A Date with Miss W

Last spring I saw an opportunity to attend Cirque du Soleil in Sioux Falls. It was about the time we knew we would not make it home for Miss W's April birthday, so G'ma thought the two of us might like a special afternoon together...in September.

A number of years ago OFD and I had seen a Cirque du Soleil show in Las Vegas. I don't remember which show, I just remember the costumes and amazing acrobatics of the performers. I wasn't disappointed then and I wasn't disappointed this time, either.

Miss W chose her dress for the afternoon

"Crystal is the first-ever experience on ice from Cirque du Soleil. World-class ice skaters and acrobats take their new frozen playground by storm with speed and fluidity as they challenge the laws of gravity with a flurry of unexpected acrobatics. A new kind of performance as Cirque du Soleil meets the ice.

Crystal, the show’s main character, sets out on an exhilarating quest to fulfill her destiny as she dives into a world of her own imagination. She soars through this surreal world at high speed to become what she was always destined to be: confident, freed, empowered."

opening scenery

musicians entertaining before the show 

one of several acrobatic scenes

most of the story happened through skating

the ending acrobatic display on stacked chairs

5 chairs and growing

I think 6 was the final for his balancing display

yes, he did wear a safety wire

Crystal portraying 

'confident, freed, and empowered'

amazing strength and power in her partner

the 3 musicians on and "ice" piano

she on skates, he came from the ceiling

most of the skating cast

the finale

Miss W was entertained until maybe the last half-hour as it was 2 1/2 hours. She said she liked all the acrobatics best. There was humor, great music, awesome lighting and simple scenery enhancements. The sad part was the small crowd at this performance. At the end, Miss W got the meaning of the show...it was a dream of what she hoped to become. Well worth the money and an afternoon with my favorite granddaughter.

Family Fun at the Zoo

Earlier this month some of my family gathered in Watertown for the day, spending some time at the zoo. Four generations gathered for a fun afternoon, enjoying a beautiful day, each other, and the animals.

milking the cow

feeding the goats & llamas

some bsing going on

photo op with the bear

measuring wing span

how many g'kids can fit in the nest?

lined up to watch the ducks

picking corn kernels to feed the ducks and geese

pushing great-grandma

blows me away how the camel's humps can flop to the side

looking for????

a climb-able tree and they did

Everyone was entertained for nearly 3 hours!

Class Reunion

Last weekend I joined 9 of my 17 high school classmates in Hill City for our 50th reunion. We had  a great time. Kathy and I chose Hill City for several reasons...there isn't much left in the community where we attended school (a bar, a church, a post office, a gas station, and a closed school about to be demolished), we stayed in Hill City in May 1968 when our class toured the Black Hills region for 3 days, and the 1880 Wine Express holds their annual train ride in Hill City.

This was Hubby's and my first trip to the western side of the state this year...first and last. I can say the trip isn't much shorter from Sioux Falls than it is from Watertown. Our accommodations were much better in 2018 than they were in 1968.

a cabin from the Pine Rest Motel (1968)

the Pine Rest is still there and operating

but I am very glad Kathy chose HIE

Hubby and I stayed in the suite

which was the gathering space

upstairs loft

one of the downstairs sitting areas,

full fridge, king-size bed behind the wall where 

Hubby is sitting, and a bathroom in that area

The space was awesome as it easily accommodated the classmates and their spouses and allowed for great conversation.

yearbooks and photos throughout our 12 years

3 classmates have passed away

we all went to dinner on Friday night, 

an easy walk from the hotel

we had lunch at the Alpine Inn on Saturday

known for their German food and bread pudding

also walkable from the hotel

Some went shopping in the afternoon. Some went touring. But everyone was there for the Wine Express train ride at 5:00. Also an easy walk from the hotel.

JHS class of '68

train travels between Hill City and Keystone and back

about 2 hours

our menu and South Dakota wines

5 of them

served in our souvenir wine glass

along with 4 courses

one of our servers

the wine servings were a healthy wine serving

our train car

happy travelers

proof of our enjoyable trip

1 case of many empty bottles

there were 334 passengers for the 5:00 ride

also one at 1:30 on Saturday (only that one weekend)

taking advantage of the loft Saturday evening

most of us gathered at the Hill City Cafe for breakfast

before going our separate ways

 WI, CO, ND, WY, MN and parts of SD

cafe known for the large size of their cinnamon rolls

that way my breakfast

YUMMMM!

a friend of mine embroidered dishtowels

which I gave to each attending classmate

Thank you Peg for great photos. Thank you Kathy for making the arrangements. And thank you attending classmates for making it a FUN weekend! This was probably our last formal reunion. We have had them at most 5 and 10 year intervals.