On Tuesday, December 22nd, we left Lawrence, KS and headed north to Nebraska.  The further north we got, the more we realized that the weather had been far more wintery up there.  The closer we got to my parents home, the more snow there was on the ground.  That evening we arrived in Beatrice, Nebraska at my parents house in time for supper and some college football.  And we saw that they still had plenty of white stuff on the ground – which Grant had never seen before.

That evening we stayed inside in the warmth, but the next day we ventured outside so that Grant could experience snow first hand.  He didnt seem to mind walking on the sidewalks, but he did not want to walk in the snow or touch it.  We thought he might enjoy being pulled in a sled in the snow, but he quickly let us know that he did not approve of this activity. 

On the 23rd, we had Christmas at my parents house.  And there was playing that had to be done.  Grant seemed to enjoy sitting at a little table that my parents had and coloring.  And he loved going up and down the steps with “Pa”.

On the morning of the 24th we got up and drove in the blowing snow to Pleasanton, Nebraska where my Grandma lives in a lovely farmhouse.  I don’t believe there was any new snow falling at that time, but the wind was very strong and really cold.  It made for some interesting driving on the Interstate.  When we arrived, Grant did not like the short walk from the car to the backdoor of my Grandma’s house because of the wind and stinging snow.  But once inside, he made himself at home right away – opening and closing cabinet doors and making people go up and down the stairs with him.

We had Christmas with my Grandma, Bob, my uncle Rick and his wife and son on Christmas eve.  The next day we had Christmas dinner with more of my family at The Boxcar, a reception hall owned by one of my uncles, in Kearney, Nebraska.

The morning of the 26th my cousin Heather and her daughter Emma came over to Grandma and Bob’s to spend some time with us.  Emma and Grant played together.  They played cards and I think there was some gambling involved.  They were betting Goldfish crackers.

We had hoped to make it back to Beatrice the evening of the 26th, but the weather had worsened while we were there at Grandma’s house and the Interstate was shutdown.  So we ended up staying an extra day. 

We arrived back home and climbed (exhausted from the day) into our own warm beds early on the 30th of December.