Whee-hoo Wisconsin!

I'm back, I'm back, I'm back...it's the start of a new school year, and it always takes me a little bit to get under way. But...I am a few posts "behind" in catching you up with our activities over the last six weeks or so. Because of this, I hope to blog often over the next few days and get us back up and running. :)

So...Wisconsin. Some people say "Whee!" when they are excited. Others say, "Whoo-hoo!" Not our son. Our son says, "Whee-hoo!" It's the best of both sayings. So as we crossed the Illinois-Wisconsin border, Kaden declared, "Whee-hoo, Wisconsin!" And, really, when referring to our trip to Door County, that about sums it up...Whee-hoo!

We had a wonderful time on our eight day trek to the "other" side of the lake. While there, we stayed in a wonderful little place called "Bailey's on the Rocks." Our cottage was called Rockledge and it was a quaint little white clapboard cottage with yellow shutters. What it lacked in air conditioning (we were there during the heat wave with 95+ temps), it more than made up for in charm.

While there we relaxed, spent much family time together, and took in the sights. For those who don't know, Door County is a peninsula that sticks out into the northern part of Lake Michigan and makes Green Bay. Door County boasts something like 22 beaches. We spent time at two, although after swimming in some yucky algae the first day, we moved to a new beach and spent the remainder of our beach days there. Our cottage was located in Bailey's Harbor, and thus, our favorite beach was Bailey's Harbor County Park, just down the road. Unlike our local beaches, Door County has very few dunes. We were able to park and walk right onto the beach. The water was very shallow and warm, and about fifteen feet from the shore was a large sand bar where the water was only an inch or two deep. It was perfect! We played in the water, and Greyson could even just sit on the sand bar and be part of the action.

When we weren't soaking up the sun, we played miniature golf at a place called Pirate's Cove, visited restaurants like the Yum Yum Cafe and Shipwrecked Brewery, and even whittled away a rainy day at a place called PC Junction. PC Junction is a railroad themed restaurant with peddle carts on outdoor courses, a big wooden train for the kids to play on, and food served via a toy train with the track mounted right to the bar! It was a blast, and the kids really had a great time.

Other highlights included touring a working lighthouse that has been in operation since the 1860s and attending a traditional fish boil. The fish boil consisted of a huge pot of whitefish, cooked over a fire with potatoes and onions. At the end of the cooking time they announce "boil over" and throw kerosene on the fire, which shoots into the sky. Then, they serve the meal. It was great fresh fish that had just been caught that morning, and there was local cherry pie for dessert.

After a busy school year and start to the summer, it was wonderful just to sit back and relax with the fam. Hopefully we'll make it back to Door County again sometime soon!