afternoon lake-away

They say Milwaukee is a great place on a great lake. We weren't on that lake (Lake Michigan) this afternoon, but we visited this lake in our Lac du Cours neighborhood. The kids made some friends and went "fishing for fish," as Catcher described it to me. It was another amazing day here--what else can I say? Scout may or may not have turned into a grump-o-potamus when it was time to wrap things up and head back to the house for dinner, but even her spirits were lifted when I suggested we return later this week for an evening picnic. You know how I love a good picnic...

saturday at the market

Answer: kettle corn, cheese curds and smoothies. Question: what delicious treats can the little monsters discover at the South Shore Farmers' Market in Milwaukee, Wisconsin?

Yesterday morning was the perfect summer morning for an adventure through the farmers' market. Rested-up (not really) from our Independence Day extravaganza, the kids were ready to take on a new exploit in the big city. After a leisurely stroll through the stands, which lasted until the kettle corn was gone, we crossed the street to a playground on South Shore Park overlooking Lake Michigan. Even though they were a little groggy from the previous day's excitement, there wasn't much this group of youngsters could find to complain about because 1) check out the scenery, and 2) there were cheese curds involved.

strawberry fields forever

The car ride home following our afternoon outing to Barthel Fruit Farm was somewhat reminiscent of that scene in Forrest Gump (you know the one where Bubba rattles off all the things you can do with shrimp: shrimp kabobs, shrimp gumbo, coconut shrimp, shrimp soup, shrimp salad, etc.) as the littles told us all the things they would make with the fresh strawberries they had just collected. We were going to have strawberry shortcake, strawberry pancakes, strawberry milkshakes, strawberry pie and strawberry preserves. But Tillie had gorged herself on strawberries during the picking process, and then Scout and Catcher couldn't stop eating them when we returned to Grandma's house with our bushel. (It wasn't really a bushel, but it felt like a bushel...maybe it was more of a peck.) Either way, we went with the rinse-the-strawberries-and-eat-them-out-of-the-box route instead of making all that fancy stuff. Still delicious!

happy birthday, america!

around the campfire

We had a warm day in Wisconsin and then a cool day (today is a cold day, if anyone is keeping track). The nice thing about the cool days, however, are the cool evenings that follow. Last night we pretended we were on a great excursion to the northern limits of Wisconsin--"up north," they say here--as we lit a backyard campfire and sat around it creating Mad Libs as a family. (And yes, I call that good old-fashioned family fun.)

Catcher, the director, first questioned our placement of the fire pit. He thought we should have the fire in the middle of the driveway, but that idea was quickly overruled. Sitting in a tight circle of adirondack chairs in the backyard, the kids learned exactly how hot a fire can be (you know, since we never have those in Texas). They quickly scattered to the outer limits of the yard as the heat intensified before returning to request marshmallows for toasting. Marshmallows...the only thing missing from our little bonfire. Catcher, once again directing the adults, told us we really need marshmallows next time we have a fire.

super soakers

Yesterday it was Wisconsin warm (not to be confused with Texas hot) so the crazies were finally able to put on their swimwear and go wild. They were begging to bring out the water slide, but we finally settled on water guns when they realized how much fun it was to sneak-attack their dad. After Catcher surprised him from behind ("surprised" means doused), Alex got his revenge with his sidekick Scout. Then Scout "bossypants" had to instruct Tillie on the proper way to load and carry her gun. Hallelujah, summer fun!

P.S. Please don't ask about the girls' choice of swim gear. Although I wouldn't have chosen them myself, I feel the leotard and tankini will at the very least make a great nostalgic photo that will give the girls a laugh in 20 years. Let the record show that I had nothing to do with the choosing of the outfits, so they can't blame me for dressing them this way (wink).