May 3rd - Our last night in Indiana. We had planned to stay until Monday morning BUT.. tomorrow it turns colder again and the rain is back. We had a reprieve today. It warmed up in the afternoon and after a couple hour wind spell, that went away too so the afternoon got pretty nice. I wouldn't say warm but not cold.

Tomorrow, we are off to Illinois. We'll stay at the same place we stayed on the way up here. It is by Lake Springfield so is very nice. Also, there are some Abraham Lincoln sites to see but what we can do with Sis remains to be seen. We have been quite limited but that's ok. We knew it would be that way and Sis is a member of the family after all.

So, I did not mention that the grass here does not spread. I'm not sure what kind it is although I have seen and heard ads for Kentucky Blue grass. All I know is wood mulch is a big thing here and whenever we've seen it in a flower bed right in the middle of grass, there is no grass in the flower bed. A lot of the yards are landscaped quite beautifully and there are lots of bulb flowers. Surprisingly a lot of those flowers have bloomed. I saw a huge bed of beautiful tulips today.

I know I have not mentioned the large amounts of cemeteries around here. They don't use the flat headstones so are pretty different. Of course there are trees and green, green grass. They look very nice.

School buses are driven home by the drivers as we have seen many at homes. I guess the districts don't need to have a yard that way. And school campuses are completely open. No fences and gates. Not like in AZ where they are all locked up. I think I mentioned that most all schools we have seen are comprised of one building just like I remember.

The unfenced schools and unfenced pools are funny as you would think back here those things would be standard and we'd be more lax back west but not so. At least, that is my thinking however skewed it may be.

Illinois weather shows warm and dry temps, hallelujah! We are looking forward to that.

Today we drove to Nappanee, an Amish community. We were able to stop in a furniture store. I have to say, they had the most beautiful, well-made furniture I ever saw. The prices are not unreasonable at all but quite comparable however for much higher quality product. It is a treat just to drive and see the landscape and homes.

As promised the other day, here are some pics.

Lake Michigan from New Buffalo Beach, MI. This lake is so big it looks like the ocean. All you can see is water, in every direction.

Well, sorry but I am having no luck downloading pictures tonight. It is taking a loooong, loooong time. I will try again tomorrow.

Good night! As of tonight, we are looking at being back home in Phoenix by May 20th!!! :-)