When we were in South Dakota a few years ago we wanted to tour Wind Cave National Park but we ran out of time. We decided to make it a priority this time! Before our tour, we wandered around the exhibits at the visitor center. Chris spotted this display on root systems. We had no…
I don’t know about you, but when I hear people talking about electric vehicles I hear a lot about torque. Knowing that a diesel also has a lot of torque and really great gas mileage while towing, that makes an electric vehicle seem like a great option for towing as well. At least it seems…
In addition to architecture at capitol buildings and universities, I also enjoy the architecture of places of worship. In Rapid City there is a little chapel called the Chapel in the Hills. The “hills” refer to the Black Hills of South Dakota. The Chapel in the Hills was built in 1969 and it is a…
We got up at sunrise one morning to hike around Sylvan Lake in Custer State Park. Custer is one of our favorite places in South Dakota! It is an easy hike around the lake and it is dog friendly. We brought James with us but we decided it might be a little too much for…
When I told my friend Shauna that we had an RV, she asked, “Have you seen The Long, Long Trailer movie?” I hadn’t seen it so I checked it out from the library. The Long, Long Trailer is a comedy featuring Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz and it is hilarious! The movie features a 1953…
South Dakota has some crazy hail storms. We’ve seen some cars in SD that are just peppered with hail damage and it is really sad to see. Usually just the top and one side of the vehicle are completely damaged. If you didn’t know about the hail, you might think the nice car dealerships here…
South Dakota has some serious summer storms! The wind here is intense and can last for days. And the summer thunderstorms have just as much lightning as a Florida summer storm – possibly even more. This was the radar on the evening of June 12, 2022. Thankfully that little break in the middle is what…
Greetings from The Mount Rushmore State – South Dakota! We hope you have a wonderful Independence Day! The Mount Rushmore Memorial grounds are huge and there are lots of hikes you can do once you park your car. You can view Mount Rushmore from SD-44 but it is well worth the $10 parking fee to…
We fell in love with the Angostura Reservoir back in 2018. It is in a remote area of southwest South Dakota just south of Hot Springs, South Dakota. There are several state-run campgrounds along the lake and some of the campsites are waterfront. The waterfront sites are hard to get during the summer but even…
Our campground host in Nebraska gave us a handwritten list of food to try in Scottsbluff. We started at the very top looking at menus online and our decision was made – we were going to Flyover that night! Chris heard me say “Bacon Wrapped Wings” and he was sold. Chris was so serious about…
While in Nebraska we were told, “You HAVE to get a Runza!” We had no idea what a Runza was so we looked it up. It is a statewide sandwich chain (there are some in Kansas and Iowa now, too). The bread is a soft yeast roll and the filling is almost stuffed into the…
While in Nebraska, I saw there was a classic car show so I decided to go and walk around. I really enjoy walking around classic car shows. My Dad used to go to Corvette shows and sometimes I would join him. It was impressive to see how people took care of and restored their classic…
We are in Scottsbluff, Nebraska and there are rabbits everywhere! James has a thing for rabbits. If you’ve been reading our blog for a few years, you will remember James and the rabbit treats we found in Austria when we lived overseas. Look at how happy James is when he is hunting for rabbits: It…
Since we were Cheyenne, I wanted to stop by the Wyoming State Capitol Building. I love walking around capitol buildings and universities – the architecture is usually beautiful. I also enjoy the manicured lawns and gardens surrounding these places. We walked James around the front of the Wyoming State Capitol Building and we stopped to…
We decided to check out a showcase of animals in Cheyenne over at the fairgrounds. We happened to arrive during the goat show and the pig show. I’ve been to dog shows before and it was so fun to see the goats all lined up just like show dogs! These goats were beautiful – and…
We looked up fun events for Chris’ birthday weekend in Cheyenne and we found a team roping event. We had never been to a rodeo before – and YES, Chris was just waiting to say to someone at the event, “Well, this IS my first rodeo…” ha! We arrived early and they were spraying down…
We are celebrating Chris’ birthday in Wyoming! Chris said he really just wanted BBQ for his birthday dinner. Our campground happened to have the best BBQ in Cheyenne on the property (this is exactly why I booked the campground – for the birthday BBQ!). The only thing I didn’t realize was that AB BBQ is…
Summer is here so we decided to head over to our favorite pizza place in all of DC: We, The Pizza. We, The Pizza has lots of pizzas out and ready so you can order by the slice. We enjoy mixing and matching our slices and we usually get the Forest Shroomin’, The White Pie…
James loves tennis balls and when Chris spotted a giant tennis ball at the Dollar General, we knew we had to get it for him! It was the perfect birthday gift for 12 year old James. He can’t quite pick it up with his mouth so he uses his nose and feet to push it…
After James ate some cupcake he posed for some birthday portraits to celebrate turning 12 years old. This one is my favorite. He has his sweet old man face in this photo: The cherry blossoms are blooming here to celebrate James’ birthday: The Virginia Bluebells are also blooming: