Sometime in mid-December, I got a text from Jim, the author of Green Bay: A City and Its Team, the book I designed, asking if we’d be interested in going with him to the Divisional Round Playoff game in Green Bay, should the Packers make it that far.
It was an absolute no-brainer.
When the Packers beat the Vikings in week 17, it was a done deal, so Chuck and I booked our flights. (The hotel had been secured weeks prior.) This would be our second trip to Lambeau.
The first time was in December 2016, when all four of us enjoyed a snowy win against the Texans. That trip was everything I hoped it would be – excited kids, perfect winter weather, and a win.
This time, I was hoping for a similar experience – a fun weekend away with my husband, perfect winter weather, and a win.
Two out of three isn’t bad.
The loss was a terrible heartbreak. It still is! Jim and I have begun working on a second edition of the book, and, like the first edition, we badly wanted the last chapter to end with a Super Bowl win. Unfortunately, you cannot win a Super Bowl with the worst special teams in the league and an offense that falls asleep in the second half. We went into the weekend with high hopes, but after that botched punt, we knew the dream was squashed.
Despite a terrible game ending, Chuck and I made the absolute best out of the weekend. We so rarely get time away together, and losing against the 49ers wasn’t going to ruin our Wisconsin getaway.
On Sunday we went back to Lambeau Field as tourists and visited the Hall of Fame.
In retrospect, I wish either Chuck or I had hopped up on this wall to pose for a Lambeau Leap!
You know it’s cold when they have ice and snow sculptures on display for the season.
So great to see Rasul Douglas’ jersey on display! He was a standout player this season after being scooped up from the Cardinals practice squad early in the season. I was happy to learn that Douglas played for the University of West Virginia. Hail WV!
Reggie White is one of my favorite former Packers players. Born and raised in Chattanooga (he played for Howard High School), Reggie went on to play for the University of Tennessee (his number is retired there) and eventually the Green Bay Packers. He was part of the winning Super Bowl team in 1996 alongside Brett Favre.
I loved the uniform display here. In the early years, the Green Bay Packers sported Notre Dame’s colors for a while (navy and gold) since Curly Lambeau was a graduate of the school.
The Packers have four Super Bowl wins, so it was nice to visit the Lombardi trophies and see Rodgers’ Super Bowl ring. Desperately hoped for a fifth win this year!
When our tour was over, we went on a short drive to visit City Stadium, where the Packers played for 30 years (starting with Curly Lambeau and ending with Bart Starr), and then to Vince Lombardi’s old house on Sunset Circle.
I was not prepared to see people ice fishing on the Fox River, but sure enough – there they were! Those tents are set up ON A RIVER.
After grabbing dinner (eating our weight in cheese curds), we finished the night in the hotel room watching the Bills-Chiefs game. It was a nail-biter! I was rooting for the Bills, so as soon as they lost, I decided I was bad luck.
On Monday, we drove east to Sheboygan so we could finally visit my great-great grandparents’ grave in Plymouth. It was a side trip I’d been wanting to make since going to Wisconsin for Christmas in 2017.
Ira and Ida Wensink were both born and raised in Wisconsin, but their parents had immigrated from Holland and Germany, respectively. They had three children, two sons named Delmar and Irwin, and a daughter named Jennie, who is my great-grandmother on my mother’s side and my namesake.
Chuck’s entire family line can be traced to East Tennessee, but my roots are all over the place. I’m so glad I was able to pay respects to Ira and Ida’s resting place and acknowledge Wisconsin as yet another place where I had family.
Since we were flying out of Milwaukee that evening, we took a quick detour through Sheboygan to see Lake Michigan, and then headed south to the big city to catch our flight.
The temperature was nearly single digits, y’all. Layers were key.
We got home safely late Monday night, which is something I’m always grateful for. Though I love to travel, there’s nothing like coming home.