Happy Holidays

December 8, 2010

Season’s greetings from Minnesota! It’s been a long time since I’ve done a Christmas letter. Here’s a blow by blow of our 2010, in tacky bulleted format.

• January was cold. That’s all I can say about that.
• February was cold. In an effort to embrace the climate of this place we call home, we took a trip to Lutsen, MN over President’s Day. Activities included skiing, swimming, eating, and enjoying the company of good friends. February was also a month with some sadness, as we lost my Grandma Maurine. I think she was quite ready to move on from this earth and join my grandpa at the great luau in the sky, but we miss her dearly. For more on that topic, you can click here.
• March was cold. In an effort to escape the cold for a bit, we took a trip to Kansas over Jerod’s spring break.
• April was cold. But… in April my parents moved to Lakeville, MN, just about a half hour south of where we live. It’s been nice to have a set of grandparents nearby, something we hadn’t experienced in our years of parenthood. Another April highlight was our first trip to Target Field, the new home of the Twins. We are a family of baseball junkies, and the new stadium is AWESOME. Click here for more on that.
• In May we enjoyed a lovely Mother’s Day trip to Ruttger’s Resort near Brainerd, MN. While there we enjoyed the company of my folks, as well as the Family Schilling. It was lovely and relaxing, even though it SNOWED the first day we were there. May also marked the start of Elise’s soccer career. The girl was really in her element out there on the field, frequently scoring two to three goals per game.
• June was the start of a fantastic summer. Jerod’s activities included soccer and baseball, his true love. Chris and I started the process of training for Twin Cities Marathon. In addition to soccer, Elise participated in many camps, including sailing camp.
• In July we enjoyed the annual Fourth of July excursion (a Holt family tradition), this time heading to Kansas. We also enjoyed a family reunion in Nebraska, where we caught up with my mom's side of the family.
• The August highlight for Chris and I was participating in the Ragnar Relay. 200 some odd miles, 2 vans, 12 runners. It was awesome. I know you don’t believe me, but it’s true. If you'd care to know more, click here.
• September came with a bit of transition, as we decided to make the switch from the International School of Minnesota to our neighborhood elementary school. Despite my unhealthy attitudes toward change, this one went really well. Jerod has transitioned beautifully, and Elise is taking the kindergarten world by storm. She attends afternoon kindergarten, and the only downside as far as she’s concerned is that she doesn’t get to go all day. Back to school pictures can be seen here.
• In October, Chris and I completed Twins Cities Marathon. It was something I’d wanted to do for a long time, and things fell in place for me to do it this year. It was an incredible experience. If you want to know more, you can click here. We also enjoyed our second annual trip to Arizona over the kids’ fall break. It’s one of my favorite places on earth, and we had a great time. For photos of that journey, click here.
• In November, we loaded the whole stinkin’ family up in my parents’ mini-van and trekked to Missouri to spend Thanksgiving at my Grandma and Grandpa Winter’s farm. It was great to see lots of cousins, as well as the aunts and uncles.
• And… now we’re waiting for Christmas. We had some high highs in 2010, as well as some pretty low lows, but we feel blessed to know we have friends and family that can help us weather the storms of life. We sincerely hope you and yours have a truly blessed holiday season and wish you all the best for 2011!