Sluiter Nation Takes Indy

I promised to share our trip to Indianapolis, so I need to make good on that.  So here is our story...

Last week Monday, our little family packed up and headed south.

 Before having Eddie, four hours in the car for a road trip would have been no big deal for Cort and me.  We love road trips together! But with a 13-month old?  By hour three?  Eddie was done.  D.O.N.E. done. I had to start singing to him to get him to applaud and smile and not scream his face off.

Also on that four-hour tour, Eddie also had his first McDonald's visit.  I didn't even think to take my camera in, but there he sat...in a highchair, with a chicken nugget and apple slice happy meal, smiling.  And in that McDonalds somewhere in northern Indiana?  My baby learned to drink out of a straw.  Sigh...

Anyway, we arrived in Indianapolis around 5:00 or so.  Eddie LOVED the hotel room!

The chair and the air conditioner and the window overlooking a bazillion school buses were his favorite parts.

That evening Emily invited us over for pizza and relaxing on the back deck while the kids played.  It was a lovely way to start our visit!  Before we left, we agreed to head out to the Indianapolis Zoo with Emily and her crew in the morning.

Emily has a membership pass so we got in for nothing at all!  You can't beat that deal with a stick!

Emily's oldest, PK, was our tour guide for the day.  Now you must know, PK and I bonded over that fact that we both love princesses, and I knew each one of her Polly Pockets princess's names.  Yup, we are now BFF's.  Anyway, I believe it was because of this bond that we got such a thorough tour from her.

One of the first places she took us was to see the sharks.  Very cool.  However, did you know you can PET these sharks?  Um...I am a little skeptical of this.

But clearly it is safe because I don't think Emily would let her sweet little girls touch a man eater.  I don't THINK.

So of course Cort had his brave pants on that day and cozied up to a shark.  This is the same guy who picked up a horseshoe crab and pet a sting ray in Myrtle Beach.  Show off.

So I leaned in and pet one too.  It was icky, but at least I did it.  Notice my two-finger technique.  That is me all following directions.

We stopped to see the penguins.  Birdie liked the penguins.  I liked Birdie's pigtails.  It's a fair trade.

Eddie enjoyed the dolphin dome.  It WAS pretty neat to feel like you are underwater.  And it's very echo-y in there.  Also a favorite of Eddie's.

Meerkats, anyone?

Polar Bear butt dwarfing Emily's girls.

The crew: Emily, Gage, Birdie, PK, Cort, and Eddie

elephant family

Cort's new BFF, Gage the Rage

It may have been over a hundred degrees.  And some of us may have been crabby about that.

Lucky for us there is a splash pad at the zoo.  Eddie and I put our piggies in to cool off!

Ah!  that's better!

Right before we left, we met these gibbons.  They were loud.  They were a fan favorite.  Coincidence?

Oh, and in case you are wondering, Eddie got a penguin to add to his collection from this zoo!

We may have had McDonalds again.  This time I had my camera ready.  See?  He's like an adult with that thing.  Sigh...

Tuesday night was the super fun Blogger BBQ at Emily's.  It was fun.  It was needed.  I wish I could do it ALL THE TIME!

Wednesday morning we decided we needed some indoor, air-conditioned fun, so on the recommendation of all the Indy natives, Sluiter Nation went to the Children's Museum of Indianapolis.

It was four floors of exploring, investigating, learning, and playing.  Eddie really liked it.  I may have loved it.

Eddie learned about watersheds (just for you Erin. Maybe he can explain them to me).

He played in a log.

He built things with blocks.

He rode a carousel with dad-do.

We saw dinosaurs. (Eddie applauded this guy).

Eddie explored sand.

and learned about magnets.

he picked flowers.

and played in the Baby Scapes.

I posed on the Barbie runway. 

And stopped for a photo op with my childhood friend.  Girlfriend needs to eat a cheeseburger, though.  She's making me look bad!

Before lunch (where Eddie drank from yes, ANOTHER juice box), we found his favorite exhibit!

There were rock star cars like this one from Van Halen.

And this trailer o stereo from KISS

we even saw Cheap Trick's custom John Deere!

We even let Eddie try out a "hog".  He liked it.  Sort of a lot.  Don't tell Grandma.

After lunch, it was time to get back in the truck and head north for home.  Eddie and I both slept for part of the trip. We were exhausted from all the fun we had.  It was the perfect minivacation for our first family vacation.  Eddie slept pretty well in the hotel (even if he didn't nap on Tuesday because the room was just too interesting), and we had a TON of fun with old and new friends!

We look forward to visiting Indy again and maybe hitting the State Fair next time!