Tuesday we awoke and made the trek up to the cabin atop Terry Peak. Prior to us arriving, they had received 41" of snow. We checked in, unloaded and packed some lunch for the trip to Mount Rushmore. I also unpacked some toys from Jessilyn and Nolan!
It wasn't long after arriving at the monument that I decided to splash in some puddles, place my knee in standing water and soak my jeans all the way through. But I did get some pictures in before rushing back to the truck with dad to stay warm.
Wednesday we decided to explore Deadwood's gigantic downtown. It took about 30 minutes to walk both sides of the street and explored some casinos. It was here that I had my first gambling experience. I have no pictures as cameras are not allowed in casinos. Regardless, my mom plugged the machine with some money and let me grab the handle and pull. We won some, but ultimately lost everything; guess I can't go to college now! Just kidding, we only lost $5.00. My mom is not the risky type when it comes to gambling. As we were receiving some odd looks from the staff, we packed up and headed back to the cabin. On the way back we stopped off for some burgers and milk at the burger joint at the bottom of Terry Peak. Later that day Barb, Todd, Anna and her friend Tyanna arrived. We spent the day playing in the snow, playing pool, and exploring every draw available to me. I found the draw with all the towels and proceeded to walk around with them on my head. I even managed to break a little trinket that the owners left in the draw plus a christmas tree bulb. That evening, we treated ourselves to a steak dinner and stopped off at the local Kmart to find a sled. That night I was schooled in how to chalk a pool cue, rack the balls, and where the balls go.
On Thursday, New Year's Eve, we woke up really early and headed to Terry Peak to get our ski rentals. This was Jessilyn's first time skiing and my first time watching. After eating breakfast, mom and me hung out at home and took a nap while dad got some ski time in with everyone else. We even tested out the sled that morning and I absolutely loved it. Everyone came back to the cabin for lunch and then we all headed back to the peak for an afternoon of skiing. Mom skied a few hours in the afternoon and I hung out with dad in the lounge watching the beginners biff it on the hill. Barb, Anna, Tyanna, Jessilyn and Nolan stuck to the greens, while Todd drug my mom down some blues. Mind you, Todd, Nolan and my dad had skied the greens and blues all morning. My mom was pretty sore after a few runs and was in relief when Todd turned his knee and decided to call it a day. That night my mom made some awesome chili with the assistance of Jessilyn that everyone enjoyed with biscuits. I didn't make it to midnight but from what I heard it was a tame evening ringing in 2010!
Friday found us relaxing and enjoying the day at the cabin catching up on some zzz's. Everyone took their turn pulling my sled up the hill and watching me zoom down.
Saturday we bid farewell to the cabin and headed back to Sioux Falls and Jessilyn and Nolan headed back to Denver. When we were packing the car on top of Terry Peak it was 30 degrees and comfortable. By the time we got to the bottom it was 10 degrees...burr! It only got colder as we drove further east and the drive was much longer this time as I did not sleep most of the way. We stopped at Al's Oasis to meet Great Grandma and Grandpa Johnsrud for lunch. By the time we arrived in Sioux Falls at Danny, Bryce, and Brooklyn's, it was -5 degrees. I spent the remainder of the evening playing with my cousins. On Sunday we got up and made the rounds to different family members to say goodbye. We brought Great G&G Johnsrud lunch and I had the best time playing with his electric chair. Great Grandma has this great stash of toys in the closet that I discovered.
Although I had a great time sledding, next time I'm going to try skiing. Todd and Barb gave me Anna's old ski's so I'm now ready to take on that challenge. Watch out for me on the slopes!
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