One LOVELY day in Madison 3 - The Children's Museum

The Madison Children's Museum

As if running like mad, devouring sights and sweets and exploring an expansive labyrinth-like government building wasn't enough, we ALSO stopped at the Children's Museum to dabble in a cornucopia of childrens' diversions. Aaaah, what a lovely day...

One LOVELY day in Madison 2 - The Sights

The Capitol Building & Capitol Kids

A day in Madison is never complete without a tour through the capitol building. Okay, so I've never actually been on an official tour, HOWEVER, for whatever reason, our family spends a fair amount of time singing through its cavernous halls, roaming around its winding stairs and gazing into its spacious dome. This trip was particularly eventful because it was our first time climbing the spiral staircase to the "tippy tippy top", the observation deck mid-way up the dome, for a glimpse of the church steeples, landmarks, and lakes of the isthmus.

Did you know that Capitol Kids, a local toy and children's clothing store, hands out free helium infused balloons on Farmer's Market Saturday mornings? Yup they do. And there's a nice little nook at a church nearby so when your child DOESN'T WANT TO GO IN THE TOY STORE, yes you heard me correctly, you have a cozy little cove to discover its playful properties.

One LOVELY day in Madison 1 - Chasing Market Memories

The Dane County Farmer's Market



Look at the masses of humanity streaming along the sidewalk in the background! The Dane County Farmer's Market brings in vendors that encircle the entire Capitol Square and buyers that fill up the sidewalk moving in ebbs and flows as people stop to peruse, sample and buy.

I try to make the endless supply of bright fresh vegetables, fresh cut flowers and various unique vendors (think cheese samples and honey vendors with live BEES) a source of entertainment. However, I usually end up suckered into buying a cookie, scone or a Madison classic like cinnamon rolls and warmed hot cheesy bread.

Today was a cookie and cinnamon roll day.

Regardless of what we buy at the market or how far we make it around the square, we never seem to escape the draw of the Capitol lawn. Good for running, rolling, jumping, and instigating a good old fashioned game of "monster chase", the Capitol lawn is always free of elbow to elbow shoppers. Although we tend to be the only ones running wild, the lawn is often sporadically littered with small groups of very happy people wasting their day away while thoroughly enjoying the weather and sampling their recently purchased fare. It may have been inspired by my two-year-old, but I think the Capitol lawn is now my favorite part of the Farmer's Market. RRROOOOOAAAARRR (monster speak).

One LOVELY day in Madison - Intro

Madison, Wisconsin has been our place of residence for a majority of the last fourteen years and a full blown official "hometown" for four. Last winter, we braved multiple concurrent days of sub-zero temperatures and a record season snow fall of 100+ inches. Spring typically brings swarms of blood-thirsty mosquitoes as well as quaint little streams burbling in our basement. Summer humidity levels in our fair city rival those of the ancient Roman bathes. Fall is absolutely lovely, but I'm afraid its gloriousness is shadowed by the lingering mosquitoes who don't die off until winter.

Forget it all.

Life in Madison, specifically on May 30, 2009, was totally worth every extra layer of fleece and every swollen mosquito bite. We live through the chill, the snow, the mosquitoes and the humidity for mostly-sunny 70-something degree days where fellow Madisonians are teeming around the state Capitol, strolling down State Street and gathering at the Memorial Union Terrace.

SWEET!!!!

My mother grew up on a dairy farm outside of Loyal, Wisconsin. As any child toted to the farm would, I have fond memories of cats in the haymow, baby chicks in the coop and cows in the very intriguing but none-the-less stinky barn. But my all time favorite memory of their farm is of Vern's Super Sweet Corn.

My grandpa grew the sweetest, the juiciest, the crispest corn I have ever tasted. My brother sold it in a stand by the side of the road. My grandma and mom would cook it, cut it off the cob and freeze it for winter. Given my age, I had very little to do with the planting, growing, picking or selling of the corn,but as with the rest of my family, I ate it religiously. Right around the end of July almost every meal included a side of freshly picked sweet corn, and undoubtedly there were a few meals that consisted of ONLY sweet corn.

My grandparents moved off the farm when I was still young and have since passed away, but Sweet Corn Season still lives on. I get giddy when the grocery store starts carrying sweet corn again, and despite the fact that I KNOW FOR A FACT that it will not be nearly as good as Vern's Super Sweet Corn, I buy it to tide me over until the farm stands pop up in late July. I will do everything in my power to make sure that Sweet Corn Season lives on, which includes enticing the very young ...

Gosling Games

Our local beach in Vilas Park is home to a plethora of feathered friends. I can't say I'm a big fan of the yard waste that a plethora can accumulate, nor did I appreciate the mama goose who hissed at my two-year-old; however, I called everything even after we spent a good hour enlisting the feathered friends help to play a new rendition of an old childhood favorite.

DUCK, DUCK

GOOSE!

Throwback

We're hoping to encourage the return of 80's style ...

The Rules of Sun

Caleb has fully entered the "I want to do it ALL BY MYSELF" stage. This includes dressing, tooth brushing, seat belt buckling and apparently applying sunscreen to visitors.
Thanks for playing along Maggie ;)

"Musical Sunglasses"

Sneaky Smiles

Today marks our first canoe ride of the season. As all such joyous events should be documented on film with joyous smiles, we enlisted a little help from the tickle monster (see if you can find Cody's right hand).

DC - Ode to the Commode

From this day forward, I will CHOOSE to fly out of the Milwaukee airport for the mere fact that it has a play area for tots. The pint sized toilet and sink duo was sweet icing on the cake for the mother of a toilet training toddler.

Hello grocery store, gas station, and TARGET; why are YOU not toddler friendly?

DC - One of These Things ...

One of these things is not like the other things... One of these things just doesn't belong... Can you guess which thing is not like the other thing... before I finish my song?
For your listening pleasure:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tZIvgQ9ik48&feature=fvw

DC - Discovery

Caleb is exploring a baleen plate* from a whale...oh wait, or is he just making funny faces against the glass?

*Baleen plates are flexible plates in certain whales' mouths that allows them to filter and feed in mass quantities.














Leila thoroughly enjoyed the fish. She sat in awe of them for at least fifteen minutes, in fact, she was radiating such gluttonous pleasure I think we could have sat there the entire time without complaint. Caleb, on the other hand, noted that Nemo and Dori were swimming in the tank and moved on over to the next exhibit...













...Which happened to be a gargantuan rock with a Caleb-sized hole in the middle. When the sign says "Please Touch", does that include "lift your toddler into the middle for a touristy photo op"?















Per the sign, there are three things you need to create your own magnetized a rock:

One large rock
Paperclips
Lightning

The magnetized rock was to Caleb as fish were to Leila, but, alas, nap time called.

DC - Phone Home

Hello, Papa?! We're in Washington DC. We're having lots of fun with Jason, Erica, baby Leila and Taji dog. We got to ride an airplane AND lots of subways. I got to touch the Washington Monument and splash in a fountain outside of the Capitol building. We saw lots and lots of space rocks, airplanes, rockets and animals; Papa, I even saw NEMO and DORI! Mama gave me ice cream at the red Smithsonian castle, which will forever be known as the building where I pooed. And the next day Erica shared a piece of her OOEY GOOEY CHOCOLATE brownie, which kept me up until after mama fell asleep at midnight. It was AWESOME ... but I miss you. Study hard. Mama says we will be home soon. Bye Papa! I LOVE YOU!

DC - Bath Buddies

Unfortunate for my precocious well-intentioned son, age doesn't always directly correlate with
adventurousness or experience. My dear sweet boy was totally schooled by a woman half his age!


Caleb: "Look Leila! If I squeeze the pink elephant it will squirt out water and splash you!"
Leila: "Did you say splash?"

Leila: "Hee hee hee hee hee"
Caleb (amidst inordinate amounts of whining): "I don't LIKE her splashing me!"

Advantage Leila.

DC - Capitol to Capitol

Our family spends an awful lot of time around the Capitol building in Madison, WI, so it was only fitting to visit that which inspired her. Our political centerpiece was completed in 1917 just a smidge smaller than and in the likeness of our nation's Capitol building in Washington DC (pictured below).

Although I was gawking at its poignant presence, Caleb was more impressed with trying to get himself close enough to splash in the water fountain and forging adventures through the manicured plants.

DC - Monuments 2 - Caleb & Leila's Guide to the Washington Monument

WELCOME TO THE WASHINGTON MONUMENT

You'll notice running space extending to either side of our immediate area as well as conveniently located running lights within arms reach of the monument to guide you to an alternative vista...

Do NOT leave our illustrious obelisk without taking advantage of the flattering floor lighting to spice up your dishiest disco. A dance party at the foot of our monument is like no other!

Thank YOU for visiting and please DO come back again soon!

Kisses,

Caleb & Leila