We just got back from a road trip.
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My husband and me and our 2 kids, Maggie 9 and Max 9,  drove to Colorado to visit family and then to South Dakota to see Mount Rushmore.
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It was a great trip (If you don’t count the car over heating in 102 degree heat and my mom having to go to the ER because she sliced her hand open).
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Our biggest concern, which turned out to be a valid one, was keeping the kids occupied in the car.  We gathered every electronic device we owned.  We downloaded movies, tv shows, books and games.  We packed snacks and drinks.  We had music and audio books at the ready.
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Now, this wasn’t my first trip to Mount Rushmore.  As a kid, we traveled there a few summers in a row to a family camp.  In fact, one summer Carly and her family came with us.  I am not sure what the heck we did in our cars for 13 hours.  I am sure the cars were small and I’m not sure we had air conditioning and I am very sure we didn’t have 1 electronic device.  I am sure we did a lot of rolling around in the back seat, cause we didn’t have to use seat belts back then either.  I seem to remember spending some time in the back window area.  That is crazy to think about isn’t it?
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Anyway, we left on July 4th in the evening and made it to Omaha, Nebraska in time to see fireworks from our hotel parking lot.  Kids were great on the first leg, I think they watched a movie and we listened to a few hours of Harry Potter Book 1.
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Day 2 was interesting…Maggie decided Nebraska was no fun.
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The only saving grace was that we were going to see Grammie and Grandpa Tom!  In only a few, ahem 8, short hours we would be there!  We were sure glad to see Grammie.
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We filled our few days fast in Boulder.  We went to Pearl Street, we painted, we made stepping stones, we went to the bike park and fed the squirrels (don’t ask).
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It was hard to say goodbye, but South Dakota was calling.
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The drive to South Dakota was an easy one.
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We were getting good at traveling by car.
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South Dakota was very cool.  We stayed at the State Game Lodge in Custer State Park.  It came highly recommended to us and we would happily recommend to anyone too!  We saw buffalo, elk, deer and antelope.  The buffalo were right out our front door one morning!

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The lodge front porch was the perfect place to end the day. What an amazing time.
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Mount Rushmore was amazing.  Although Max wasn’t so sure.  He said at one point.  “I don’t see what is so amazing about this place mom”.  I said “when you are 40 and come back here with your kids, you’ll know how amazing it is”.  Max said “Oh, I’m not coming back here with my kids”.
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Funny  kid.
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Crazy horse and Reptile Gardens.  Wall Drug on the way home.
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And now we’ve done it.  That trip.  The one we’ll talk about for years, the one that my kids will hopefully remember.  That trip.  Done.
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Loved every, well almost every, minute of it.

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