Door County--photo loaded post!

Instead of taking a big trip, we opted for a smaller getaway over my birthday. Perhaps in winter we will have the chance to go somewhere warmer and for longer. Door County was the perfect little place for a quick last minute break. It's only a 3 hours drive from Milwaukee. If you are one who loves fall and you haven't been there, you must!! While we went a bit after peak time (leaves changing colors) it was still nice and there was still some color. There's several state parks for hiking; we liked Peninsula State Park the best. Mike made fun of me for taking SO many pictures, but I love fall so much!! And I'm still having fun learning tricks with my camera. There are numerous tours you can take; we did a lighthouse tour and a haunted Door County tour (they also have a wine tasting, haunted pub tour, and a culinary tour, to name a few). It's been dubbed the Cape Cod of the Midwest. There's lots of yummy dining choices, too. We loved Trio, Trattoria del Santo, and The White Gull Inn. There are NO chain restaurants or hotels (except in Sturgeon Bay, in very southern Door County). There are several famous celebs who visit Door County--Kevin Costner apparently loves it, even tried to buy a private island there (but zoning restrictions prohibited him from building the large house he wanted) so he instead built in Minoqua. There are several athletes that visit or own properties up there. Lombardi loved a golf course up there. I highly recommend you visit--with lots of shops, cute towns like Sister Bay, Fish Creek, & Ephraim, parks, lakefront, and apple and cherry orchards galore--you won't be disappointed!!

We stopped in Green Bay for lunch at Curly's Pub in Lambeau Field. Great appetizers, meal not so great.

Lambeau Field!!

On our hike through Peninsula State Park.

One of many orchards/wineries in the area.

Happy birthday to me, celebrating with a piece tiramisu

On the ghost tour we went to the supposedly haunted Thorpe House...look at the left side of the photo...ghostly apparition or not?!?! I know the whole photo is blurry, but plenty of people on our tour were fascinated by this photo I took while we were in one of the rooms.

We stopped by this little place for ice cream. Even though it was really rather chilly out.

At one of several lighthouses.

Another lighthouse.

A butterfly I caught a pic of while we were walking.

At the top of one of the lighthouses.

Another lighthouse. I love lighthouses.

Inside one of the lighthouses...pretty much left the way it had been from WAY back when. See the stick-like thing toward the footboard of the bed?? They would turn it and it would tighten the ropes of the bed, and this is where the phrase, "Sleep tight!" came from. Learn something new every day!!

On one of our hikes.

The fallen leaves...so pretty!