The Knickerbocker Family: Minnesota Trip

We got back from our trip to northern Minnesota late Saturday night. My step-dad Tom has a beautiful lake house on Pelican Lake, so my mom and Tom live there from May-October. We have been every year for the last 6 years, except last year because we were moving and I was pregnant. Jonathan stayed in Waco this year because he had to work, so I took the boys along with my sister and her two little girls. Here is a little recap of our trip.

I came down with strep throat AGAIN three days before we were set to leave, so I went to the doctor on Wednesday and she gave me an antibiotic. Thursday I had to take Logan back to the doctor to get his ear infection looked at before we left and luckily everything was cleared up. Friday we drove to Houston to spend the night at my sister's house. Saturday we flew to Minneapolis and then it's a three hour drive to the lake house. We stayed for a week and flew back this past Saturday. We landed in Houston around 6pm and then I decided to go ahead and drive home that night because the boys were so exhausted and just needed to get home.

We had a great time, William loved every minute of it. He did great on the plane ride going to Minnesota, but we had some issues on the airplane coming home...coloring with marker on the wall of the plane, splattering Logan's baby food (green beans) all over the place, having a complete mental breakdown/tantrum because he wanted to stand on the seat resulting in me physically restraining him in a headlock, he then crawled on the floor of the plane (I know, yuck!) and fell asleep so he stayed there for the last 20 minutes of the flight until we touched down. Luckily my sister was there to hold Logan for me while I had to tend to William. I knew he would be a ticking time bomb on the plane...no nap, couped up for 3 hours in the car on the way to the airport, missing his daddy, too much sugar that day and just a long trip led up to the self destruction. It was so funny, after we landed and he woke up he just got up, sat in his seat and buckled himself in without saying a word. I leaned over and said you are in big trouble Mr. He just muttered a sad sorry. It was definitely a classic family moment.

Here are the kids getting ready for their plane ride...

One day we took the kids to Paul Bunyan Land (Paul Bunyan is very popular in Minnesota). It's this cute little amusement park that has been around since the 50's. They still have all the original rides that Tom use to ride as a kid. William had a blast! It's so cute, when you buy your tickets you give the attendant the names of the kids and where they are from. Then Paul Bunyan talks to them as they walk in the park.

Logan was a huge trooper. I think he picked up a little virus from the doctor's office right before we left because he had a little cold the whole time we were there. I thought he was just teething, but his yucky nose didn't go away and then his eyes were yucky too. I am happy to report that he is feeling much better now that we are home, but he has been ultra clingy and only wants me to hold him. I'm thinking it's teething again, but who knows. I'm hoping it passes in a day or two.

Here we are hanging out at a nearby touristy town called Nisswa. We played at the park (Minnesota has the nicest parks I've ever seen), ate at a local pizza place and then hit up the candy store where William downed some cotton candy ice cream...

We spent the rest of the time swimming in the lake, swimming in the hot tub, going on boat rides, hiking through the woods, we had a camp fire one night and just enjoyed the nice weather. At night it gets down into the 60's and then heats up into the high 70's-low 80's.