How to Make a Normal Tuesday Feel Special

Summer is for bucket list adventures.

The big vacations are wonderful, but I've started realizing that some of the memories our kids will hold onto the longest probably won't come from the trips we've planned for months. They'll come from random Tuesdays when we simply decided to say, "Why not?"

Josh and I were trying to figure out how to turn an ordinary, mundane Tuesday into something our girls would remember.

We started the morning with a walk to our favorite local coffee shop. On the way home, we told the girls to head inside, pack a book and a water bottle, and get straight into the car.

No other instructions.

Just enough mystery to make everyone excited.

One of my favorite things about living in Wyoming is that incredible adventures are practically in our backyard. We have Devils Tower, America's first National Monument. Yellowstone National Park. Mount Rushmore. Little Bighorn Battlefield. And one place that had been sitting on our family bucket list for years … Crazy Horse Memorial.

We looked at each other and realized something.

If we didn't go now, we might never go.

So we loaded up the car and pointed it toward Custer, South Dakota.

Our first stop was lunch at Black Hills Burger & Pizza Co., and let me just say this: if you ever find yourself in Custer...go there. Seriously. Every single thing we ordered was incredible.

Then it was finally time for Crazy Horse Memorial.

Construction on the monument began in 1948, and more than 75 years later it's still a work in progress. Standing there, you can see the massive carving taking shape, view models of what the finished monument will eventually look like, and immerse yourself in Native American history and culture.

We watched world champion Native American dancers perform traditional powwow dances, learned about the story behind the memorial and the legacy of Crazy Horse, and each of the girls brought home a small piece of the mountain that had been blasted away during construction.

Their official review?

10 out of 10.

From there we drove through Custer State Park, winding our way down the famous Needles Highway before taking the Wildlife Loop.

Bison.

Pronghorn.

The most talkative prairie dogs you've ever heard.

Elk.

Burros in the distance.

It turned into one giant game of "I spy," and no one complained about being in the car.

That's a parenting win if you ask me.

We finished the day at one of our favorite places: The Purple Pie Place. We'd stumbled across it seven years ago and hadn't been back since, so ending the day there felt like the perfect full circle moment.

As I looked around the table, I realized something.

Our girls probably won't remember what day of the week it was. They won't remember what chores were waiting at home. But they'll remember that Mom and Dad decided a random Tuesday was worth celebrating.

That's what I want our family to be known for.

Not extravagant vacations or expensive experiences. Just saying "yes" to adventure whenever we can. Because making a day special doesn't require a plane ticket.

Maybe it's a Yes Day.

Maybe it's exploring a hiking trail you've always driven past.

Maybe it's finally walking into that museum or little local shop you've been meaning to visit.

Maybe it's leaving your phones behind, heading to the lake or the mountains, and pretending it's the kind of unplugged summer we all remember from the '90s.

The truth is, ordinary days become extraordinary when we're willing to be fully present in them.

So if your calendar says "Tuesday," don't let that fool you.

It might just end up being the day your family remembers for years to come.