One Year!

One year ago today, I married my best friend! I thought that day was the happiest day of my life and that the joy and elation was just because it was our wedding day. I kept thinking surely this "wedded bliss" only lasts a little while, we are newlyweds after all, but no, each day just gets better and better!

Kenny makes me laugh EVERY single day and I think I do the same for him. We share so many of the same interests and just truly enjoy being around each other and spending time together. I am so thankful God brought my soul mate to me!

And what better place to spend your anniversary than ON VACATION!!

We got up bright and early, checked out of our hotel and headed off to see Mount Rushmore! Oh, I was giddy with excitement. This would be my first time to see Mt. Rushmore. I've seen it in movies like National Treasure, but never in person.

Ohoooo it did not fail! It is gorgeous! As you approach the carved mountain top you walk through an open air hallway of flags from every state in the nation. I just felt such a glowing sense of patriotism like we should stop and say the pledge of allegiance or something before we saw the actual site *grins*

It is bright white and big and grand and really captures the spirit of the Presidents. Kenny of course captured the days events on his new camera. I just love looking at his photography! I really have a talented hubby *smiles*

This photo (above) is actually THROUGH the opening of two boulders! WoW!

We hiked all down and around on the trails at the base of the mountain and spotted our first glimpse of wildlife!!!! A tiny ground squirrel *laughs*

Well, we were excited anyway. We have a little notebook where we were documenting ALL the wildlife we'd see on the trip and this was our first entry!

After Mount Rushmore we drove over to a drive through Wildlife Safari we'd seen advertised on billboards called Bear Country USA. I'm so glad the billboards convinced us to go because this was a once in a lifetime treat! There were ALL sorts of animals (none of which went into our notebook because they weren't technically "wild")

There were elk and wolves, long horned sheep, bison (including one albino, all white, bison), deer, mountain lions, hundreds of black bears, two grizzly bears and a separate space with about TWENTY tiny baby black bear cubs *grins* awwwwww, SO cute!

look at that grizzly bear posing *winks*

This little guy climbed about fifteen feet up a small pine tree and decided to take a nap!

After Bear Country we drove on to Custer State park to have an anniversary picnic lunch by the lake *smiles*

Below is a photo commemorating our ONE year anniversary. See me holding up that little one finger *winks*

We hiked all around the lake and up into the wilderness on some unique and interesting trails, adding lots wildlife to our notebook! Deer, bison, antelope and even a turtle!

At one point we actually had to climb up onto a fallen tree to get across a stream of water!

We just had the greatest day, then drove on to Spearfish South Dakota, got checked into our hotel and crashed for the night with sweet dreams of our first anniversary together!