What can we possibly do for 2 weeks in Elkhart?
That was what we were thinking when we were told our motorhome repair was going to take two weeks, rather than 3 days! We did a pretty good job of keeping busy, though!
We found several good restaurants, a really good frozen yogurt/coffee shop (where I got my Michigan Cherry coffee that I love!), and managed to stay pretty busy.
We spent one day visiting our favorite shops in and around Shipshewana, and found a few new ones!
I had read on Facebook about a quilt shop down in Rome City, and since that was the furthest point from us, we started there and worked our way backwards.
Caroline’s Cottage Cottons is a lovely little shop – they have beautiful fabrics, and a full room of wool! It was definitely worth the drive, and I went home with a nice group of fall wools for some projects I’m working on!
The drive was great, too . . . we took all back roads, admiring all the Amish farms along the way!
From Rome City, we went to Topeka.
They had a livestock auction going on, or maybe it had just finished, and the parking lot at the Auction Restaurant was packed with buggies!
(I took the picture below when we left. When we arrived, there were probably 3X that many buggies in the lot!)
It was lunchtime, and we were hungry, so we stopped in . . . we were definitely in the minority, but we had a great lunch! Tom had the buffet, which he said was delicious, and I had the special – ham steak with mashed potatoes and peas. I have to say – those were the absolute best-tasting peas I have ever eaten! Fresh! Tom was bummed, though, that the weekday buffet didn’t include pie (only on the weekends), but he didn’t really have room for it anyway!
After lunch, we spotted the Topeka General Store – it’s kindof a combination of bulk foods and homegoods. We picked up a few things – dried strawberries, which I love, and a bunch of Albenese gummies for Nick . . . and they take credit cards!
From Topeka, we headed back north towards Shipshewana . . . with a quick stop at the Yoder popcorn store. I had to pick up microwave popcorn for both of the boys, and a few for us, too.
I was on vacation that day, but I said I would call into a meeting at 2pm, so our next stop was the Yoder Dept. Store so Tom could look around while I called into my meeting.
He found some people to talk to . . .
When I was done with work, we headed down to E & S and the Yoder Meat & Cheese Store to stock up – meat, cheese, seasonings, spices, baking supplies . . . lots of stuff that I like to get when we are in town! I now have a very full freezer and pantry!
With our shopping complete, we made one last stop at Davis Mercantile so I could look around at Lolly’s Fabrics (I hardly ever buy anything there because the store is just so overwhelming!).
Lastly, we had to have an afternoon snack – pretzels from Jo Jo’s! No trip to Shipshewana is complete without a pretzel from Jo Jo’s! They were delicious, as usual!
That was a good day!
As we travelled around Amish country, we tried to find as many of the Quilt Gardens as we could . . . when I remembered to look for them!
I missed the one in Nappanee the previous weekend, but we drove through Wakarusa on our way back to Elkhart and I was able to get a picture of both a garden and a mural.
Some of the gardens are easier to photograph than others, depending on how the garden bed is constructed. Somebody suggesting having a selfie stick to get better photos – that’s a pretty good idea, but I don’t have one . . . or very long arms, either!
We also stopped in at the Wakarusa Dime Store, which is just a big candy store that specializes in candies from our childhoods, and giant jelly beans. We didn’t buy anything, though.
One afternoon we drove around Elkhart, looking for the quilt gardens. Some of them were difficult to find . . .the map isn’t completely accurate!
We found them eventually, though . . .
Main Street had a garden,
and a couple of murals, although not quilt murals.
Along the Riverwalk, we found another garden.
Another at the Ruthmere House,
and a garden and mural at the Wellfield Botanic Garden.
One last mural at the Elkhart Visitor Center.
Since Tom did not get his pie the other day, we decided to have an early dinner at home on Thursday, and then go back to the Essenhaus for the cruise-in again, and get pie for dessert. Sounds like a good idea!
Once again, rain was threatening, and the turnout for the cruise-in was a little light. We still saw some good cars!
And a different kind of horse power!
More Mustangs and Ford Trucks,
and a rare Falcon.
This was interesting . . . the owner said it does not go in the water!
We went into the restaurant then to get our pie . . . mmm . . . yummy!
Afterwards, we walked it off by wandering around looking for the quilt garden and mural. Found them!
We come to this area of Indiana pretty much every year . . . but it just never gets old! We love it!
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