We are now in Indiana. Indiana has only about a 40 mile stretch of shoreline by Lake Michigan and much of it is designated as either a State Park or a National Park. We woke up in the Walmart in Portage, Indiana and headed into one of the two campgrounds hoping to find a spot.
Our time in Wisconsin finally came to an end this morning as we packed up and left Cliffside Park. We had not anticipated spending this much time around Lake Michigan when we left California nearly 2 months ago but we are glad we did. Our original plan was to just head across from Denver to Kentucky but these changes in our plan tend to work out for the best.
Our second day in Milwaukee took us into the Historic Third Ward. We have limited time here in Milwaukee so we are not getting to do as much exploring as we would have liked. There were a lot of great recommendations for this area and since it spans just a few blocks so it is very walkable for our little ones.
Our first night a Cliffside Park was great. With no one in the campground, clean bathrooms and free hot showers, it beats camping in tight spaces near the city. The girls got up early and as usual, both squeezed into Ava’s bed for a little morning entertainment on the iPad. This time, Luka thought he would join in on the fun.
This morning before we headed down towards Milwaukee, we are taking it pretty easy. We woke up at our usual west coast schedule at around 9:30, 10 o’cock. Since we have some decent wifi here at our courtesy parking, we decided to do a little Skyping with Marlene’s parents. They miss the kids and the kids miss them as well.
You wouldn’t think Sheboygan is a place that you would find great, authentic mexican food but you would be wrong. We stayed last night at the side of our hosts Steve and Jenny’s house and it was nice and quiet. We asked them for some advice about local food and El Camino Mexican Restaurant was highly recommended.
Every 20 or so school days, Ava has to have a meeting with her kindergarten teacher to check on her progress. Even though Marlene is doing the actual schooling, Ava has a teacher at the charter school she is enrolled in with this homeschooling program. Today is her first scheduled meeting with Teacher Stephanie and we came to a McDonald’s for lunch and to use their WiFi so she can have her meeting via Skype.
Last night a storm came through here and with rain, thunder, lightning and so much wind that we felt like someone was pushing our Airstream around. We were safe and sound inside our aluminum bubble and were actually kind of glad that the Mish and van were finally getting a wash after nearly two months on the road 🙂
We woke up this morning with our batteries nearly empty. The overnight temperature hit an all time low for us on this trip at 34 degrees. If it gets any lower, we might start to see some snow around here. Let’s hope that doesn’t happen or we might have to high tail it out of here and go south.
Last night we drove from Chippewa Falls to Wausau, Wisconsin. Don’t worry, people. Dan did not drink and drive after our day at Leinenkugel’s. Nor did he accidentally hitch up their beer-stream instead of ours. Good job, Dan!
Our visit to Minnesota ended this morning as we left Lebanon Hills campground and headed back on the road east towards Wisconsin. In the end, we were really glad to have spent our time in Lebanon Hills as the campground was one of the nicest we have ever been in. The electric only sites are actually nicer than the full hookup sites as they are much more private and have a lot more space. The newly renovated and heated bathrooms were also some of the nicest with free hot showers and heated floors.
We started the last day here in the Twin Cities with a trip to get some authentic Mexican food. Being from southern California, there is not a shortage of great Mexican restaurants. But having been gone for over a month already, we are savoring the opportunity to eat at a good one.
