Bettendorf, Iowa

Stopped at Whitey’s, the world famous QC ice cream joint, before heading over to the Makobens for some visiting. Stayed with them for Ben and Aryn’s wedding in Summer ’08 and was welcomed back immediately. Despite being a (tiny) bit overwhelmed by the sheer size of the family, they couldn’t be more friendly/funny/kind. Will do my best over the next couple of days to be precise about who’s who and where everyone belongs in the family tree, keeping in mind that full accuracy is nearly impossible.

Highlights from last night's stop-over at the Makobens include:

Watching/hearing the Barb and Carolyn Show.

Hide-and-go-seek (Chris, Joshua, Anja).

Hearing about the Grandquist family trip to Germany and camping in Colorado.

Listening to Larry talk about bringing country music stars through the QC county fair circuit.

Wishing Ted happy birthday and tasting the apple dessert thing. [Ed. note: I noticed that there was plenty of apple dumpling left as we departed for the evening. Perhaps the Makoben and Grandquist clans have a bit more self-restraint than the Lloyd/Chanin duo.]