Ariell and Jordann Visit Indiana

Jessica's nieces (Ariell and Jordann) are here to visit us this June and we have had a really good time showing them around Indiana. First, Jessica took them to see the IU campus and downtown Bloomington (pictures forthcoming). This was followed by visits to Nashville and Brown County (pictures forthcoming). Then they spent some time visiting the Amish in Southwestern Indiana.



The highlight of our trip with them was our visit to Lincoln State Park and Holiday World. We had never been to Holiday World before and their visit seemed like the perfect excuse for our family to go. We began the trip with an overnight stay in Lincoln State Park.



After we set up camp we went for a hike around Lake Lincoln. We saw all sorts of wildlife including an otter, a lizard, two snakes, tons of dragon flies and butterflies, a rabbit, and a turtle. Kourtney found a perfect seat to rest on along the trail as seen in the picture below.



By the time we were finished with our hike, we were all ready for a swim. Kourtney and Alyson were very apprehensive of swimming in the lake at first but became comfortable with it with a little persuasion.



We took a paddle boat around the lake after our swim. We looked for wildlife, but the closest thing we saw to it was something slithering through the lily pads. After spotting two snakes along the trail, one of which was a baby water moccasin, we were convinced that it was probably another snake.



One highlight of our camping trip was eating smore's that we wrapped in tin foil instead of cooking them the traditional way (Ariell's idea). Everyone agreed that they were the best we'd ever tasted!



Another chance to see wildlife occurred while we were playing cards after dinner. Kourtney accidently dumped some crackers on the ground earlier in the day, and it attracted the attention of a raccoon family. First a larger raccoon dared to come within 10 feet of our picnic table and then it brought back two others.



After packing up camp on Thursday morning, we went to Holiday World for the first time. It was an incredible experience that we would all like to repeat again. Alyson and Kourtney really loved the kiddie rides and the water slides. Kris, Jessica, Ariell and Jordann thought the roller coasters (one of which is the #3 wooden roller coaster in the world "The Voyager") were amazing. We also had a great time at Splashin' Safari going down the water slides including the longest enclosed water slide in the world (no pictures were taken because we knew no one wanted to see Kris with his shirt off). :)

This was also an exciting day because it was Ariell's 17th birthday. What a way to celebrate!