04.05 - Day 110 - Madison
Saturday 4th May - Madison, Wisconsin (Day 110)
No work for Melissa today, no school for Annie, but Sienna and Seb have a little to do to finish off their week. Once that’s out of the way we all head out for a short trail walk that begins just metres from the house.
A short way along I almost step on a snail but pulling my foot away realise it’s actually a baby turtle. Sienna is instantly smitten, picking it up for inspection - it’s smaller than her 9 year old palm. Concerned for it’s welfare and potential predators, she (and I) trample up to the edge of the marshland to place it at the water's edge naming it Wonder in the process. The rest of the walk Sienna keeps discussing Wonder and hoping she’s ok.
Through the trees there is a raised platform over the water which becomes a musical statues dance area for the kids before rumbling clouds and grumbling stomachs send us back home for lunch.
Thankfully the weather clears and Seb is keen to both go for a bike ride and play baseball. In their third garage spot (...) is a collection of bikes, some borrowed from neighbours especially for our visit - it seems a very community focused neighbourhood with Greg and Melissa seemingly knowing everyone passing by - it’s also noticeable the number of people walking, cycling and rollerblading loops of the neighbourhood especially after seeing so much car based activities so far.
Getting ready to go to the park takes almost as long as we spend in the park, but eventually everyone is happy in the park, especially Seb getting to whack a baseball.
Later in the sunny afternoon a local family comes over for dinner; Sam and Sarah with their two kids Kennedy and Munro. The six kids play happily, sometimes all together, sometimes independently without the need for adult small talk. The wives drink wine whilst making pizzas in the kitchen, whilst the husbands drink beer out the back, Sam and I watching Greg feeding the pizza oven, churning out what seemed like dozens of pizzas, but was in fact “just” 8.
The kids are plonked in front of Disney’s Wish when it’s the adults turn to eat and once again we’re happy to be part of family life.
There is a neighbourhood Whatsapp group used for everything from recycling unwanted items to organising snappily named events. Kate and Melissa head on out with a bottle of wine in hand mingling with other women at a neighbours home hosting ‘hot cool chicks night’. Not sure what either of them expected, but they both said it was entertaining.
