Amish Country Blog

I know.  You’ve called us for the Travel Guide, and you’ve mapped out your entire stay.  You have the map in the middle of the guide, and you go on your way.  Coming to the Visitor Center is not on your list of things to do.

The great thing about the Visitor Center is that everyone here is knowledgeable about the area.  We can give you easy directions to anywhere you want to go in the area.  We know about events that are happening in the area, and we can pass that information along to you to enhance your trip.  We have some regional information here so if you are here for a few days, you can find more options for your stay.  We also have a great quilt exhibit for your enjoyment in the Visitor Center.

We are the most knowledgeable about the Heritage Trail Route and the Quilt Garden Tour, and can give you tips about both tours.  We have maps and plenty of information.  We’re also very friendly and love talking to visitors.  So when you’re in the area, come and visit us.
The Visitor Center is located at 219 Caravan Drive, Elkhart, IN, and I hope to see you soon.

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.

My favorite time is year start July 23rd.  Yes, it’s the Elkhart County 4-H Fair.  9 days of great, fun filled family activities, rides and food.

The best part of the 4-H Fair is that the grandstand price in included in the admission price.  They have track seating- you can pay extra, but what’s the fun in that.  This year is there is a great line up, the best show by fair is going to be CMA winners Lady Antebellum .  Now, the secret to getting great grandstand seats is showing up early, and I mean about 2pm for a 7pm concert.  Bring cards, food and water, but don’t leave once you get that perfect spot.  I know, there’s a whole fair going on and you want to explore, but don’t expect to find much seating after 5pm.

Another secret to a great fair experience is going early on free day.  The first Sunday of the Fair is free admission.  But if you wait till after noon, expect lots of traffic.  I usually try to get there between 8-9am.  Not much is open at that time, so eat a leisurely breakfast, go through all the animal exhibits, and then explore the rest of the fair as it opens.

I love 4-H Fair time in Elkhart County.  So if you happen to be in Amish Country during July 23-31, visit the Elkhart County 4-H Fair.  You won’t be disappointed.  And if you’ve been to the fair, let me know what you like doing.

June is National Dairy Month.  I love this month, a reason to eat ice cream and cheese.  Here are a few places in Amish Country to help you celebrate this month.

Guggisberg Deutsch Kase Haus in Middlebury has award winning cheese.

Yoder’s Meat and Cheese in Shipshewana has over 100 different cheese selections.

Olympia Candy Kitchen in Goshen is family friendly soda shop that will be great for malts and milkshakes.

South Side Soda Shop in Goshen has lots of different ice cream treats that will make any ice cream lover happy.

Ramer’s Bed and Breakfast in Goshen is a dairy farm.  Enjoy talking with the Ramer’s about their farm as you stay the night in Amish Country.

Hope you enjoy this month, and let us know where you go for your favorite dairy treats.

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

Playing a character named ‘Butch’ in a show called Leading Ladies is slightly ironic, however, irony seems the central theme behind this upcoming comedy at Elkhart Civic Theatre.

Here is the synopsis:

Two down-on-their-luck British actors, Jack and Leo (played by Scott Fowler and Rick Ellis), hear of a dowager searching for her long-lost nieces to bestow them their inheritance before she passes on.  Chaos ensues when Leo convinces the reluctant Jack to go to Amish Country Pennsylvania to nab the “boodle.”

What the two money-starved actors didn’t anticipate is that they would each discover love amid the rolling hills of York, PA.  The plot thickens, as Jack and Leo find themselves caught between money, love and an up-tight reverend.

Even after several rehearsals, this fast-paced comedy still manages to make me laugh.  There is a multitude of talent in this Ken Ludwig classic. The show runs April 23, 24, 25, 30, May 1, & 2.  For more details Click Here.

Tickets are going quickly, be sure to reserve now!

I went to Elkhart Civic Theatre’s performance of “I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change” The show made me laugh and laugh, as it celebrates couples in all forms, from dating to the finding that special second partner at the funeral home.

I was amazed at how true a lot of the scenes are.  The Marriage Tango, sung by Michael Cripe and Kristin Riggs was so true to life about how mundane married life can be.  I think my husband and I had the same conversation a couple times this past week, including “did you get your breaks checked on the car”.  Baby Song sung by John Shoup was too cute.  All first parents would love to reclaim language skills and the ability to be interesting.
The sweetest part of the night was Michael Cripe singing Shouldn’t I Be Less in Love with You.   The song highlighted a man, married to his wife of thirty years.  He sang about how he should be going through midlife crisis, but it wasn’t what he wanted.  At the end of the song he admits that he isn’t any less in love with his life than when they first were together.
The hardest part of the night was seeing the show come to an end.  The cast did such a great job.
“I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change” is open for just one more weekend, Friday March 26, and Saturday March 27 at 8pm.

Sweet Creams Soda Shop
700 S. Main @ State Street / Elkhart / 574.970.5568
-Step back in time
-Try the lunch-time grilled cheese with sautéed peppers & onions
-Best noon ‘till 1:30 pm

Michael’s Italian Restaurant – since 1957
Corner of 6th & Harrison / Elkhart / 574. 522.3664
-Great local feel with “Wednesday night regulars”  – mayor, former police chief
-Best Wednesdays 7 – 8:30 pm

Tabletop Soignee at Flytrap’s
505 S. Main Street / Elkhart / 574.295.1400
-Check out the beef “brutzli” served on a cooking stone @ table
-Great a-la-minute Swiss methods
-Cool original art

Thirsty Thursdays @ The Vine
214 S. Main Street / Elkhart / 574.970.5006
-50% off wines by the bottle each Thursday, free tastings – very popular
-Great retro interior

Power Lunch Fridays
McCarthy’s on the RiverWalk / Elkhart
333 NIBCO Parkway @ Elkhart Avenue bridge / 574.293.2830
-The place for bankers/ developers/ players to launch deals
-Best  Fridays 12 – 1:30 pm

Members of the Maple Leaf Quilt Guild, Heartland Quilters, Artful Quilters, New Paris Puzzler Quilt Guild, Happy Hoosier Homemakers, Zion Extension Club, and Pie Gabba Sew are organized to welcome over 1,000 quilters into Elkhart County on National Quilting Day, Saturday, March 20, 2010 at the Elkhart County 4-H Fairgrounds in Goshen.  Purdue Extension Services Educator, Mary Ann Lienhart-Cross remarks, “The rich heritage of quilting and hospitality make Elkhart County an ideal location to host this 20th anniversary event”.

“The Gathering of Quilters” features a quilt block exchange, a quilt exhibit and show, local demonstrations with product sales, and vendors offering quilt supplies, products, fabrics, notions and kits. Guest speaker, Brenda Papadakis, an expert in applique and Civil War era quilts and designs and the author of the 1996 “Dear Jane” book is the keynote speaker. In her famous book which started the “Dear Jane” quilt craze, Papadakis has lovingly recreated the two hundred twenty-five patterns from the celebrated Jane A. Blakely Stickle 1863 quilt. Brenda will lead a keynote session drawing attendees into the historical context of Jane’s achievement and connecting her to quilting
lives today.

Contact Diana Bennett at 574.642.4194 for information.

Mindy, Amish Country Northern Indiana Contributor and Visitor Center Specialist

The Elkhart County Historical Museum invites girls to bring their American Girl Doll to the museum and learn together what life was like for children growing up in the 1970s.  On Saturday, Februrary 27th the museum will host “The Groovy ‘70s: Featuring American Girl Julie!”

The program will focus on some of the things that helped define the ‘70s.  One example is the environmentalist movement which made great strides in the 1970s.  1970 marked the first celebration of Earth Day and the Endangered Species Act was passed in 1972. “In recognition of the environmentalist movement, the girls will be making kites just like Julie did in her book Julie and the Eagles,” says Oestreich.  “Julie made and sold the kites to try and raise money to save endangered bald eagles.”

Girls will also be making projects featuring some of the fads of the 1970s. “Two of the more famous fads are lava lamps and pet rocks,” says Oestreich.  “So each girl will get to make a lava lamp and pet rock to take home.”  Other fads included roller skating, homemade ribbon barrettes, and pong.  In addition, many girls in the seventies read Judy Blume books and watched Little House on the Prairie.

Girls are welcome to come dressed in seventies inspired attire.  For girls this means bell-bottomed pants, platform shoes, turtle neck shirts, and flower prints.  Hair for girls switched from long and straight in the first part of the decade to more loose and feathery like the hair of Charlie’s Angel Farrah Fawcet in the latter part of the seventies.

Several American Girl related prizes will be awarded to participants including a grand prize of the Julie doll.  Additionally there will be prizes of American Girl story books, activity books, and clothing.  If anyone is interested in donating items to allow for more girls to go home with prizes please contact the museum.

While the bringing of an American Girl Doll to the program is encouraged it is not required.  Everyone is welcome to attend the program whether or not they have a doll.

The cost to attend “The Groovy ‘70s: Featuring American Girl Julie!” is $3/girl. Participants may choose from a morning session from 10:00 to 12:00 or an afternoon session from 1:30 to 3:30. Pre-registration is required.  To register or for more information, please contact Rebecca Oestreich at 574-848-4322 or Rebecca@elkhartcountyparks.org.

Rebecca Oestreich Elkhart County Historical Museum