New parks of all kinds.

I'm not entirely sure how this happened, but the trip to Spain that we booked over a year ago is suddenly next week, which means I'm running out of time to recap all the cool things I've been doing. If you've spent any amount of time around here, you know it'll probably take several weeks for me to write about our trip, so please allow me to kill two birds with one stone and write a hybrid post about our last day in DC and our recent trip to Santa Claus, Indiana.

I'm nothing if not weird.

We had a late flight out of DC, so we decided to cross a new ballpark off our bucket list by watching the first game of a double header between the Nationals and the Giants. We took the metro to the park, which was surprisingly easy, and found our seats. We only half paid attention to the game, but we were able to try Shake Shack for the first time. Waiting in line took at least a full inning, but it was worth it.

The Nats lost, 4-2, and Bryce Harper didn't play, but the mascots more than made up for the lackluster performance. Where else can you see big-head Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, George Washington, and Teddy Roosevelt race each other and throw t-shirts into a crowd? Comedy gold. All in all, it was the perfect way to wrap up our busy, but wonderful trip to DC.

Fast forward a couple weeks.

In hopes of distracting me from personal stress, Wheat organized a spur-of-the-moment trip to Santa Claus, Indiana for us to check out Holiday World, the holiday-themed amusement and water park. Have I mentioned how dreamy my guy is? On the way down, we spent the night in Louisville, which has never disappointed us. We ate dinner at Mussel & Burger Bar (so delicious!) and wandered around the downtown area on foot. We stopped at Fourth Street Live!, checked out all the baseball plaques near the Louisville Slugger Museum, ate ice cream, and stayed up too late watching Mayweather vs. McGregor.

After breakfast the next morning, we made the one-hour drive to Santa Claus. For those who don't know, I grew up ten minutes away from a massive theme park called King's Island, so I have been a bit spoiled in that regard. Needless to say, as we drove through cornfield after cornfield in southern Indiana, I had very low expectations for what awaited us at Holiday World. But I have to tell you - I was completely wrong.

With the exception of a couple bouts of motion sickness, we had the most amazing time. I still can't believe that such a hidden treasure exists, sprouting up unexpectedly in the middle of miles and miles of farmland. First of all, admission, which includes access to both the theme park and the water park, was reasonable, especially in comparison to other parks. Food prices were also reasonable and, best of all, drinks (and sunscreen) were free. Read that again. I was in absolute heaven with unlimited access to fountain soda all. day. long. No wonder I felt nauseous by the end of the day...

I'm a total sucker for themed things (hello, Game of Thrones pop-up bar) and the whole amusement park was spot on. There are four sections to the park - Halloween, Christmas, Fourth of July, and Thanksgiving - and each section has rides, food, decorations, games, music, and characters that fit that theme. Thanksgiving food (turkey, mashed potatoes, etc.) was served in said section, while Christmas cookies, nativity scenes, and Christmas trees could be found in Christmas land. Even the Dippin' Dots booths were decorated differently in each section! A game in Halloween was called The Raven's Ring Toss while a ride in Fourth of July was called Liberty Launch. You get the picture...and that's exactly what I took - one million pictures.

I didn't expect the park, which was practically empty on a beautiful Sunday in August, to have roller coasters that could compete with King's Island, but again, I was wrong. Wheat and I rode three of the four coasters in the park - The Raven, Legend, and The Voyage - and they were among the best wooden roller coasters I've ever ridden. In fact, The Voyage is considered the #8 roller coaster in the entire country and the other two rank in the top 100, as well. Fourth of July had a Coney Island-type feel to it with mostly carnival rides and a magic show. For some reason, Halloween had an impressive dive show where high divers performed dangerous stunts, like lighting themselves on fire before plummeting to the pool below.

During the magic show, we spotted Santa walking around, so I took a paparazzi shot, of course. Although it's much smaller than King's Island, Holiday World packed a serious punch and it was an absolute dream come true for this big kid. Despite its quirkiness, the park also had a very welcoming, family-run vibe and the staff was incredibly nice.

When we'd had our fill of roller coasters, we mustered up some energy, changed into our bathing suits, and headed to Splashin' Safari, the water park. We honestly could have spent an entire day there, but we only had time to do the lazy river, two water slides, and a water coaster called Mammoth. I'd never been on a water coaster before, but I think they're my new favorite thing. In full disclosure, I did feel very sick afterward, but I blame the soda, riding backwards, and not being able to see anything. It's a bummer to ride water slides when you need glasses.

After a short break to regain composure, we hit the road for Indianapolis, but not before eating some ice cream...because how often do you get to eat an ice cream cone outside, covered in chlorine, while admiring a decorated Christmas tree in Indiana?