"Switzerland"

Did you know we're still touring Europe?

Last Saturday we visited Switzerland thanks to New Glarus.  The little town of New Glarus is affectionately known as "America's Little Switzerland."  Mary has taken her grandmas there (here and here), and it's also where we got our piano.  But we had never before visited the Swiss Historical Village, so that was first on the agenda.

It was the perfect day to visit "Switzerland."  My aunt Marie was with us.  She's my mother's sister, and their grandmother, Lina Marie, was born in Switzerland.  So I've got some serious Swiss roots.  (Though my ancestors were not from the same area as those who settled here in Wisconsin.)

The people who settled New Glarus were from...drum roll...Glarus.  They made textiles, but then the advent of new technology (power looms) put a lot of families out of work.  So the Emigration Society of Canton Glarus was formed with the aim of finding a place where unemployed families could begin anew.  They originally thought they would settle in Illinois to work in factories.  Instead they ended up in Wisconsin to farm.

Here you can see David investigating the relief map of Glarus, Switzerland.  Compare that to the relief map next to Greg.  That's our neck of the woods in Wisconsin.  

What a shock the Midwest must have been to those folks.  (In fact, rumor has it that the flatness of Illinois was one reason the settlers came up north.  I guess when you're used to majestic inspiring peaks, rolling hills are better than...Illinois.)

After we learned about the first Swiss immigrants, we explored the village, which consisted of real and reconstructed buildings from the local area.

Life wasn't easy for the immigrants.  They lived in humble homes.

This is a Swiss beehive.  They kept their bees and did their processing all in the same buildings.  The colorful wooden ledges are "landing pads" for the bees that can be lowered or raised as necessary.

Cheese factory!  (And Mary striking a pose.)

Like I mentioned earlier, the immigrants originally intended to work in factories.  But then they settled up here and tried their hand at wheat farming.  It didn't go so well.  These were not farmers--they were learning something new.  And wheat doesn't grow all that well here.  It was a hard life, but the settlers were determined to make a go of it.  After a few years, a man came over from their native Switzerland to teach them how to make cheese.  The rest is history.  Over a hundred and fifty years later, this area is still the Swiss cheese capital of the country!

There was a real one room school house on the site.  It's not the one that was in New Glarus.  But it's from a nearby community...

...and it was in use until 1961!


Sausage.  Of course.

I loved this kitchen from the turn-of-the-century. You can see the beginning of modern life and modern conveniences.

The fire house was a big hit.

The general store was not.  My kids were definitely freaked out by the lack of shiny plastic toys.  But if they were interested in gingham...

David and Mary both said their favorite part was the cemetery.  (Weird, I guess.)  They enjoyed counting the headstones.  (Apparently the headstones are real, but there are no graves.  It's just for show.  I didn't quite understand where the actual graves are.)

Oh! I have to show you this.  It's how they make such lovely cookies.  (Like the anise flavored one I tried last time I was in New Glarus.)

After our tour around the Swiss Village--which we all really enjoyed--we headed into town for some treats from the bakery.  (Yummy Swiss nut horns.)  There were booths selling traditional food on the street, so we had ourselves some yummy lunch.

Aunt Marie had some tasty Swiss vegetable soup topped with plenty of cheese.  And I tried the "Alpine mac and cheese."    So delicious!!  (Seriously, it was so good.)

And David got his first real brat!  (That's Mary in the background carrying her "hot dog with no pickle"--i.e. a plain hot dog bun.)

Switzerland was a big hit! It was a marvelous morning.

David suggested we visit the real Switzerland next.  Someday....

Grandma Evie's April visit

As I've mentioned before, if you come to visit us in April, it will snow.  Maybe even twice.  (We're considering a future ban on grandmas in April because they seem to bring with them bad weather.)  But we'll still have a good time.

Here are a few of the things we did while my mom was here. . . . .

Painting.  As every grandparent who has crossed our threshold knows, first on the agenda is always painting with Mary.

Madison Children's Museum.  It's taken me a while to decide how I feel about this particular children's museum.  I'm starting to burn out on the whole children's museum thing.  Which is why I think I decided that I love this museum--it's quite different from other children's museums.  Less plastic.  More interesting. (The whole second floor is like a giant art installation.)  And designed to encourage age-appropriate play.  Compared to some other children's museums, there is not as much to do, mostly because the space is small, but you can't beat the fabulous location on Capitol Square.  Best of all, the parents seem to hover less.  (Maybe it's a Madison thing?)  My mom and I had a great time taking the kids to play there.

At the end of our visit we ventured to the roof.  And it was Farm Day!  David and Mary were able to pet a baby goat, a baby pig, a duck, a chicken, and plant their own soy beans.  They even got stickers that said "I Met a Farmer Today."  Pretty fun.



The Capitol.  After our visit to the Children's Museum, we walked across the street to the State Capitol.  It was the first day of the Dane County Farmers' Market, but it was cold and there weren't many vendors, so we headed straight for the shelter of the capitol building.

Things have changed since the last time we stepped inside.

I guess I didn't mind the annoying security check so much, but I was really irritated that I wasn't allowed to bring in my crockpot.

After the metal detector, we headed straight for the rotunda.

What are they all looking at?

The dome, of course.

It really is a very nice capitol building.  Even if you can't bring your snakes inside anymore.

Thank you, Mary, for this lovely picture.

And, thanks again, Mary.  At least my mom can look normal in a picture.

Once we were back outside, Mary ran away.  She was being a little anti-social this past week.  Also, I believe she wanted to join some demonstrators who had just passed by.

After trying to claw her way into the capitol back in February and then trying to run off to join the protesters last weekend, I have concluded that Mary is ready to take a stand here in Wisconsin.  She is very stubborn:  She fits in perfectly with this state's politics.

David is just a happy guy (except when he's not).  Look at these cute pictures.

Thanks to my mom who lovingly carried the plants in the freezing cold so I could operate my camera.  I think it was worth it.


Wii and haircut.  My mom was a good sport and, for the first time in her life, played video games.  She danced with us, and she was quite the determined racer on MarioKart.  It was when we were all so into MarioKart that Mary decided to style my mom's hair with a water bottle and a brush.  And it was when we were all still so into MarioKart that Mary fetched some scissors--and no body noticed.  When my mom and I finally realized she was actually cutting my mom's hair, I freaked out.  Poor Mary--she was so embarrassed.  She seemed to believe she was really doing her grandma a favor.  She sure chopped off some chunks!  When I was cleaning it up, I couldn't believe how much she'd cut before anyone noticed!  Miracle of miracles, you could hardly notice on my mom's hair.  Mary took it off the bottom, and my mom's layers hid it perfectly.  What a blessing!  Can you imagine if my mom went home with a big bald spot in the back of her head or something??  I suppose the moral of the story has something to do with the evils of video games.  And scissors.


Sunday morning Playmobil battle.  I love it when someone else can entertain my kids.

New Glarus.  I am loving this little town more and more.  On Monday Mary was out of school for her spring break, so us girls drove to Little Switzerland.

Mary and I took my mom to buy  homemade lotions at the Bramble Patch and then sweet goodies at the bakery.  I tried the nut horn, one of the things for which the bakery is famous.  It's a rolled flaky pastry with a walnut filling, and it was tasty!  Out of curiosity I also tried an anise springerli, which is a traditional German cookie which tastes like black licorice.  The taste was unusual, but I loved how delicate each cookie was.

Mary and my mom opted for chocolate.  You can never go wrong with chocolate.  Mary ate a chocolate donut.

One of the best parts of visiting New Glarus is the drive through the countryside.  My mom and I agreed that it was the Midwest at its best.


Lunch date.  David was feeling a little sad that he had to go to school every day while Mary and I got to hang out with Grandma.  So I considered taking him out of school on Wednesday to spend the day at one of the museums in Milwaukee.  But David simply couldn't stand to leave the incubated eggs for even one day.  They were supposed to start hatching, and he didn't want to miss out on any of the action.  But he really wanted to do something special with Grandma Evie.  So we decided instead of Milwaukee, we'd take him out to lunch.  He felt very special.  We had a fun little lunch at Culver's, including custard, of course, during David's lunch and recess.  And he was back in time for the next chapter of Junie B. and P.E.  I love how much he loves school.  (What are we going to do this summer??)


It was so nice to have my mom here.  She was great about playing with the kids to their hearts' content and super patient with their mood swings.  She babysat in the evenings and let me drag her shopping in the daytime.  She was easy-going about the nasty weather and the tedium of our normal routines.  We're sad she's gone.  David and Mary are already making plans for this summer.  See you in August, Grandma!



P.S.  Grandmas are always welcome to visit!  Even in April, and even if you bring snow!

Come to visit us in April

If you come visit us in April, you will first and foremost be greeted with snow. What did you expect? This is Wisconsin.

But you will also be greeted by this sweet girl,

who will have lots of plans for you involving paint and books and puzzles and more paint,

as well as being greeted by a certain Lego-loving soul who resides in our home.

A trip to the zoo is very possible, but expect to wear gloves and see cold weather loving animals like

penguins

and polar bears,

Like this here super cute little polar bear.

(Although we can't count her as a cold weather loving animal.)

But you might get lucky and have a close encounter with a tiger.

You also might get to visit Little Switzerland. Fortunately, little New Glarus is charming any month of the year.

(The pizzeria beneath the hotel is where we ate to celebrate the piano.)

A visit to New Glarus isn't complete without a stop at the famous bakery, where local ingredients and old world specialties are the order of the day.

It's so yummy you might feel inspired to do a little dance out front.

After a treat or two, your hands will be sweet and sticky, guaranteed.

While you are here, after the snow melts, it may be warm enough to take a spin on a scooter without a coat.

Or it might be dreary and chilly, requiring heavy jackets for a neighborhood bike ride.

Or one afternoon it might be so cold that Mom will refuse to come out into the backyard to take pictures of the kids playing all bundled up from head to toe. (Hence, no pictures of that.)

One thing seems certain. Any pretty blooms will have to come from the local grocery store

or be enjoyed inside the Bolz Conservatory.

If you get to visit Olbrich Gardens in April with this guy

it will probably be dreary outside.

But at least you will have this sweet face

as well as a five-headed boa

to keep you company.

If you come visit us in April, it's likely your hands and nose will be cold. But we promise to do our best to keep your heart warm!

I don't know about you all, but I was naively expecting buds and blooms come April. Sigh. But this is Wisconsin: there are no buds and blooms come April.

But this is Wisconsin: there is always something lovely.

(Thanks again for the visit, Grammy. Next time we see you, we'll be roasting in the Texas heat--and wishing for a little Wisconsin April chill!)