Eau Claire Trip #2 Re-Cap {Did you know?}

We found ourselves back in Eau Claire, WI, with the husband for another week while he worked. While this week may not have been as magical as our first week out there together, the kids and I still had lots of fun little adventures and enjoyed a break from home.

We spent a day at a picturesque town 20 minutes away, and took pictures in the high noon sun.

We were so blessed to receive a "friends and family rate" on our hotel room, and that left us with quite a bit more in our daily budget to spend on food. (Did you know I'm stingy?) So good-bye peanut butter and homemade jam sandwiches for lunch! Well.....at least for a few days. Packing a lunch is not only cheaper, it's healthier.

So with the local college breaking for lunch and college students spilling into the streets and filling all the restaurants, the three of us walked blocks upon blocks looking for just the right place to eat.

Did you know that in Wisconsin can you get beer and espresso in the same cafe?

After lunch, we drove to the edge of town to re-visit this place. It had been too rainy during our first trip to even get out of the car and have a look around.

I had no idea where I was supposed to get a trail pass.

So we just had a little peak at the trail. And it made me wish I had my bike and the kids' bike trailer - even though I had thrown caution to the wind that day and worn boots, abandoning my normal practical footware while traveling stance.

          

My shy little girl turned over a new leaf during the trip, having to tell every waitress and cashier her name, ask for their name, tell them how to spell her name, and insist that I recount all of our trip highlights thus far to the poor, uninterested person.

Did you know there are a lot of rivers in Wisconsin? I have to say I never quite knew which one we were looking at. In the heart of Laura Ingalls' beginning territory, I couldn't help but wonder what all the pioneers thought when they found themselves at the bank of yet another river. "Really?!?! Another one??!!"

Anytime the kids are occupied and playing well at home, I am usually frantically trying to get as much done as possible before a fight breaks out or another meal needs prepping. So, on these trips, it's initially a bit challenging for me to just chill and do nothing while they play and explore.

A few days later after our city exploration, we left the rivers to head into the hills and enjoy some local autumn fun.

My husband can read my mind, and told me we didn't have any room for pumpkins in our vehicle (did you know my pumpkin patch this year was a giant failure?) so "please don't buy any." I countered with an ineffective argument that I could maybe just decorate our hotel room with small pumpkins since we were living there for a week anyway.......? He just laughed.......knowing I was mostly joking.

Did you know that I am relatively gullible (while simultaneously being a skeptic)? I tried the below......and figured it out.

And did you also know that I love red oaks? Red maples are so pretty and showy but kind of finicky and they don't last long. These deep red oaks were in their prime while we visited.

{I may or may not be obsessed with shooting up from the base of a tree. And this photo really should be rotated, but I'm too lazy to go back and do that right now. So in the name of creative artistic license, I leave you with this upside down tree)

Ava, here, is "patiently" waiting for her brother....

...who decided to check out these huge slides...

...but then (thankfully!) chickened out...

...and did not want to be paparazzied by his mother during his humbling descent.

And did you know that I am contemplating yet another trip to Eau Claire in the coming weeks? Part of me doesn't want to go, part of me wants to. And a huge part of me is begging Matco recruiting to find another area to fill with new distributors.