On Wisconsin!

While Brad spent the weekend in Detroit with family recently, the boys and I flew up to visit my parents in Wisconsin.  Mom and Dad have lived northwest of Milwaukee, in Slinger, for 7+ years now, so with some of my cousins and an uncle and aunt not too far away, it has become home to them.  However, since the boys had only been up there once (last fall) and only for a few days, this was a great opportunity to spend more time enjoying their home and exploring southeast Wisconsin!

Butterfly Garden

Flying a kite at a park near the lake

We had a busy week, started by an early morning flight (we left the house at 5am) to Chicago, a drive to Milwaukee, a park right on Lake Michigan (where Jamison flew a kite for the first time!), and the Milwaukee Public Museum (Natural History), where the boys found plenty of animals to check out, before heading home for dinner.

Jamison with a praying mantis

Wishing they could run with the animals

Pressed against the glass checking out the antelope

Riding a bear at the museum

The next day we took it slow, playing at my parents house, and not venturing too far, as we needed some rest!  (Both boys napped - a big deal for Jamison, who stopped napping LONG ago.)  We did manage to find a local Germanfest where we enjoyed live polka music while eating bratwurst for dinner.  The boys had fun in a bounce house and playing at the playground there.

Enjoying German Night at Regner Park in West Bend with Grandma & Pop Pop

Someone liked the slide!

Visiting camels at the Milwaukee Zoo

We got close to the flamingos

Look at those grins...these boys love the zoo!

Tired after 6 hours of walking

Friday we planned a trip to the Milwaukee Zoo, and we spent all day seeing shows, exploring various parts of the zoo, and looking for air-conditioned buildings where we could take a break from the heat and refill our water bottles!  I especially enjoyed the tall trees (and the shade they provided) throughout the zoo, and the boys loved the variety of animals.  After spotting peacocks in quite a few places, and two crossing the street, we decided that they thought they owned the place.  Our favorite parts of the day may have been the shows: we saw a water show with a sea lion and two harbor seals, one on birds of prey, and one called "Alien Invasions" about non-native species and their impact on the environment (i.e. zebra mussels in the Great Lakes).

Saturday we experienced what seems to be a tradition in most small towns in the midwest: the local festival.  Port Washington is a medium-sized town on Lake Michigan which hosts "Fish Day" each summer, and boasts the "largest one-day outdoor fish fry" in the world.  The boys and I left early with my dad to catch the parade,

Parade watching with Pop Pop George

which we enjoyed, and after work my mom joined us for a yummy lunch of fresh fish.  Had it not been for the heat we would have stayed longer to walk around the art show, or maybe take the long walk down to the beach (looked like hundreds of stairs, and none of us wanted to carry two tired kids that far!)...but it was a fun day.

Lake Michigan - view from Port Washington, WI

The boys and I with Grandma Bonnie

Port Washington's location on the lake, many sailboats, and the festival atmosphere reminded me of Vermilion, Ohio, a cute town on Lake Erie where Brad and I lived for five years.  It is also home to the Festival of the Fish, a fun local tradition. 

Jamsion's Jenga-block tower

Building with Lincoln Logs!

We attended church together, played at their house, and spent some time with extended family.  The boys were thrilled with the basement, where they could build and drive trucks to their hearts' content and leave the mess to clean up later. 

Fun on the deck

On Monday we went swimming with a friend at the private lake in her neighborhood.  Jamison and I got to watch small bluegills swimming near our feet, while Nathanael mostly wanted to dig in the sand.  It was fun to watch the boats in the other part of the lake too.  While it was hot outside, the water was pretty comfortable, as there was a slight breeze and a place to sit in the shade.

Enjoying sand and shade at the beach

Monday night we went to our first little league baseball game to see our cousin play (and to play on the playground nearby).  Here's a pic of the boys with our cousins...so cute!


Monday night we went to our first little league baseball game to see our cousin play (and to play on the playground nearby).  The boys found a toy they could sit on that operated like an excavator, and both tried it out (and both bumped their heads on it), though it was better suited to someone Jamison's height.  They also both rode a merry-go-round for the first time!  (We don't have them at parks here, so they both watched for awhile before trying out the new park equipment.)  Fortunately they did have some help from their cousins. 

Jamison helps get it started...

Here's a pic of the boys with our cousins...so cute!

The kids enjoyed playing together

On our last day in Wisconsin we dropped off my mom at work, then spent time at a park in town, and visited the local library.  We had a quiet afternoon at my parents' house while I packed and prepared for an early morning.  Since our flights were through Chicago (O'Hare) we needed to leave around 4:00am for our 7:15am departure.  To my parents' great surprise, all was packed and ready by the time I went to bed around 10:00pm, AND we were able to get the luggage, the boys, and myself out the door, into the car, and on our way about 5 minutes early!  (If you ask, they'll tell you that the only time in my life I was early was at my birth; and my brothers could easily tell stories of me missing the bus numerous times in high school; so for me, this was a momentous achievement!)

Though we missed Brad, as this was the longest we've all been away from him in the past two years, we were really glad that we had the time and resources to travel to be with my parents.  We still missed some of my cousins I had hoped to see, but were thankful for the time we had, and for the good memories.  It was pretty sweet to see the boys run to meet him in the baggage claim area at the airport.  If one hand had been free, I'd have taken a picture, but as it was, I'll remember the scene and smile, just the same.