If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it 100 times–you just never know what you are going to find in a small town! Yes, you could say that’s exactly what we discovered in little Kniman, Indiana.
My husband has been working horrible hours but it was now or never. I told everyone to get in the car because we were going to look at Christmas lights. My husband thought it was a ploy to get Kniman Tap Pizza (otherwise known as Kniman Bar and Grill). I admit that that was a part of my plan. We did pick up a pizza to take home (sausage and green pepper is AWESOME by the way), but my original goal was to check out the light show at a family home.
Yes, this is a family home. The lights go on in November and the show ends in January. Tune in your radio to 97.1 to hear the Christmas songs that coordinate with the light show! It doesn’t matter when you arrive (as long as it is within operating hours) because there are only so many songs that cycle through and then they repeat. My husband was pretty shocked. The kids were amazed! We parked there and, as you might hear in the video below, the youngest couldn’t resist singing along.
Here’s what the Armstrong Family shared with me:
We started doing a much smaller version of the light show three years ago and have expanded and upgraded each year since. Why do we do this? That is a good question. Mostly because we think it is fun and our tech savvy son, Brett, has a passion for all things electronic related. He does all of the programming and most of the set up himself. It really is all his doing, we just pay the electric bill! It has just become part of our Christmas celebration and a nice way to say Merry Christmas to our community.
~ The Armstrong Family
After we sat through a whole show (and then some) we still had a bit of time to kill before we could grab our pizza. So, I wandered. Apparently, I wandered in the right direction! Just a hop, skip, and a jump away from the Kniman Christmas Lights house lies a whole OTHER house that is absolutely PACKED with Christmas stuff! We couldn’t believe it! This one wasn’t a coordinated music and light show, it was just glowing lights all over a TON of outbuildings and their house, and loads of animated outdoor things like carousels and Ferris wheels and Santa and, and, and…it was just incredible. It opens into a dead end which is a super great thing because then you can drive by and take a look at it again! Like, the giant dancing Poinsettia? Totally didn’t see that the first time through.
Edited to add:
After publishing this post, the Stepp family, the owners of the second, unexpected set of Christmas lights, sent me this:
Our displays consist of 2 families. The 1st house ( 4849 W. 1075 N, ) is the home of Bill and Donna Stepp ( parents ). The second house ( 4827 W. 1075 N. ) is our son and daughter-in-law, Bill and Carrie Stepp. We have been decorating for over 17 years. For the last 11 years we have had Santa visit one Saturday a year for the community to enjoy. This is a family event from both houses. This year we held the event Dec, 13, 2014. We give out candy canes and each child picks out a small gift and puts their name in a drawing for a larger gift. We also have free hot chocolate, coffee, cookies, and cotton candy. We had around 150 children from the local community this year.
Who would have thought that Kniman, Indiana would have the best dressed holiday houses? My hat is off to you! What a very merry way to share the holiday spirit!
Kniman, Indiana Christmas Lights
Kniman, Indiana Christmas Lights House
Kniman, Indiana Christmas Lights House
Small Towns: Destinations, not Drive-Thrus! I’m Jessica Nunemaker and THIS is little Indiana!
Just don’t forget to tell ’em that little Indiana sent you!
Kniman, Indiana — TWO MAPS–PLEASE SCROLL DOWN
Lights and Sound Show House
9099 N. 500 W
Wheatfield, IN (but really Kniman) 46392
Animated and Lots of Lights House
4849 W. 1075 N
Wheatfield, IN (but really Kniman) 466392<
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