Jude on his first day back at school taken in the dark in Keystone

It has been quite a big week in the Renton household. It started in Keystone as we were winding down our summer vacation. We all thoroughly enjoyed having an extended stay in the mountains and we plan on doing it again next year. We probably would never have done it but for the fact that we were renovating our house. So, as difficult as that process has been and continues to be, it did have the silver lining of forcing us up into the mountains this summer.

It was back to school this week for Jude and Anna. The school moved over the summer, so it was a whole different campus for the kids to get used to. We had to leave bright and early on Jude’s first day. We didn’t want Jude to be late so we left Keystone at 6:30am and made it to school by 8am. While Jude was looking forward to heading back to school, the first day was met with tepid enthusiasm.

Anna on her first day outside the Hyatt Place hotel in Denver

We decided to stay at a hotel in Denver last week, so on Anna’s first day it was a only a short drive to school. She was very excited to be a Golden Knight this year – this is what they call the kids who are in their second year of kindergarten. She loved her first day.

This weekend we decided to leave Denver and head to Mt. Rushmore in South Dakota. Marcy picked the kids up from school early on Friday and we hit the road. It was just over six hours of driving and we had a few stops on the way so it was dark by the time we got there. We stayed in a cute cabin at a campground just a few miles from Mt. Rushmore. We drove out to see it on Saturday morning. Being Labor Day weekend it was packed. Anna decided she did not want to be there and was very grumpy all morning. We saw the Crazy Horse monument in the afternoon. It still has at least a couple of decades until it is completed and when it is done it will be spectacular.

At least Jude was excited to see Mt. Rushmore

On Sunday, we drove south to the town of Hot Springs. Here they have a natural heated pool, heated by the warm springs that gives the town its name. The town also has the largest mammoth archaeological site in the world and we did a tour of that. Jude was mesmerized by a lot of the information and Anna also enjoyed it.

Outside the Mammoth site in Hot Springs, SD

One of the great things about South Dakota is the wildlife. We saw many bison and deer during our time there and we got up close and personal with a large herd that was crossing the road as we were driving back from Hot Springs.

Up close and personal with some bison in South Dakota

We enjoyed our little cabin in the woods. We were tucked away in the corner of the campground and it was very peaceful and quiet – especially considering it was Labor Day weekend. The campground had a pool and a putt putt golf course, both of which the kids loved. On our last night we made a campfire and cooked burgers – it was delicious.

Relaxing by our campfire about to start on dinner