The Black Hills

We recently ventured out to the Black Hills of South Dakota. Jonathan's nephew Joe, and his three daughters came with us. We rented a 15 passenger van and all piled in. We being...three adults and seven kids aged eight and under. Party of ten. Granny and Maurice met us there for a couple of days too. It was fun and it was a lot of work. But worth it.

Bear Country was our first official tourist trap that we hit. I had been there before as a kid and I remember it fondly. It was exactly as I remembered it and all of the kids loved it.

All of the girls would scream when we got close to a black bear. Kelly had her toy gun out and was pretending to shoot the bears when they would get close.

All of the kids were unbuckled as we drove five miles an hour through the path. Here is a small taste of the chaos inside the van.

Six of the seven kids were girls and that meant that every time I went to the restroom, six little girls went with me. I got some interesting looks and many people would ask me, "Are they all yours?" This is a photo that I took of Kylie and Sydney during one of our many bathroom breaks.

Here is the group of girls checking out a beaver (I think?!) at Bear Country.

And here is how Harry got around most of the trip. On Daddy's back.

Granny and Grandpa Maurice

The kids were able to ride on this cute little train. There was even a car for Harry that Kylie could sit right behind him and keep and eye on him. They loved it!

Next up...


What everybody comes to South Dakota to see. The heads at Mount Rushmore. We were able to watch a short movie about how Mount Rushmore was made and that was really very interesting.

Jonathan and Harry in front of the heads.


Here is a cute picture of Granny and Grandpa with four of their grandkids and three of their great grandkids. They had to leave shortly after I took this photo but we were glad they could come at all.


After they left for home, we ventured out to Wall Drug and the Badlands. I was able to escape taking one single photo while at Wall Drug. It was pure chaos and I wasn't in the position to be snapping photos. Anybody who has been there can remember how busy it is...now add keeping track of seven kids. Not easy. But after that, we headed out for the Badlands. I was pleasantly surprised. The scenery was quite breathtaking and definitely worth seeing. We drove through for maybe ten or fifteen miles and then we pulled off at one of the stops along the way to let the kids climb on the landscape.

Kelly didn't do so well climbing as she insisted on wearing her brand new cowboy boots that she had just gotten at Wall Drug. Sometimes fashion is more important than versatility dontchaknow?!



Here's the gang in the Badlands...


Harry in his brand new Harley Davidson Sturgis onesie. My little buddy.


Kylie enjoying nature at its finest.


Another group shot


We also drove out to Deadwood one day and took a bus tour in which Harry screamed his little head off the entire time. After lunch, we drove to a ranch and Kylie, Kasey, Sydney, and I went horseback riding. Again, no photos. I realized that I'm not much of a horse riding type. That may be my last ride ever. I am very nervous around horses. Their power scares me. I constantly feel as though I am going to get bucked off and trampled and that makes for not a great time. The girls loved it though so it was worth it.

We also swam, swam, swam at the hotel swimming pool.

We came home a couple of days early as we had run out of things to do and see. Naps were missed, bedtimes were non existant, and it wore us big people out. We made the twelve hour trip back home and it was nice to sleep back in our own bed with each kid tucked away in their own bed. While I am not sure if I will ever need to visit the Black Hills again, we had fun while it lasted.