Shipshewana, Indiana

We've traipsed around Michigan some this summer. I decided that we should dip down into Indiana today for some fun at the largest flea market in the Midwest: Shipshewana (how's that for a name).

We started out here. We ate chicken, ham, potatoes, stuffing, green beans, bread, noodles and pie.

After that, we were all pretty full and decided to walk it off while seeing the flea market. Some of the stalls were like a really bad overpriced garage sale, but some were really neat to look into. We didn't actually go inside because they are small and I had four kids with me. (Did I mention that Nathan is visiting his cousins for the week? We've missed him!)

As always, the ducks and geese are Sariah's favorites!

The sky was turning very dark and threatening rain, but the kids were set on a carriage ride and even said they'd pay for their own tickets. I think that was the highlight of the day for most everyone. Our driver was particularly nice. I'm pretty sure he was actually Amish and not just dressing up for the part. We have decided to try to learn more about Amish and Mennonite beliefs.



On the way home, we stopped at an inland lake called Gull Lake. It's a nice boating lake and there were lots of sailboats out. The kids swam for about an hour and then we headed home by way of back roads. The land has hills in that area and it was a really pretty ride. More than once I got comments about how the hills made their stomachs feel (in a good way). Thank goodness they are satisfied by hills and aren't asking for amusement parks yet!

We were out and about on Tuesday as well, so I'll post about that tomorrow.