Wisconsin 2018 - Family, Friends and Food

public park in Dale, WI a short walk from where we park each summer

Our mid-April arrival put us well ahead of the feathered spring arrivals. Our social calendar would definitely include (but by no means be limited to) getting together with many of our Wisconsin birding pals. Something definitely not on our calendar on our first day back, was for Carol to break the little toe on her right foot. Swelling, stiffness, pain and difficulty walking. Not exactly her best foot forward. And not a whole lot to be done save for taping the injured toe to it’s non-injured neighbor and staying off her feet. Staying off her feet? That has never been in Carol’s DNA. One upside (if there was one): an excuse to shop for dressy footwear for upcoming weddings. Bling-covered open-toed sandals anyone?
While we were volunteering at Boyce Thompson Arboretum SP, friends Nick and Paul had asked Tom if he would consider officiating their wedding service. What do you mean “if”? Partners for several years, they had decided to finally take the plunge. Now back in Wisconsin, we could finally meet face to face to button down details. This of course involved food. Breakfast with Nick and Paul Along along with Paul’s parents and we were up and running. Except Carol, who was still hobbling.
But Nick and Paul weren't the only ones planning a wedding. A second wedding, a family wedding, involved daughter Jennie marrying the love of her life Bob Gafvert. We’d met Bob the previous spring and were absolutely thrilled. Now with an impending wedding, even more so. Friday June 30th was the date. Naturally we were anxious to see them and naturally, it involved food. Brunch at Bob’s house with Jennie, Bob, his daughter Ava, and grandson Alrick where we were brought up to speed on the latest wedding plans.

Bob, Ava, Jennie, Alrick and the newest family member, Norman

High on our list of people to immediately reconnect with was Betty Dunsmore. Blog readers will recall that her husband, Dave, also a long time birding buddy of Tom’s, had passed away the previous winter. Betty needed help around the yard so we planned times to get together - times that just happened to coincide with several Fridays. Friday? In Wisconsin? Think supper club. Supper clubs, as anyone who has grown up in the Midwest will attest, are rife with cultural and social norms - like Old Fashion cocktails and fish fries. We were certainly up to the task to explore and discover new venues.
May was no less crazy with events and appointments. We reconnected with members of the Monday Night Martini Club. Tom visited colleagues at Lawrence University. Ongoing yard work at Betty’s to get her pond pump recirculating and more plantings. A drive to Tom’s sister’s in Plover for lunch and to retrieve Tom’s massive collection of CD’s and DVD’s. Carol’s birthday on the 10th found us visiting Carol’s sister Marge on Lake Wisconsin (the first of several visits) and breakfast in Madison with daughter Melissa, former husband Jerry, and son Chris, who just happened to be visiting from Colorado.

Melissa, Carol, Jerry, Chris

Carol and Marge had planned for a July garage sale so mid-May necessitated a drive to Tom’s sister’s cottage in northern Wisconsin to retrieve stored pieces of furniture to be added to the sale. Mid-May also included a followup examination required by the V.A. to support Tom’s application for service related disability (hearing loss). This required a trip to southeast WI for an examination. The VA has very specific guidelines as to who may and may not conduct theses exams and apparently, Tom’s perfectly professional audiologist in Menasha wasn’t on their list.

Bill, Tom, Carol

Near the end of May, birding friend Bill Brown, on his way from Arizona to visit family in Maine, spent the night with us in Dale. Of course we had to bird a couple of local patches and show him a few life birds. An unexpected trip to Bergstrom GMC to replace both batteries in the truck (yes, most trucks with diesel engines have TWO batteries) and then we finished off the month meeting friends at the Timshel Cafe in Neenah. Yes, more meetings that involved food - a theme that was often repeated.

Alrick mesmerized at turning 13

June kicked off with a birthday party for grandson Alrick at Jennie and Bob's. Tom participated in a long bike ride from Dale to Oshkosh (had to get rid of the food somehow). And before we knew it, it was time for Nick and Paul’s wedding which somehow took up an entire weekend! Friday afternoon, a picnic was hosted at Paul’s parents house.

so happy to see Nick and Paul finally tie the knot

The wedding and reception were on Saturday afternoon/evening and a small private brunch celebration Sunday morning with close family and out of town friends at Nick and Paul’s home. These guys really know how to party! The ceremony itself was an inter-stellar affair (owing to Nick's fascination with Star Trek) although the weather didn’t quite cooperate - high winds for the outdoor ceremony preempted plans to deliver the rings via a drone model of the Starship Enterprise - but it did nothing to damper the festivities.

Jennie and Bob's wedding - a melding of families wedding

More lunch and dinner dates with friends in mid-June. Beers with Alvina and Larry at Mr. Brew’s Taphouse, dinner with Jess and Jim at Club Tavern, pizza at Vinny’s with Todd and Cindy just to name a few. The first Appleton Farmers Market of the season took place and we became regular Saturday morning goers (plus breakfasts at the Queen Bee). Fathers Day was celebrated at Jennie and Bob’s and then a long weekend at Marge’s to further prepare for the garage sale (setting up tables, making yard sale signs, etc.). Rounding out June was Jennie and Bob’s wedding, an outdoor service/reception held at Bob’s parents’ home in De Pere on the banks of the Fox River. A very moving ceremony with friends and family.

grilled lamb chops and a non-traditional wedding cake

The caterers outdid themselves. A riot of cheeses, crackers and spreads, smoked ham sandwiches, chicken salad sandwiches, fresh pizzas, fresh figs and other fruits, a salsa of heirloom tomatoes, and an army of specialty bite-sized tarts in multiple colors and flavors.
The main course which had people lined up for in droves: Grilled rack of lamb chop cut up into bite-sized servings which disappeared instantly once they were discovered. As for the wedding cake? Not a traditional cake at all but a homemade strawberry-rhubarb pie (recipe of Bob’s grandmother). Perfect for Bob and Jennie who are anything but traditional!
The morning after the wedding, Jennie and Bob hosted a baby shower for Graham and Caitlin. Lots of Packer baby clothes and useful items for their baby due in late August. Just the day before, Nick and Paul had surprised Caitlin and Graham with a private baby shower during lunch in a Neenah restaurant. Thankfully, they had enough room in their car for all the gifts they would be toting back to St. Louis!!

Baby shower hosted at Jennie and Bob's home

surprise baby shower thrown by Nick and Paul

Just when we thought July's calendar might ease up from the pace of May and June, we were proved wrong. But delightfully so. The Ihde family reunion in the Dells, dinner at Mark’s East side with high school classmates, a high school reunion committee potluck, and lunch with more of Tom’s males classmates including a surprise meeting with the older brother of a classmate, Joe Stringham. Tom had last seen Joe when they were both in Vietnam in 1968. Friday meant more supper club excursions with Betty, Saturday meant more visits to the farmers market. A dinner with the Monday Night Martini Club. Oh, and surprise, surprise. Another lunch date. This with friends at The Source restaurant, a place we'd heard about but were anxious to try.

Idhe family reunion (mostly Wickus family)

Dave Stringham (L), Joe Stringham (R)

July included a tour of Jennie’s place of employment, "elevate97", a company that innovates branding opportunities. They provide solutions for product distribution, technology, design, and production, all geared toward implementation of brand showcasing without ignoring environmentally conscious and socially responsible impacts. Clients include Nautica, the Green Bay Packers, Harley-Davidson, Calvin Klein, and Adidas, just to name a few. Got to meet several of Jennie’s colleagues during our walk-through and a sneak peak at a design prototype Jennie had recently put together. Exciting stuff and we couldn’t have been more proud!!!

Brennan Daniel Graham

August, our last month in Wisconsin and we wanted to make the most of it. Every day up until the day we left included an event with with family and friends. The annual Birding By Beer bird club meeting, a festive pool party at Nick and Paul’s, plus more coffee meets and dining with friends in the Fox Cities and Madison area. One August highlight was when Appleton was designated as a Bird City Recognition status, an effort spearheaded by our former councilperson, Joe Martin. We just happened to be at the ceremony representing our bird club and wound up in the group photo. But the real highlight of August was the birth of our newest grandchild, Brennan Daniel Sykes to Graham and Caitlin in St. Louis on the 21st of the month, the day before we buttoned up our Carriage Cameo in preparation of our journey west.
Pleased but exhausted, we pretty much accomplished everything we’d set out to do during our last long, long summer in Wisconsin. Really? Our last extended stay? Well, at least in an RV. But more on that later. We hooked up our Carriage Cameo on the 22nd of August and headed west to explore our newest options.