Amish Country Blog

Lots of great family friendly events are going on this week in Amish Country.

Amish Acres Arts and Crafts Festival August 5-8

Goshen First Fridays August 6

Meet me in St. Louis presented by Elkhart Civic Theater August 6-7

Linton’s Enchanted Gardens Hawaiian Luau August 7-8

So get out and have fun in Amish Country this week, and let me know which family friendly event is your favorite.

You’re Invited to the Indiana 500 Tour Kick-off

Tuesday, May 11, 2010, 1:30 – 3:30 PM at
Amish Acres Historic Farm & Heritage Resort

Join us for Free Ice Cream at The Log Cabin Soda Shop and  Fudgery – Classic Vehicle Display – Wagon Tours – Opening Remarks by State Representative Wes Culver

*Classic car owners and motorcycle enthusiasts are encouraged to bring your vehicles!

The Indiana 500 Tour spans 500 miles and over 100 stops chronicling Indiana’s transportation and motorsports heritage.

Elkhart County is pleased to announce its 2010 Trail participants:
RV/MH Hall of Fame & Museum
New York Central Railroad Museum
Simonton Lake Drive-in
Elkhart River Queen
Amish Acres Wagon Farm Tour
Nappanee Railroad Depot / Nappanee Center
The nationally-recognized Heritage Trail

Event Location: Amish Acres Historic Farm & Heritage Resort (1600 West Market Street / Nappanee, IN 46550)

Please RSVP by May 5, 2010
Elkhart County Convention & Visitors Bureau
574.262.8161 or ecconv@amishcountry.org

I went to see David Pendleton at the Blue Gate Theater on Friday night, and it was a great show.  David is a ventriloquist, and his act is funny and engaging.

His characters are memorable.  My favorite character was the dog Buford, who was very cute and lovable.  96 year old Aunt Tilly is feisty.  She tries to pick up single men in the show to marry.  She doesn’t have much time for courting anymore.  Otis has the ability to make the audience laugh, and is slightly cynical. Otis also has a habit of getting into a lot of trouble.  And although Aunt Tilly is older, I think Otis has much more life experience.  Vern, a cockatoo, thinks he’s an albino vulture.

David returns to the Blue Gate Theater on August 13-14.  Don’t miss his show.

There are definite signs people are traveling shorter distances, so Amish Acres has adjusted its services and offerings to appeal to a more local audience. For example, it’s expanded its restaurant menu beyond the Threshers Dinner introducing fresh ideas such as the new Sunday Buffet, German Sausage Wednesdays, and Half-Price Thursdays with a ½ price rib dinner, ½ price theatre tickets (non-reserved seating) and ½ price hotel suites – encouraging people to start their weekend getaway early. And it seems to be working.

Amish Acres has also taken a totally different marketing approach and forged cooperative partnerships with CVS in over 400 of its Midwest stores and all Kroger, Owens, and Scotts stores in most of Indiana.

Richard Pletcher, Founder and CEO, Amish Acres Historic Farm & Heritage Resort, Nappanee, IN

How far do you plan to travel for your summer vacation? Let us know.

There seems to be a lot more people using coupons, savings cards and discount programs in light of the current economic climate. And I was so happy to see the new program that Amish Acres, Nappanee is offering to their visitors and CVS cardholders.

According to their site, all you have to do is present your CVS/pharmacy Extra Care Card or register receipt or your Plus Shopper’s Card and you will  receive $5 off the Amish Acres House & Farm Tour. You will also receive $50 in valuable shopping coupons! There are additional offers related to this as well and you can find the details on their site Amish Acres.com.

This is a great oppportunity for you to enjoy the Amish Acres House and Farm Tour!
If you’ve taken the tour, let us know your favorite part. Leave Your Comment

- Jessica Miller,  Amish Country Northern Indiana Contributor

In Amish Country, we do a lot of celebrating the holidays.  We like decorations, and trees and lights, and anything festive that warms up the winter weather.  I think people in the south don’t appreciate Christmas decorations as much as northerners do, because they have sunshine – and we – well we have snow, dark and cold.  The darkest day of the year is coming up too.  During the winter solstice, we’ll have exactly 12 hours of sunlight and 12 hours of nighttime. 

So I’m a little embarrassed to admit this, but I haven’t decorated for Christmas yet.  Well, OK, I’ll admit that we hardly ever decorate for Christmas.  I love other peoples light, and love going over to my friends and families houses to see how great their trees are, but me, I don’t like to put in the effort.  It’s too much work for such a small amount of time.  And now that we have a toddler, it seems everyone wants me to feel bad for not decorating for her. (I don’t feel bad!)

So, it’s a great thing that there are a lot of places to see winter lights and trees in Amish Country of Northern Indiana.  The American Countryside Farmers Market has trees decorated for charity.  Das Dutchman Essenhaus, Amish Acres and the Blue Gate Restaurant and Theatre are all decorated for Christmas.  Linton’s Enchanted Gardens is very festive, and when you visit, puts you in the holiday mood.  Our downtowns are decked out in lights and ornaments.  So while you’re out Christmas shopping, enjoy the effort others have made to make this area festive for the holidays.

Check out The Fantastic New Entertainment Line Ups!

Amish Acres Round Barn Theater promises a fun and exciting line up. The national home to Plain and Fancy will be hosting The Fantasticks, The Music Man, Carousel, Kiss Me Kate and A Wonderful Life in 2008. The theater season runs from April 15 to December 31st.

Subscribe to our blog feed to get up the minute information on shows such as:

Tom Netherton former Lawerence Welk show performer has found a home in Elkhart County. Tom will be performing exclusive shows at American Countryside Farmers Market. Beginning on Valentines Day Tom will perform his shows periodically throughout the year.

If you are interested in Gospel Music or Comedy you won’t want to miss a night out at the Blue Gate in Shipshewana, where they offer wholesome entertainment and great food.

Elkhart has a very talented community theater groups offering performances throughout the year at the Bristol Opera House and The Elco Performing Arts Center.

Holiday Shows will Sell out Fast Get your tickets today!

White Christmas
November 6- December 31, Amish Acres
An Evening with Nicholas Roth
November 23, Ruthmere
Christopher’s Christmas
November 30, 2007, Elco
Wizard of Oz
December 7-9, Elco
WinterLude
December 7-9, Bristol Opera House

The Holidays are a great time to discover area museums
Edwardian Yuletide at Ruthmere begins the day after Thanksgiving and continues through the month of December. The mansion is beautifully decorated in period style with numerous Christmas trees, garlands, and live poinsettias.

Take a tour of Elkhart’s Fine Museums
Sunday, December 16, 2007 from 1:00 pm-4:00 pm
Admission is free!
Refreshments & Shuttle available!!!