I thought I was done writing about our vacation. And then I synced my phone with our computer and discovered a whole lot of random shots. For instance, here's Sydney checking out our motel room the first night in Sioux Falls.
Sophisticated and experienced traveler that she's become in her five years, she noticed before I did the lack of a refrigerator and microwave. At least it had a nice mattress and a coffee maker, she observed.
As many of you know, I started a new job right after I got back from vacation. One of my new coworkers is a remarkably calm and patient man. With eight children. They range in age from infant to mid-teen. And they all just got back from a vacation out west. They drove all the way to the California coast in a large van, camping in a tent the whole way. And he's still a remarkably calm and patient man.
I know all of this because at a recent meeting, while waiting for everyone to arrive, several people started talking about their summer vacations. This turned into a "let's go around the table and everyone share one thing" kind of conversations. Being new, I just sat back and listened, until someone prompted, "and Dana, you just took a vacation right before you started..."
And all I could say was "We went to South Dakota with two kids, staying in nice hotels each night and driving a mini-van with a drop down DVD player. I simply cannot compete."
So back to the photos I'd forgotten I'd taken...
Remember the old-fashioned photo I'd mentioned posing for? Here's some behind the scenes shots as we got into costume.
With emphasis on "behind"...
One of the fun finds in Rapid City: full body sculptures of presidents. Considering it was the larger than life carving of presidents in another medium that's the reason this town is even on anyone's radar, I guess it shouldn't be a surprise to find these sculptures.
But it was where they were located that I found interesting. Sure, there were many of them on downtown street corners, but Thomas, here, was one of two outside a sporting good store.
One of the fun discoveries on our trip? The kids are now big enough and comfortable enough in water, that they could swim without us by their side in the pool. Of course we were sitting by the edge of the pool watching them, but we didn't actually have to be in the water with them. And considering the pool water was chillier than I prefer, that's a wondeful option to have.
For the second leg of our trip, we stayed in the Twin Cities, spending two nights at the Embassy Suites in Brooklyn Center. Loved the place! And loved the free snacks and drinks at the nightly manager's reception.
Something else new this trip... The kids were introduced to chocolate fountains. Believe it or not, two different restaurants we chose had them. Here's Sydney at a Chinese buffet, by the time we ate here, she was a seasoned pro.
That's because she'd already had a chance to dip marshmallows and strawberries at another buffet: the Golden Corral. A restaurant we will never eat at again.It's like Old Country Buffet with less classy customers. Who'd have thought that was possible. But it is.
The one we visited was next to a Walmart. In South Dakota. On a Friday night.
Not for the faint of heart.
Jeff saw people pushing to get to the buffet line. I, meanwhile, saw a man carrying a heaping plate of food while waiting to get ribs. The server who was cutting the ribs paused momentarily as he stared at the man's plate, trying to figure out how/where he could squeeze it onto the plate. And that's when the man held out his hand. Suggesting the server just plop the rib there.
From that moment forward, Jeff was banned from choosing restaurants.
Still doesn't compete with camping in a tent with eight kids.
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