On Sept. 22, Scott and Tonette Walker hosted a private reception and croquet tournament, â€œWine and Wicketsâ€ at the governor's mansion to raise money to upgrade their [temporary!] home.

"It sounds like a two-part construction project," said Scot Ross, a frequent Walker critic. "The special interests pay to remodel Gov. Walker's mansion, and he builds them a private entrance to his office."

Fundraising invitations were sent to 1800 people, including lobbyists, lawmakers, neighbors of the mansion, GOP campaign contributors, leading business officials and friends of the first couple.

"I am inviting fellow leading ladies like yourself to please join me in donating a purse filled with some of your favorite things. The purses will then be raffled off at the event," Tonette Walker added. "For example, I'll be donating a Tignanello bag filled with some of my can't-live-without items like my favorite shade of Bobbi Brown lipstick and an Aveda hand cream that I can't get enough of."

I know I was turned off by the talk of designer handbags and croquet matches during this time of austerity and program cuts. So was my friend Nicole, pictured above. She filled many handbags from St. Vinnieâ€™s with some of her favorite things, things like excellent education, clean air and water, and affordable health care.

Unfortunately, Nicole was not on the guest list. But she and many others decided to attend the eventâ€”some by land and some by sea. They warmly welcomed guests to the mansion owned by the citizens of Wisconsin. I guarantee that if you watch this video, youâ€™ll smile. Itâ€™s obvious that the protesters enjoyed themselves far more than the croquet players did. http://youtu.be/FDZ2ztboPgA

For an eyewitness account and more photos, go to http://www.bluecheddar.net/page/3/