We're baaaaack!

Well, we made it to South Dakota and back. I was really worried about how Nora would be in the car for 8+ hours, but she did very well. I am grateful for that--as I'm sure we all are.

On Saturday morning, my mom and step-dad met us at our house and we left around 9 am. We rented a car for the trip and ended up with a new Dodge Charger. Joe was ELATED. We stopped around noon for lunch somewhere in Nebraska and landed at our destination around 5 pm. We went on the trip for a family reunion for my step-dad's family. His grandmother recently had a 95th birthday, so they decided it was a good time to get everyone together. When we got to town, they were having a pool party at the city pool. Nora wasn't too sure about the water to begin with, but after she found some toys to play with, she was set. She even went under water a few times (on accident) and came up smiling. After swimming, the Kansas part of the family went out to eat. It was getting pretty late after that, so we went to our hotel room for the night. We planned on Nora sleeping in a play pen, but she wanted NO part of that. Luckily, we had two beds in our room, so she and I took over one bed and left the other for Joe. She does not usually sleep with us, so it was an adventure in itself. She tossed and turned most of the night, and I worried constantly about her rolling off the bed. We made it through okay, though.

On Sunday, the reunion was in full-swing. Most everyone went to Mass (we aren't Catholic, so we opted out) and then went to the park after for snacks. We then went back to the church for pictures and the reception for Grandma. They have a BIG family. "Grandma" had 10 children and has over 30 grandchildren. They counted 70+ great-grandchildren and 1 great-great grandchild (Nora). Joe was able to chat with a paramedic for the FDNY, so he was pretty excited about that. He also found a lot of guys to talk hunting with (SD is a HUGE hunting state), and one guy to talk about race cars with. He he. He tends to find friends wherever he goes. Dinner was served at the same location later. Then, we all went out to one of farms that the family has and had another round of visiting. There were soooooooo many kids there!! I can't imagine having that big of a family, but I bet it can be fun. Nora had a great time chasing cats around, playing on the swingset they had, and playing with the other kids there. We didn't leave until about 10:30 pm, so it was way past Nora's bedtime before we got to the hotel. We decided to try to let her sleep in one bed by herself, while Joe and I took the other bed. It went very well for most of the night, but around 3 am, I was awoken by "someone" tapping on my arm. She wanted in bed with us, so the 3 of us squeezed into a double bed. Yikes! Joe must have felt like he was falling off, because soon after that he made his way over to the other bed.

On Monday morning, we left the hotel and stopped in to see "Grandma" one more time before leaving South Dakota. We then made our way to Grand Island, Nebraska for more fun. After we checked into our hotel, we went to a water park that they have there. It was a lot of fun! They had some really big slides, a neat kids area, a "lazy river", and an area that was made into a wave pool every so often. It also happened to be next to a fire station, so Joe went over to visit with the guys before joining us at the pool. He found out that Grand Island uses Salina Fire as a model for their pay scales and such. They showed him around the station and visited for some time. Joe carries challenge coins to trade (instead of patches or t-shirts), so he gave them one. (Which reminds me, Joe is going to send the paramedic from FDNY a coin, and the paramedic is going to go around to some stations to get Joe some patches!) After the excitement of the fire station and the pool, we went out to eat and then back to our hotel. Unfortunately, we had a REALLY rough night with Nora. She wouldn't lay down and get settled to begin with. Then, she didn't want to sleep in bed alone. We tried to have her sleep with Joe in one bed, but she came over to my bed. Once she was in my bed, she was trying to climb in with Joe again. Then, we all got into one (queen-sized) bed and she finally settled down. I think it was midnight before that happened. I was crowded, so I went over to the other bed and let Nora and Joe have their own. Sometime in the night, Joe came over with me. Then, Nora came over. Wow--what a mess! I bet we'll all be glad to be in our own beds tonight!!!

This morning, we got up and loaded the car. Before leaving Nebraska, we stopped at the Stuhr Museum. It is a pioneer museum complete with exhibits and an old railroad town. (Among many other things--follow the link to find out more). I LOVED going through the town. There were 4 houses that we went through with actors completing daily chores as if they lived there. There were also shops, a jail, a fire station, a mill, etc. that we got to see. I had a blast. After the museum, we headed back to Kansas. We were glad to see home again. Even though it was only 4 days, we are pooped. I'll add a couple of pictures here once I get them off of my camera. As usual, I wish I'd taken more.