When I lived in SoCal, one of my go-to activities would be walking up and down the long stretch of sidewalk that separated the streets and parking lot from the sand at the beach. The beauty of this is that one, you got use of the ocean, two, the sidewalk went on for miles. Where in Wisconsin can I possibly find the same thing?

Normally I try to bring my dog and kids to places we haven’t been before. Maybe this is why I subconsciously crossed Frame Park off my list when brainstorming places to take the kids that day. When it became apparent my toddler was getting impatient after asking Mommy nicely 25 times, “Outside?” I knew I had to pick a place, fast. Thankfully, that’s when the idea to go to Frame Park occurred.

And what a fantastic idea it was!

I hadn’t been to Frame Park in awhile. In fact, I think the last time I was there, I was pregnant with my son.

Now, I would not recommend riding a bike while pregnant – my balance was off and the size of my tummy made pedaling uncomfortable.

But, this was how I knew there was a trail right next to the water that went all around the lake.

This was probably the closest thing to that long stretch of sidewalk at the beach I was used to back in Huntington Beach.

Since I am writing this post while my toddler is asleep, and while holding my newborn, I know I only have a few minutes to share with you my thoughts.

* my toddler had a lot of fun pushing his little car around the path alongside the water.

* we saw a family of little ducks which mesmerised him for a good 5 minutes.

* the new playground at frame Park is exquisite. It has tons of ramps so it was easier for my toddler to navigate and looks more inviting and accessible to other kids with disabilities.

* the park is between a lake and a train track so I got to enjoy the water while my son got to see two trains go by. And when I say he got to see the trains, I mean he lost his sh*t and started screaming like someone who runs into their favorite celebrity crush.

* On the lovely July day we went there, we found plenty of shade and no noticeable mosquitoes. That’s a big deal to me since I’m the kind of person who could get a bug bite in outer space. I’ve had quite a few trips to parks with water over the last year or two where bugs have ruined my visit.

Frame Park had so much to offer that I look forward to bringing my kids back here. I successfully wore the toddler down, which meant naptime was not a battle today.

Score. Thanks, Frame Park!