Waka-What?

I realized that we only have 4 weeks of school left last night. My motivation level dropped about 1007%.

When we last left off in our epic Spring Break journey, typical road trip chaos had ensued. Missed that post? Check it out here. Thankfully, though, we finally made it to Wakarusa, Indiana, home of none other than Aunt Kelly, Uncle Billy, and Isaac.

No seriously. I really meant "none other." There's literally no one else there.

So maybe I'm being a bit facetious. That's beside the point. Aunt Kelly and Uncle Billy are relatives of Kalyn that she is very close to and loves very much. Unfortunately, they live in a town with a population of 3 that is $200 worth of gas away from us. Thankfully, though, they will be moving back to Kansas soon. Until then, though, Wakarusa is the place to be (5 points to anyone who caught that ridiculous TV show reference)...

We stayed a total of two nights at the Simmons' house. The first night didn't really count, though, since we got in so late. This was to be one of the most relaxing parts of our trip, mostly because we knew we'd be running around like giraffes on a caffeine high for the rest of Spring Break. Oh, and because we like Kelly and Billy. Again, though, that's beside the point.

While we were in Waka-Waka land, we did a lot while doing nothing at all. It's been a while, so my memory is a little fuzzy, but here's what I do remember:

• Sleeping. Yes, this is noteworthy.
• Not drinking the tap water. Again, noteworthy. Apparently in Waka, a town cat is paid to pee in the water, and they deem it "Water Treatment." Ew.
• We exercised. Say whaaaaat?!
• We ate at Hacienda. I only know about 5 people who might know what this is, but I'll explain, and then maybe you'll know. And no, it's not the same as La Hacienda in Manhattan, KS.
• Most importantly, we played with Isaac. I do believe that was our payment for staying at their house, because the kid has more energy than a hyena on crack. This is one moment in my life when I am not being facetious.
• I visited a Meijer for the first time. For whatever reason, I'm fascinated by stores I've never heard of, even if they're identical to Wal-Mart.

Naturally, because I'm wordy (especially in the morning while drinking coffee) and I want you to be better educated, I need to elaborate on a few of these points. I will go in reverse order, just for fun.

First of all... Meijer!

Nope, this sure isn't a picture I took. Thank you, Google.

That's really all I wanted to say about that. Next on the list... Isaac! Oh, Isaac. We love you dearly, kid. Just in case you read this 10 years from now. But honestly, I'm convinced that you're hogging all of the energy in the Western Hemisphere. It's a bit ridiculous.

Don't get me wrong, Isaac is a great kid and he is a blast to hang out with and play with. I'd like to think he's God's way of preparing Kalyn and me for our own kids someday.

Most of our day, outside of the morning when Isaac was in preschool, was spent playing. And I love playing with kids, so this was great. Unfortunately, my lungs collapse the moment anyone says the "p-word." Kalyn and Kelsey entertained him plenty, though. Meanwhile, I took pictures, because my lungs have no problem with that p-word, apparently. Here's my favorite picture from our time in The Wak.

Ouch.

Now I'm no professional photographer, but I'm pretty stinking proud of this picture. Probably one of my all-time favorites. And for those mothers out there worrying about Isaac right now, he's fine. He survived the soft lob that Kelsey tossed at him. I promise. But if you want to blame someone, it'd definitely have to be her. I just took the picture!

If you didn't smile a little when you saw that picture, go look again. It's a little very amusing.

Next on the aforementioned list: Hacienda! My mouth is watering as I type (and it's 8 AM!). Hacienda is a Mexican restaurant located in Indiana. Kalyn has some great memories of eating there as a kid and swears it has the power to heal when she talks about it. I gently remind her that she's thinking of Jesus, and she shrugs her shoulders and moves on.

So you've never heard of Hacienda? I'm pretty sure you have. But in case you live in a turtle shell, I'll give you an image that's sure to ring some bells. Let's just say they've made national headlines recently...

I have to admit - I thought this was clever. Turns out the rest of America disagrees with me.

Yup. It's that restaurant.

Now, if I'm shooting straight with you (and I am), this place is, in a word... epic. The food is delectable and the environment is fun and friendly. Hence why we waited 30 minutes for a table. It's good stuff. I didn't get a lot of pictures while we were there, but Kalyn did take this snapshot:

Let the mouth watering begin...

In case you were wondering, that's their version of a Chocolate Mudslide. It's so addicting that it is outlawed in 52 states (including Canada). And the rest of their food is just as good. You've gotta trust me on this one. Go there if you ever get the chance.

Finally, our time in WaRu allowed us to exercise. This may not seem like a big deal, but it was. All of us (and by all of us, I mean Kalyn and Kelsey) love to exercise and do so on a regular basis. I would love exercising as well... if I didn't have the lungs of a 200 year old smoker. But I digress.

Kelly and Billy have a treadmill and a bike at their house. We had seen the treadmill before, but the bike was definitely new. It was one of those trendy "spin" bikes that you see everywhere in gyms, so I was surprised to see it in their home. Here's a (Googled) picture of the one they have:

Fancy schmancy, indeed.

Turns out they got a great deal on the bike, so they bought it while they had the chance. I proceeded to look up the price of one of these things when I got home, and they basically stole the bike from the person who sold it to them.

Now, like I said, my lungs collapse on a regular basis, just because they think it's funny. They have a twisted sense of humor. I do love stationary bikes, though, so I thought I would take this one for a spin (another 5 points to the 1st person who catches that terrible pun).

I ended up actually riding the bike for a total of 30 minutes each day we were there. This is a huge deal for me, because I can't even walk for 30 minutes without being winded. Needless to say, I loved their bike. I contemplated stealing it from them (since they basically stole it from someone else), but we didn't have room for it. So I let it be and perused the internet for bikes like theirs after Spring Break.

...and then I struck gold.

Somehow, I managed to find a spin bike on Craigslist. It was a professional-grade bike that retails at $1000. With a little haggling, I managed to get the bike for $220, and my wonderful in-laws picked it up for me (because it was in Wichita). And here it is, Googled, because the bike is still in Wichita.

It's no Livestrong, but at least it has cool colors!

I'm pretty happy with my purchase. And to think that this inspiration came all the way from the Little W in Indiana. I guess Waka isn't all bad... 

Check back soon for more on our adventurous Spring Break! In the meantime, comment, subscribe, and share this post! You might even get bonus points if you do all three!