Mt. Rushmore in Texts

Perhaps my texts to Tyler journal our journey best. Parenthesis indicate journaling that I have added.

7/25, 3:31pm - your wife is making crazy plans...thinking of trying mt rushmore anyway. am I nuts? i want to sit down with the kids and see how much they will step it up (we had just returned home from a trip, had company, and I was recovering from being sick)

4:02pm - i'll have to tell you what I've cooked up tonight, to make it work with my exhaustion (driving partway and staying at a hotel on the drive out)

7/29, 9:12am - You will never guess what I did.  I misplaced a clean pull up last night for Emmie.  This morning I threw her bedding in the wash and when I went to pull it out I figured out where that pull up went - thru the wash.  I can not describe the mess with millions of those gel beads all thru the washer and bedding. It is so hard to clean up. I tried wiping it out but there is so much I think we will try the shop vac next.  Glad we have one. (why was I washing her sheets?  Because she had thrown up in the night)

7/29, 1:19pm - Please call when you can.  (It was about a flood in the basement.  I began to wonder if all of these things were signs that we were taking on too much and shouldn't leave town)

7/30, 3:51pm - just passed thru Wanship.  Callie gets an A so far on driving and I wasn't even too scared thru the canyon. I like this passenger seat business!

6:57pm - got dinner and gas in Rock Springs, halfway to Casper.  So glad we are stopping for the night! About 20 miles east of Rock Springs right now.

8:10pm - Finally left I-80! The scenery is much better now.  Listening to Bullies in the Headlights and for now all is well.

8:52pm - Just passed Martin's Cove, the Sweetwater, and Independence Rock! This is so cool. We may stop on the way home.

10:20pm - wow! just got into our hotel room. it is booked with a biker's convention!

10:54pm - someone mastered crib escaping

7/31, 8am - the little ones were finally asleep at 11:30 and wouldn't you know Jerry the Goat was up at 6:40.  Luckily I got him to lay back down until 8. every time Emmie was almost asleep Cam would do something to wake her up. Drew gallantly gave up his place in bed after Cam decided he didn't want the floor anymore and the 3 of us squished until E sacked out and I could move her.  She WOULD NOT stay in her crib for 60 seconds together!

11:08am - swam for an hour, got ready, hamburgers and nuggets for breakfast at 11.

This awesome, made-for-kids pool was literally 8 steps outside of our room.  It was a really fun, and I would totally stay here again.

3:08pm - Just got to our campsite.  It is raining and I left the tarp at home.  Any suggestions?

4:10 - It stopped raining.  We'll use the wood tarp and make do.

(At this point I learned that my phone didn't get reception and I had to wait until we were in Rapid City to use it, so there is a big gap in texting)

8/03, 11:04am - counted 938 motorcycles on the way to church (in Rapid City)

(I thought the biker convention was a Casper thing.  Got to our campsite and learned about Sturgis, the largest biker convention in the world.  Bikers were everywhere!  It made for a fun - and noisy - campground.  I'd awaken to bikes pulling in and out of campsites at midnight and 6am, but all of our fellow campers were very friendly and nice)

8/04, 11:11am - Mr. Has to Pee a Lot just used a water bottle in the car.  Hannah was next to him and pretty grossed out.

11:17 - Baby girl has been out cold since 25 minutes into our drive.  She wore herself clean out.

3:29pm - We are back on the road after a very nice stop at the Cove.  A family day trek there is a MUST.

5:56pm - just gassed up in Rock Springs.  Next stop: IC cones at Little America in about 40 minutes 

6:26pm - Yea!  Just got to Little America.

7:00pm - On the road again with ice cream!