Journey to the Northland

Tomorrow, we begin our journey to the NORTH. Where it is cold. And snowy. I have my reservations about leaving.

Today, we pack, then tomorrow, we will get up early and begin the long drive to Minnesota. It will probably take us 2 (maybe 3 -- depending on the weather) long days to reach Jerry's parents' house in Northfield, MN. We'll stay there for about a day, then load back into the car and drive about 5 and 1/2 more hours north to my parents' house in Gonvick, MN. For those of you unfamiliar with towns whose populations are less than 300, you may have never heard of Gonvick, MN before. Well, I am here to enlighten you:

Don't go there.

It's not the edge of the world, but it's close enough that you can see the edge. And really? There's not much to do at the edge of the world. But, we're not going there for entertainment; we're going to see family.

So, we'll stay with my family for 5 days, and then we'll again load into the car, and drive the 5 and 1/2 hours south to Northfield again, and stay there for 5 days. Then, again load into the car and drive the 2 (maybe 3) days back home. So, we will be gone a grand total of 16 days. That's a long time to be gone from home, and I'm sure that the entire time we're gone, Jerry will worry about whether or not we left a random appliance on and whether or not checking all the windows and doors' locks 3 times was adequate. But, we don't see our family very often, so it's good that we have the opportunity to go back and spend some time with as many people as we can. Because apparently, many of them have an allergy to airplanes and flying to warm, sunny FL (goodness, I must've been bit by the sarcastic bug in my sleep last night!).

Anyhoo, here's the lowdown on a few FAQs:

• Yes, we're bringing Scooter with us. He's our fur-baby and we can't leave him in a kennel for Christmas! Bringing him along is part of the reason why we are driving.
• I will blog while away (I mean, c'mon I just learned to mobile blog for all your sakes -- you'll be gettin' updates from the road, yo!), but the regularity of it may not be like the clockwork posts you have come to rely upon.
• I will try to run while up there. It will be cold and snowy though, so when weather permits, I'll run outside; otherwise, there are some strategic gyms and indoor running locations I may end up using as well. Clearly, I will keep you apprised of the running while I post.
• While I will be a diligent poster, I don't know how much I will be reading blogs. So, if I disappear from commenting, don't fret, I will eventually return.

So, before I depart tomorrow, I'd like to wish everyone out in blogland very Happy Holidays! And if you are traveling too, please travel safe!