Christmas in Minnesota

Hello out there!!

So it was now time for Christmas.  However, this would be the first Christmas away from my family.  I am such a family person that I was really sad that I would have to spend this holiday in the 12x12 hotel room that was our home.  Mom had to leave in order to not miss too much work.  While she was here though, we made our little christmas tree. I would call it a mix of a Charlie Brown Christmas tree and the art skills of the Wellers. I don't know where the picture is right now but I found these which I think give you a pretty good idea.

.

So imagine the mix....pretty sweet right. So this reminded us of home and it was nice to be reminded that it was the holiday season.

Dan came into town for Christmas; at least I will get to spend it with him.  Once Dan got here we went to Whistle Binkies of course; and he loved it of course!  It is not often that I drink in front of my parents but it was my Dad, Dan, and Me and the bar and it was a blast.  We were all a little loose by the time we left and it was a great time.  We decided to go visit my awesome cousins in Minneapolis for the holidays; turned out I would be spending it with some family.  They have a cottage out in the country that we spent christmas eve at.  We ate the best oyster stew ever and enjoyed each others company.  We had a white christmas this year; didn't expect anything less in Minnesota.  My favorite part about snow is just hangin by a fire and watching it, drinking hot chocolate. What a great day it was.  Dan had to leave a couple days after Christmas and it was Dad and me again!!

In a way I am very grateful for this treatment in MN.  Of course, because it is keeping my tumors in check.  Most of all, it has given my Dad and me a chance to really bond.  He is a man of few words and even if we do nothing all day in the hotel, we are still hangin out.  It has really changed our relationship forever!!  This would be why I believe so much in the saying "everything happens for a reason".

New Years was here so we went back to Minneapolis to party it up MN style.  We went to dinner and saw an Elvis Impersonator!!! I don't know if anyone has ever seen one but they are very funny....this one was old and fat and thought he was the king himself.  Just another thing to add to the list of unforgettable experiences.  We came home a little early to hang out with the kids while the ball dropped.  Once people had gone to sleep, me and my cousin's wife did Karaoke until like 3:30.  It was a blast!!

I am always one to try new things...as you may recall from my first time at Camp Fantastic.  Well this Minnesota adventure was no different.  My cousins live a little different life then we can in MD so I did all sorts of snowy firsts.

1. Walked in snow shoes.....this is extremely hard and tiring

2. Rode and drove a snow mobile...did you know in MN they actually have areas on the side of the road where the snowmobiles drive; they have stop signs and everything!!

3. I went outside in -5 degree weather...really once you get below 10 degrees it all feels the same, you're numb either way

...I will continually add to the list whenever possible

So this was the first month...I couldn't believe how fast it actually went.  I will come back to MN in a couple weeks for my next dose of antibody.  In the mean time I get to go back to school for my last year of undergrad!!!! We will see how the balancing act plays out as time  goes on.