Day out with Thomas the Train and Bay Beach

ALL ABOARD!

On June 9 we headed up to Green Bay to the National Railway Train Museum to visit Thomas the Train. We decided to make this a mini vacation since the kids were out of school. We love that they get out of school a few weeks before the public schools.

We promised Ian a trip to see Thomas the Train, if he would wear big boy underpants and no more diapers (except at bedtime). He was VERY excited to be done with diapers and be a "big boy" like Ben. It was a warm, yet beautiful day heading to Green Bay. We spent the morning seeing Thomas the Train, taking a ride, doing crafts, listening to music, playing games, eating, and taking time to walk around to see all the different trains and the museum.

Ian aboard the bus to head to the museum where Thomas was waiting

Our family aboard Thomas the Train

Justin and the kids checking out some of the retired trains at the museum

Mommy and Ian

Look at them go!

There goes Thomas

Ben got chosen to play the drums with the band

Cami liked dressing up at a conductor in the gift store

At the entrance to the National Railway Museum

On the bus

Can you lift it daddy???

After going to Day out with Thomas the Train, we headed to our hotel, Tundra Lodge and Waterpark. The kids were SO excited to swim and play in the water. Since most kids are still in school, we had the water park almost to ourselves.

Playing in the water

Down the slide

The next morning, we played in the water park, had breakfast, then headed to Bay Beach. It was another perfect day to be outside. We met our friend, Trish and her 4 kids at the park. The kids enjoyed an afternoon of rides and snacks.

BAY BEACH

Goodbye Thomas! See you next year!

Racing to Chicago

This weekend (Friday, June 11 - Saturday, June 12) I'll be embarking on a new adventure. It's a 200 mile relay race from Madison to Chicago called the MC200 Relay. I'm running with 11 other runners. Each runner runs three legs and my total mileage is just over 20 miles. It's supposed to be pretty hot and humid on Friday and Saturday, so keep us in your prayers. If you want to follow our team's progress, we have a blog at
http://cheaperbythedozenrelay.blogspot.com/ and we plan to keep it updated throughout the event. So, if you can't sleep on Friday night, we'll be up and online!

Kindergarten Graduation Future Class of 2022

Our Graduate of 2022

Video presentation

Lining up for graduation

Our family with our graduate!

Cami's teacher, Mrs. Tiradani

Cami, Riley (Haydn's brother), and Haydn

Our time with Liz

On May 8, my AFS sister from Chile arrived in Milwaukee. After 17 years, we were able to reconnect in person. I am thankful for the phone, email, and Facebook, but there is nothing like seeing a friend and spending time with them in person. We were both unsure of how things would go. From the moment I saw her walking out of the concourse from her flight, all the uncertainty went away and we hit it off. It was just like it was so many years ago.

The kids adored her from the moment they met her.

We enjoyed showing Liz Madison. We started with a trip to our favorite restaurant, New Seoul, for some delicious Korean food. Liz had never tasted Korean food, so it was a nice treat. She loved trying Kimbop, Bibimbop, Kimchi, Chop Chae, among many other traditional Korean food. We visited State Street and the Capital building, which had a great view of the city, ate some famous Clary's popcorn, and had some pizza at Ian's pizza. With mom in town and Mike and Kylie coming for a visit, it was like a mini family reunion. We enjoyed a Friday Fish Fry, frozen custard, and Red Robin burgers. There's nothing like tasting the local cuisine when you travel to another country!

Despite the rain and colder than normal temperatures, we spent time at Olbrich outdoor gardens. We spent several hours walking around, learning about the bees from the beekeepers, and taking a lot of great pictures. The kids enjoyed running around. We headed to Ella's Deli after for Chocolate Shoppe custard and a ride on the Carousel.

We spent time around Madison, but also enjoyed just hanging out at home and catching up on the last 17 years. It was really hard to let her leave for her high school host parents in Minnesota then for New York. I am jealous that I no longer have flight benefits to travel with her! I look forward to our time together some day in the future.

Liz and Ian at the top of the Capital building

Red Robin

Ian and Liz at our coffee time at Cool Beans

Kylie, Uncle Mike, and Cami at Culvers

Olbrich Gardens

Ian and Aladodo at Olbrich Gardens

Kylie and Cami loving time together

Some yummy ice cream at Ella's Deli

A ride on the carousel at Ella's

A family picture by Monona Terrace

Time for a Fish Fry at Essen Haus

Cousins in front of Lake Monona

Liz and Cami in front of the capital

Ian, Ben, and Aladodo spend time planting tomato plants

Ian and Ben planting at a demo during Farmer's Market

It's time to say good bye

Cami is sad to see Liz leave

We were very sad to see Liz go. He asked where "people" was for several days after she left.