Getting Away Again...

We went on a girls trip (plus Jed) the Sunday after Independence Day.  We headed to Goshen, IN where we stayed in the beautiful Amish countryside.  On the way to our Air B&B we stopped in Elkhart, IN.  This whole regen is a area known for quilt block flower gardens and murals and Elkhart was the first quilt garden on the map.  We spotted our first flower bed at a huge flower and landscape center.  This place was absolutely gigantic and beautiful.  We had a nice time walking the grounds and admiring all the lovely scenery.  It was hot though. 

 

(Trying to get a picture with Jed right now is pretty hilarious.)

We checked out our house and ate at a brewery downtown for dinner.  The rest of the evening was spent at the Air B&B.  The house we stayed in was so nice.  It was bright, sunny, totally kid friendly and the best part was it was that it was smack in the middle of Amish country.  I mean, we were surrounded in Amish farmland.  I really enjoyed sitting out of the porch and observing the goings-on at the farm behind us.  It was super fascinating. 

There was a retro swing set in the yard.  It was perfect for the kids.  Jed convinced all of his cousins, his sister and aunt to take a turn swinging him.  He loved the little seat swing.  He sang Take Me Out to the Ball Game over and over while swinging.

 

The girls played Frisbee in the yard.

This was the Amish farm right behind us.  They held a gathering Sunday evening with other Amish families.  They sat around a bonfire for a good part of the evening.  It was fun to watch all the buggies coming and going.  The minute the sun went down their house was dark.  The Amish lifestyle is so interesting to me.  For the few nights we were their I enjoyed being an observer of their world.

 

 

I snuck this picture of our friendly Amish neighbor waving at us as he biked past.

Evangeline fit right in her nightgown....

 

Boy did we carb it up!  We started the next morning at Rise and Roll.  We had delicious doughnuts.  Afterwards we visited another exquisite garden, and walked the Pumpkin Vine Trail to antique shops.

 
We ate breakfast at a Amish restaurant and visited several more Amish shops.

 

 

This was a shopping area that was once a barn.  The Amish converted it into a series of small shops.  We went up in the observation silo and got to see another quilt block garden from a neat vantage point.

 

 

We were all tired that evening so we spent the rest of the night at the house.  The girls spent about two hours pushing this little car up the hill, running partially down the hill pushing the car with someone inside, then jumping on top and riding the rest of the way down.  It was hilarious.  It's really a wonder no one got hurt. 

The next morning we went to the Midwest's largest flea market.  It had over 900 venders.  You could get absolutely anything.  It was so big and hot we didn't make it to a good deal of it.  I did purchase some fun finds though.  My favorites being a terrarium, bird cage plant holder and a picture of cows. 
This was such a fun trip.