My Wisconsin heritage
Yesterday my mom, my little brother and I went up to Sheboygan, Wisconsin for the day. Lotsa good, good food! Day started at 6:00. We got up, got in the car, and drove. For hours. ^__^ I don't know if its nature or nurture, but I love looooong, loooong car trips, especially with my family. Of course, with my parent's driving skills, I just have to wonder. My mom was going 80+ the whole way, until I forced her to slow down to the speed limit (65). Then we got to Oostburg and had breakfast at the Sandpiper. The Sandpiper is a wonderful restaurant that serves delicious Wisconsin food. Oostburg is a farming town (2660 people on a big day) where my Nana (great-grandmother) was born and raised. She eventually married and moved to Sheboygan, but she was a farm girl at heart. My grandmother's cousin Diane still lives there.
All the way, my mom was telling me stories about her and her brothers, and stories about her mother and Nana. My mom lived in Wisconsin until she was 11, and every Sunday the whole family would drive to Nana's house and eat there. Nana and Papa had fantastic 4th of July celebrations with everyone, because Papa was a preacher and couldn't have time off on other major holidays. My uncles were quite mischievous and loved to run around the yard and park nearby Nana's house with their cousins.
After Oostburg we drove to Gibbsville and stopped at the cheese factory for some delicious cheese. We're having our own 4th of July family celebration this year in honor of Nana, so we needed to get a lot. Fuzzy and I watched more cheese being made as mom made her purchases. After that we went on to Sheboygan.
Sheboygan is a small town right on Lake Michigan. We went to the sausage factory for more food for the celebration. There were free samples everywhere, which Fuzzy and I took liberally from. ^__^ The lady there also gave us more free sausage when we bought our boxful. After that we went to Vollrath bowl, a park where my mom spent enormous amounts of time as a child. My grandmother's high school graduation was held in the bowl. There also used to be a zoo there, with monkeys and swans and ducks and even a bison. It was an old zoo, all metal and wire and concrete, and eventually got shut down. Now there's a frisbee golf course there. The park is right on Lake Michigan; all we had to do was climb down a (rather steep) hill and there we were on the beach. Fuzzy and I walked out on an old, broken, concrete jetty. Fuzzy was scared, but I loved it. When you look out, and only see water, it feels as if you're being swept away by the waves. We nearly fell in. ^__^ After we climbed back up the hill, Fuzzy and I rolled down the slope to the bottom of the bowl (a mildly sore but otherwise hilarious experience). We then climbed back up and got back in the car.
We went to the cemetery in Sheboygan. There was a funeral taking place a ways off, so it was all quiet. We first went to see Nana's and Papa's grave, where the stone has finally been engraved with Nana's name and dates. The flowers my grandpa had planted were wilting in the heat, so we watered them with a milk jug that had been tied to the spicket for that purpose. We also watered the flowers he planted in front of my grandma's grave, as they were almost dead. The flowers in front of grandpa's parents' grave were still alive, but we watered them as well, because we didn't know when the next rainfall would be.
Before leaving Sheboygan we had lunch at Schultz's, a famous restaurant that is the epitome of Wisconsin's German heritage. We shared great food, then hit the road again. On the way home we made a stop at my uncle Steve's house to pick up a table that had belonged to Nana. We're going to use it for the celebration. Of course, the adults insisted on taking pictures of Fuzzy and I with our cousins. Then we got back in the car for the last time.
These trips are really important to my mom. She's going back to where she grew up, to her home. She's visiting Nana, Papa, and grandma, and remembering how they shaped her life and brought her up. She's seeing, smelling, hearing, feeling, and tasting the places where she had so many memories. My mom will always be a Wisconsing girl in her heart.
All the way, my mom was telling me stories about her and her brothers, and stories about her mother and Nana. My mom lived in Wisconsin until she was 11, and every Sunday the whole family would drive to Nana's house and eat there. Nana and Papa had fantastic 4th of July celebrations with everyone, because Papa was a preacher and couldn't have time off on other major holidays. My uncles were quite mischievous and loved to run around the yard and park nearby Nana's house with their cousins.
After Oostburg we drove to Gibbsville and stopped at the cheese factory for some delicious cheese. We're having our own 4th of July family celebration this year in honor of Nana, so we needed to get a lot. Fuzzy and I watched more cheese being made as mom made her purchases. After that we went on to Sheboygan.
Sheboygan is a small town right on Lake Michigan. We went to the sausage factory for more food for the celebration. There were free samples everywhere, which Fuzzy and I took liberally from. ^__^ The lady there also gave us more free sausage when we bought our boxful. After that we went to Vollrath bowl, a park where my mom spent enormous amounts of time as a child. My grandmother's high school graduation was held in the bowl. There also used to be a zoo there, with monkeys and swans and ducks and even a bison. It was an old zoo, all metal and wire and concrete, and eventually got shut down. Now there's a frisbee golf course there. The park is right on Lake Michigan; all we had to do was climb down a (rather steep) hill and there we were on the beach. Fuzzy and I walked out on an old, broken, concrete jetty. Fuzzy was scared, but I loved it. When you look out, and only see water, it feels as if you're being swept away by the waves. We nearly fell in. ^__^ After we climbed back up the hill, Fuzzy and I rolled down the slope to the bottom of the bowl (a mildly sore but otherwise hilarious experience). We then climbed back up and got back in the car.
We went to the cemetery in Sheboygan. There was a funeral taking place a ways off, so it was all quiet. We first went to see Nana's and Papa's grave, where the stone has finally been engraved with Nana's name and dates. The flowers my grandpa had planted were wilting in the heat, so we watered them with a milk jug that had been tied to the spicket for that purpose. We also watered the flowers he planted in front of my grandma's grave, as they were almost dead. The flowers in front of grandpa's parents' grave were still alive, but we watered them as well, because we didn't know when the next rainfall would be.
Before leaving Sheboygan we had lunch at Schultz's, a famous restaurant that is the epitome of Wisconsin's German heritage. We shared great food, then hit the road again. On the way home we made a stop at my uncle Steve's house to pick up a table that had belonged to Nana. We're going to use it for the celebration. Of course, the adults insisted on taking pictures of Fuzzy and I with our cousins. Then we got back in the car for the last time.
These trips are really important to my mom. She's going back to where she grew up, to her home. She's visiting Nana, Papa, and grandma, and remembering how they shaped her life and brought her up. She's seeing, smelling, hearing, feeling, and tasting the places where she had so many memories. My mom will always be a Wisconsing girl in her heart.