Holiday Top Ten!

The holidays went whooshing by and now we get to look forward to Valentine's day! [READ THE VALENTINE PART WITH HEAVY SARCASM]
Wouldn't you hate to be the holiday that follows up the Christmas/New Year's super-holiday-combo? Maybe that's why Valentine's day is so depressing, because it, ITSELF, knows that it's pathetic. Sorry, V, but nobody likes you.

I know I've been neglecting my blog, which is odd because I've come to enjoy it more than I ever thought I would. So much so that I call Shawn to ask him to read it and then later call him back and ask him if he got it. It's a wonder he's still putting up with me :)

I have so much to fill this blog up with... updates on my life and pictures of the last 15+ days spent hopping between Duluth, Maple Grove, Big Lake, and Ashby. I've had some terrific times in each of these places.

Here's Jill's HOLIDAY TOP TEN:

10) Shawn and I getting a ride home from my boss, Dr. Kaake, and his wife after bar hopping all over the northland for our holiday party. Dr. Kaake says to me the following Monday, "We sure don't take 2nd place in partying, do we?" I love my job.
9) Making (and perfecting) the art of gourmet pretzels with Shawn. We made a batch and shared them with family & coworkers.
8) Backyard rail session! Dad helped Shawn and I prepare and place a rail in the yard and we spent the afternoon pulling eachother behind the four-wheeler to gain enough speed to hone our rail skills.
7) Hotubbing in the snowfall. Shawn and I were in Big Lake at his mom's place when the 'big Christmas storm' hit. We sat in the steamy water catching up on the past week of work as we watched little piles of snow gradually accumulate on eachother's heads. Magical.
6) Christmas Eve service with the entire family (minus Alli). We all were entertained by Lily hopping over the pews... it got a little nerve racking when we had to juggle her AND our burning candles!
5) Seeing the extended Balgaard Family. The last of my grandpa Alfred's siblings passed away on the 21st and I was fortunate to attend the services with my dad and brother. I caught up my Balgaard cousins, many of which define memories of my childhood summers.
4) Shoveling. Yup, Duluth got 20+ inches of heavy, wet snow over Christmas and Karley and I returned to Duluth to see our driveway and sidewalk BURIED with rock-hard, crusty snow. But it was no match for she and I as we poured in 2 1/2 hours and perfected the chop, throw, and scoop method to combat the icebergs that stubbornly held their ground.
3) Lily's new Dora tent. Maka (Lily's word for grandma) gave Lily her very own play tent that pops up in .3 seconds. She was so excited about this thing, it was histarical to watch.... but what put us all into a laughing frenzy was this: the material created static such that it looked like every strand of Lily's hair was standing straight up. This combined with her OVERJOYED face was too cute to handle.
2) Miles got a snowboard for Christmas. I spent the afternoon today with him at Auntie Barbie's teaching him the basics, which is: always know where your edges are!!
1) Oooo, this is a toughy. Sorry Shawn, but ringing in the New Year (and decade) with my best, best friends was quite a treat. I can say this knowing that moments with Shawn will make this next year even more memorable than 2009.