A recap without photos.

Tim and I spent about two and a half weeks back in Fargo this year. Too much? No. Just perfect.

Stine family Christmas always hits the weekend before Christmas. We headed to La Crosse and stayed with Tim's brother, Scott, and his lovely wife, Liz, in their new home. A HOUSE. They have officially surpassed us in grown-up-ed-ness. Then Liz and I took the scenic route through Red Wing, MN to Minneapolis. Family, wine, food, all the best of the best were waiting for us, and Liz and I started a shopping partnership that will not be rivaled. We were shopping ninjas. Within a few shopping trips, we covered all areas of the family, and only a few got books (which I SOMETIMES consider a cop out). Boo yah! We got Tim's little brother this amazing book (not a cop out!)on skateboarding tricks, cause, you know, he's awesome. Liz got the Martha Stuart Encyclopedia of Crafts from us---one of those gifts you give but really want to keep.

The highlight of the Stine Family Christmas get together is always the Yankee Swap. Not because we get gifts, but the joy of watching people steal, re-steal, and barter (and by people I am referring to uncles that are members of AARP haggling over $10 bills and snuggies with eight-year-old nephews) for whatever the "it" gift of the season is. This year, it was a NDSU sweatshirt. The bummer gift? A hat in the shape of a giant cone decorated like a tree that played "Rockin Around the Christmas Tree" while tilting and swaying on your head. No one wanted it...too bad. Too bad for Uncle Paul, that is, cause now it's his.

Back to Fargo from there! And this year, our car didn't need a new battery, fail to produce heat, or die in a pool of oil once we made it back to NoDak. Yaaaaaaay. We headed to my sisters, Tim's Mom, and my parents home throughout the Christmas season, even through the three day blizzard. I think I'm losing my ND swagger---when Tim's mom sent him out for eggs on Christmas morning to the only gas station open in Fargo, I worried the whole time he was going to get stuck in a ditch (echo in my mother's voice: stuck in a ditch, stuck in a ditch, stuck in a ditch...) until he returned.

Then we headed to the Meberg Family Christmas. So many children! Children! Everywhere! From multiple siblings! I still have such clear memories of our childhood Christmas Eve nights/Christmas mornings at our farm when we were all still pretending to believe in Santa Claus. We'd pile up all the presents from Santa Claus (delivered from hidden places in the basement after 10:30 p.m., roughly) and count to see how many we each got. THIS IS HOW WE MEASURED OUR PARENTS LOVE.

Just kidding. But only sort of. Our parents were smart enough to keep it pretty evenly dispersed. Their favorite thing was stretching out after we opened all the presents under the tree and saying, "hmmmm...I think I saw Santa leave something for David on...THE BACK PORCH!" and we'd watch David scamper into the back porch and return with some sort of unwrappable gift. The best was my parents giving me an electric guitar kit in high school. Thanks, Santa. They also hid pool cues, a gun (for David), and fishing poles.

Anyway, did I mention there were lots of babies in our holiday vacation this year? Not only do I now have four nieces and nephews (two being under 1 year old), our married friends in Fargo have decided it's time to multiply and conquer. We went to a New Years Eve party where there were children aged one to seven. My immediate thought was, am I old enough for this type of party?

The answer is, yes. This environment did the opposite of what our mothers were hoping---we are even more assured that we are not ready to be parents anytime soon, but still love seeing our friends' babies grow. Especially Rowan and Linden. And especially Rowan. Yikes! Teg retuc, nawoR, Teg retuc! She's my favorite (photo to come illustrating cuteness).

One thing I did NOT get to do is go for a wintery run with my brothers and sister-in-law, which has been a Christmas tradition for the last few years. Why? Not only was my parents house too full for Tim and I to stay (we should have just split up for the night! What were we thinking? Apparently, we are unable to breathe without each other), Aaron and Kate were too busy campaigning for Best Uncle and Aunt, which they did eventually clinch. After all the uncles left town, Tim asked five-year-old niece Leah if Tim was her favorite uncle, and she honestly (and not shyly) replied "hmmm...well...you're my third favorite uncle." Out of how many? "Three." Ouch.

Friends: we did have enough time to spend one on one with friends. I got to spend a lot of time with my friend Julia, who might leave Fargo by the time head back again. My other friend Morgan is hoping to move in the next year, but Sarah is staying for good! Good for Sarah and her Norwegian roots! Also, got to spend an hour with my old boss, Ms. Margie Bailey. This woman's honesty, humor, and patience is parralelled by no one I know. Also, her jewelry choice is always reassuring.

Our last stop of the season was Tim's cousins' wedding. Not only was this great because we got to spend time with Tim's Grandpa Norman and several of his cousins, I also got to see Tim's mom sing for the first time. She sang the Lord's Prayer at the wedding, and Tim played guitar as well. Sometimes I forget that other families are not as talented as my family/families. And then I feel sorry for them and dream about how Tim and I will birth children playing miniature violins and singing in solfeg fresh out of the womb. Sorry, rest of you people.

Anyway, IT WAS AWESOME. We are back in Chicago and getting into a daily rhythm now that I am part of a car pool, eating no red meat, and scrimping and pinching for the next few months. Also, I'm signing up for the Chicago Marathon, the Cincinnati Flying Pig Half Marathon, and a spring triathlon! 2011 is the year I work myself to death! More on that later.

Sincerely,

Ruth in 2010