DIY Projects

Emma and Erin took at thick yarn blanket making course through community education this past week. We learned how finger weave and were able to make a full blanket in about two hours. Then Emma took her skills and added to her customer base by making a cat bed for the cats at Grandma and Grandpa Maas's house. Customers seem to be thrilled with the product (see photo below).

Mushi was the first to try the new pad. Emma also explored the world of sewing this past summer with Nina's Atelier sewing classes. She made a bag for holding toiletries. Dan needed a new one for traveling, so it was perfect. She also made two holders for ipads or phones while they charge next to the wall. Her final item of the summer was a reusable bag for groceries.

Natura Water Park and Tunnel Trail Campground

We spent one of our last weekends in August visiting Wisconsin Dells natural waterpark and one of our favorites, the Tunnel Trail that runs through Elroy/Sparta area. We originally planned for a three day trip, but we ended up only doing two because the weather was not in our favor. Saturday was rain, storms and very humid weather. Wisconsin Dells was supposed to have thunderstorms all evening and night so we thought we would rather just get some extra sleep at home and head out early in the morning. We started our journey with a walk in the Dells downtown to find the Wizard Quest indoor activity area. It was raining when we arrived and we couldn't see ourselves going to the outdoor water park in the cold rain.

Thankfully, Wizard Quest was the engagement we needed. We started at 4 doors (Earth, Air, Fire and Water). We had to pick a door to go through and a world where we would solve a quest on the Ipad they gave us. We used a flashlight to uncover hidden footprints and doors as we explored the worlds.

We solved a mystery in the fire realm that dealt with a lizard that lost its baby. We moved to the earth and water realms as we solved the mystery.

Then we decided to solve a mystery with a unicorn where we traveled to the world of air. We went up and down hidden stairs, ended up locked in giant bird cages and went down the rainbow slide twice (Erin didn't want to go twice). We enjoyed ourselves and would definitely return for more quests if we found ourselves in the rain while in the Dells. After solving multiple mysteries, we were off to the water park.

At the Land of Natura we played in the pools and went down the inflatable slides carved into the side of the hill. There were so many different inflatables to climb on, slide down and jump off. It was the perfect day to go when it was somewhat cool and rainy. Erin talked with other families that were swimming and they said the previous day was awful because too many people were climbing on the structures. It was hard to get a chance to do all you may have wanted. We got to go on anything we wanted multiple times.

Dan tried to flip the girls off the water teeter totter but they didn't go very far. There were many obstacles that the girls zipped through like water trampolines, swings and even a running rolling tube. It was like watching Nikelodeon competitions on TV back from the 80s.

It was nice to not have all the clorinated water you usually get with water parks.

After the water adventures, we headed to the canopy walk they had created in the forest by the river. The boardwalk bounced as you walked along. The best part was that we were high up so we got a breeze and there were no mosquitoes that high up.

We also checked out the river to walk the beach. The sun finally made its appearance for a short time before we headed back to the campground for the night.

We spent the night at the Tunnel Trail campground and made chili and sweet potatoes. We stayed in a cabin that had a nice swing outside and enough beds for everyone. We also had air conditioning and fans which provided optimal comfort. Our bathroom wasn't in the cabin, but it wasn't far to walk to it and the shower had hot water. It was camping but with needed comforts. We biked around a bit on the tunnel trail and tried out the heated saltwater pool at the campground before returning home on Monday morning. Ever since Erin and Dan biked from Maplewood to Baraboo Wisconsin about 15 years ago, Erin wanted to return to the Tunnel trail campground when she had kids. It is such a unique stop for families. You can camp but then go mini-golfing, play volleyball, swim in the community pool and much more. The family that runs the campground also brings in shows for the campers to see on certain evenings. We stopped in Eau Claire for a rest break and walk at Phoenix Park by the river. Overall, it was a fun mini-vacation before school started again.

Although Erin likes to post the smiling photos most of the time, there are a few silly ones that slip into the mix.

Door County Girls' Trip

It is official. Erin and the girls made it through a road trip together to Door County for a five day adventure. We started out the long journey with some stops in Menominee, Wisconsin. We originally thought we were going to Lion's park to see buffalo but it turns out we were just bit by flies. No buffalo were present, so we walked by the lake and through the shaded parks. The girls played on the equipment and we walked a nice bike trail they had running throughout the city.

Next stop was Wausau, Wisconsin. Here we went to a water park. However, after being in the water for about fifteen minutes, the sky was getting dark and the life guards told us we needed to take cover. There were a bunch of four year olds that had just come to the park with their preschool class. Boy did they look scared as we huddled in the changing area. Luckily, the rain didn't last long (although it did follow us across the state)and we were back on our journey to Howard, Wisconsin.

When we reached Howard, we located the bike trail and found an old limestone quarry where community members now swim. We also went to a nice indoor community pool this time in case it started to storm. The pool was amazingly refreshing and didn't cost much to attend.

Before stopping for the night at the Airbnb, we went to the local grocery store. We thought we had more time before the storm came, but we did not. The storm caught us as we were coming out of the grocery store. The clouds were starting to drop and the wind speed picked up to the point where we could barely close our car doors. Emma looked like she wanted to go back in the grocery store but Erin convinced the group that we were only three minutes from the Airbnb and should be fine. We did make it back to the house even though the trees were blowing in all directions.

The next morning, we headed to Green Bay to see the botanical garden. We arrived a bit too early so we decided to walk around the perimeter of the garden. When we did, we saw telephone pole workers being trained in their craft. It was interesting to watch so many of them up on the poles at once. Once we finally got into the garden, we were amazed. We thought we had seen a lot of botanical gardens and butterfly gardens before but this one took first place in our books.

The theme of the garden seemed to be Alice in Wonderland. They had giant figures throughout the garden made from recycled materials. We encountered a turtle, peacocks, jelly fish and more as we moved through the "wonderland."

They had lots of interactive things for kids to do as they explored the flowers. There was a spinning wheel to make you dizzy and jumping cicles built into the ground.

They also had a rain storm center where you touched a button and could see the full water cycle. Emma will never forget the water cycle because she walked into a sensor and got soaked accidentally. Next to the water cycle was a stream with coy in it. Even the bathrooms were designed to be little cottages that Alice would have encountered.

The flowers were gorgeous and the color combinations were perfectly designed. They also had strawberries and different vegetables growing that kids could pick and play with in these little houses set throughout the wonderland. It was truly a great place for make believe play that younger kids do. We had a ton of fun but wish we had known about it when the girls were little.

After the botanical garden, we visited the Neville public museum. When we first entered, we found a Lego recreation of Lambeau field. The girls were impressed with the number of Legos used to build the structure.

Then the girls meandered through the rooms where they learned about the chemistry of making candy, light waves and even did a weather forecast in front of a green screen.

In the weather station, we also discovered that Howard had the strongest tornado recorded in the Green Bay area with a level of F4. It made us think twice about the previous night.

On the second floor, we saw lots of antique items from 1900s-today and encountered Dr. Seuss's original drawings and sculpture work. Everyone was fascinated to learn that he sculpted many of the figures that he created on paper.

We also went through an exhibit to learn about Darwin and saw some of his original books that he wrote in. The girls participated in an interactive screen where they pretended to be birds eating moths. Some moths were camoflagued and harder to locate.

It was getting hot after the musuem, so we decided to cool off at the local pool. We absolutely loved the Resch Aquatic Center. They had fun slides, a diving board and lap lanes so Erin could watch all the action. They also had a nice park right next to the pool.

After swimming we decided to visit Bay Beach for some screamingly good rides. The girls went on the swings, the Egg beater, and Tilt-a-Whirl. Erin had a great time taking pictures of their faces as they zoomed around.

You would think our day was finished after all that, but we still had Champion, Wisconsin and the Shrine to our Lady to visit. We were tired at this point and a storm was coming in again, but we were able to tour the museum and walk the grounds before the rain hit. We enjoyed learning about the Marian apparitions that have occurred throughout history. They had a map that made it easy to see when and where each apparition took place.

We also learned that the pathway around the back of the church was placed there to show where the fire stopped just before hitting the sacred space. The people at the time of the great fire paraded with a statue of Mary on their shoulders for hours and prayed for the fire to stop before it hit the place where Adele Brice had the visions of Mary. Luckily, the fire was stopped by rain just as it was touching the outer fence area of the location.

We stayed at the Pelican Inn the second night. We needed to dry some of suits and towels so we went to the laundry mat at the motel. However, we didn't have two dollars worth of coins so we walked over to the local gas station to see if they could trade us a few dollars for some quarters. The experience immediately put us back in the late 80s. When we arrived back at the laundromat with our change, the storm was there to greet us. We thought we might be able to go back to our motel room and watch a movie but we were stuck. Thankfully, someone had put a shelf of board games and books in the corner so we played while our clothes dried and the storm raged on.

On our third day, we woke up to the smokey smell from the Canadian wildfires. Erin had to wear a mask while cherry picking and hiking in the morning because she is part of the sensitive group. The girls had a blast climbing the ladders and picking cherries.

After getting our fill of cherries we headed to the east shore to climb on the rocks and hike along the shore. We also stopped at the beach but it was closed for swimmming because of high winds.

Then we were off to Pennisula State Park. Here we climbed the Eagle's Nest Tower. We could see Lake Michigan for miles and miles.

Next up was Nicollet Bay. This beach was so popular that there were no parking spots. We were so fortunate to find one right next to the showers. The beach was sandy and the water temps were perfect. Emma decided to read on the sand while Erin and Analise went in. The water was perfect. Analise was surprised to find that the showers were warm and comfortable to stay in a for a bit after being in the lake. We decided to hike the trails along the lake in this area as well before heading to our Airbnb for the night. While hiking, Analise found a Sandhill crane family. She approached a mom walking with her baby just behind. Analise got in line behind the baby and then the dad started to follow Analise. It was hillarious to watch them all walking in a line, that is until they figured out she wasn't a bird. Then they huddled together away from her and stared.

After a long day, the last thing one wants to think about is the motel, however we had to think a lot. When we arrived the host didn't send us to the correct door. Then when we used the lock box, there was no key inside. She was in Wisconsin Dells with her family and wouldn't be back for another few hours to help. So Erin had to go find the master key for the place. The door was so old and it was hard to get the key to work in the lock. When we finally got in, the heat was on, the air was limited and the internet did not work/was spotty. Just when Erin thought she couldn't take any more, a guy knocked on the door and said this was his room and demanded we leave. After talking with the manager, he realized that he had booked the room for the wrong night and was supposed to be there the night before. After all that mess, Erin and the girls decided to try to relax and head into the Egg Harbor downtown. We walked down to the boardwalk and saw lots of people fishing as the sun set. In the end, we were so glad that we were able to get in the room and that we were able to get the heat off. We were tested with many mishaps but we persevered.

On day four, we headed back to Green Bay. On the way, we hiked the Ice Age Trail and picked some more cherries. This time we got some of the yellow cherries which were super sweet. Then we were off to Joanne's water park near our next Airbnb. We swam and went on the slides for a bit. There was a heat advisory so we tried our best to stay indoors. We went to the grocery store to get food for the night and checked out the clothing at a local Kohls. Then we headed to church for a 4 pm service followed by dinner at the house. After dinner, the sun was a bit lower and temps had lowered a bit. We went back to Bay Beach so Emma could attempt the scariest ride called Scat. We also did the River Walk before heading back to the Airbnb.

Here are a few more action photos from the rides. This was definitely a favorite spot on the trip. So great we had to go back a second time.

On our last day, the heat index was again high, so we stayed briefly in Green Bay. We decided to visit Dick's Sporting Goods Store to take a movement break as we headed home. The girls loved the clothes there. It is the new favorite store. We also went to Old Navy and found some good deals. This ended up being another favorite store but not as good as Dick's. We attempted to visit the water park in Menominee on our way back. It was no surprise that it was overcrowded because of the heat and we decided to skip it and just head home. The ride back was long but we were thankful to be home and proud that we successfully made it through a road trip journey on our own.