In the middle of June, we packed up our minivan and headed to southern Wisconsin so I could see if the 8-year old memories I had from The House on the Rock were real. Tim and I have also wanted to see Teliesen, Frank Lloyd Wright's estate. But what really sealed the deal for this trip was the fact that Tim's grandma's Swiss Chalet was vacant in Monroe, Wisconsin.
Pretty authentic, eh? If anyone is interested in Swiss living in the comfort of a small midwestern town, let us know. This place is for sale.
It was everything a quintessential road trip should be: an adventure full of roadside finds, spontaneous stops, and great great memories.
We stopped by the Don Q Inn, because of its serious kitsch. This plane landed here in the 70s and you can go in it. It is weird and creepy. There are these crazy themed suites in the hotel that look exactly like they did in the 70s, too.
The great thing about Wisconsin is there are just all sorts of fun things around every corner. This free petting zoo was somewhere around Spring Green. There was a little produce market, and then all of these animals. This goat reminded me so much of Auggie.
The Infinity Room at the House on the Rock was just as I remembered. This time my fear of heights kept me from the tip of it. Those little dots way in the distance are Tim and Penelope.
Mount Horeb is a little Norwegian town that has put itself on the map with their Trollway. Basically, there are all of these wooden trolls along their main street. This one was definitely the most impressive.
We brought our bikes and biked to New Glarus, a swiss town just north of Monroe most famous for its brewery and Spotted Cow beer. Tim's grandpa designed and built a lot of the swiss buildings in the town. This photo was taken in front of the New Glarus Hotel—the infamous restaurant where Tim mistook liverwurst for chocolate pudding when we was 12.
Of course we toured a cheese factory.
The second half of our trip was spent in Madison-- guests at Aunt Mary Ann's house. Mary Ann and Al were tremendous hosts. It was so relaxing to eat a meal without having to clean up and without the stress of kids exploding at a restaurant. Here we are at the Menona Terrace.
We got to go to Mary Ann's studio for Penelope's first professional haircut. When asked what kind of haircut Penelope had she would proudly say, "Um, a bob!"
On our drive back from Madison, we debated if we should pay $10 to picnic at Governor Dodge State Park. We did and we trekked down to this waterfall. It was the most scenic meal I've had in a long time.
My mom had a blast. My mom is a crafty woman, and she loves wine. And they played music circa her high school days. I don't think we could have planned it any better.
At this point, I was just running on adrenaline. It was so much fun to be on the go and doing all sorts of these things that I couldn't stop. So, we came back to the Twin Cities over 4th of July weekend, taking our good friends Brett and Brooke.
We traveled to Peoria, Illinois—their home town—a couple of years ago, and ever since I've been telling them how fun it would be to visit my old stomping grounds. The three day weekend was perfect. And with the Twins having a home game and a couple of really generous and ambition grandparents babysitting, we had a great time in Minneapolis.
After this, my let's-do-everything mentality was over. I was ready to stay put for a while and enjoy the little plastic pool in my backyard with the Penelope and August.
