A Family Trip to Milwaukee
My favorite part about family vacations has little to do with our location or activities and almost everything to do with the silly inside jokes that come from so many uninterrupted hours of time together.
Like 3-year-old Adrian out of nowhere mimicking the deep radio announcer from the radio station we listen to most at home: “Q 94.5”. Or 6-year-old Cam always wanting to kiss when we came/left the AirBnB through their beautiful backyard “secret garden”. Or the song that plays during the breakfast scene in Pee Wee’s Big Adventure–a clip I introduced the boys to recently–that they (understandably) can’t get enough of. Cam every time says “oh my gosh!” when the dinosaur skeleton squeezes the orange to make orange juice… that part especially just sends him over the end.
We did have a great time traversing Milwaukee together for an extra long weekend. Ben and I had been before with friends, many pre-kid years ago and loved it. It felt like a good place to explore as we continue to expose the boys to new places, and longer stretches of time in the car.
Like 3-year-old Adrian out of nowhere mimicking the deep radio announcer from the radio station we listen to most at home: “Q 94.5”. Or 6-year-old Cam always wanting to kiss when we came/left the AirBnB through their beautiful backyard “secret garden”. Or the song that plays during the breakfast scene in Pee Wee’s Big Adventure–a clip I introduced the boys to recently–that they (understandably) can’t get enough of. Cam every time says “oh my gosh!” when the dinosaur skeleton squeezes the orange to make orange juice… that part especially just sends him over the end.
We did have a great time traversing Milwaukee together for an extra long weekend. Ben and I had been before with friends, many pre-kid years ago and loved it. It felt like a good place to explore as we continue to expose the boys to new places, and longer stretches of time in the car.
Beyond the radio voice, kissing, Pee Wee kitchen jokes, here were our highlights:
That trip being over means summer is slipping through our fingers! Next week starts another school year, and next family trip these beautiful, brilliant boys will be even bigger. Gulp.
- The Hop Streetcar: this free bus runs every 15 min and connects you to some of the best places in town
- Harley Davidson Museum: for boys of a certain age, of course. There’s some interactive exhibits, a decent kid’s area and several fixed bikes to sit on and play ride
- The Safehouse: a spy-themed restaurant we went to last time we were in town. The boys LOVED it, especially our fully enclosed booth that spun around to the other side of the restaurant.
- Discovery World: a REALLY cool kid’s STEM museum + hands on aquarium. We could have spent more time here, it was a blast!
- McKinley Beach. Is this any different/more special than a Lake Michigan beach 45 minutes from our house vs 4.5 hours? No. Did the boys love it anyway? Absolutely.
- 3rd Street Market Hall: We didn’t even eat at any of the indoor food booth options, but we did play ping pong, shuffleboard, and big jenga.
- Oak Leaf Trail – Lake Park for running. Ok this one is more for me, but this was a perfect spot to get my long run in on Saturday morning.
- Downer Woods / Kenilworth & Prospect neighborhood. This was a new-to-us spot of town to stumble upon. Wish we would have spent more time here, but it’s definitely a hopping restaurant/bar area to try out another time.
- Lakefront Brewery: A beer hall we visited on our first trip. This was a nice spot for adults and kids with an A+++ riverfront back deck, live music and good food.
That trip being over means summer is slipping through our fingers! Next week starts another school year, and next family trip these beautiful, brilliant boys will be even bigger. Gulp.