I'm Exhausted!

We had a wonderful, whirlwind, loving visit from daughter Rachael and her boyfriend Eric. It was my first time to meet him and I must say I was very impressed with his character, politeness, congeniality and obvious love for Rachael. After five days, they jetted off back to Portland and their hectic lives, but not before utterly relaxing into the laid back lifestyle we enjoy in Central Wisconsin. We did a lot of “porch sitting”, beer drinking and several BBQ’s, including the famous Packer Brats which are filled with Miller Lite and cheese of course. Rachael commented it wouldn’t be a visit to Wisconsin unless she consumed cheese with every meal.

My friends Jackie and Andy graciously invited the kids to an afternoon of canoeing from their lakeside home on Memorial Day so while the kids explored the Chain of Lakes, all interconnected, Marc and I enjoyed a wonderful visit. The weather cooperated and it was an awesome and perfect 80 degree sunshiny day.

The next day we also enjoyed great weather as we worked off what little stress was left by banging some up at the shooting range which is very close by to our home. Eric was impressed we had the place entirely to ourselves and that there was no range master hanging over our shoulders.

While Marc taught Eric the basics of welding (he started a rebar bottle tree for me), Rachael and I visited some vintage shops for her search for old and unique jewelry pieces. One local shop is famous state wide for its eclectic and fun collection of yard art.

Part of the reason for their visit was to explore the Appleton-Green Bay area since they are giving some tentative thought to leaving Oregon to search for a much more affordable place to live. Of course, one couldn’t visit Green Bay and miss touring Lambeau Field, which they said was an outstanding experience, including the obligatory cheese head photo op!

They wrapped up their visit by accompanying me to the shelter for a kitty visit. Rachael has missed having a cat but their current apartment lifestyle is not conducive to having one so she was busy imagining adopting one once she can own her own home. (Eric’s colorful shirt is actually a smock which volunteers are required to wear during visits.)

Too soon, the hour of departure arrived, so one last photo of the family and they were off for another year. Marc’s vacation time extends through Tuesday so now it’s time to get back to work!