By the Numbers...

Just got back from a loooong Wild Women's Weekend! Here are a few highlights by the numbers...

11: The number of annual sister weekends we've had to date. Every year we go to a different location -- typically in Wisconsin or Minnesota (one time in Texas). This year it was up to Park Rapids in north-central Minnesota. I often think the only reason we call it WILD is that we are literally out in the wild somewhere. I'm sure it has nothing to do with our behavior.

7: The number of sisters! Also my average number of hours of sleep each night. (Yawn.) Also the number of times I said "Jinx!" this weekend when a sister and I would say the same thing. Great minds think alike, I guess!

1,127: How many miles I logged on my vehicle since I left last Wednesday night. (And no, I didn't go all the way to Canada. It felt close, though.)

10,000: Allegedly the number of lakes in Minnesota. I think they are short-changing themselves. When we took a boat tour of Lake Itasca on Friday in the Itasca State Park, we discovered it was only one of 100 lakes in that park alone! The photo above is the dock in front of our cabin for the weekend on Potato Lake.

75: Average temperature during our stay. We couldn't have ordered better weather. Sunny and slightly breezy. Just awesome!

4: How many pounds of red licorice we brought with us. I have a terrible travel addiction. I know my body can live without food for 2 1/2 hours, but mind says all road trips require a bag of Twizzlers. (Apparently I am not the only sister that feels that way!)

A zillion: Estimated number of trees in Itasca State Park. Two (including the one my twin and I are peeking around above) are record holders for their size and age. Very cool. Took a neat Wilderness Tour through the park. I have way more tree pictures than I'll know what to do with.

15: About how many strides it took me to cross the Mississippi at its headwaters off Lake Itasca. Learned a lot of history about how they discovered the source of the Mighty Mississip. Of course, we were just concerned about taking pictures and saying, "We walked across the Mississippi!"

18: How many feet tall Paul Bunyan is -- well his statue in Bemidji anyway. Yes, we were the ultimate tourists. I figured if I was that close to Bemidji, let's trot on up there and see Paul and Babe. Corny but cool in a historic tourist trap way.

5: Number of times I got to annoy my Packer-loving sisters with my "Skol Vikings!" ring tone on my cell phone. (tee hee)

Countless: The number of times we laughed, smiled, hugged, laughed, ate, talked, laughed and ate. Did I mention we didn't go hungry? The only reason (I swear) our bellies ached was too much laughing. And that is worth the pain!

Looking forward to number 12 next year!