Nebraska…A Great Place to Start

~ Chimney Rock in Bayard Nebraska Taken 12-20-08

Well, I have been slacking on the posts lately but Jen and I have been running from one end of the state to another.  The entire state is about 430 miles long and 230 miles from North to South borders.  Jen and I went from Scottsbluff, my home town, to Omaha and back.  This equated to about 830 miles traveled in the state.  It was amazingly fun and we actually got a ton accomplished. 

We came first to Scottsbluff and I showed her the essentials from my high school, junior high, grade school, the hospital where my mom works, the country club, the wal-mart, mall, my house, the baseball field, football field, and last but not least the Monument.  On her website, there is an excellent picture from the top of the National Monument here known as Scottsbluff National Monument.

We took one day off and then drove to Lincoln.  There we saw Memorial Stadium (where my all-time favorite team plays), and two of my best friends Trey and Richard.  We only saw both for about one hour, but it was totally worth it.  As we were getting ready to leave Lincoln it began to rain and lightning.  Yes it was raining in the winter time : (.  They were really quite bad driving conditions, however we made it safe and sound in Omaha. 

After checking into the hotel in Omaha, my good friend Chris came and met up with us for dinner.  We ate dinner with him and his fiance and they traded stories with Jen about themselves and Canada as well as me of course.  Nothing too embarassing however.  The next day we went shopping, had lunch with my friend Bobbi, showed her Creighton University, and the University of Nebraska Medical Center.  Then we ate dinner with my good friend Dan and took off for Iowa. 

We stayed the night in Nebraska on Friday night and left early to come back to Scottsbluff.  It was constant on the go fun.  I hope it was not too overwhelming for Jen, but all I got were good reviews from the friends.  This is an excellent first step : P  Everyone knows friends can usually tell the truth even when we cannot. 

On the way back, we stopped and had breakfast with my uncle.  This was one of the bigger tests because he is one of my favorite relatives.  Big surprise, Jen passed with ease. 

We made one last stop on the way home and that was to show her Chimney Rock (above).  That is one of the biggest landmarks the pioneers used in getting across America.  I thought it was an important part of our history that Jen should see.

Lastly, came this yesterday….

~ Part of the 18 relatives crammed in our basement for dinner taken 12-21-08

My dad had all his 1st generation relatives over.  There were 18 including my parents, Jen, and me.  It was amazingly busy and Jen yet again surpassed all my expectations as well as theirs.  Again and again I got the same talk.  “This one is special, do not let her get away!”  I continually replied “Never, ever would I or could I : )!”

All in all, Nebraska was great.  I am sad to see Jen go tomorrow, but it was a great way to begin our travels together.  One down, many more to go….