We finally splurged on a vacation! And what a great time we had. Our first stop was in MN, to visit Aunt Kay and Uncle Robb. The kids enjoyed a swim in the lake, and getting their first rides in a kayak. Plus S'mores and sparklers and glow sticks...
Second stop was at the Lake Thompson State Park, near De Smet SD. A lake that was talked about in a couple of Laura Ingalls books. We had an enjoyable time despite the rain off and on while we were there. We rode bikes and waded, and visited several of the Laura Ingalls historic sites, including their homestead.
View of the Ingalls homestead... replica claim shanty on the left.
Now if he isn't the cutest...
… or maybe she is??
Helping with the laundry.
Learning to work a treadle sewing machine, and making button and string toys.
The kids all got a chance to drive the pony and cart.
And the kids all got a chance to drive the mules pulling the covered wagon!
Making rope.
Umm... is this supposed to be yummy? It's messy!
Stop #3 was the Black Hills, where we spent 3 nights. We biked, went panning for gold, hiked, drove the wildlife loop and Needles Highway, and tried to dodge raindrops. Somehow it rained pretty much every day of the entire trip! (Not complaining, I know it's normally drier out there and they are grateful for moisture. I'm happy for the ones who live there.) Most of the activities I only captured on my phone, sorry.
The final bit of our trip was a delightful visit with my brother, his sweet girlfriend, and my sister in the mountains of Wyoming. We went hiking, exploring in the mountain woods near where we camped at 9,000', and the kids did a lot of bike riding, picking up rocks, and playing with the dogs. The views were breath taking. Again, it rained/sleeted numerous times, but rarely lasted for long. My favorite activity of the entire trip was when my brother's girlfriend, who is a horse lover too, took me out looking for wild mustangs. All the thrill of a hunt, with a trophy of watching those beautiful animals enjoying their natural habitat. Most of them never even saw us. Despite a wrenched ankle those hikes will be fondly remembered for years. (By the way, I felt like I could finally really breathe out there. I guess I'll be a prairie girl to the day I die! Sorry to all the Wisconsin folk...)
Eliott spent most of his time chopping firewood!
Sooo, we're home again safe and sound... tired and happy. The camper is cleaned out, the laundry is done, and we're back to normal life. A calf died while we were gone, and we got two bottle calves to replace it, hoping that our kindly older cows would take them in as they have a reputation for allowing any calves in the herd to nurse. We'll see how that goes! Otherwise things look great here on the farm. And I'm trying to reacclimate to the crazy humidity!
It was a little hard to wake up one day last week and realize my baby was a baby no longer, she was a big 3 year old! I've called her "Baby Girl" all of her life, until then. And in a way, she will always be our baby. Reality, however, led me to see that she is now past the baby stage and poised to enter girlhood--and I'd better grow up with her. We're now past potty training, and into the "I want to dress myself!" stage. She is definitely smart enough to be expected to understand, and follow, directions. No more excuses, little girlie!
