We really enjoyed our Indy trip back in 2012. You can read about that here.
This time we doubled our fun by adding Max, Jeff, Ema, Luke and Ellie!
We hitched a ride with GranJan & Grandpa again and again, they had a pretty new car - this time the Toyota Sienna (and we're almost jealous as we were of the Highlander!).
Again, we made it in about two hours and we headed straight for the zoo.
Unlike last time, we were able to see the dolphin show this year and everyone really liked it!
We got in and got seated with about 10 minutes to spare before the show started and the boys were climbing back and forth between their parents and siblings and grandparents and at one point, had their arms around each other...a little blurry but still SO CUTE!
It was a super-hot day but even so, most of the animals were active. We love how close we can get to see all of them! Their whole zoo is set up more like the new lion viewing area at the Cincinnati Zoo, and feels much more interactive than our zoo.
Lucy was excited to see the giraffes, especially the baby!
Back in 2015 when we first visited Indy, my dad tried to feed Lucy to a giant polar bear...and in 2016, he tried again:
More zoo fun:
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| Cranking out a keepsake penny |
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| Checking out the rhino |
The was a bridge leading to the rhino exhibit that Maxyboy LOVED. It was a wooden rope bridge that swayed as you walked across and he had so much fun hop-hop-hopping!
Next it was time to cool off for a bit at the splash park area...fun stuff!
After we got the wet fools dried off a bit, we walked around the zoo a little more then headed to our hotel to check in. We stayed at the Baymont Inn & Suites in Indianapolis. The hotel and staff were pretty nice and were able to get all three of our rooms pretty close together. We especially liked hanging out in the lobby all together and usually had the place to ourselves. On that first night, we ordered pizza and ate together and the kids snuggled up after dinner in the lobby chairs to watch some Disney Channel together before bed.
We had two king-sized beds in our room and Mom & Max slept in one and Dad & Lucy slept in the other. These little kids of ours are bed hogs!
The next day was fun-filled as well...big fun at their children's museum!
We made an entire day of it - we headed there after waking for the day and eating breakfast and ate lunch there before and after exploring the place.
I'll let the pictures speak for themselves...train tables, dinosaurs, pirates & princesses, interactive games, Legos, racecars...the fun went on and on!
2016 vs 2016
Being royal!
Lukey, the brave knight, with his very effective shield!
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| Lucy and Max loved the airplane simulation! |
Max climbed up here and got a little bit stuck...I had to send Lucy in to coax him down
and show him which way to go!
Like last time, we ended our day at the museum with a carousel ride
These two were very worn out by the time we called it a day!
More hotel memories:
On the last day, the daddies decided to go play golf...so after eating breakfast and packing up, the mommies and the kiddos found a fun park to run around in for a bit.
Lucy wanted to explore in the woods and go on a little hike...but not before she found the perfect walking stick! She found one for me, too.
After some sweating in the park, it was time to go fetch our boys, grab some lunch and head for home. We stopped at a McDonald's with a play-place so the kids got to burn off a little more energy!
But soon enough, we were back on the road!
We loved our little trip to Indy!
