The Mournets are had a great time downtown as we walked up and down Phillips Avenue. We had lunch at the Philips Diner and spent some time visiting the various shops- up and down the avenue. It was a beautiful sunny day and we had a great time.

Lucas loved playing with (and in) the large fountain adjacent to the diner. The fountain is large and is an ‘open’ design – which means that Lucas can walk right up to the large rocks over which the water flows. The wind was blowing so Lucas was getting a constant supply of small water droplets hitting his face and shirt. He tried to eat some of them and was, overall, very excited!

After lunch we walked up and down Philips avenue – visiting one or two shops along the way. We showed several of the sculptures to Lucas and he showed particular interest in a sculpture of a lion rolled-up into a cute ball. Actually, he began pointing to the lion from across the street and continue to do so until we pushed his stroller all the way up to the base of the statue. He did enjoy touching the lion and examining its textured fur in some detail.

After our causal stroll, we headed back to the car and took about a fifteen minute drive to Strawbale Winery in Renner, SD. Our friend Bobbie Friedrich works there on Saturdays, and she was kind enough to give us a nice little tour of the shop and winery and helped us with our wine-tasting selections. The wine was mostly made of SD grown fruits, and some of the varieties would make nice dessert wines. We picked up three bottles – a grape/jalapeno wine which would be excellent with a robust cheese or other dessert. The jalapeno made for a wonderfully spicy wine which warmed the throat like a good glass of cognac or other liqueur. The three of us (mom, Krista, and me) bought a bottle of mead-anise, black-currant, and jalapeno wine.

We then returned home to relax, have a snack and decide what to do in the evening. Krista and I might go see a movie- we have been wanting to see Hancock and Wall-E, so we will likely choose to go and see one of them if we are up to it.