I seen ya gobble-in, a weeble wobble-in.

Tricia and Laura came out to the rez for Thanksgiving! I really enjoyed having them here. The day they arrived we sat around for awhile then we took a scenic drive down to Spring Creek, which is the community I lived in as a child. Tricia had some very strong memories and was excited to return. She reacted as I had when I returned as a 20 year old with the thought, "it's so small--I remember it being so much bigger!!!" It was fun to show them around my old stomping grounds. We returned to my house, and proceeded to devour some pasta and wine. On Thanksgiving morning, I awoke and started to prepare the feast. When my guests got out of bed they instantly got to work, perfecting their "boards" on Pinterest (everyone should look into joining pinterest.com). After hours in and out of the kitchen, and many "pins" later, my friend Brooke arrived and the calorie consumption began! Four young women ravaged through the spread consisting of: turkey, green bean casserole, asparagus, brown sugar carrots, cheesy potatoes, buns, pumpkin cake with an apple cider glaze and homemade apple pie! The meal turned out fine, the conversations were enjoyable and the food coma(s) obvious. After lunch had settled, we drove to some scenic spots along BIA 5. The winding Little White River and its surrounding foliage provided some great photo opportunities (even if we did trespass a little).

Thursday evening we went to bed early, in preparation for our big Friday plans---no, no, no, no... not Black Friday shopping, but a tour of western South Dakota! We left my house in Rosebud at 4:48am CST and headed west towards Badlands National Park. After one poor decision on my part as captain that guided us onto a dirt and hawk (mind you, not deer) filled road, we arrived to Interior, SD around 6:00am (MST). We headed into Badlands National Park. I had forgotten how eerie it feels to drive through the Badlands when it is pitch black out, with shadows and stars acting as the tour guides. We found my favorite outlook and watched the sunrise from there. It wasn't the most beautiful sunrise I have seen at BNP, but was a great experience to have with Laura and Tricia.

From BNP we went to Wall Drug for some sight-seeing, shopping, and of course HOMEMADE WALL DRUG DONUTS! I ran into some of my old co-workers, people who were nice to catch up with. Tricia was able to take a picture with Annie Oakley, her childhood hero.

 From there we headed to Keystone, SD to the taffy factory, Mt. Rushmore, Crazy Horse and ended up eating in downtown Rapid City at the Firehouse Brewery. We ended the day at Target, because I was out of toilet paper--but I was able to purchase Megan's christmas present(s), which I had previously scoped out on Target.com!

I had such a great time with my cousins, and feel more than blessed to have family so great and willing to chart the miles for me. The past three days have certainly been filled with superb memories and hysterical occurrences that will stay with us forever. However, in conclusion, with their departure-- I'm going back to bed! I hope you all had a great Thanksgiving filled with family, friends and warm fuzzies :)