Day Two EVENING of Volunteer Jamboree at Kettle Moraine State Forest Ottawa Rec Area

This third blog post from Monday is about the evening of our Volunteer Jamboree at the Kettle Moraine State Forest.  See the other posts before this one to catch up if you just joined us now.

Our evening started after we had our canoe trip and wandering around the park for a while.  We were invited back to the canopy tents for supper.  On the menu were big pans of pulled pork with sauce on buns, salads, fruit, roasted sweet corn (with a smiling Amanda Kutka peeling husks from ears of hot steaming corn, but my camera battery was dead so I missed the photo opp!)

Dinner was followed up by a couple huge sheet cakes of dessert ... and an invite to head on over to the amphitheater again for the evening entertainment. Oh my... my favorite... CELTIC MUSIC!!!

The band's name is Wylde Thyme, from Racine, Wisconsin.  I stole this pic from their Facebook Page:

Here is a link to their page:

Wylde Thyme Facebook Page

and 

http://www.bandmix.com/wyldethyme/

They set up on the small stage and introduced themselves. 

What a gorgeous spot in the park for a live concert... 

alongside the lake, 

under a weeping willow tree,

 with the sun setting behind

Just as the sun was setting, a few splatterings of raindrops came here and there... 

but the band started to play anyhow.  

In a few moments, we had a RAINBOW! 

Not sure if anyone over there found a pot of gold...

but the sunset in the other direction was PRICELESS!!!

The band played number after number of all of my favorite Celtic and Irish Tunes.

There was a lot of toe tapping and hand clapping along with the lively music.

I play CD's of Celtic music in my weaving studio all of the time, 

and of course I bought one of their CD's on sale in front of the stage! 

 I have the band's permission to post these clips and information,

Here is a taste of their music

I walked up behind the rows of seats after dark to snap this shot, after the sun set.

There were only a few mosquitoes compared to the night before, 

so the evening was relaxing and enjoyable. 

Beautiful natural music in the outdoor setting was a perfect way to wind up the busy day. 

And the concert ended two hours later on this hilarious note:

We headed on back to our camper in the dark,

humming and tapping our toes with the music still ringing in our ears. 

Thank you, Wisconsin Parks, for treating us with such nice entertainment! 

Can You Tell Me How To Get.. How To Get To Sesame Street?

Oh my, what a busy weekend we had!

Our son Dan turns 29 on the 8th and he wanted to have a party at his house on Saturday... so Granmuddah and Granfaddah to the rescue to babysit little Allegra so the grown-ups could party!   (like they REALLY had to twist our arm and beg, huh?)

Saturday afternoon this Granmuddah hopped in the car while Granfaddah decided to stay home and hold down the fort.  He cleaned windows, cut the lawn, moved some furniture and put the ladder up to the 18 ft tall cathedral ceiling and washed the ceiling fan fins and all the light fixture glass at the same time!  My oh my, he was busy.  But I got to PLAY!

I picked up Allegra at her house, and then headed over to join up with daugthers Erin and Heather, and son-in-law Jesse, and our other two grandkiddos Chelsea and Jameson!

We went out for a nice dinner at Fazolis restaurant (kinda fast food italian with lots of FREE breadsticks!)   We had a nice quiet part of the restaurant, and we had a wonderful time.

I am quite proud to say all three of our grandchildren are well-behaved and comfortable with sitting quietly in a sit-down restaurant and know how to act.  No wild hollering, food-throwing, whiny brats for us!  I HATE that in a restaurant, or anywhere else, where people can not control their children.  It's not the child's fault, it's the parents fault for never teaching them how to act accordingly or how to have a simple meal out without it becoming a disaster.   From baby on, we have taken our children to nice places and sit-down meals without a problem.   And if my child WERE to even think of trying to act up, OUT the door we go for a stern talking to in the parking lot and return with a whole new attitude.

Our three grandkids were happily coloring until the food arrived, and with a ratio of four adults to three kids, we had a nice conversation with all of them.

I am so glad to see our grown children are implementing the same expectations on their children when out in public.  It makes life most pleasant, to enjoy the company of the grandkiddos and have a nice dining experience with them.

Off the soapbox, on to the next event.

We piled back into the cars, snapping all the wee ones in their respective car seats and drove over to the Brown County Arena.  We were looking for ELMO!!!   He was supposed to be singing songs at a Sesame Street Live production.   The kids had NO idea what was up, and when we got in the foyer, there was a little Elmo in a plastic case on display.  They were just happy seeing THAT and wanting to keep pressing the buttons to make him sing.  LOL  ...

Okay, NOW what should we do?   haha!  We handed over the tickets (ouch, they were $20 each for the prepaid seats ordered online in advance a few weeks ago)  and found our way to our seats.  The kids had NO idea what was coming next.  

Auntie Heather had brought along some glowinthedark items from the dollar store, thus eliminating the whining cries from our kids for the high priced items from the vendors wandering up and down the aisles.  She even had extra ones she gave to some of the kids seated around us too.    The kids were happily playing and looking around and not sure what was next.   

Well...   the voice of Big Bird came over the loudspeaker... telling us the show was ready to start and we told our wee ones that ELMO was coming on the stage.. to look over there and the music started.  I was video taping our grandkids and it was just amazing.  I was aiming at their little faces as the curtains opened and all these kids were screaming like teenagers at a rock concert!!!  Ours chimed right in-----  "ELMO! ELMO! ELMO!"     It was HILARIOUS!!!     The show started and our kids were transported to a wonderful land of Sesame Street=====

All of their heroes were there!  Ernie and Bert, Elmo, Big Bird and the whole gang.  

The kids screamed in delight as each of their favorites took over the stage.  

It was a rock star concert for the Toddler Set! 

And I think we grownups enjoyed the show as much as the kiddos did. 

Right before intermission, we managed to complete diaper changes one at a time, as the bathrooms were nearby.  So we avoided the hustle and rush and long lines at the bathroom that would take place in a few minutes.  

At intermission, Erin was thinking ahead again and had smuggled three stuffed Elmo toys along in the diaper bags, compared to the high priced ones being hawked by the vendors.  She bought them for $5 each in advance at one of her stores.  She manages a large district of Family Dollar stores in the NE Wisconsin area.  She is One Smart Cookie!   I also brought them each a little Sesame Street popup book to read and keep as a treat to remember this night.  Allegra was in love with the big boy in front of us, and kept flirting with him.  She would tap him with her glowinthedark magic wand to get his attention!  My oh my, don't these girls start early chasing boys?!

Erin bought some buckets of popcorn and a big cotton candy to share among the kiddos.  I think Chelsea ate half of a box all on her own!  Their own sippee cups were brought along, saving our ears from having the little ones begging for a drink when the only thing that was available was soda at the venue.   They don't get soda, so we were glad we had along juice and water. 

The second half of the show started, and the kids were transfixed by the light show, and at times the lights made little stars all over the domed ceiling of the arena.  I think Jameson liked the lights the most.  We rotated kids on our laps from time to time, so nobody got too bored sitting on one lap all the while.  Jameson clung to his daddy most of the time, and I think his daddy loved the show as much as his little boy did!   

It was an hour and half show, with a grand finale of all the characters. Complete with fireworks that shot out streamers and confetti over the audience.  What fun!!!   But soon it was over.   Not too long to bore the kids, and not too short, so we got our money's worth.   Yes, we found the way to Sesame Street! 

All three kids were fast asleep before we got to Heather and Jesse's nearby apartment...  I think we wore them out!   We split up and re-sorted toys and diaper bags and books and sippee cups.  Now it was a 40 mile drive back home through a lot of construction for me, in the dark.  I hate driving at night, my eyes hurt when oncoming lights come on and then pass by, then I have to almost squeeze them to make them feel better again.  I don't drive at night often at all, but this was for a special purpose, so I put up with it.  Once we get beyond the major highway, it gets better as I get more rural.  I had Precious Cargo along (Allegra)  who was fast asleep....

Granfaddah came out to the car when we got home, and carried the sleeping tot up to bed.  A quick diaper change and pajamas on a sleepy rag doll and she was out in an instant.  Too funny! 

She woke up about 2 a.m. and crying, so I popped her in bed with us.  She is a very active sleeper, and kept tossing and flopping and flipping all over us.  We have a king sized bed, but even that was not enough room for her and us!  haha....  about 4 am she flung her arm wide so fast and hard in her sleep, and whapped Granfaddah right in the nose!   I don't think we slept more than 10 minutes at a time before the little flip-flopper was waking us up again. 

But wowowowwww was she up early!  at 6:30 by the natural clock, which was 5:30 on the real clocks due to the time change.  Up and at em!   Raring to go and play play play with the toys and the dogs and whatever else she could find to play with!   We finally had to put Duchess out on the deck to get them to slow down a bit!   Even Elmo got to ride on Duchess's back. 

Once she wore out both doggies, poor Duke was exhausted and laying on the couch.  The little stinker was thrilled to have Duke wear her socks on his nose!   Then Granfaddah convinced her to put them back on her feet again.  What a little goofy girl....  

I popped her in a bubble bath for a while, mainly to contain her to one spot!  She played and splashed and swam like a fishie in our big tub, and Granfaddah got in a nap on the couch.  I was on duty, so no nap for me!  

Ahhhh, the little one was going strong till noon.  I worked on making DVD's for each grandchild from my videotaping before, during and after the concert, and created a slideshow of pics for them too.  Once I got all three copies burned onto DVD's, we loaded up the little gal and hauled her back to Green Bay to her Mommy and a hung-over Daddy.  LOL   Then we went home and took naps ourselves before the Packer game came on tv at 3:15.

We hope she played her DVD over and over again and snuggled up with her tired out Daddy... singing:

"Come and play.... 

everything's AAAA okay...

 friendly neighbors there.... 

that's where we meet... 

can you tell me how to get... 

how to get to Sesame Street?"

FAMILY - Allegra's First Birthday - and the Mannheim Steamroller concert

Oh boy I am sooooo far behind on my blog stuff---- both reading and posting! I will catch up, I will catch up, I will catch up!

It's the busy time of the year for me, to crank out socks and weaving up rugs and packing and shipping them out.  Seems every day I am taking more custom orders.  That is fine with me, because I am setting aside funds for vacation time in Feb and March.  Wheeeeee


Our darling little granddaughter, Allegra, turned ONE YEAR OLD!  On Saturday, her parents threw a party in their home, and we were all able to make it.  Even Steve's mom and dad came all of the way from Waupaca for our little darling's party.   She was on her best behavior and such a darling to everyone.

The theme was mexican nacho bar for the meal, and I brought a crock pot of chili con queso dip and some chips.  They had all the fixens, and of course, home baked cupcakes and ice cream!   Of which the birthday girl really enjoyed herself.. .teee heeee  I was video taping the singing  and candle, but was able to snap a few shots as she enjoyed her cake.

She got to open up a pile of presents, 

and you could see how she wanted to play with each and every one..

She will also be the best dressed kid on the block 

with all of the adorable clothes she unwrapped. 

 But one of her favorite presents was a can of black olives!!!  Yes, she LOVES black olives! 

Jameson was teaching her the letters on the play mat for her playroom. 

 I got in some cuddle time with each grandchild, but I shared them with the other grandmas, too.  

It was a very nice party and we were so glad to be part of our grandchildren's lives.  In a few years when we hit the road full time in the motorhome, we won't be able to make it to all of their parties.  So we will enjoy these early years.  After they get bigger, it will probably be those crazy riotous noisy kids parties at ChuckECheez or the like.  We can bow out on those.  LOL 

Then  on Sunday... Steve had a treat for me....  Steveio bought me an early Christmas present.  Two tickets to see Mannheim Steamroller in concert at the Weidner Center in Green Bay.  Because the concert was on Sunday Dec 5, he had to give the tickets early instead of on Christmas Day.  But that was okay, it was still a surprise to me!

So we got gussied up... Steve in his suit and I in a nice dress and we went to enjoy an evening of holiday music.  It was blasting cold winds and subzero windchills, and being in a dress and heels is quite unnatural attire in this kind of weather.  But I was treated with dropping me off at entrance while he parked the car.  Whew!

We started out with cocktails in the reception/lobby area and admired some of the artwork on display.  This light fixture was pretty strange.... It was all twisted tubes of colored glass, reminding me of twisted balloons of some gigantic clown project.  It was about 10-15 feet long and suspending from the ceiling.  I had to sneak a pic of it with my Iphone.    The colors that you see at the top are throughout, just the light was hard to get a picture of from that angle.   Really strange, huh?  All in the name of *Art*???

At the same time Steve snapped a pic of me in front of a tree, then another couple offered to snap a pic of the two of us together. Awwwwww  how sweet of them!  I know they are blurry, but you get the gist of it. I was very proud to be on the arm of my dapper dandy do hubby----

The concert began soon after we were ushered to our seats.   It was so pleasant to be there with my loving man, enjoying some good music in a live performance.  We don't get to go to these things to often, so it was a real treat for me.  Our days of the kids school concerts are long over, and we do enjoy live entertainment when we can attend.

Mannheim Steamroller's name is derived from the city where Mozart composed his music, Mannhiem, Germany.   The Steamroller portion comes from the name of the crescendo portion in musical scores, nicknamed the Steamroller.

Some tunes are more traditional, some rock-ified, some celtic, some jazzy.  A mix of orchestra, rock band instruments, two grand pianos and even a tiny toy piano made up the band.  All very interesting and really enjoyable.   The music was great, and the light show was enhancing.  But the big screen video in the back ground was distracting somewhat and took away from the effect of the music. Many times I just closed my eyes to the lights and let myself enjoy the tunes.


But one thing was noticed.... a dad and mom, presumably the parents, came in the seats directly behind us with four kids:  2 teen girls, a pre-teen girl and a young boy about 8 or 9.  The kids obviously did NOT want to be there.  Why their parents shelled out $66.00 a ticket for each of them was beyond me.  That was almost a $400.00 outing for the family.

The two girls chattered throughout the first 8 songs, the boy kept kicking my seat, rustling under his noisy nylon jacket as he huddled underneath with a cell phone playing games on it.  He even let the ring tone get away a couple times and someone else from behind them hushed him and told him to turn it off.  He was making noises and complaining and making disparging remarks in general about the concert, his sisters and not wanting to be there.  Then he was clapping applause in the middle of songs and distracting everyone around him.  And his sister next to him was louder than he was each time she would tell him to *knock it off*.   The woman, presumably the mom, was oblivious to it and didn't do a thing.  I turned around a couple times with an irritated look, which he just grinned snottily in return.  I then looked at the mom and raised my eyebrows and she just looked away. The father was way at the other end of their row of seats so I could not make eye contact with him.   Seems the pre-teen girl was the only one embarrassed by his bad behavior.

At intermission, they all went to the lobby.  When they filed back in to their seats as the lights were dimming, they were all quiet and chastised and silent.  The father had a stern look on his face and that was the end of the distractions!  Perhaps an usher had spoken to them.   LOL ... Later, Steve suggested the woman might have been a step-mom or a girlfriend with no authority to discipline the kids?  Who knows, but at least we got to enjoy the rest of the concert in peace!


Come to think of it, the four folks ahead of us were also visibly irritated by this family and they did NOT return to their seats after intermission. Perhaps they complained and were given other seats in another area of the concert hall?



As we got my coat from the coat check (fake fur, not real)  Steve said he didn't park ***too*** far away and it would be faster than trying to get back up near the building where the valets were bringing up cars.  So we should WALK to the car.  After all, I had on a *fur coat* right?   ahem?  What about the bottom half of me?  Walking in heels, pantyhose and thin dress is essentially walking like I was bare naked!   LOL   I tootled along as fast as I could manage on my heels, as we were buffeted by the winds coming right in off the icy waters of the Green Bay! .... the car was parked a lot farther away than I think he realized, but we made it, with the danger of frostbitten toes and other parts of my anatomy!!!!!!  

Winter in Wisconsin, ya gotta love it.