George, Jeff, Rose, and Abe

On our first full day in the Hills, we took a scenic drive up to Mt. Rushmore. Landon had been excited for this part of the trip since he had learned about our nation's presidents back in February. It is a place that every American should visit in their lifetime. We're fortunate that we have and will be able to see it many times because it is located in one of my favorite places on earth--the Black Hills of South Dakota. Seriously people, it should be on your bucket list. To be honest with you, there's not much to do once you're there but just stare at this big piece of rock. However, in your mind, the star-spangled banner begins to play. You marvel at the lives of four men who are forever etched in stone because of the amazing things they did for our country. You stand a little taller because you are an American and pride takes over your body. You are truly a part of God's country because the landscape around you is breathtaking. Take the trip--it's worth it.

When Landon walked up to get a better view of the carving, he said "Hi George! What's up Jeff! How're you doing Rose? Nice to see you Abe". Loved that my kid is on a first name or nickname basis with the big guys on the mountain.

Not long after I took this picture of him studying Mt. Rushmore, Landon turned to me and said "It's really just beautiful, isn't it?" Yeah kid, it is.

As I said before, we took a scenic drive to Mt. Rushmore and drove on a road called "Needles Highway". The scenery is spectacular.

Notice the climbers at the top. We watched them climb for a while which was very cool.

You go through many one lane tunnels on this route. This is my favorite of them all.

The beauty of the Hills is overwhelming.

Noah's favorite part of the day came when we rounded a corner to find this....

A big herd of buffalo!!! And they were so close. Many were still shedding their winter coats. There were babies nursing off of their mamas. There were big buffalo, and there were HUGE buffalo. We told Landon how the Indians of the area were dependent on these creatures and explained how they used the entire body of the animal. We sat there for so long just watching them or should I say mesmerized by them. When we decided to move on, it took us a while because many decided to cross the road in front of us. Again, amazing. This picture shows how close they were to us (no zooming was done)....

A few of them got a little too close for the kids and my comfort, and we promptly told Daddy to roll up the windows. We all loved this part of our day. Lilah still says "buffalo" when she sees the pictures.

So to George, Jeff, Rose, and Abe--thanks for giving this family a day to remember.