Colors, Crisp Mornings and Football: Fall in Nebraska

Wooden box with fall leaves with a book and mug of chocolate on top and a plaid blanket - image by alisa anton unsplash.comYou have to understand why I’m so excited…I grew up in Southern California. We had 3 seasons…Sun, Smog Alert and Santa Ana’s. Rain was not a frequent occurrence and if you wanted snow, you had to drive to the mountains about 3 hours away in TONS of traffic. This is great for most people, and actually, it worked for me for most of my early life. I didn’t know any different because I’d never lived anywhere else. But then I met my husband…the love of my life… and he was from Nebraska. This So Cal girl didn’t even know where Nebraska was!  He wasn’t a big fan of Southern California, so I agreed to try midwest living…and, after a minute, I was hooked! 
 
Moving to a small town in Nebraska from the Los Angeles area was a bit of a culture shock to say the least! Add to that moving at the end of December after enjoying a sunny 72 degree Christmas and arriving to a blustery -40 wind chill factor…well, let’s just say I had second thoughts to say the least. But I’m a good sport…I was going to give it a shot. That first winter, I told my husband I wasn’t driving anywhere until Spring, but that didn’t last long. I learned to drive in snow, on ice and slush. Just go slow. It was so pretty outside with the snow on the ground. And having a white Christmas is amazing!! So beautiful! And with Bing Crosby singing in the background…well, I’ll let you imagine.  Then Spring arrived, with little flowers poking up out of the ground through the last bits of snow and green where there had been brown. Daffodils, peonies, tulips…so pretty! I finally understood what Spring Fever was all about! Everyone couldn’t wait to go outside and start working to make their yards beautiful, plant a great vegetable garden and visit with their neighbors.  Opening the windows to a cool breeze with the beautiful skies filled with fluffy clouds…why would you want to be anywhere else? Then we rolled into Summer…Blessings to the person who created air conditioning! It can get pretty sticky here in the midwest, but bbq’s, fireflies, county fairs and street dances are just some of the highlights of this time of year! And as late summer approaches here in Nebraska, so does the anticipation of Nebraska Football! The Nebraska Cornhuskers are their own season to Nebraskans! I have never seen anything like it, but we’ll talk more about that another time… 
 
So here we are in Fall and 24 years later. Leaves changing colors, cool crisp mornings and evenings in front of a fire, canning all the veggies that you grew over the summer to enjoy later, more bbqs, football games, church picnics, rummage sales, holiday craft shows, getting ready for Halloween and Thanksgiving…truly my favorite time of year, in my favorite place. Why don’t you come visit?

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *