Last Day of SD Trip

I didn't realize it, but there are MANY caves around the Mt. Rushmore area. We thought about visiting "Wind Cave" but decided we'd had just about enough wind to last us a life time, so instead we settled for "Wonderland Cave". I think caves are so cool. We had a great time checking this one out. Jarom wasn't as fond of the cave as I was. He said it was eerie being so deep under ground. We were pretty deep, about 200 ft. down. Certainly the deepest cave I've ever been in.

After looking at cool cave formations, we hopped in the truck and began the long journey home.

We drove through Deadwood, SD where Wild Bill Hickok was killed and Calamity Jane is buried.

Devils Tower was so close (only about an hour out of the way) that we had to drive over and see it. We're so glad we did. It was amazing! A giant rock mountain just shoots out of the ground out of nowhere. So strange.

Click on this picture to make it big and try to find the rock climbers. There are 4, but the easiest one to see is just above the tallest pine tree and to the right a little bit. He's wearing a bright orange jacket. This gives you somewhat of a perspective as to how massive this rock really is. (The other guys are above him, in the same column/crevice, but they are really hard to see.)

We decided to forgo all strangers, and went directly to the self timer for this shot. I think it turned out great.

We just had to get out and enjoy the prairie dogs for a little while. They were so cute popping up and down in their holes.

This little fat guy was mighty curious about us.

About this time in the day, we started hearing weather reports of a nasty snowstorm due to blow in on our direct route home. We made a change of plans and decided we needed to try to get as close to home as we could, as fast as we could. So we all settled in for a VERY long drive.

Of course as soon as we decided we needed to hurry, our tire had to go and pop on us. Miraculously we were stopped when this happened. Kate was needing a potty break, so we had pulled off the interstate. I was helping Kate in the camper when I heard a very loud bang and the camper felt like it dropped off a curb. I came out to discover a VERY bald tire with a hole blown right out. We were thankful we were stopped when this happened!

We drove all night and got within 2 hours our home. We had made it past all the highest mountain passes (and had beat the snow storm) so we decided to pull over and sleep for a few hours before continuing on.

I just had to click a picture of the colors as we went whizzing on by. The trees were gorgeous!

We made it home and I think this little girl had missed her pets. :) (Not so sure if the pets felt the same way, but that doesn't matter a bit to Alyssa.)

Since brother was the photographer for Alyssa's photo shoot, he wasn't about to be left out himself. Silly kids. It's good to be home!

Finally...Mt Rushmore!

We made it! It was still SO windy, so it was kind of like run, see the mountain, click a picture, run into a building, view from the window, run back to the car. But still...we accomplished our goal of seeing Mt. Rushmore, and it really was quite neat to see in person.

"Sir, could you take our picture?"

ALWAYS look at the picture after you've had a stranger take it for you. I guess this guy thought we drove 1000 miles just to get a family photo. No need to include the presidents' heads, we're good looking enough without the incredibly famous national monument behind us. LOL!

Never fear, Jarom and his tripod are here. Ahhh....that's more like it. Yep, self-timer is the way to go.

We continued on to Custer State Park where the drive was beautiful, but VERY twisty and had tiny, little tunnels to drive through. This was our favorite tunnel with a view of Mt Rushmore straight through. The lighting was just to crazy for our little camera to do justice to the shot however.

So much wild life in Custer. Turkeys, turkeys EVERYWHERE. (They really were EVERYWHERE in SD, not just Custer.) I loved it. I want a little flock of wild turkeys roaming around my yard. How fun would that be?! (Well, if they were poop free anyway.)

Most of the buffalo had already been herded up and put in the corrals for winter. (They vaccinate, brand, sort, and sell the buffalo in Custer. A little different than we are used to over here in Yellowstone.) But we managed to see a few still roaming about.

We even saw wild burros. (Although I think "wild" is a little extreme. How about "free roaming"? I think that works a little better.)

"Well hello there." The burros....Oh the burros. We got SUCH a kick out of them. They were SO curious what we had in our car. They could smell our lunch warming up on the dashboard.

Or maybe they just wanted a kiss.

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Me and my burro buddies. (Did you ever watch the Sesame Street episode where the girl takes her llama to the dentist? The theme song kept playing over and over in my head, only with the word llama changed to burro. "Me and my burro, me and my burro...") Yep, I loved the burros. So did my kids.

After another full day of driving and site seeing, we decided to call it a night and head back to our camper. And guess what??? The wind STOPPED!!!

Wall Drug and Badlands

We forged on to Rapid City, SD the next day. We dropped off the camper at a campground and continued on to Wall, SD. Boy were we glad to have that camper off, the winds were INTENSE. We had to make a stop at Wall Drug to see what all the hoopla was about. There are about 100 million signs for "Wall Drug" between Rapid and Wall. Let me tell you....Wall Drug isn't all it's cracked up to be. But we were glad to be out of the car for a little while and inside a building to be out of the freezing wind.



The coolest thing there (which wasn't really that cool) was the big scary dinosaur. He would roar and open his mouth. Carter wouldn't get within 10 feet of the thing. In fact, the kid took off with lightening speed when the dinosaur came "alive". I only caught the very last few seconds of him running, but oh it was so funny.

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Poor scared little boy. He was sobbing.


We got our pictures with the stage coach,

and the jackalope.

And then it was time to head to Badlands National Park. Hang on to your hats...have I mentioned the wind? Honestly it was so windy, we were too afraid to even let our kids take the walks to the edge of the canyon for fear of a big gust coming and blowing someone over the edge. (We read on the weather report that there were 50 mph gusts.)

So we viewed Badlands from the nice warm car. The colors were beautiful and we had a great time learning from Wikepedia (via Jarom's laptop) all about how the Badlands were once under water and there are fossils from turtles and other water creatures there. So interesting!

After a VERY full day of driving, it was time to go back to good ol' Sacajawea and settle in for the night. It's a good thing we were all so tired because otherwise no one would have slept a wink with that wind howling all night long.

Through Wind and Snow, We'll Still Go

We spent the first night in a campground in Park City, UT. During the night I wasn't sure if I was sleeping in my camper or on a boat. The wind and rain were OUTRAGEOUS. The camper rocked and rolled all night long and when we woke up it was COLD.

Cold or not, we were headed to Martin's Cove, WY. I am a bit of a wimp when we pull our camper, I hate the way it feels like it's going to roll or fish tail, and with 40 mph winds I pretty much white knuckled it the entire way. Thankfully, we made it safely and in time to get a tour of Martin's Cove.

We went 6 years ago and pulled handcarts along a 5 mile stretch to the cove, but I'm telling you, getting a ride in the little atv rover is MUCH easier. :)


Check out Halle's hair. It was SO blasted windy!

Here we are back in the cove. It was still cold, but the wind was SO much less. Gave us a real appreciation as to the protection the pioneers received from this exact same place with wind and snow whipping around them. This truly is a humbling place to visit.

As we headed on through Wyoming, we made sure to have a pit stop at Independence Rock.

Where we climbed

and climbed.

Well, some of us anyway. I stayed down below and enjoyed the wild life and worried about running into rattlesnakes. I kept saying, "One good thing about how cold it is today, is that the rattlesnakes won't be out and about."

Kate and I started to head back to the truck, and wouldn't you know it, a SNAKE comes slithering out and I almost stepped on it. It wasn't a rattler (thankgoodness) but I was so worked up having been thinking about them, that I screamed when I saw it. Poor little Kate, who truly does have a fear of snakes, fed off my reaction and just about came out of her pants.

As we headed on down the highway, the snow started coming down. And then the wind mixed in and before we knew it, we couldn't see anything, the freeway was a mess, and cars were crawling along at 30 mph. We decided we'd just pull off at the next exit and call it a night. This is what we woke up to the next morning.

Miley Cryus Turns Into Major Vacation

A few months back I found out Miley Cryus was coming to Salt Lake. (We ALL love her in this house.) She came last year but the tickets were wicked expensive so we didn't go. The girls have felt a little shafted ever since, especially since the show was ON Alyssa's birthday. The tickets were MUCH cheaper this time around (all 3 for the price of 1 last year) so I decided to splurge and take my girls on a date. We kept it a secret from them until the day before. I WISH so badly that I would have had my video camera rolling when we told them. Just imagine lots and LOTS of screaming!

The plan was just for the 3 of us to go down and have a girls only party, but then I noticed the week of the show was also a short week of school for the kids. Jarom and I decided we'd just take the trailer to UT and camp for a few days. Some how the plan spiraled out of control and before we knew it, we were headed to the Black Hills of South Dakota.

I apologize for those of you who follow me on facebook, for you've already heard most of the vacation stories. But you know me, I love to print my blurb books and I have to have this all written on the blog to do that. So sit back, relax, and enjoy the next few days of travel recap posts from me.

Can you feel the excitement?!

We were pleasantly surprised to learn that our seats were the front row of the balcony. PERFECT seats!

It's Miley!!! The music and screaming were SO loud and intense that I had to go get a pair of complimentary ear plugs. How is that for old?! (Halle wore some too b/c she was starting to get a headache, but Alyssa refused; she wanted the whole affect.)

I had been warned by a friend that Miley's show in Portland had caused some parental outrage because the dancing was a little risque. I was nervous to see what I had gotten myself into, but Miley actually got sick during our concert. She left the stage in the middle of the 2nd song and had to take a break before she came back. I don't know if she had toned things down b/c of the Portland deal or if it was divine intervention that she didn't feel good enough to dance like normal, but I didn't feel she was inappropriate at all. Thank goodness.

It really was a riot and my girls and I are still Miley fans. She's great live, even sick.

Here's the girls' reactions to when they saw their first glimpse of Miley. (I think Alyssa was a little in shock. LOL!)

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Jarom and the little kids met up with Aunt Natalie, Uncle Brandon, and Aunt Emily and they all went to Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs, while we were at the concert. Worked out great.

Road Trip in the Works

Next week the kids have a short week of school, so we decided to get Sacajawea out for one finale road trip of the year. We're going to head to Mt. Rushmore and I am SO excited. This is something I've wanted to do all my life.

We're getting there by route of Salt Lake City (there's a secret something planned for my girls Tuesday night) and coming home by route of Cody WY/ Yellowstone. If any of you have been on this trip before or in any of the areas around where will be, let me know! Tell me what is great to do or see!

Boys vs. Girls

This having a boy in school thing is a whole lot different than having girls in school. When the day is done and my girls get home, they are ready to chat up a storm about the goings on that happened during the day. ("What's-his-name colored all over the school walls and got sent to the principal. I just can't believe he would ruin the school like that. My teacher was so angry."...and on and on we go. Or, "Somebody wouldn't leave me alone at recess. She drives me nuts and just won't give me break. I try to be nice to her, but sometimes I just need a break from her. But she will grab onto my clothes to make me stay with her and then so-and-so tries to grab my other arm and...." blah, blah, blah.) With Carter, I have to pry and pry and pry to get ANYTHING out of him at all.

We have this tradition in our family where each kid tells something funny, something good, and something bad that happened at school. I started doing this when Halle started kindergarten as a way to open the door to conversation. It really helped. Instead of "What did you do today?" with the answer of "Nothing," or "I can't remember", I get all sorts of stories from my girls.

But Carter is a little bit different. I ask the questions and get the exact same answers everyday.
"Carter, what was something funny today?"
"My pants almost fell down, but I caught them." (EVERYDAY!)

"Carter, what was something good that happened today?"
"I was good in class." (EVERYDAY!)

"Carter, did anything bad happen today?" (Usually this gives opportunities to talk about a bad grade or behaviour with my girls.)
"I wasn't bad." (Occasionally I'll hear about so-and-so who hit so-and-so, but that's the extent of the conversation.)

I am learning that boys just don't really care about all the nitty gritty details. And if I want to hear about them, I have to ask very specific questions. For instance,

"Carter, did you do any work that you liked today?"
"Yah, tracing."
"What did you trace?"
"I had to trace a t.v. and then color it."

Ahhhhh....finally some details!

It truly is amazing how different boys are from girls. It's with them from birth and just the way God created them.

Halle's Bugs

Halle is ALWAYS catching a bug. I can not even tell you how many tupperware containers and cups have been ruined in this house due to bug catching. (It's not the bug that ruins them, its being left outside for the lawnmower to hit them that seems to do the trick.)

Halle is a very responsible bug catcher too, she keeps the bug for a few hours to examine and then releases it. If she's around when anyone is trying to kill a bug she will beg for it to be released outside. Just about the only thing she'll let me kill are hobo spiders and I think that's just because she knows how bad I hate them. She will swerve on her bike to miss a roly poly, she'd rather crash than smash it. She really is such a tender heart.

The thing I love about her loving her bugs (say that 10 times fast) is that she likes to learn about them. She'll catch something and then come in and google all about it. She really knows quite a few interesting facts about all sorts of insects.

Her school class is buying some caterpillars (or callepitters as Halle would say) to watch grow from caterpillar, to cocoon, to butterfly. She can hardly wait. She talks about it every day. "Mrs Ball said our callepitters are coming next week!" They must be learning about bugs or something because this week they get to go on a "bug hunt" to the park.

Halle took a lady bug with all sorts of interesting facts last week for her "sharing" and today she took a praying mantis. This girl and her bugs.

A Snip Snip Here, A Snip Snip There...

Here a snip, there a snip, everywhere a snip snip.

Okay, I think sufficient enough time has passed for me to be able to post about our latest disaster. It happened just about a week ago and let me tell you, at the time, emotions were too raw in this house for it to be funny.

I had done Kate's hair in many little ponies across the front of her head. The hair do had been in a few days and Alyssa wanted to give Kate a "make over". (A game frequently played in this house.) She tried to take the elastics out, but they were snarled and weren't coming out easily. So.....she asked if she could please use the scissors to cut them out. (You see where this is going?)

I told her I'd rather she didn't because it's too easy to cut hair doing that. She begged and pleaded and promised she was old enough that she wouldn't cut any of Kate's hair. (And here is where I just should have put the STUPID (and by stupid I mean awesome) "Catching Fire" book down and gone and cut them myself.)

Next thing I know, Alyssa comes running into my room carrying a HANDFUL of hair. She was sobbing, and I was SICK. I'll admit, I snapped at her, causing more tears. Which in turn caused Jarom to snap because he was sick of the estrogen flood he was surrounded by.

THANK GOODNESS Kate has a thick full head of hair. We can pull her sides up on top of her head and we're able to hide most of the cuts. I think she got one full pony cut out and chunks of two others snipped as well. The picture below isn't even half of it. But like I said, we are able to cover it up, so a major disaster is only a minor disaster now.

Money Game

So I admitted the other day that I've started couponing. I'll be the first to say I NEVER wanted to coupon. I can't stand getting in line behind a coupon lady. I think her purchase is over with and get ready for my turn, and then she pulls out the binder....argghhhh. I also thought, "I'm sure if I just go to Walmart and get all this stuff, I could pay the same price without a coupon. How much can I save with a coupon anyway?"

But my sister-in-law, Kaylin, kept telling me about these amazing deals she was getting (some things even for free). And with being self employed and all....well, saving a little money couldn't be a bad thing. Then, I saw a special on food network about thegrocerygame.com. This woman was paying $60 for a $250 purchase. I thought, "What can it hurt? I'll give it a try."

So Kaylin has been patiently teaching me and I have slowly started getting deals and (here's the best part) filling my food storage pantry. It's such a rush to see the total, hand over the stack of coupons, and see that total drop in half. Seriously, I am addicted. Don't worry, I am a very polite coupon lady. I only shop late at night, or early in the morning a)so I have fewer or no kids with me and b) so the store is fairly empty and I'm not holding up the line.

I decided to do a little comparison shopping. I bought the following things from Target and Albertsons, using coupons and paid about $70 for all. (Now remember I am a BEGINNING couponer and only have ONE insert of coupons to use, so that total isn't all that impressive.)

*not pictured: 2 boxes Eggo brand waffles, cake mix, and Hubba Bubba gum
12 count Bounty paper towels
120 load Downy softener
1 gallon milk
1 gallon chocolate milk
1/2 gallon chocolate soy milk
3 bags blueberry grapes
2 lb bag carrots
4 chicken breasts
2 boxes Right Bites cookies
1 bottle Welches grape jelly
1 3 count pack schick quatro razors
1 tube colgate advance whitening toothpaste
1 stick Secret deodorant
1 box Fruit Loops
2 boxes Pop Tarts
1 loaf Wonder bread
1 pair Converse shoes for Alyssa
1 box 100 count envelopes

Then I went to Walmart and priced the exact same items to see if I really saved anything. The total at Walmart if I hadn't used any coupons was $93, and if I had used my coupons the total would have been $82. So by shopping the ads and couponing at Albertsons and Target I still saved $12. I'm telling you....couponing is the way to go.

Strange Things...

Funky things have been going on over here. I feel like I've entered the Twilight Zone, or maybe just the "things are are never dull at the Manwarings" zone.

1. Carter's lamp light bulb exploded all over his bed. No one touched it or anything, just "POP" and glass was everywhere. Thankfully, he wasn't laying in the bed.

2. A tree sprouted up in my weed patch back flower bed from a seed. I think the seed must have come down the storm drain and there is now a 7 foot tree. (Don't know what kind, but a tree none the less.)

3. I've decided to become a couponer and I love it. (This is the weirdest thing of all listed.)

4. And finally, yesterday, I spotted a badger taking a leisurely stroll down the sidewalk in front of my house. (No, I don't live in the country.)

So bizarre...

Brace Face No More

Alyssa got her braces off this week. Most kids can't wait until the day the braces come off, but my Alyssa was just scared to death. Anything new and/or remotely medically related freaks poor little Lyss right out of her pants. She did pretty good with the removal, but the impression for the new retainer was another story. And of course they had to do it twice because the first one didn't work. I seriously thought she was going to throw up she was gagging so bad. Thankfully she didn't and they were able to make the retainer.

Speaking of retainer, MY they have come a long way since I had to endure this process. She got to choose from about 50 color choices, and ended up with sparkly turquoise. (My choices were clear or red.) And hers is a little piece of plastic that fits on the roof of the mouth. The next step in this braces process is to pull her jaw forward. I had to have this same thing done, but I had to wear a gargantuan hunk of plastic that filled both top and bottom of my mouth. And then, since I would spit it out in my sleep, I had to have some strange strap device wrapped around my head at night to keep my mouth closed. I'm SO glad she doesn't have to do that! I have to say, I'm a little envious of the ease of her braces experience.
Crooked teeth before the process began.

First day with braces.

Nice straight teeth!

Now she wears this retainer while her body grows, and her bite readjusts, then we see if she will need further treatment in about two years.

Kindergarten Funny

Today I picked Carter up from school and he immediately said, "I don't want to tell you anything that happened today."

Me: "Why not? That kind of hurts my feelings. I love to hear about your school day."

Carter: "Well, we all got in trouble for saying bad words."

Me: "What words did people say?"

Carter: "The B word and the F word."

Me (alarmed that my son is hearing the "F word" in kindergarten): "What is the B word and the F word?"

Carter: "You know....'hit' and 'naked'."

It was all I could do to stifle my snort and laughter. I guess when you don't know how to spell, the "F word" is not quite the same word as when you can spell.