Whitewater Memorial State Park...

Back in 2016 we had set ourselves a goal to visit all of Indiana's State Parks. We didn't set ourselves any specific time-frame, but I always thought it would be cool to visit all of them inside of 24 months - since there are, after all, 24 Indiana State Parks. And on the 26th November, we accomplished this goal. We visited Whitewater Memorial State Park, near Liberty, Indiana, and have now been blessed to have visited all of Indiana's State Parks - inside of 22 months. :) We had a lovely picnic lunch and then went for a scenic hike on the Veteran's Vista trail. It was another great day in outdoor Indiana!

 Entrance sign.

 Gatehouse.

 Antique carriage near the saddlebarn.

 Heading to the picnic tables near Whitewater Lake.

 Having a lovely picnic lunch.

 Riaan loves nature!

 Walking on the beach.

 Very happy about this! :)

 Riaan having fun in the playground.

 Brookville Lake was closed and drained to allow the waterfowl to rest for the winter.

 Gulls in the distance.

 Sandhill cranes fly overhead.

 Heading off on our hike.

 Lovely colours in the forest.

 Another pretty trail.

 Chipmunk enjoying a snack.

 Turkey feather seen - and left behind - on our walk.

 X marks the spot.

 Funny Daddy!

 Riaan's turn!

 Scenic view over Whitewater Lake.

Christmas Parade in Washington...

We were in Washington for their Christmas Stroll on Main Street last Saturday. (25th November.) That was followed by the Christmas Parade, and we stayed for this special occasion. There were many interesting, Christmas floats taking place in the parade. Riaan loved seeing all of them! :)

 Riaan and I went on a carriage ride before the parade.

 Beautiful weather in Washington.

 Selfie on our carriage ride.

 Watching the parade later in the evening.

 Police cars lead the way.

 Armed forces marching.

 It's a little train! Riaan loved it!

 Fire engines.

 Lots of fire and other rescue vehicles.

USPS postal van decorated in lights.

 Another pretty display.

 One of the Christmas floats.

Riaan had a blast!

Thanksgiving Fun...

We celebrated Thanksgiving with Candace's family last Thursday. (23rd November.) We enjoyed a lovely lunch and then played board and card games together. It was great to get together and be thankful! It always reminds me to be thankful for the many blessings that God has given us!

 Candace at 28 weeks. :)

 Riaan making friends with a kitten. :)

 Relaxing after lunch.

 Riaan hanging out with his cousin Layne.

Enjoying family time together. :)

Little Red Caboose...

Riaan is a huge fan of Thomas the Tank Engine and all other trains at the moment, as I mentioned in this blog post a few weeks ago. There is a little red caboose just ten minutes away in one of the closest towns to our house, and so it only made sense that I took him to see it last Tuesday. (21st November.) He loved seeing this old caboose in Elnora's Antique Show grounds. :)

 Pretty red caboose in Elnora.

 Riaan was so excited to climb on the caboose.

 A view towards the caboose in the show grounds.

Selfie in front of the caboose. :)

Louisville Zoo...

Candace had a work conference down in Louisville on Thursday, 9th November, and so Riaan and I tagged along and had a boy's day out at the Louisville Zoo. This is a lovely place to take a boy who is showing an interest in nature and creation. We had a wonderful time seeing all the animal exhibits, especially the rhino, giraffe, and gorillas. It was a great day and the little man was rather tired-out from fun at the end of it! :) Below is a selection of the animals we saw at the Louisville Zoo!

 Enjoying looking at some fish.

 King Louie, a rare albino alligator.

 Madagascan tree boa.

 Staring contest with an Egyptian cobra.

 

 Looking at the giant toads.

 Bald eagle.

 Snowy owl.

 Canada lynx.

 Watching the jaguar.

 Tiger.

 Riaan and a gorilla enjoying a snack.

 Awesome creature!

 Posing next to a gorilla.

 Orangutan.

 Lunch time!

 The colourful bongo.

 Meerkat.

 Zebra!

 Giraffe!

 African elephant.

 Big rhino!

 Selfie with the rhino behind us.

 There was also a display on rock hyraxes, commonly called dassies in Cape Town.

 Dassies on a rock.

Warthog.

 Ring-tailed lemurs.