When the time came to head to North Carolina, we were both fighting colds and decided to cut our trip short by only going for a night and cut out the camping portion in favor of using free hotel points for a room (better than two sick people camping in the cold and rain). We did visit the Wright Brothers National Monument at Kitty Hawk, the giant sand dunes at Jockey's Ridge State Park, and Fort Raleigh National Historic Site (the location of the Lost Colony of Roanoke, on Manteo) before heading back to Williamsburg the next day. It was a good little trip and just the kind of mental vacation I needed going into the crazy pre-Christmas season. (photos: Mark in front of one of the many versions of the superstar monster truck, Grave Digger, at its headquarters, the "Digger's Dungeon;" the location of the first flights by the Wright Brothers (the metal track marks their flight path and the stone markers their landing spots); the monument to their achievements; and a statue of the famous photo of one of their first flights that visitors can pose with.)
(photos: The ginormous dunes at Jockey's Ridge State Park; just like why the Wright Brothers chose the Outer Banks for their flights, lots of people use the plentiful wind to fly kites; sunset over Albemarle Sound towards Manteo; the cold and windy ocean by our hotel; and some earthworks from one of the versions of the Lost Colony (but the colony's actual location is still unknown).)
After Thanksgiving, there were a few get-togethers with friends and also the annual staff Christmas Party. I joined an annual cookie-baking day with Mark's mom and her friends, coming home with about 10 dozen cookies. In the midst of all of this, I was still having to get shopping done before going home to Michigan. (photos: Tyler, Mark Summers, Matt, and (part of) Mark discussing Mark Summers' new congressional campaign -- since they looked the part, it seemed appropriate; and later, the staff escorting the candidate to his vehicle.)
The night before flying home, I got a call from Northwest Airlines informing me that they'd cancelled my flight and rescheduled it for a day later. I was up almost all night trying to get a hold of someone to see if there was an earlier flight out of Richmond, all fruitlessly. In the end, I went to Richmond the next morning to simply plead my case and look for a flight, which they quickly provided me an hour later (as opposed to the following day, when the airline had scheduled me). I was exhausted, but at last got to Detroit, and after a yummy German meal, got home to Lansing. (photo: A snowy Detroit gave me a glimpse of what I could look forward to back in Michigan.)
I had a few days before Christmas to help my family get all of their shopping and decorating done in the midst of my annual dentist/eye doctor/etc. appointments. Christmas Eve we had our annual snackfest at my grandma's house and went to bed with mountains of snow outside. On Christmas itself, we exchanged gifts, watched "Ironman" (which made Mom's day, she loved it so much!), and cooked like crazy before going to my grandparents' house for dinner. It was a laid-back and scaled-back Christmas, but still quite enjoyable. (photos: Grandpa, Josh, and I on Christmas; Uncle Dirk, Grandma, and Aunt Penny; and all of the cousins.)
The day after Christmas, we were supposed to go to Grand Rapids to have a get together with my dad's side of the family. However, that morning, I got quite sick and spent all day watching my mom's new copy of "The Tudors." Luckily, I was also trying to recover before my GRE test the next morning. Still coughing, I woke up early and went to the test, only to have the national GRE system crash part of the way through and have my test rescheduled a couple of weeks later. I was still sick for the next couple of days and took it easy, only venturing outside rarely (though the snow had melted just after Christmas). (photos: Dad (wearing his award) and Josh at Chuck E. Cheese for their fantasy football league's award session; my cousin Allison and Uncle Mike with some of the trophies; and Mom and Leslie with their goodies.)
Just before returning to Virginia, some of my friends from high school and I got together, some for the first time since high school graduation. We met at one of our old favorite restaurants, chatted, and some of us continued on to hang out more downtown. It was great to see everyone, with many of them either engaged or moved away. The next morning, it was up to pack before leaving for Virginia (and to fit the theme of most of my trip home, half of my luggage didn't arrive). (photos: Ryan, Janay, and Karli at our Cheddar's high school gathering; Andrea, PattÃ, and Wendy; and Paddy, me, and Andrea.)
The next day was New Year's Eve. I relaxed and readjusted to Virginia for the day before going to Mark's house to help him prepare for his party. It was a small, but very fun party. Jack even brought caviar, which I'd never tried until then. The holidays were over at last, after Mike and Christine's nearly-gluttonous "A Christmas Story" Party a few days later. I didn't have much time back in Virginia before I was soon heading to New Mexico to visit my dad... (photo: Mark trying caviar, with gusto.)
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