Noah and Chris arrived to so we again have a full house in the motorhome. Noah dove right in and began to build his new Lego car. He does a great job following directions on his own.

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We were rewarded with a beautiful sunset on our first night here.

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Because it was such a beautiful night, we had a fire while Al entertained us with his uke and Noah roasted marshmallows to make s'mores.

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We began our journey today in Custer State Park on the Needles Highway.

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The road threads through oddly shaped, weathered granite spires from which the highway derives its name.

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We had to go through several narrow tunnels as we traversed this highway. Bob's little bug had no trouble going through this 12-foot by 8-foot tunnel.

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We found this tranquil lake along the way and decided it was the perfect spot for lunch.

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As we drove the wildlife loop in Custer State Park we got to see pronghorns...

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...burros (hmm are we in Oatman, AZ?)...

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...and lots of bison! It was a great day for wildlife!

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As we neared our campground, we came upon about 30 cars and many emergency vehicles on the side of the highway. We noticed the cars had shattered windshields and missing back windows. At first we thought it was a huge accident and then we spotted huge golf ball size hail on the ground and realized where the damage came from. 5-minutes later when we got back to the motorhome we found we had some damage but nothing that would make us shorten our trip.

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No matter how many times we see Mount Rushmore, we are in awe of this magnificent sight.

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Today was designated as Grammy, Poppy and Noah day. We began our day by climbing to the top of Dinosaur Hill so we could be close to the dinosaurs. This park was built by the WPA and is a great place to visit with kids.

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Our next stop was Storybook Island. This park, built and maintained by the Rotary Club colorfully depicts fairy tales and nursery rhymes. As we arrived we were told there were children's plays in the theater. Noah got a kick out of this hippo water fountain and enjoyed the park so much that he talked his dad into bringing him again another day while we did our laundry!

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The City of Presidents project has placed life-sized bronze statues of past presidents standing on the street corners in the historic downtown area of the city. As we were crossing the street, Noah said "Will you take my picture with the first President?" His knowledge astounds me!

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Our last stop of the day was at the Museum of Geology. Here we got to see fossil exhibits of giant reptiles and fish along with skeletons of sabre toothed cats, camels, horses and prehistoric animals. We also got to see a large mineral and ore exhibit. What a fun day we had together.

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Today we visited Bear Country USA, a drive-through park that features a variety of North American wildlife.

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We got up close and personal with reindeer...

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...this bear with a most unique hairstyle (he hasn't lost all of his winter coat yet!)...

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...an albino bison...

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...badgers and many more different animals.

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One last project for Grammy and Noah was to construct this wooden squirrel. We had fun figuring out how to put it together but had to take it apart so it could travel.

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All good things must come to an end and today was the day for the boys to head west and home. It was sad to see them go but on the bright side, we get our motorhome back!!

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