I was nervous about accomplishing all that was planned for today. We made one adjustment- but otherwise were able to cross it all off of the list. Again- using the life skill of flexibility came in handy today!!!!
Last night we arrived into Lusk, WY at close to midnight. The kids were sleepy but were excited to be staying in a "motel" where you park your car right outside of your room. The adults were excited too as it made unloading the bags much easier!!!
We woke up early to start our day. The kids enjoyed playing on the swing set directly in front of our room as we organized for the day. (Great to get some wiggles out before loading back into the car!). After a quick breakfast, we were on our way.
We did get a bit turned around on our drive and re-routed where we ended up going through Wind Cave National Park before hitting Custer State Park. We were all excited to see bison so close to the road as we drove. Our first daughter is a true animal lover- so today was a momentous day for her! 
Then we headed into Custer State Park. There we took the "Wildlife Loop" where we saw a Prairie Dog village, burros, more bison, pronghorns (antelope) and some deer.
The burros are very comfortable around people and would allow the people to pet them and even their young. Many people were feeding them crackers, bread, and I even saw one older gentleman trying to feed them jelly beans! What are they thinking?
We had originally planned to go to Crazy Horse Memorial next, but we were behind schedule, so chose to omit it and go straight to Mount Rushmore. Wow! Both the setup and the amount of people that are visiting Mount Rushmore on a daily basis are unbelievable. I know that there is controversy surrounding Mt. Rushmore (stealing of Native American land, "defacing" nature with sculpture, etc) but when you walk up and see the faces of 4 of our Nation's Fathers looking down from above- it's overpowering. The Patriotic Pride that filled my soul hit hard. The precise and delicate architecture is mind blowing when you stop and think that in the 1920's (when it was built), 90% was done by dynamite!
We spent 1.5 hours marveling at the faces, watching a movie about its construction and taking it all in. From the pristine and majestic Mount Rushmore, we proceeded down through the touristy and tacky Keystone town at the bottom of the hill.
Driving along I-90, Wall Drug roadside stands called us to stop. Also a tacky town and filled with tourists (you have to love the throngs of people with their bus tour name tags on!), it was a perfect distraction and stop to stretch your legs. The kids loved the kitschy stores and the animated TRex that blew smoke and made loud noises every 15 minutes. After an hour+, we were ready to go.
Next came the "World's Only Corn Palace" in Mitchell, SD. I was proud that we were a bit ahead of schedule and would have more than the 1/2 hour that I had originally alotted-but that was squashed when our iPhones switched time zones and we lost an hour! Time to hustle!!! Thanks to the 80mph speed limit and minimal road construction- we made it with only 10 minutes to check it out.
The palace was built in 1892 and each year the exterior motif is changed using corn cobs in different colors to create themed murals. Because we are early in the mural creation, the exterior of the building looked quite shabby and run down. (Also, the building is under construction.). We were amazed to walk in and see an enormous arena with a theater and basketball court. It reminded me of something from "Hoosiers". We met a lively docent (Troy- whose side business is as a licensed clown named "Popcorn") who educated us on both the Corn Palace and the prominence of basketball in the area. After spending the morning at Mount Rushmore, seeing the replica corn mural in the arena was cool! (The inside murals last 10-12 years!). I wish we had more time there- but what time we had was packed with information!
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