South Dakota!

This year was my dad's parents' 50th anniversary, and what they wanted most was for their 5 kids and their families to come and stay with them in South Dakota. The last time I was there I was 1 1/2, and needless to say I don't really remember anything about it. It was so much fun! My grandmother and I enjoy a lot of the same things, (quilting, scrapbooking, and knitting, of course) so we had a great time together. It was a 22 hour drive to get there, and on the way we were able to go to the Answers in Genesis Creation Museum! I had wanted to go ever since I heard they were building it, but I never thought I'd actually go someday. Here are some pictures.

I'd seen pictures of the entrance, and it was amazing to actually be there!

The Garden of Eden. (It was BEAUTIFUL!)

My brothers.... *sigh* :)

Me, my mom, and the llamas.

Eating from the Tree of Life.

Outside the museum.

While we were staying with my grandparents, and before my aunts, uncles, and cousins got there, we were able to go to the Black Hills! It was an amazing trip. All 7 of us piled into my grandparent's van and drove 5 hours to get there.

On the way we stopped at a rest stop that overlooked the Missouri River.

"Beware Rattlesnakes"

The Badlands! It was absolutely beautiful, especially since there was still some snow left over from a blizzard.

It was kind of surreal, standing next to Mount Rushmore. Here we are with my grandparents.

We got to go to Sylvan Lake. The drive up was a little nerve wracking, but the lake was spectacular, especially with the freshly fallen snow, and it was totally worth it!

Here we are at Sylvan Lake.

We went to Custer State Park, not sure if we'd see any wildlife or not. We saw basically everything! Here are pictures of the buffalo.

We drove right through a herd of antelope!

A few days after we got back to my grandparents's house, the rest of my family got there, just in time for a few inches of snow! We haven't seen snow here since early 2004, and my Texas cousins had never even seen snow before! We had entirely too much fun.

Here we all are. Actually, not all. There were 20 of us total, including three 3 year olds! It was an adventure, but I loved being with all my family.

Here are the 3 year olds, Addison, Abbie, and Seamus.

This is my cousin Courtney. For Thanksgiving we went to my grandparents church and had a big meal in the fellowship hall, along with some extended family.

My brothers and me.

I got full WAY before I was done eating. It was very sad.