Well, Hello, Louisville!!!

We did indeed pile up a WHOLE BUNCH of stories on our trip, but we got home too late to tell you about all of them for this week. So while we prepare those, enjoy some of our favorite mishaps from anniversary trips of yore. Donut, anyone???

 Listen here

Last May, Ryan and I went to Madison, Indiana, for our birthday trip. Before we went, one of my friends told me she wasn't a big fan of Madison, but she loved going to Louisville. We already had our trip planned (and for the record, we really enjoyed Madison) but she planted the idea in my head to research Louisville as another possible trip destination. Way back in the summer, I started doing just that, and boy am I ever glad now that I spent so much time working so far ahead. I had no idea how crazy busy our fall and winter would get with all the things happening with Ryan's mom! 

Last Friday morning, we headed out for a weekend in Louisville. We have driven through it many times on our way to other places, and in my pre-Ryan days, I stopped there once to visit the zoo. But otherwise, this was a new spot for us, and we had a good balance of fun and rest planned!

I planned for us to stop here in Kokomo for breakfast before leaving town, because there's a little café we had a gift card to, and the only thing better than breakfast out is a free breakfast out, right? Wanna know something funny? Ryan forgot to use the gift card when he paid. Whoopsie! So here's our free breakfast that we paid for our of our own pocket.

The café has really good food, but the space is tight inside, and that morning, it was packed. We had a rather foggy morning, and what appeared to be a college class had come to meet there...not sure if their regular schedule was delayed or not. They were having a great time, but it was kind of hard to hear over them, so we finished up and got on the road for Kentucky.

Louisville is a really ideal destination for us from a time perspective. It's only about three hours away. Far enough to be away, and yet not far enough to take forever to get there. We piled up SO MANY STORIES on this trip, and we're going to save a few of them for the podcast. One of them came from our trip down, so come back NEXT Tuesday to hear the segment called "Bekah Drives Into the City." It's a gem.

Meanwhile, props to Ryan for getting our state sign photo for this trip:

Because, you know:

Our first item of business was to visit the Louisville Slugger Factory and Museum, but we feared we might get hungry partway through the tour, so we hunted around on Siri for a place (within walking distance) to eat lunch. Found a little sandwich shop and had a date! 

THEN we went to the factory and museum. I should preface this by saying we aren't huge baseball buffs, but we still thought it would be a fun place to visit. We like learning random facts about how things are made, so we thought this would be good. 

First of all, how cool is THIS bat?

I'll throw this out there because I didn't know this going in, and I wish I would have. You can't take pictures in the factory. I realize for most (normal) people that isn't a big deal, but it is a big deal for me. I research stuff like this pretty heavily before I pay for tours, because for me, the bottom line is if I can't take pictures, I don't really want to participate. It's just part of memory-making me. I don't like paying for something that I can't commemorate in the scrapbook. I didn't find out photography was prohibited until we'd already purchased our tickets and were behind the roped-off area, ready to begin. 

It was still worth going. That is true. But I am incredibly sad that there aren't pictures of the factory portion.

Ryan has worked in a factory before, but I haven't, so factory/assembly lines fascinate me. This is a small factory, so everything we saw was all in one big room. We did get to see a gentleman demonstrate what it's like to craft a baseball bat by hand. That takes so much artistry and skill! Then we saw how the regular assembly line cranks out a whole bat in about thirty seconds! We saw how they stamp the bats, dip them in color treatment, and so much more. It was fascinating for both of us. 

Here are some pictures from the portion of the museum that DID allow photos.

Yes! This is a ballpark made from Legos. 

 They may not allow pictures, but they did have a scrapbook, so it felt appropriate to get a photo with that. (The mini bat featured here and in subsequent photos was a free souvenir we received at the end of the tour.)

 They have an interactive feature that allows you to see what it's like to have a 90 MPH ball pitched your way. Ryan tried it out.

 Ryan in the big leagues.

 In the dugout. (Not the doghouse.)

 Dugout selfie!!

 And then we did get photos with the giant bat:

The day couldn't have been accused of being pretty, by any stretch, but it was warm and not awful, so we walked around for a while, took in the views of the Ohio River, and then stopped in a coffee shop we saw.

Ryan snapped this photo, which is 100% typical Bekah. Mid-text-conversation, drinking coffee, and being as situationally aware as humanly possible in an unfamiliar environment.

So there's the start of our weekend! :)