The Last Hurrah

Well, our family said goodbye to the last days of summer in grand style I think!  Here's the run down:

Menominee Park Zoo in Oshkosh

Camping at High Cliff

 BIRTHDAYS! (Anna is 13 and Emily is 7):

 Pickles!  OK, not as exciting as birthdays, but I am so grateful to my coworker Kelly for giving me cucumbers this year.  15 jars!  I'm so happy!!

I tried Ball's pickle mix.  I actually ran out--so we'll see how they turn out.

Pickle mix looks like this.  Smells very dill-ish.

 Kites over Lake Michigan!  This was great--we are going to go every year I think!

I will learn eventually that I need to bring their swimsuits and/or an extra change of clothes every time we go to Two Rivers.  This time I just said:  "Go!  Get wet."  They obliged.

 Labor Day at the Labor Temple:

WE Energies was giving rides up in their cherry picker.  I can imagine this is better than how they spent last Labor Day.

Way high!

 And then....
Back to School:

Anna in 8th grade

Nicholas in 4th grade

Emily in 2nd grade.

And me?  Well, I missed Emily's meltdown this morning because the students at work are back to school too.  But I am enjoying the kids being at school in the afternoon.  I even have time to update my blog!

Vacation: Day 1 Wisconsin State Fair

I'm on vacation this week.  It's my first vacation since I started working at UW.  I am a spoiled public worker, so I get a week's vacation--without pay.  How lucky I am!  Good thing I'm married to a librarian, and we are independently wealthy...

Anyway, we went to the Wisconsin State Fair.  I love going to the state fair.  I do not love going with my MIL.  She pretty much just wants to go to have a cream puff and go home.  So--we didn't go with her (I'm sure there will be repercussions later...)

So we don't usually ride the rides at the state fair, unless it is the Sky Glider.  And with the 20mph winds, we skipped that this year.  But we did the kids activities in the DNR area (denuded this year--you could see the budget cuts from past years, when they had passports to get stamped and would earn little prizes, like bird whistles.  No passports this year--just a temporary tattoo).

I love food on a stick.  I am a sucker for anything on a stick, and Wisconsin State Fair has an entire section on their website about food on a stick.  Not joking.  It's here.

So we started with Deep Fried Oreos (not on a stick, but still good).

 

Next, we stopped at the sponsor-of-the-day PATRICK CUDAHY.  Doesn't get better than bacon samples--and their bacon samples were cinnamon rolls with bacon bits.  Sounds gross, I know...but it was yummy.

Then Emily got a "Fair Do".  It looks awesome.  We haven't attempted to wash it out yet, but it looked good:

We had our traditional corn on a cob, with Emily and Nick opting for frozen bananas on a stick.

We had cream puffs (Anna opted for the colossal brownie).

We had bacon wrapped tater tots--on a stick.

Then we went to the WE Energies arena to look at the art work, and found Information...on a stick:

Emily and Nicholas had (very messy) chocolate covered bacon...on a stick:

Other notable foods on a stick:  Cream cheese and bacon on a stick (not bad) and Fat Elvis on a stick--peanut butter cup deep fried in banana batter.  It is uber delicious!!

It wasn't all just food on a stick however.  We went to the draft horse judging and had front row seats.  Needless to say, Anna was thrilled.  Our other 2...not so much.

All three of them begged every time we went by the foot massagers, so as our last hurrah--foot massages for everyone!

It was a fun day, but by the end, the kids were getting on my last nerve.  I had a rum and coke, and a beer, and I was in a much better mood for the ride home.  I shoulda started drinking at 9am.  I love my kids--I hate when they whine and complain, especially when taking them to amazing things I never got to do as a kid.  Like EAA last year--we're watching the Harrier take off, it was an amazing, incredible moment in the middle of a thrill-a-minute air show...and my kids were bored, picking grass.  They are just spoiled.  Not bratty spoiled, certainly not rich spoiled, but they see so many fun things, they don't realize how special it is they are seeing them.

Coming soon:  Vacation Day 2: Farmers Market and Timber Rattlers :)

Catching Up

Because I have knit a grand total of one scarf and one pair of socks this year (gulp!) my catching up involves my kids and family activities:

We went to the Domes in Milwaukee.  It was beautiful--but it was also a VERY warm day in February (we didn't have much of a winter) so it lost some of it's "Winter Love".

I had my first finished object--a piano illusion scarf, finished for Anna's school's silent auction (and my friend, Liz bought it)

Anna also had her first school dance--80's night.  She didn't have fun.  :(

We went to Owensboro, KY to check out the area.  Brian applied for a job there (he didn't get it):

At the library--e is for Emily :)

 My beautiful kids at Easter:

I changed my hair!!

We had ants...lots of giant ones:

We bought a camper!  It needs lots of work, but the price was right, and we've got our whole lives.

We had more ants.  Lots of little ones this time.  We decided between the ants and the flooding basement it was time to move.

Emily learned to ride a two-wheeler and got a new bike as a reward. (Holy Cow!!  I'm one proud Mama!!)

Star Wars night at the Timber Rattlers!!!

Strawberry picking at Cuff Farms.  It was our first time there, and we'll be back!

Fourth of July (and lots of beach days!):

We are renting to own our friend's house.  He had to move to NY with his kids following his divorce.  We LOVE our new home, and hope he is happy where he is.  Here is a rose in my new garden:

 We went bowling at Super Bowl for FREE this summer!!  I can't say enough about this program!!

We made it to Bay Beach on the first not-above-85-degrees-Day we could find:

And I got another beautiful rose in my new garden:

So I think that sums up until today.  I'll be sure to take a picture of my new house (everyone has their own bedroom--and we have 2 bathrooms!!)  I had to rip out the baby blanket I was working on (messed up reading the directions--oy.) but my Olympic Sock is coming along nicely :)  More entries to follow!!