Vacation Day 7

Tuesday, July 6, 2010: We woke up today after 9:00am and once we got ready, we headed for the closest gas station to get something to eat for breakfast/lunch. Bruce and I decided before we left the hotel that since we finished all of the sights we wanted to see in South Dakota a bit early, we would add a day at the Mall of America to our itinerary! We did not, however, tell the girls about this right away. We had to drive about 2 hours to get to Mitchell and the Corn Palace. It’s kind of like a small convention center with a gym floor in the middle of it. We found out that the local basketball team plays their games there and so does a local college in Mitchell. The gym floor, now, however, is covered with souvenirs! Go figure! We did buy a few things of course and at the “corn-cession” stand, Bruce bought 2 buttered ears of corn while the girls and I had popcorn. We left there and then drove on 2-lane highways for about 76 miles to reach DeSmet, SD. DeSmet is one of the childhood homes of Laura Ingalls Wilder. We visited the Ingalls Homestead which included all 160 acres of their property, a barn in the same spot where theirs was located, a house in the original spot, and several other sites to see. It was pretty neat! We also went into the town and drove to the cemetery, where Pa, Ma, Mary, Carrie, and baby AJ Wilder are buried. After we made it back to the interstate (about 6pm), we let the girls in on the secret that we were adding something to the trip, but we didn’t tell them what it was. We, instead, gave them some little clues so they could try to figure it out. We stopped in Sioux Falls for dinner at an Arby’s and continued driving. The girls figured it out shortly thereafter and were excited. The last time we were at the Mall of America was in 2003 when B1 was 6 and B2 was 3. We are staying tonight in Albert Lea, MN at a Super 8 Hotel.