Today, I journeyed with the girls to Milwaukee to visit its children's museum. Jenn R. and I wanted to do a little something different with our kids, and we had planned this road trip several weeks ago. I completely forgot about it yesterday because of all the craziness, but I was still game for our mini adventure. Our intention was to drive separately (we each have little cars so no chance to share a ride) and meet there at 10am. We also decided, at the last minute, to pack a picnic lunch instead of buying food. I really felt the need to save money after yesterday!
"It's amazing how exotic Milwaukee isn't," said Sandra Bullock's character in While You Were Sleeping. She was not wrong. Downtown Milwaukee has the tight, compact lay-out of Cincinnati (encircled by the obligatory outer ring of rampant poverty) combined with the used, forgotten seaport vibe of Muskegon. Ick. That, and there was demolition and construction everywhere. The directions Jenn and I both got off of Mapquest were useless because of various detours. Eventually, through talking to Keven (while he consulted an online map) and interpreting my own atlas, I managed to find the museum and then help Jenn find her way, too. After all that hassle, plus the 90 minute drive to get from Madison to Milwaukee, we had high hopes for the place!
After so much build-up, we were bound for a little disappointment. The museum is not as impressive as the one in Cincinnati, but it is bigger than Madison's. However, what Madison's lacks in size, it makes up for in accessibility and ease of use. The Milwaukee museum was so closely packed with exhibits and partitions that I found it very difficult to keep track of both girls. In fact, at one point - while refereeing a bossy 6-yo who pushed Juliette - I completely lost Ilsa. I ran through the exhibits while Jenn watched Juliette, finally locating her at the front desk and in the care of an employee. She said "train scared me" and "I ran away" - yes, indeed.
All of the mayhem was fun for the kids, perhaps, but I was a frazzle. After about two hours (all I could stand, especially after trying to navigate a group of barely chaperoned third graders), we went outside for our picnic lunch. The weather over Lake Michigan turned cloudy, and we barely ate everything before the rain started. Luckily, getting home was much easier than the drive there.
The girls played almost all afternoon in the sandbox. Keven watched them while I ran up to the store and bought a bunch of summer things: patio folding chairs, a mini BBQ grill & accessories, and plastic plates. Yeah! But after all that happened yesterday and today, they were ready for a sleep-deprived meltdown. Ilsa screamed at the idea of going to bed tonight, but six minutes later she passed out, exhausted and without even putting her binkie in her mouth.
Tomorrow... a quiet day at home. Please.
"It's amazing how exotic Milwaukee isn't," said Sandra Bullock's character in While You Were Sleeping. She was not wrong. Downtown Milwaukee has the tight, compact lay-out of Cincinnati (encircled by the obligatory outer ring of rampant poverty) combined with the used, forgotten seaport vibe of Muskegon. Ick. That, and there was demolition and construction everywhere. The directions Jenn and I both got off of Mapquest were useless because of various detours. Eventually, through talking to Keven (while he consulted an online map) and interpreting my own atlas, I managed to find the museum and then help Jenn find her way, too. After all that hassle, plus the 90 minute drive to get from Madison to Milwaukee, we had high hopes for the place!
After so much build-up, we were bound for a little disappointment. The museum is not as impressive as the one in Cincinnati, but it is bigger than Madison's. However, what Madison's lacks in size, it makes up for in accessibility and ease of use. The Milwaukee museum was so closely packed with exhibits and partitions that I found it very difficult to keep track of both girls. In fact, at one point - while refereeing a bossy 6-yo who pushed Juliette - I completely lost Ilsa. I ran through the exhibits while Jenn watched Juliette, finally locating her at the front desk and in the care of an employee. She said "train scared me" and "I ran away" - yes, indeed.
All of the mayhem was fun for the kids, perhaps, but I was a frazzle. After about two hours (all I could stand, especially after trying to navigate a group of barely chaperoned third graders), we went outside for our picnic lunch. The weather over Lake Michigan turned cloudy, and we barely ate everything before the rain started. Luckily, getting home was much easier than the drive there.
The girls played almost all afternoon in the sandbox. Keven watched them while I ran up to the store and bought a bunch of summer things: patio folding chairs, a mini BBQ grill & accessories, and plastic plates. Yeah! But after all that happened yesterday and today, they were ready for a sleep-deprived meltdown. Ilsa screamed at the idea of going to bed tonight, but six minutes later she passed out, exhausted and without even putting her binkie in her mouth.
Tomorrow... a quiet day at home. Please.
4 comments:
Wow. Sucky week! Hope the weekend is better!
Yeah, I can say I've had better. The farm was fun. The rest was just STRESS.
OMG - I need to go take a nap for you! Sophia advises a bath, a nap and chocolate.
I had beer, nap, and then cheesecake - similar effects :)
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