Art Project of the Day: Shaving Cream Finger Paints

Materials:
--paper
--shaving cream
--food coloring
--squeegee (optional)

Instructions:
Squirt shaving cream into bowls or muffin tin compartments; add a few drops of food coloring to each and mix well. Smear colored shaving cream onto paper until desired effect is achieved. Scrape off shaving cream with the squeegee (or just with your hand) and BEHOLD your masterpiece.

Special extension activities for toddlers:
Taste shaving cream. Smear it in your hair and all over your face. Throw it on the just-mopped floor. Coat your hands liberally with shaving cream, then shake vigorously to send the globs flying.

The Trip: Day 6

Day 6: Ahhh, now THIS is what a vacation should be like! We slept in and spent a leisurely morning puttering around "Moose Haven" (our cabin), before heading out to see some of the Black Hills.

We visited Crystal Cave--I don't have any pictures because Elizabeth quickly decided that caves aren't her "thing" and we took her back up to the surface, along with the diaper bag (containing, of course, the camera). Jared and I went back down into the cave while Elizabeth hung out with Grandma and reportedly had a grand old time playing in the rocks of the gravel parking lot. We also took a trip to the Reptile Gardens, home of the biggest 'gators, lizards, and snakes I'd ever care to see. . .The giant tortoises were pretty neat, although Elizabeth looked skeptical when we told her what they were--I think she still believes they were big rocks. Prairie Dog Town (you can quit laughing now!) was a big hit with her, though I'm afraid for Jared it probably brought back painful memories of the Backyard Gopher Conflict of '04.

Back at the cabin we grilled some burgers, had birthday cake in honor of. . .oh, I can't remember the whole list now. . .and watched "North By Northwest" (remember that chase across Mt. Rushmore?) Well, the boys watched the movie. It simply provided background noise for the girls as we scrapbooked. Leave it to Emily to pack not only the essentials for her family, but supplies for all manner of scrapbooking projects for the rest of us! :)

We had a nice, uneventful ride home the next morning. . .And now the clothes are all washed, the suitcases put away, and even the hokey Mt. Rushmore paperweight placed on the shelf. We're happy to be home and to have all these new memories to share as a family. Heck, give us a couple of years to forget how long the drive was, and we'll do it all again!

The Trip: Day 5

(Tired yet? Just imagine if you'd actually gone on the trip!)

Day 5: The fireworks display at Mt. Rushmore takes place on the 3rd of July--when they first began doing fireworks they would start the show right at midnight, thus ushering in the 4th of July. Now, thankfully, the show starts at 9:15, but they still do it on the third. Anyway, the short version of what happened today: We arrived around 10 AM. That leaves 11 hours till the fireworks. It rained for almost 3 of those hours. Poor Elizabeth was so spent that by the time the fireworks started she decided she was NOT going to put up with all that noise and light, and she promptly fell asleep on Jared's shoulder. So, was it worth it? Well, we have to say yes, right? No, really, it WAS amazing to spend a day at the foot of such an impressive monument. The fireworks were beautiful. We have some great memories of that day, in spite of (and partly in thanks to) the rain.

The Trip: Day 4

Day 4: We attended church at the Pierre Branch, practically tripling the congregation size. We had a potluck supper afterward, said our goodbyes, and then our branch of the Olson Clan headed to the Black Hills. We reached the Mt. Rushmore overlook just as the sun was setting--it was incredible to watch yet another breathtaking sunset against the backdrop of Mt. Rushmore. (Without a tripod and having yet to take Photography 101, this is the best picture I could manage. . .You'll just have to take my word that that really IS Mt. Rushmore in the background, okay?)

The Trip: Day 3

Day 3: The next day was spent playing around on the Missouri River. Elizabeth had a blast wading and throwing rocks into the river--until the boats started zooming by. As the waves reached the shore where she was wading, she panicked and ran onto the beach shouting, "No, NO! All done!" As Aunt Angie put it, she's a "bathtub" baby--she prefers her water warm, shallow, and WITHOUT waves.

After a nice long nap we hung around the hotel with our immediate family. I learned how to play the traditional Olson family game of Marbles. . .I still think it was a trick telling me that Skylar was my "partner" who was supposed to "help" me. We reconciled over a dinner of Chinese food, and then we did some sight-seeing around Pierre. We visited Scott and Angela (of SilkFudge fame) in their lovely new riverside home, and Jocke treated us to a walking tour of the block on which he grew up. He snagged a garter snake out of a backyard garden and gave Elizabeth her first up-close encounter with a reptile. (She was thoroughly non-plussed.) He also told us a great story about him and his friends chucking rotten tomatoes at passing cars, then hiding in the bell-tower of the church next door when one driver turned his car around to come after them.

The Trip: Day 2

Day 2: Another carload of Olsons (Aaron & Joni, Angie, and Sarah) met up with us in Casper, so we all set out together the next morning. Good thing, because as soon as we hit the highway again after lunch, a tire blew out on Aaron's car! After a tire change worthy of a NASCAR pit crew, we all stopped in Sturgis, aka Motorcycle Mecca! While the boys procured a new tire, we girls played dress-up with the biker gear and cowboy hats.

(Elizabeth and Jordan got in on the dress-ups too. . .)

Despite our little detour, we made it to the family reunion dinner in good time. It was a little creepy to walk into this huge assembly hall in the middle of nowhere and see a bunch of people that I'd never met. . .but who all looked vaguely like Jared. We ate some delectable homemade pies and posed for the obligatory group shot, then we all headed out to the family farm.


(Oh, come on, how could we pass up THIS shot?) The family farm was. . .a real live FARM, which had been handed down through the generations from Jared's grandfather Everett, who was a real live FARMER his whole life. Oh, and did I mention he only had one hand? Seriously, he lost his hand in a farming accident but kept right on working--teaching himself to do everything from branding cattle to nailing a metal roof with his one remaining hand. This was just one of the great stories I got to hear from my father-in-law from this trip. I sure hope he's written all these stories down someplace for us (Hint, HINT, Jocke!)

The Trip: Day 1

Day 1: Around 3:00 we hit the road, along with Jared's brother Jay and his family. We drove to Casper, where we spent the night. Those of you who've driven through Wyoming will understand why we have no pictures of this day of the trip.