Happy Holidays!

The arrow and I want to wish you and yours the happiest of holidays. We've had so much fun sharing our adventures with all of you over the last six months. Perhaps you've been inspired to go on an outing with your kids. Maybe you've read a tip that helped you on a trip. Or you could just be drawn here by the arrow's big brown eyes. (I don't blame you, they get me every time.) Regardless, thanks for reading. Your comments and kind words are the reason I do this. Many of you have given us a great deal of encouragement to try new and wonderful things as a family. I'm incredibly grateful that you pay this little blog a visit from time to time.

I won't be posting next week--instead, we'll be tackling a few projects around the house and just enjoying some quality family time. But we hope you'll stick around to see what we're up to next in 2011!

Every once in a while I hand the camera over to my partner in crime. This photo was taken on our hay ride to the Christmas tree fields at Roberts Tree Farm in Seymour, Indiana, which I blogged about here last week. 

This post is a part of Photo Friday at Delicious Baby.

Sampling food at Traders Point Creamery

Last week, I shared a couple of pictures of Traders Point Creamery's restaurant all decked out for the holidays. And while that was beautiful and rustic, I walked away from my time there very focused on the food we ate.

Traders Point Creamery is one of the nation's only all-organic dairy farms, located on the northwest side of Indianapolis. You can practically taste their slow, gentle approach to farming. It's a really fun place to visit, tour the farm, and even explore the gorgeous farmland on some walking paths they've cleared. But be sure not to miss the food. Oh, the food!

First we sampled their yogurt. It's made in the European, drinkable style. Yum. I can't wait to bring the arrow here, he would devour this yogurt.

Then it was on to their cheese, a spreadable fromage with fresh herbs.

We wrapped up the dairy delights with a sample of chocolate milk and egg nog. Their chocolate milk is made with melted swiss chocolate. Chocolate heaven, if you ask me.

Just when I thought it was over, out comes a spread of tapas. Nearly all of what you see here was cultivated on the property. Grass-fed beef skewers, squash rounds, and homemade hummus, fresh from the garden.

In case we weren't taking their word for it, then we got to go see ol' Bessie for ourselves. If you've ever toured a more industrial dairy farm, you know those cows don't get to lay around on fresh hay with lots space to move about. After a trip we took to Fair Oaks Farms in northwest Indiana, which mass produces dairy products on an enormous scale, it was so refreshing to see some happier cows.

You can bet this won't be the last time I belly up to the Traders Point Dairy Bar. If you're interested in sampling their yogurt, cheese or milk, much of which is available in many places around the country, you can find a list of stores carrying their products here.

This post is a part of Wanderfood Wednesday at Wanderlust and Lipstick.

Disclosure: I participated in the Hendricks County Convention and Visitors Bureau's recent Holiday Tour. A stop at Traders Point Creamery was included and my expenses were paid. I was under no obligation to write about our time there. The opinions expressed here are my own.

A tour of Notre Dame

The arrow has recently become obsessed with photo albums. He can look at pictures of himself and family members over and over again. It can get repetitive, but it's definitely more interesting than reading Elmo Minds His Manners for the 300th time.

Lately he's been looking at our 2009 photo book, which includes pictures from our trip to South Haven, Michigan. It was our first vacation as a family and we'll always remember it fondly. In order to survive our first long car ride with a baby, we planned a stop at the University of Notre Dame in South Bend. Notre Dame also happens to be my husband's alma mater. It was such a treat to watch him give the arrow his first tour of campus.

Stopping in front of the Basilica of the Sacred Heart.

Alum or not, Notre Dame is a beautiful place to visit. (You have to find your own cute baby to hold in your pictures, though, mine is taken.) Dominique at Midwest Guest has done some great posts about her trip there, which provide fascinating information on the architecture and artwork on campus. You can check out those posts here, here and here.

I can't help but wonder what college visits we'll be taking 16 or 17 years from now. I know my husband will be hoping for a trip back to Notre Dame. I'm just glad we have many, many years until then.

This post is a part of Mondays are for Dreaming at The Mother of All Trips.

Warming up with memories from the Desert Botanical Garden

It's been so chilly here this week. Single digit temps at night, windy, lots of snow and ice. When it's safe enough to venture out, on our brief trips in and out of the car to dash into a store, the gym, wherever, the arrow yells and moans as the wind hits his face. I feel like doing the same. I know it's just our bodies getting used to the winter climate. By January, this will feel normal and we'll be getting bundled up and going for short walks. But we're just not there yet. Until then, I'm thinking of...

A desert oasis.

A funky looking cactus.

Anyplace warm.

Phoenix's Desert Botanical Garden certainly fits the bill. You can read all about our visit here.

This post is a part of Photo Friday at Delicious Baby.

Over the river and through the woods to find our Christmas tree

Now that our little guy is beginning to understand the magic of this season, I wanted to make our Christmas tree experience something special--a trip to a mass retailer parking lot just wouldn't cut it for us this year. So this weekend we headed out into the woods to Roberts Tree Farm in Seymour, Indiana. It was an awesome spot. Uncommercialized. Friendly. Still doing business the same way they always have. I just love places like that, and it's particularly refreshing this time of year.

You know those outings that end up being just about perfect? This was one of those times. I'll let the pictures (and running commentary from the arrow) show you all the fun we had.

Mom, stop talking about how cute these Carhartt overalls are. I'm a manly man!

You mean I'm going to get to run around a snow-covered field? I can't wait!

They have a dog here too? Oh, this place is great!

I love a good chance to snuggle with dad, especially on a hay ride.

They all look good to me, Mom.

And they smell good, too.

My parents say this is the one we're taking home.
(Note from mom: When selecting a tree from a large, open field, trees look much smaller than they will in your house. This massive mound of pine is now taking up 75% of our living room.)

Cookies and a warm fire? Let's call it a day.

We ended our adventure by warming up around a real wood burning stove in a cozy little cottage while they drilled and tied up our tree. The cottage was stocked with cookies made by the owner's wife and hot chocolate and cider in crockpots. A sweet and warm ending to a perfect morning in the crisp winter weather.

This post is a part of You Capture at I Should Be Folding Laundry. This week's theme is outdoors.

Here Fishy, Fishy: Dreaming of the Florida Aquarium

We'll be heading to the Tampa/St. Petersburg, Florida area in February. I've already booked our flights and our lodging, so this weekend I spent some time looking up attractions. (There's also 5 inches of snow and single digit temps outside my warm, cozy house... so thinking about a trip to Florida is a great way to pass the time!)

One attraction that has caught my eye is the Florida Aquarium. I've written about past trips to the Indianapolis Zoo and the Louisville Zoo because the arrow loves animals. This spring and summer we basically blew right by the fish tanks on those trips. He was still in a stroller most of the time, and just didn't seem to take an interest. But last month, while visiting the Interpretive Center at Falls of the Ohio State Park, he lit up when he saw the fish in the aquariums they have. (More about our morning at that great state park to come!)

Hi Fish!

Making fishy faces

If we make it to the Florida Aquarium, I especially want to spend some time in the Bays and Beaches gallery to see the 300 lb. grouper and learn more about the native fish and plant life in that particular area of Florida. I'm also excited about the Coral Reef gallery, where you can experience what a 60 foot dive is like, and to see the underwater dragons currently on exhibit. If the weather is warm enough, I'd love to finish our visit splashing around the Explore a Shore, a water park designed for younger children.

The Florida Aquarium is what I'm dreaming about on this cold, snowy Monday. Go see the other Mondays are for Dreaming posts at The Mother of All Trips.

Christmas at Traders Point Creamery

Earlier this week, I blogged about my time at Traders Point Creamery in Zionsville, Indiana at the Indiana Insider (read that post here). It was a wonderful afternoon where time seemed to slow down a bit, which is always welcome during the frantic pace of the holidays. Traders Point is one of the nation's only all-organic dairy farms. The food we sampled was incredible... I'm sure I'll be writing more about that in the weeks to come.

But today, I wanted to share two photos to bring you some holiday cheer. Traders Point's restaurant was all decked out for Christmas, most notably this beautiful (live!) tree:

In case you forget you're at a dairy farm, these adorable cow bell ornaments:

And now I officially feel guilty that my own tree isn't up yet!

If you're in the area this weekend or next, consider attending their Christmas on the Farm event, which is geared toward kids.

Disclosure: I participated in the Hendricks County Convention and Visitors Bureau's recent Holiday Tour. A stop at Traders Point Creamery was included and my expenses were paid. I was under no obligation to write about our time there. The opinions expressed here are my own.

This post is a part of Photo Friday at Delicious Baby.