This time last week, we were enjoying a day touring Sidney, Nebraska! My little brother, Brandon, and his wife, Jenn, live there. This was our first time visiting them. We rode with my parents, and left Winfield around 5pm on Thursday evening. Loaded down with plenty of snacks, dvd's and car toys, to make the ride easier for Barrett. He did really well (both ways) on the drive. I think it was close to 9 hours when we added in our stops. The ride there was a little easier, since he zonked out around 8:30pm (his normal bedtime), and slept til we got to Sidney around 1:45am (12:45am Sidney time). He was so excited on the way there! He kept saying "Bobby-Jenn's house?!?"
I guess I should mention, if you haven't been reading my blog for long...Barrett and his cousins (Emma, Lauren and Jones) all call my little brother "Uncle Bobby." That might clear up some confusion :)
He was happy to finally get there and see Bobby and Jenn, but we were all tired. Especially Papa, who drove the whole way.
On Friday, we took our time getting around, and then spent the day touring Brandon and Jenn's town. We had lunch at
Runza, a family favorite, and spent some time shopping in
Cabela's. Barrett's favorite part of the day was our visit to the park! I think his daddy and Uncle Bobby enjoyed it too!
We went out for Mexican that evening, and then hung out at the house. Brandon's friend, Eric, (also from Winfield) just got a job with Cabela's too! He and his fiance are buying a house in Sidney, but until that's done, he's living in Brandon and Jenn's basement. Barrett made quick friends with him...especially after he showed him how to do this with his books and cars!
On Saturday, we road-tripped to Gering and Scottsbluff...where I was BORN!! Our first stop was lunch at
Taco Town! This is our family's favorite place to eat in Scottsbluff. The family-run restaurant has been there for a long, long time! Like, since before I was born! It had been several years since I had it last, but it was just as good as I remembered!
After lunch, we made the mistake of going shopping instead of heading up to the bluffs! It was almost 5pm, when we headed to the bluffs, and I was heartbroken to see they had CLOSED for the day at 4:30! I was really looking forward to taking Justin and Barrett up there, since this was their first time visiting Nebraska and my birthplace. We'd been hyping up the tunnels to Barrett all day, so he was even more heartbroken! At least we have something to look forward to next time we visit Brandon and Jennifer!
We moved from Nebraska to Winfield when I was two, but my dad's parents lived there for several more years, until they both passed away. So, we made many trips to the area while I was growing up. My grandparents house was just down the road from the bluffs, and it was such a beautiful view.
On the road back to Sidney (The Oregon Trail), we stopped at Chimney Rock. Of course the visitors center for it was closed too! At least Barrett got out of his seat for a little while to stretch his legs.
*While getting change out of my wallet on Monday night (we had Braum's ice cream for dinner) after we got home. We noticed that the Nebraska Quarter has Chimney Rock on it!
On Sunday, we celebrated Easter! More on that in a separate post :) Then hung out around the house again that day. Barrett and I took a nap after our big Easter lunch, and the guys all went to play football at the high school. That evening we played outside with some of Barrett's Easter goodies!
We were sad that Sunday was our last night there! Brandon and Jenn would have to get up to go to work in the morning, and we would hit the road. Jenn read Barrett some books before bed. He loves his Bobby-Jenn!
Monday morning, we left around 9:30am. We stopped in Holdrege, NE to eat at Runza one last time! Shortly after lunch, we stopped at the NE-KS border to take a picture by the "Good life" sign. It was dark and very late when we went by it on the way there, so I wanted to be sure we stopped on the way home. It was both Barrett and Justin's first visit to Nebraska!!
It was a great trip, and Brandon and Jenn were wonderful hosts! It is crazy to me that my little brother is all grown up...married with his own house, and doing all those grown-up things! I am so proud of him, and couldn't be happier to have such a sweet sister-in-law! They have such an adorable little house, that they've already put a lot of work into. I only wish I could see them more often.
