Port Washington... with the Kids!

July 30, 2016:  Marc and I made our first trip to Port Washington in 2014, for our 9th Anniversary.  We absolutely fell in love with this charming little lake-side town!  In the summer of 2015, we pit-stopped here on our way home from the UP with Andy & Lindsey.  This summer we decided to take our kids!  We loved it so much we decided to make it a summer tradition.  It's about a 3 hour drive for us (just north of Milwaukee).  We also pass a couple outlet malls so it's great for back-to-school shopping!

We started our morning at the beach.  We took the kids scooters because there is a nice paved path from the parking lot to the beach.  It was a cooler morning but that didn't stop the kids from enjoying the weather.  When we got to the beach, we saw the "no swim" sign up.  The kids were bummed but they had fun playing in the sand.  Marc and I got to relax for a bit.     

You can see the lighthouse in the distance!

Next we went to lunch at New Port Shores.  It was a perfect day to eat outside--not to hot, but nice and sunny!  This restaurant has a great patio, complete with a giant sandbox for the kids to play in while we waited for our food.  The kids enjoyed big mugs of "Sprecher" Root Beer (made in Wisconsin).  

After lunch we took a walk out to the lighthouse.  This little town is known for this picture perfect light house.  You walk on a long pier out into Lake Michigan to get to the lighthouse.  It is always dotted with sightseers and fishers.  The walk itself is gorgeous, surrounded by beautiful blue skies and of course the Lake!

Carver got Splashed by a HUGE wave!

Sitting under the lighthouse, enjoying the view

After our light house walk, we enjoyed some shopping.  The popcorn store is ALWAYS a must... as is the candy store... and the butcher.  We took a break from our shopping to enjoy some ice cream.

Goodies from the Candy Store!

Before we headed for home, we spent some time at this huge playground!  The playground has a mini replica of the lighthouse.  It's built up on a bluff overlooking the lake.. so again, gorgeous views.  We enjoyed some late afternoon time here before we left for home. 

And what trip to Wisconsin is ever complete with out some CHEESE?!?!  We stopped at the Cheese Castle on our way home for some yummies.

Such a perfect summer day... we are looking forward to many more Port Washington Days to come!

Football Camp/Cheer Camp

July 25-29, 2016:  Sadie & Kinnick enjoyed a week of camp at the YMCA.  On Friday, we got to watch them perform!

Blessing Bags

July 26, 2016:  My mom's group decided to tackle a little service project with our kiddos... We got together and let the kids make "blessing bags" for homeless.  They colored pictures to include and filled the bags with toiletries, snacks, socks, water, etc.  We love keeping one of these bags in our car all the time.  We also take one or two with us when we are visiting bigger cities.  I love that my kids are learning to care for others... 

Park Hopping

July 25, 2016:  My friend Michelle and I thought it would be fun to plan a day of park-hopping.  It was hard to find a free day for both of us (summer just seems to fly by) but we landed on a day that Kinnick had football camp in the morning (so we had to pick him up after a few park stops).  We started our day with a Dunkin' Donuts planning session.  We had our Shorewood map out which highlighted all of the public parks... we made a plan to hit as many as possible (and a few other parks we knew about!)  All in all we visited EIGHT different parks... and started a new summer tradition!!

Mapping out our Route...

Eagle Ridge Park:

Nothing like getting muddy at your first stop!

Hampton Glen Park:

We packed LOTS of snacks & drinks!

Wesmere Park:

Renwick Community Park:

Shorewood Park:

DuPage River:

Little Coyote Park:

The Whole Crew!

Gabrielson Oakwood Park:

Westshore Park: