Indiana, banana

It's been on our list to visit old friends Jon and Heather in their new house and hometown of Bloomington, Indiana. With time once again in our favor, we booked another trip where Dave and the older girls bookended the visit with National Park peregrinations while Heather and Tessie flew in for a long weekend.

Creekstomping was a whole lot of good, old-fashioned fun. The kids hunted for crayfish while the adults collected geodes and crinoid fossils.

Chloe was generous to share her toys with Tessie

The local science museum was great, with all kinds of hands-on exhibits

 Ansel practiced holding a palantir

 Sleight of hand and twist of fate, on a bed of nails she makes me wait

Erin showed off her 3-inch vertical

 Nothing beats ice cream in small-town America

We thought that Holiday World, in Santa Claus, Indiana, would be a small-town amusement park, but oh no, it was a full-fledged thrill-ride extravaganza. Ansel and Caroline were the only ones big enough and brave enough to tackle the biggest rides. 

 Ansel loved the Hallow Swings

This was more Chloe and Erin's speed

A mid-day thunderstorm, which shut down the park for 45 minutes, didn't slow us down

Road trip!

Even the butterflies were super-friendly

Jon's Boy Scout fireworks training were in use for a backyard display

Sorry neighbors!

 Thanks, Jon and Heather, for the fun-filled trip to America's heartland

Jon dominated the bumper car circuit, but then again they're 8 year-olds and he's 41 years old with 25 years of driving experience

Little Rhody

Aunt Claire and her family visited us in July and helped mind the older girls one day while Dave interviewed for a new job. Schedule-heeding families that we are, an ambitious day was planned. Not all activities were completed, however we did do the death walk, much to the kids' enjoyment. Haven't heard of death walk? You'll have to visit 12 Taft Ave to find out more.

We spent 2 nights in Charlestown, RI, an area that we had never visited before. It was a great place to vacation, namely because there were no crowds, and the beaches were fantastic. In fact, because the coast is outside of the Long Island Sound, the waves proved to be too big for swimming, but just right for playing in the surf.

On our first trip, the evening of our arrival, the kids weren't wearing their suits

Rowan is a soggy-bottom boy

Erin learned the hard way what getting thrashed by a wave means

Caroline got wet but stayed clear of the sand...

...possibly due to her efforts at water-bending

Hey look, a picture of Dave!

Brooke and Rowan are always ready to smile

That's what we call a deserted beach

Back the next day, the weather was perfect, even if we did spend most of the time in our shade tent

Watch Hill, RI, has an old carousel where riders can reach for rings

Pulling the brass ring entitled the rider to another free ride, and Brooke got it twice in a row

Nice form, Caroline

Erin, too

Loot from the candy store

Watch Hill lighthouse

Back at the Willows Inn

C'mon Erin, where are those teeth?

Erin's clamshell became her new best friend

Sorry to cut you out, Rowan

 On the way home we stopped in Newport to visit the Touro Synagogue NHS. Little Rhode Island does its best with historical figures. Their most famous Revolutionary War hero is Benedict Arnold - whoops - and for the War of 1812 Newport has a statue of Commodore Oliver Perry. Who, you say? Well, his victory in the Battle of Lake Erie earned a place on the 2013 quarter, so it must be important.

The girls have lots of stuffies, too

Fun in the surf