We had such an amazing time on our family vacation this year! We left on Wednesday, and can I just say, I love car rides! I actually get good time to read, cross stitch and just relax (most of the time), which is hard to come by. The kids were excited because we picked out prizes and snacks and they got a snack or prize each hour. The prizes were something to do or play with in the car. It was a nice drive through WY and into South Dakota. We stopped for dinner at Wendy's. We couldn't believe how green it was...hehe! I think they're getting too used to the brown dirt and sagebrush! :) The sky was beautiful and there were tons of oil drills, wildlife, and beautiful skies on our way.
We stopped at Devil's Tower to check that out, since Dave and the kids had never seen it (I have but it's been years!). Devil's Tower was America's first national monument, the size is incredible, and the Native American legends are interesting. We got to walk along the trails up to the base, and climb on the rocks, which Cal and Em loved! Lucy was kind of scared and felt she'd fall into the rocks and get stuck. We took a picture of Dave with his Wazzu flag. Taking a picture with a Cougar flag by famous places is a WSU tradition. It was pretty incredible seeing this place again and the kids were in wonder, it was a hit! This made me so grateful for the beautiful creations God has given us to enjoy while we're on this earth!
We made it to the hotel later on, we stayed at the Ramada Summerset just west of Rapid City. It was nice for the price, all of the employees were great and the breakfast was pretty good too. All of the kids were pooped from the drive and a long day, though it's only a little bit longer than it takes us to get to the Grandparents homes. They always like staying at hotels, it's so exciting...we always have to shush them and remind them there are people next to/above/below us and we need to be quiet. We all slept well that night!
Thursday, we started the day off at the 1880 Train. We got in line, and when the time came boarded on. We chose the car with open windows. We loved feeling the fresh breeze! We went from to Hill City to Keystone and back on our ride. Everyone really liked it and we went through some beautiful country! The other kids on the train were thrilled to see deer, but that was old news to our kids. We see deer all of the time, though our deer look a little more rough, he he! The landscapes, rock formations, and houses along the way were breathtaking. Lucy loved waving at everyone. There was an older man riding a bike, Fred, who was racing us the whole time. Those who work for the train knew him and it was fun watching him get ahead, then take a break, be behind for a while, and back ahead of us. Lucy and Cov fell asleep eventually on the ride, and I had two sleeping on me at one point. We made it back and had a picnic at the train station where we had a picnic.
Then we drove to the famous Mount Rushmore. It was fabulous! Walking through the flags at the entrance feels so grand and walking towards the great fathers of our country is humbling. Lucy kept saying "Wow! Look at those big faces!" "I want to go sit on the big faces!" Also, the museum was nice and the kids enjoyed doing the Junior Ranger Program they offer there. They completed all of the activities and got a certificate and a badge. The way they carved this mountain is a miracle to me. It was neat to revisit, now that I can soak in a little more and appreciate more than what I did when I was little. Though I'm glad I had parents who took us around to see things when they're little. That's exactly what we want to do with our littles now.
After that, we went to the Big Thunder Gold Mine. We went on a tour, which was very interesting. One of the benefits of being short: I didn't have to duck once, thank you very much! I can't believe how many years these gold miners would spend in these mines in dangerous conditions, only to make it out with very little money. We had a great tour guide named David who was very great and remembered everyone on our tour's names, and we had a big group! Following the tour, we were able to learn how to pan for gold and look for some ourselves. Emma and Dave were really the only ones who wanted to do much with that. "I found some!" Emma exclaimed excitedly. We got some real gold, it's in a little glass vial. Cal and Lucy just wanted to run around and throw rocks in the spring. Cov kept wanting to get down the whole trip, but unfortunately there weren't many places for him to crawl around on without scratching himself up. He fell down outside the gold mine when we were panning for gold, and scraped up his upper lip. :(
We went into Keystone for dinner and ate at Ruby's. It was pretty good. I got a buffalo burger, yum! The kids were getting very tired by this point, since they had just had cat naps in the car. So they were pretty restless and it was a little stressful keeping everyone happy and going back and forth to the bathroom what felt like 100 times. Our last stop for the night was Crazy Horse, and when we arrived, all of the kids but Em were asleep. So I stayed in the car with them while Dave went to the visitor center. Then the kids woke up and we were able to go to the visitor center. It was amazing to see the sheer size of Crazy Horse! Cal said that it looked like he was saying "Charge!" and he kept pointing as Crazy Horse did and saying that, he he! And the movie was very fascinating. I learned many new things and gained even a greater appreciation for our American Indian friends and those who have worked on this monument. The visitor center and some of the statues and artwork was beautiful! In the artists studio, there was a live cat, which the kids went wild for. The kids got to pick a piece of rock that was blasted away from the mountain. They got rocks and we always get pressed pennies wherever we go. Those are their souvenirs, which works out nicely, since they're not begging us everywhere we go to get this or that. They get to take turns doing the penny press, and that's how we know where we've been. Then it was time for the laser show. As we waited in the car, Lucy blabbed out "I hate indians." We looked at her and went "What?" Then she said "Cal and me hate Indians." Cal told us he didn't. We reminded her that Aunt Shirley was an Indian, and then she quickly changed her mind and told us she did like indians. Where that girl gets some of these things is beyond me! The laser show was very cool! We all enjoyed the stories, special effects and music. It was inspiring! We didn't take many pictures since our camera died, sad! On the way back we picked up some half price milkshakes from Sonic. Oh, how I love you Sonic shakes! We slept well that night.
Friday morning, we went swimming at the pool at the hotel. This was probably one of the kid's favorite activities, though they can go swimming anytime here, they just love it! We giggled and swam and kicked and splashed a lot together! After baths, it was off for another day. Bear Country U.S.A. was first on the agenda. I went there as a girl, and loved it then. We drove through all of the deer, sheep, mountain lions, bears, and other wildlife. Then we were able to get out in Babyland and get up close to the baby bears, raccoons, skunks, and other animals. They were very cute! We loved watching the bears wrestle and climb up trees.
We drove then to the Cosmos Mystery Area. It was pretty trippy! It is a natural unbalance in this area of the hills. It made me dizzy for a while, and I thought the kids might get a little scared, but they were just fine and really enjoyed it! Everyone but Lucy and Cov got to be a part of some demonstrations. Emma and a boy stood on a platform, and the guide used a level to prove we were on flat ground. Emma sat on one side and this boy sat on the other. Emma looked taller at first, then they switched and the boy looked taller. Dave and I did another one demonstration that was similar. At one point, Emma was taller than Daddy! Everyone looked like they were walking on a 45 degree angle. Cal was asked to be a helper for a demonstration, where he was held up on a chair. Our guide told him if he told a lie, he'd go forward in his chair and fall, but if he answered all of the questions truthfully, he'd tip backwards towards the wall. First he asked him who he came with. He named everyone but Dave (I think he thought he mentioned him first), and the guide asked him if he was sure. He said "What about your Dad, did he drive or did your Mom drive?" Cal answered that Dad drove and when the guide asked him who was a better driver, he answered quickly "Daddy!" Ha ha, true story! Then he asked who was a better cook, he answered quickly "Mommy!" The guide asked him some other questions and he answered truthfully to all of them. Then the guide let go of his chair, and instead of falling forward, Cal tipped back. It was very interesting and I'm glad we stopped! We then went and had lunch in Keystone at a pizza place and ate in a little atrium, then explored some of the sites and little shops along the boardwalk.
We then went to the Dinosaur Park in Rapid City. I had also been there as a girl and remember it. We have been joking lately that Covey's new nickname is now Covasaurus. One day a few weeks before our trip, I was going to get him out of the car after getting home from running errands. He was totally asleep with his head drooping to the side. As I unbuckled him, he opened his eyes, said "Raaarrrrr!" and then drooped his head back down again and went back to sleep. So the kids said he was having dinosaur dreams. They had a bunch of great big dinosaur figures you can play and climb on and touch and run around, which was great for the kids! Then we drove around Rapid City for a bit. It was a pretty city. We had to drive by the hospital and check it out, thanks to Dave. Growing up, we always had to stop and see every dam on the way. Now, for our kids, we always have to see what the hospital is like where we travel, lol! We went to a park and concert in their downtown. They had a little splash pad, but our kids had already gone swimming that day so we told them no, much to their dismay. They pouted quite a bit. Emma sat by me and we watched Cal and Lucy dancing away to the music and run around. Then we hit up Rushmore Mall. The kids played at the play area inside and we shopped around a little bit getting a few things. There weren't very many people there for a Friday night! The girls and I were in Claire's while Dave was with the boys. Lucy saw a little purse she really want. I reminded her that she already had a purse and we didn't need two. She looked at me and said "but it's cheap!" There was a lady standing by us who heard her and just about died laughing! The way she said it was so funny! We went to the candy shop and let all of the kids pick out one treat for the ride home. Then we got Orange Julius drinks and went to Philly Ted's Cheese Steaks for some dinner, which we took back to our Hotel to eat. It was super tasty! We watched a little TV, Cal said "Mom, I haven't had any screen time today!" Oh no, what a tragedy and what a deprived boy! Then we all crashed quickly.
Our last day, Saturday, started with one last drive past Mt. Rushmore, then we drove through Custer. We loved all of the bridges and tunnels we went through, and the Buffalo, they just walked right by all the cars, crossing the street, taking their time. It was a pretty drive! Then, we made it to Flintstone Village, another place I had visited as a girl. We rode the train, played on the playground, went in the Flintstone mobile, toured Bedrock City, and played on all of the things. They got a kick out of it, we had them watch some Flintstones episodes the day before to get them pumped up. Can you say "yabba dabba doo!"?
We got some DQ kids meals for lunch, then drove to Jewel Cave. We had to wait for a couple of hours until our tour time. But we enjoyed the visitor center, doing a nature program about animal tracks, completing the Junior Ranger program here, and going on a nature walk beforehand. During the cave, the kids did awesome! I was a little worried about Cov, but he did well too. We enjoyed the stalactites and stalagmites, soda straws, giant bacon, the big duh room, and the other beautiful crystals and formations! Even after the vacation, Cal remembered some of the facts, formations and places and I was surprised he picked up on so much. It is amazing how big and long the cave is (3rd largest in the world!), and how you wouldn't know it was there by walking over it on the land above. I was thinking how that's like our lives. Sometimes we wouldn't know things were there, or we can't see the blessings or miracles in our lives unless we really search and dig to find them. But once we start doing that and asking Heavenly Father for us to see them, then it becomes very clear and our blessings and His hand in our lives are endless!
It made me feel good because at several places people commented on how well-behaved our kids were. That made me feel really good and I'm thankful for these nice people. I know many times I feel I am not very well behaved and they are not very well behaved. But it's nice to have those affirmations every once in a while that we're not doing too bad of a job raising these four kiddos. There's some hope!
Then we drove home. I finished my first Anita Stansfield book and really enjoyed it, made some cross stitch ornaments, and read an Ensign. The kids loved all of their prizes and we listened to part of Harry Potter. Emma isn't thrilled with it, but Cal is loving it. On the last stretch ,we saw a rainbow, which Emma had to take a picture of! It was a perfect finish to a (almost) perfect time together!
