   After the bike shop we stopped at the Wichita Eagle News to see if they'd run our story... As far as we know, they haven't... BUT MAYBE... Ya never know, I guess we just aren't newsworthy here in Wichita... Weak sauce!
\   After the shop, we realized it was to hot to continue our ride around downtown so we started heading back. We stopped at an aquarium shop, ALWAYS AWESOME! Then we also stopped at a violin shop! Simon, the owner, turns out was diagnosed with Rheumatoid arthritis and it was horrible for him... It left him, for the most part, unable to play violin... Until later, he was given Embryl, a breakthrough drug of the late 90's and it helped him immensely! He regained his ability to play the violin, which from what I saw, was a true love of his life! He said he should have been a poster child for that drug, perhaps he should have been, because it seemed to have changed his life in the best way possible! Thanks Simon, I'm sure Nate will be back to purchase a violin from you in the future!
   Upon returning home, basically Matt and I just hung out in the basement and watched movies for the rest of the day. Bliss. Nate went to watch Linda and Mack's grandson play baseball. Matt and I watched more movies! How wonderful rest can be!
   Now we are here, today, Friday the 6th. We had a great breakfast at a diner in Wichita before Matt and I ended up here at a Starbucks blogging. We've had such a great time in Wichita with a wonderful sense of that Midwestern home feeling. The "framily" has been wonderful to us and we cannot thank them enough! We will miss all of you, and if we are ever in the Wichita area again, I'm sure we will swing by for a float in the lake! Linda and Mac have been such gracious hosts, karma will be sure to bring them good fortune! Tomorrow we set off for somewhere in Kansas, 50 miles east Wichita! Thanks Wichita, you've been a blast!
   Thanks to all of you who checked the blog and kept seeing nothing for the past few days. Continue to do so! We have hits from the Netherlands, Taiwan, Senegal, Columbia and the Chech Republic! Along with our gracious followers in Germany and Russia! Thanks to everyone for spreading the word! Continue to do so! As always, get on that Nick!!!
p.s. anyone can comment now! you don't need a gmail account! SO COMMENT, tell us who you are, why you like the blog, and ask us questions of what we think may be to come next!!

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 America the Beautiful with Miss America

 From Left to Right; Mac, Susie Q, Linda, Melissa the thinker, Chris, Dallas. The Framily

 Nate feeling like a boss with the ladies

 Tubing like a real man

 Thats how we do it in Kansas

 And hes down

 Joey jumpin up and down

 Is that all you got?

 Riding those waves like a true cowboy

 And hes down

 Matt just chillin like a villain

 Double Team, Supreme!

 And hes passed out

 The Thinker after a few too many

   Our new Framily