Last weekend, the King and I were feeling the pressure of the end of the summer. We only had three more Saturdays of Summer Vacation left. We were looking to do something that our entire family enjoyed and yet we didn’t want to drop a load of cash. So, we decided to stay at home but venture out into the community to do something fun with the girls.
I was flipping through our Entertainment Book and discovered a B1G1 Admission to Conner Prairie, an Interactive History Park, located just north of Indianapolis in beautiful and historic Fishers, IN.
I thought it would be perfect for the Eldest Princess who is VERY interested in History (wonder who she got that from, don’t you?). I knew the King and I would both love it. And since the Youngest Princess is in a phase where she LOVES riding in the car (freakish, I know), she’d be easy to please. So I checked out Conner Prairie’s website (which is AMAZING for planning your visit) for hours and admission cost on Friday night, we tucked the girls in for bed, and we hit the hay early to prepare for a big day. When we got up the next morning it was rainy. *ugh* but we decided to make a day of it anyway. We arrived close to Opening time, and found the Welcome Center to be rather empty. Since it was still drizzling, we spent some time in the Preschool Discovery Center (and other indoor exhibits). The Youngest Princess had a BALL. She wandered from exhibit to exhibit, playing make believe:
The Eldest Princess who is 7 LOVED this area, too.
The rain stopped and we went outdoors, wandering through Prairietown (circa 1836) where the Eldest Princess got to feed the chickens wandering on the road and even pump water.
We visited the schoolhouse and learned what school was like and even had a couple of lessons. We also went to the Dr.’s home, chatted with him and his wife. We learned what medicine was like in that day. We also stopped in to visit with the Carpenter, the Potter, and Merchant.
Wandering built our hunger. We weren’t sure we could pack a lunch (which you can and there are picnic tables outside the Welcome Center) so we asked if we could leave to grab lunch and come back, which they allowed us to do. So we had a delicious half-priced pizza (thanks again to the Entertainment Book) at Greek’s Pizzeria where the service was AWESOME and the food even better.. UM Yum! It more than energized us and we returned to explore the Lenape Village (1816) where the Eldest Princess traded a fox fur for a very valuable necklace and the King tried his hand at tomohawk throwing.
From there we we went to the Conner Homestead (the first brick home built in Central Indiana is located there) where in the animal barn we held chicks, fed a goat, baa-ed at sheep, and moo-ed at the cows (The Youngest Princess is learning animal sounds and it’s fun ok?). We wrapped our trip up by adventuring through Liberty Corner (1886) where we learned how school had changed since 1836, played hoop and stick, and smelled the most unbelievable blackberry cobbler and fresh baked bread coming out of the ovens. The Eldest Princess fed a 600 lb. sow (WOW, sow, WOW) and her piglets and we took in the sights (and *ahem* smells) of the barn.
The character actors made the trip an unbelievable step back into time. They chatted with us and were informational, friendly, and and funny! I was surprised at how much the Youngest Princess (aged 16 months) really enjoyed the trip (beyond riding in the car and the stroller since she likes to “GO” any chance she gets). She had a blast both indoors and outside. The trip was in the sweet spot for the Eldest Princess who learned, interacted with animals (a great love of hers), and stepped back into time. We all got some great exercise (necessary for the decadent pizza) and even the King and I learned a few new historical facts.
We ended the day with ice cream from Handel’s in Fishers. I had anticipated using the Entertainment Book one last time (with a B1G1 coupon) but instead it was $1 Cone Day (WOW those cones were big too)! They have a whole lot more flavors than 31. WHOA. I had the Snappy Turtle and the Eldest Princess had the Graham Central Station. The King has gone on another NO Dessert yearly tract (he went May to May last year) since our cupcake crawl so he abstained. The Youngest Princess had Animal Crackers instead.
Here’s what we spent for the day:
$20 (B1 Adult Ticket G1 ($12), 1 Child ($8), Kids Under 2 are free) at Conner Prairie
$9.50+tip for a Huge Pizza at Greek’s (we brought our own bottled water in)
$2.16 for Ice Cream
An amazing and fun family day for less than what you’d spend for 1 ticket at an amusement park! And we learned a little something, too. If you’re looking for something to do this fall, I’d definitely encourage you to check out Conner Prairie. It’s a quality destination in Indianapolis’ backyard. I am super interested in getting a family membership there which is only $65! Very affordable and practical. Plus they have great events scattered throughout the entire year (but even when nothing special’s going on and it’s rainy it’s fantastic). If you haven’t purchased an Entertainment Book yet, this is just more proof it’s worth the investment. 🙂
Hope you make the most of the last of the summer days and spend time, not money with your Princes and Princesses before they hit the books again this fall.
www.queenoffree.net
We need to do that! We literally live less than half a mile from Connor Prairie!
If I had known you were going, I would have sent a shout-out to my best friend’s dad! He’s the blacksmith ;)!!!! Hope you had a fabulous time! Titus even loved it!
The Sgt Hastings cabin was donated by my grandfather. He passed when I was a senior in high school and every time I go there, I feel like he’s there. Conner Prairie is awesome!
It looks like you had a great time. That is someplace I would love to take my family. Thanks for sharing.