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Growing up in Madison with parents who don't drink beer – I know – or like crowds, I never went to Summerfest. My first trip was the summer I was 18. I've made the journey down to the grounds several times in the [redacted] years since, but I was only vaguely aware of the activities aimed at the under-10 crowd.
Now that I have kids, and they're old enough to enjoy those activities, for the first time I found myself checking out the line-up for the Northwestern Mutual Children's Theater and Playzone and the Kohl's Captivation Station. With performances like magicians, an act called the Red Hot Chili Puppets and the Kohl's Wild Theater – which my kids love at the zoo – I was intrigued. And because they kept hearing, "Mommy has to go to Summerfest," the kids wanted a turn to go to this mystical festival, too.
While at the festival grounds over the past six days, I've seen many children the same age or younger than my kids – six and four – late at night. I know that won't work for my kids, so we had to find an afternoon when we could go.
Tuesday was Children's Fest, sponsored by Sentry Foods, Dean's and TMJ4, which included free admission from noon until 3 p.m. and a scavenger hunt map. My 6-year-old loves scavenger hunts, and my 4-year-old loves anything his older sister does, so this was perfect for them. We didn't realize the hunt ended at 3 p.m., so while they completed the activities, it was well past the hunt's cut-off, and they didn't get the prize for finishing. They didn't seem to care, though.
Despite how warm it was, they elected to skip the family fountain – officially McDonald's presents the Elizabeth "Bo" Black Family Fountain with B93.3 – but a few dozen kids were delightfully dancing through the water spouts, drenched and laughing. Instead, we headed in to the Northwestern Mutual Children's Theater and Playzone, which has two playground structures, a tent for performances, henna tattoos, a tie-dye station and a fire safety house staffed by the Milwaukee Fire Department. In the safety house, we learned that our family needs to develop a fire safety plan. Whoops. My son who, like many boys his age, aspires to join the MFD when he grows up, especially enjoyed that activity.
No trip to a festival would be complete without a sugary treat. Since it was a hot afternoon, the kids chose Hawaiian Ice. It's possible I strongly urged them to make that choice.
Next we headed to the Kohl's Captivation Station down by the BMO Harris Pavilion and took in a show by the Kohl's Wild Theater, which my kids thoroughly enjoyed. This one was about what kids can do to help the planet. My daughter was delighted to know our family does all the things they suggest: recycling, composting, turning off the faucet when we brush our teeth, using reusable water bottles. If you haven't seen the Kohl's Wild Theater, I highly recommend them. They do a good job of teaching children about animals, the environment and related topics in a fun, interactive way that kids, especially younger ones like mine, respond to. If you can't get to one of their shows at Summerfest, you can catch them all summer at the Milwaukee County Zoo.
After the show, we ventured over to a tent run by the Milwaukee Art Museum, where they got to decorate a small circle of paper, then a staff member made it into a button.
We, of course, had to take a few minutes so they could climb on the rocks along the lake, along with a handful of other kids their age. I took a moment to appreciate the view of Downtown and snap a few pictures. It was a perfect afternoon, and the view was stunning, reinforcing my sense that Milwaukee is a vastly underappreciated city.
By this time, the kids were getting tired – to say nothing of their parents – so rather than make the long, crowded walk back to the north end of the grounds, we took a ride on the sky glider. My daughter said a few times she was scared, but it was an excited scared, and that the ride was also "super cool." My son reported that he wasn't at all scared being up that high; my husband rated this at mostly true.
Both kids agreed their first trip to Summerfest was lots of fun, and they already can't wait for next year. They decided that they're going to have a lemonade stand before coming next year so they'll have more money to go on the handful of rides. And my daughter is determined to get to be four feet tall, so she's able to ride the Ferris wheel – which is a restriction I've never seen before.
Walking back to the car, my son fell asleep in his stroller before we even made it out to Lincoln Memorial Drive. He slept through until about 7:45. My daughter dozed off in the car, then spent the evening lounging on the couch. It made for a relaxing, peaceful evening at our house.
For that alone, Summerfest has my sincere gratitude.
