For the past four years we've spent our tax return on home improvement. But this year we wanted to do something fun with the kids, something that we don't normally do.
So we rented a cabin in the Black Hills of South Dakota and took the kids to Mount Rushmore. We went to some fun restaurants and spent a day at an indoor water park. We drove through Custer State park and our car got surrounded by a herd of bison. We ate smore's and played for hours by the creek behind our cabin. We told stories around the fire and played countless games of UNO. We just spent time together and we truly had a blast.
In homeschooling, I find myself being very task oriented and I sometimes struggle to truly delight in my children. What I loved most about this trip was delighting in the seemingly small stuff. There were so many little moments that I want to remember for always...
I wanna remember sharing an Apple with my Solomon on the picnic bench outside our cabin and how he ate every last bit of it including the seeds.
I wanna remember how my Siah asked if he could bring his notebook cuz he wanted to take notes at Mount Rushmore.
I wanna remember how Solomon carries his blanket around everywhere and how my Reese is still in her cartwheel phase.
I wanna remember the way my Siah stopped me in the middle of the amphitheater and told me he just wanted to talk. 😘
{Hal ate her very first triple decker sandwich and thought it was the best thing since sliced bread.}
I wanna remember all 8 of us driving through through the black hills listening to country music in an otherwise quiet car.
I wanna remember playing uno with the four oldest and my Jed saying, "man, you guys are busting me up here!" when he got a draw four and had to pick up a boatload of cards. 😆💕
I wanna remember how my Siah's feet are getting so big that I mistook his boots for his Papa's.
I wanna remember how pumped the kids were when their Papa said they could have their own soda with their pizza... You would have thought we had just told them we were going to Disneyland. They were cheering and clapping and laughing themselves silly! 😜💕
I wanna remember playing in the creek with all of them as the sun was setting.
I wanna remember the way the dancing girl looked up at me after I jumped the creek and how she smiled big when she said, "you sure are having fun being with us aren't you Mama?"
. I wanna remember sitting around the fire telling the kids stories of when we were kids.
I wanna remember that when we told the kids the tv was broken, they all said "That's ok, there so many fun things to do outside," and they ran out to play. We have some seriously cool kids.
I wanna remember my Solomon being the bravest one of all going down the giant slide with his Papa over and over again... I pray he always stays fearless.
This trip really was a sweet time with our little family. Sometimes it just feels nice to get away from our norm, to have a change of scenery, and to laugh out loud with the ones you love most.
This time around I took a lot more video than photos. And last night I put together a video of the highlights of our trip.
pASSWORD: rushmore
mUSIC: Renegades by X Ambassadors
