Wednesday: grandma camp

It's our last full day in the country. Primrose, born and raised in Chicago, still gets surprised by such things as nightly cricket chirps. The parade of cats and chickens up and down farmette paths is equally perplexing to her. I mean, why does a chicken cross anyone's path? And what's with all the bugs of various shapes and sizes? 

Nevertheless, she is intrigued. And the farmhouse itself feels to her like home. She has been here often enough! 

She wakes earlier here than at home because we dont have dark curtains in her room and the morning light streams in generously, even if she does have northern and western exposures. We eat breakfast so early (by my count) that I start thinking about my lunch coffee before it's anywhere near noon. All meals get pushed forward to an earlier hour, which, to kids, is how it should be. We munch and make rhymes. We have a rhyme game going and sometimes it's clever and other times it's ridiculous.

It's a beautiful day in south-central Wisconsin and we plan to take full advantage of it. 

(Flowers blooming right now in their neglected beds...)

Snowdrop arrives early and after I put away delivered groceries, and after they play for a few minutes... 

... we set out for one classic Wisconsin experience. We go to Eugster's Farm. This family grows and sells produce, including quite good corn, but they've also capitalized on the fact that they are close to town and there are plenty of families, including Madison families, including our family, who would enjoy a bit of time among farm animals and sunflowers and tractors. So they've opened themselves up to I guess what you'd call agri-tourism: there's a country store, there are wagon rides, there are animal feeding stations. And there are sunflowers.

Eugster's is just ten minutes up the road from us and we've been there often enough. It's a fun outing.

Goats:

(Milking)

(Tractor)

(Zinnias)

(Tractor-wagon)

(to the sunflowers)

(conspiring to get me to buy them slushies...)

(Success!)

(Snowdrop offered to pick zinnias to add to the bouquet of sunflowers we take home...)

And of course, we buy some corn.

(goodbye Eugster's!)

We have a lunch date today! With Aunt Goat! (This truly is what the cousins call my older daughter.) Well, actually the girls have a date with her. She's covering for me since I have a longstanding appointment scheduled for around noon. 

They eat at a cousin favorite -- Culver's -- and then they visit the neighborhood Mustard Museum. I can't tell you how many times the Madison kids have been there and I ask today if the mustards were still exciting. Mustards? Oh, we don't bother with those. They're old and weird. We just like the gift shop! 

And then I pick up the two girls and we head to the Fitchburg splash pad.

Isn't this the perfect day for it? Warm, lovely!

Fun! Primrose takes to the water with her full body and soul.

Okay, I tired everyone out. Quiet time follows. No one naps, but the little one gives it a good try while I do the household chores that accumulate when you spend the day out and about.

And toward evening, I drive the girls to meet up with my older daughter and also Sandpiper for dinner at Ancho and Agave. A Mexican chain that we like quite a bit, especially when eating with kids. It was to be a whole younger family meal, but Sparrow caught a bug and so he is home with dad while us girls plus one little guy party away!

So ends another full day! Full for them, full for me. I've always thought that shepherding young kids through the day requires mental and physical stamina like you wouldn't believe. Perhaps that's why so many parents, especially those who are already stressed in life, haven't the bandwidth to take on all that's required for the job. Teachers become the shepherds of last resort, except they dont have just one or two kids under their wing -- they have twenty or thirty. With some kids requiring management skills that are beyond superhuman. Why do we treat our teachers so badly? Why do we cajole young couples into becoming parents and then leave them stranded, without help or resources to get them through tough events? I think about such stuff as I play with my well behaved bunch of grands. It may have been a full day, but man oh man, I have it easy. Stay focused, plan well, and the day moves forward! The parents did their work. The kids will be just fine.

Grandma camp continues for the rest of the week, but we will be switching locations tomorrow. Until then! 

with love...