Owen's first ND adventure

Owen took his very first road trip to North Dakota in October. We made the usual loop and hit all the hot spots. Our first stop was to visit Owen's Great Grandma Schatz in the big city of Zeeland (population under 150!) Owen had a great time playing with Grandma.

Follow the leader Grandma!

She quickly got him wrapped around her little finger by holding him up to the telephone so he could chat or up to the window so he could watch the wind whipping the tree branches back and forth.

For you small town folks, you'll understand when I say we drove all over town and stopped by the day care, cafe, grocery store and post office to introduce Owen to all of his Great Grandma's friends. After a wonderful visit, Owen gave Grandma a big hug good-bye as we headed out the door to our next destination.

Our next stop was Bismarck to visit Owen's Great Grandma and Grandpa Klein. We timed our trip around Owen's nap time so he slept the entire ride! We of course showed up just in time to get some of Grandma's good cookin'! Grandma whipped up some wonders in the kitchen with her famous knoephla soup. It's amazing what a German grandma can create with potatoes and flour! Owen had his very first bowl of knoephla soup and Grandma's delicious kuchen. Both he and I agreed...it was yummy!

This is some good grub Grandpa!

After lunch it was time for Owen to check out Grandma and Grandpa's place. He had fun emptying all the paper in their recycling can, talking on their phone, and using Grandpa's walker. After all his hard work, he took a juice break on Grandma's lap.

Hey Grandma and Grandpa - I had fun relaxing with you but I've got to get some work done!

The next stop on our journey was to visit Owen's Grandma and Grandpa Klein in Fessenden. And Owen slept all the way yet again! We showed up just in time to head to a rally that Grandpa was speaking at for his North Dakota Senate race (congrats to Grandpa for winning his 4th term!) We walked in the door just as Grandpa was finishing up his speech and he introduced his new Grandson which generated a loud round of applause! After the meeting, Owen had fun weaving in and out of the crowd with Grandma and even got to meet the governor of North Dakota.

Owen was treated to french toast each morning at the local cafe where his Grandma showed him off to all her coffee ladies. We also made the trek to the bank, credit union, and grocery store so Owen could meet more of Grandma's friends. He was sure the hit of the town! Uncle James was also in town for a visit so we got to spend some time with him. During our visit, Owen had a super fun time playing on the computer with Grandma...

...and goofing around with Grandpa.

Owen especially liked playing barbershop with Grandpa (Grandpa makes great blow dryer noises!)

The last stop of our adventure was Fargo to spend some time with Auntie Jer and cousin Magnus. Owen thought cousin Magnus was a pretty nice boy...

Auntie Jer gave Owen a tour of her place...

And Owen had all sorts of stories to tell his auntie about our big road trip (he loves to talk with his hands!)

We had a fabulous time in North Dakota, but it was soon time to head home. So we bid Auntie Jer farewell and took off for home. After a fun-filled week visiting family in North Dakota, Owen and I were happy to be at home and Papa was sure happy to have us back!