Indiana

What a great time we had in Indiana. It was so wonderful to see Brett and Amanda and their kiddos. Their home is gorgeous, their neighborhood is full of kids playing and laughing and Amanda has made some fantastic friends. I loved visiting... oh yeah and Reid too!!

So Monday we flew into Indianapolis where Brett picked us up and took us to their house. All of the kids were asking all day when they got to see their cousins so when Tobe walked in from dropping Jane off at dance he just couldn't believe Reid was in his house. He smiled this huge smile and went running back to Amanda not sure what to do. It

 didn't take long for those boys to start playing. 

Tuesday was a relaxed day. Which is funny because it was Cinco de Mayo. It is supposed to be a party day. We did make it to a get together lunch with Amanda's friends where we had yummy Mexican food. Then Logan joined us in the evening and we went to a Mexican restaurant for dinner in honor of the holiday. :)

On Wednesday Amanda took us to the Indianapolis Speedway, not the gas 

station that is everywhere. It was opening day so the plan was to watch the cars practice on the race track but like it does in the midwest it rained so there was no racing that day. :( But hey we made the

 most of it and went into the museum and saw all of the old cars that had raced. The boys ate it up. Logan and I later that day drove... well this information

 deserves a post of its own so it will have to wait.... but on our way we saw a ton of Amish people. It was by far the coolest thing I have ever seen. 

They were all over in their buggies and plowing their fields with horses! It was just way too cool. I loved it.

 I love how simple they live their lives just working and providing 

for their families and communities. I can learn a lesson or two from them. I think it would be so cool to spend a week in an Amish community to just experience their life style! Don't you? 

Thursday Logan left us to head back home. So the day started out sad for me but was short lived because you can't be sad around family you don't get to see that often. We went to the 

Children's Museum. It was the coolest thing I have ever been too. All kid stuff, everywhere. We spent the whole afternoon there watching the kids play and going from room to room. I loved it. There was a train exhibit, a dinosaur exhibit and then these rooms full of adventure. Reid of course was in love with the water and sand but quickly moved on in

 the room to find this contraption. He would put his hands on the bars in front of him and almost bike with his hands to move forward and backward. He loved it. Amanda and I were laughing at ourselves in this room because when they are getting ready to do story time they go around tapping a tambourine to let us all know it is beginning. Well there was all this noise coming from a spot in the room and we were like okay lady we get it, but as we looked closer Jane was over there with the lady making music! Who said music had to sound beautiful!! Just kidding it was cute. The next room we went into was filled with just as much fun. This contraption kept the attention of the boys for a good 20 mins. I know I will 

never be able to describe what it did, it was just really cool. We moved into the house portion of this room and learned about eating healthy and staying clean. Very educational! Next we hit the dream and

 fantasy room. This room had this really cool obstacle course full of mirrors. It was hilarious to see Reid trying to figure out where to go and keeping his hand out in front of him so he wouldn't smack his face on a mirror. Then of course they had to ride the carousel. Jane took the opportunity to practice her beauty queen wave and I busting up laughing at how cute she was. She is a natural!

Friday was zoo day. They have a fantastic zoo in Indiana. I got to touch a baby shark. I wish I could describe it but I can't so I will simply say that I let out a little scream while laughing and quickly washed my hands. But still the coolest thing ever. We walked all around that entire zoo and saw every animal possible. Okay not every one but it sure felt like it. We saw giraffes up 

close and personal. They were so close and there wasn't a barrier between us and them except this fence that came up to the top of my waist. It was so cool to be so close. I could 

have touched them but they stayed their distance. Okay so everything was just so cool but this may be the cherry on top. We got to see a dolphin show! Anyone who knows me knows two things I love animals and I can cry at the drop of a hat. So while this show is going on I am just so amazed at the ability of these creatures that yes I shed a tear or two. It is just so amazing to me the creatures that Heavenly Father created and what they are capable of. I took mostly video of the show so I can't really show you how cool it was but just believe 

me, it ROCKED!!

Then the time came to say good bye to our family and all the fun we had and head home. Our flight was good and it was great to be greeted by not only Logan but Chop too! It is such a weird thing to me to love being on vacation and seeing family but how good it feels to be back home.

Thanks again to Amanda and Brett for opening their home, taking time to play and have fun with us and as always being super supportive of us! We love you guys!!

It took me forever to get a pic of Aly in these goggles, but it was well worth the work! She looks so adorable! :)