How About a Little Cheer on this Here Blog?

I know you all came here this week looking for a recap of my whirlwind trip with Jackie and her family to Holiday World. I’m sorry that I’m just now getting to it, but, well, you know.

So, last Friday afternoon, I was picked up by Tim, Jan, Jackie, Troy and Ashlyn to begin our trip to Santa Claus, Indiana and Holiday World. Tim and Jan had rented a Toyota Sienna for the trip and let me tell you, folks, it was nice and roomy. I’ve never been a fan of the mini van, but when it comes to traveling, it was quite lovely. I could stretch out my legs without shoving my feet in someone’s face. What made me laugh the most about the crimson colored Sienna is that Troy continually referred to it as “The Rental.” I kid you not, I’m laughing even as I type this. You would find it funny too if you could see a seven-year old going around talking about “The Rental.” I assume he was also a fan.

So, we hit the road and headed north and played trivial pursuit on the iPod and talked about various things, none of which I can currently recall. After about four hours or so of riding, we got off the interstate in Owensboro, Kentucky to have dinner. We planned to eat at Cheddar’s, but just like the one in Huntsville, it was packed and the wait was 45 minutes to an hour so we ended up at Real Hacienda, which was kind of across the street. Real Hacienda was obviously a local spot and the best thing about it was the toilet, and no, I am not kidding.

The toilet in the ladies’ restroom was dark blue with sunflowers; and I’m not talking the seat, I’m talking the actual toilet. Clearly a lot of work was put in to the crafting of this toilet. I have a picture of it on my phone, but it didn’t turn out too well. It was really dark in the restroom. Needless to say, all four of us girls were quite fascinated by the toilet and wished we had one of our own to showcase. OK, maybe not.

We got back in “The Rental” and headed north to Tell City, Indiana, which would be our home for the night. Mike and Melissa (Jackie’s sister and brother-in-law) along with their two kids and their kids’ two friends pulled up after we did. By the time we arrived I was a ready for a little quiet. After spending five hours in “The Rental” with a seven and six year old, I needed to hear nothing but the silence for a little while. Clearly, I am not used to all the excitement. Jackie sensed that I needed some time to myself and let me crash in the hotel room while everyone else played a game that Melissa had brought. I hate I missed out on playing the game, but was also thankful to just “be.”

Being the early bird that I am, I woke up about 10 minutes after 6:00 and got my shower and did my Bible reading for the day. I went downstairs about 7:00 to eat breakfast and by the time I got back upstairs, Jackie and Troy were in the process of waking from their gentle slumber. The quiet time the night before and the night of rest had me rejuvenated and ready to hit the ground running, not to mention the fact that we stayed at a Holiday Inn Express, which apparently give you the ability to be and do anything – at least according to the commercials.

We finally got in “The Rental” and on the road a few minutes after 9:00 and headed towards Holiday World. I don’t remember what time we arrived at the park. I think it was around 10:00 or maybe it was before. Ken and Jamie (Jackie’s dad and step-mom) had reserved group tickets for us since there were 15 people in our group. They picked up the tickets and distributed them and we entered the park. We had plans to hit the water park first since a friend of Melissa’s said that was the best thing to do because more people went to the water park in the afternoon. The water park opened at 10:30 and there were people everywhere waiting to get in. Tim rented us some lockers to put our things in and once we got situated with our things locked away we went to the water park and immediately got in line for a water slide. The group ended up splitting up and we would occasionally hook back up. Mostly those of us in “The Rental” stuck together and we would see the others at various times throughout the day. The water park was a ton of fun! The water felt very refreshing since it was the hottest day of the year in Indiana. About mid-day we had some lunch and then did a few more water slides before decided to change into our street clothes and go to the non-water side of the park.

After we changed clothes, I started feeling sick. I’m not sure if I was somewhat dehydrated or had heat exhaustion or a combination of the two, but I was sick to my stomach and felt as though I was going to pass out. I lay down on the ground while we were waiting for Tim to get some bottles of water. After a few hours of drinking fluids and sitting, I felt a little better. The worst thing about getting sick was that I was only able to ride one roller coaster, and roller coasters are one of my absolute favorite things but I just didn’t think my stomach could handle it. The heat was absolutely miserable. Melissa and Ken also got a little queasy.

Wouldn’t you know it, in addition to the record setting heat; they also had a record setting attendance at Holiday World on the Saturday we were there. I haven’t been able to find out how many people were there (I’d seriously venture to say over 100,000), but Jamie sent Jackie a text and told her it was a record crowd. This is also what we heard from people in line who had been there before. Melissa talked to a lady that said she had never seen it that crowded and rarely had to wait in long lines when she had been before. Ken and Jamie, who had been before also said the same thing. It figures.

We finally rounded up all the troops and left the park around 6:00 or so. We went back to “The Rental” and headed south. We stopped at the same exit in Owensboro to eat, but no one wanted to eat at Real Hacienda. So, we ended up eating at Culver's, which has “Butterburgers” which are hamburgers – maybe they butter the bread. I still haven’t figured that one out. The food was good and most everyone had dessert too, since ice cream was a specialty there. Jackie and I were fascinated with the drink top dispensers. They pulled down and had one top in it and when you shut the door, the dispenser would retrieve another top. I realize this is the worst explanation known to mankind, but when you see me, ask me about it and I’ll be happy to provide a demonstration.

After dinner, we loaded up in “The Rental” again and started towards home. We sang some church songs with the kids, which reminded me of when I was a kid because we did the same thing on road trips. We arrived at my house for the first offload a little bit after midnight. The first thing I did was take a shower because I was so sticky from all the sweating I had done earlier in the day.

We all had a great time and I think we are planning to do it again; only at a different time because the heat was too much. So, maybe in late May or early June it won’t be as bad.

A special thanks to Tim, Jan, Jackie, Troy and Ashlyn for inviting me and letting me tag along. And a extra special thanks to “The Rental” for making the trip rather relaxing.