Day 2: Bozeman (Montana) – Spearfish (South Dakota)
We drove about 470 miles today and made it to Spearfish, where we were instantly surrounded by leather-clad, bandana-wearing bikers (as that huge biker gathering was going on in Sturgis). Judah was quite fascinated with all the Harley Davidsons. The drive went well, although Judah did get pretty impatient toward the end. But we finally made it to the hotel and all got some wonderful rest during the night!
Day 3: Spearfish (South Dakota) – Missouri Valley (Iowa)
HAPPY ANNIVERSARY to us!!! Who would have thought that we would spend our 7 year wedding anniversary stuck in a car for 9 hours? But hey, we did it gladly and were just amazed at how God has led us these past 7 years as we thought back on every year since our wedding in 2006. Because it was our longest day of driving (about 600 miles) and our anniversary, we decided that we are going to make this day of our road trip a FUN day with some sightseeing! Our brother Heath suggested that we’d find a trucker to watch Judah and make it a date night, but after some consideration we thought that probably wouldn’t be the best parenting decision.
– First stop: MT. RUSHMORE! After some reluctance to add more driving hours to our already packed schedule, we did decide to get an early start and take the 1-hour detour to go see Mt. Rushmore. It was quite an impressive sight and made all of us feel a little more American :). Noah the Nissan suffered a little because it was a fairly steep uphill drive (considering he’s loaded up with several hundred pounds of cargo), but he recovered well.
– Second stop: SIOUX CITY! We planned on stopping here for several hours before our last leg of the drive, so we went to the Great Plains Zoo! Definitely a highlight of the trip! Judah had so much fun and got so excited over all the animals. The giraffes and rhinos were favorites! It was a small zoo and super empty because it was almost closing time, which made it just a perfect hangout place for our little family after a long day in the car.
Side note: I’ve never been so THANKFUL that our little boy loves movies!!! What a lifesaver our DVD player has been!
It’s quite surreal that, God willing, we’ll be at our final destination tomorrow. Please continue to pray for safe travels, good car naps for Judah (he’s been having a harder time sleeping in the car), and the peace of God to rule in our hearts!
Crown Chasers 
Happy belated anniversary! Sounds perfect, adventure, hotels, grand new exciting sites, and lots of just talking together time!!! We love you and miss you! Praise God that all has gone well. XXXOOO’s Dad & Mom :O)