Wisconsin

From South Dakota, we headed east 12 hours (One stop! World record!!) to Madison, Wisconsin to spend some time with our friends Alisa and Greg. Our families moved to and from Dayton within a few weeks of each other, and I feel like my friendship with Alisa is one of the great blessings of the two years we spent in Ohio. Not only do our children match nicely in age, she is one of those friends that I can pick up with as if no time has passed since we've seen each other, and even after three days of pretty much nonstop talking there are still things I wish I could have discussed with her. In many ways we are different, but there is an underlying way that we experience the world that resonates. I know she'll understand where I'm coming from when I share something with her, and even topics I don't dare broach with most people - politics, religion - can all come out unfiltered. It is a blessing to have a friend like that. Also, she is a really good hostess. Our family felt totally welcome and comfortable in their home. (And our boys mention playing on their Wii as one of the highlights of the entire vacation).

One evening Alisa and Greg reserved a picnic spot on a lake to have a barbecue at sunset, and we felt like we were experiencing some of the best of Wisconsin.

 

Even though normal people would not think of this as a good swimming opportunity, we have surrendered to the fact that our children are incapable of spending any amount of time near a body of water without ending up in it. We dressed them in swimming suits and, sure enough, they got wet in between their digging projects.

 

We ate some brats, drank some Wisconsin soda,

 

roasted a few marshmallows,

 

enjoyed the view of the capitol across the lake (happily quiet after the raucous recall attempt the week before),

 

and it was a lovely evening.

One afternoon we spent at a pool, and another at the Madison Children's Museum, which, as Alisa noted, is so Madison. Most everything is unique, not plastic, funky, alive, and/or upcycled. We liked it.

 

Way too soon it was time for us to say goodbye. Alisa and family are Air Force folks; they are in Madison for Greg to complete a PhD, and then they'll be off to explore some new part of the world. One of the things I like about them is that they are champion explorers. Where ever they are, they discover every best, most fascinating, and most bizarre corner of the world within a few hour radius. We very much hope that our paths overlap in the years to come.