A December to Remember....

2011 has come and gone and the month of December was no exception. We had many things to celebrate this month...

We started out by celebrating David's graduation. After many years (10 to be exact) of school - David finally completed his PhD in Industrial Engineering. His Hooding Ceremony - graduation ceremony - was held at the KFC Yum! Center in Louisville, Ky on December 16th. We were lucky to be joined at the ceremony by Cori's parents and David's mother, father, and sister Melissa. After the ceremony we had a little get together with many of our Louisvillian friends and our South Dakotan family. Thanks to everyone who came and made this day a very special one! We were able to spend a few days with our family and showed them around Kentucky. We miss many things about Louisville and it was nice to be back and enjoy our old Kentucky home.

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PhD Hooding Ceremony

Some of our friends from Louisville at David's PhD Pharty

Enjoying the day and family at Woodford Reserve Bourbon Distillary

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After saying our good-bye's to David's family, we hit the road with Cori's parents Kelly and Connie back to South Carolina. This was a good trip for the Leis' as they hadn't been able to experience this part of the country before. We drove through the Smoky Mountains en route to SC. Upon returning to SC - Kelly and Connie helped us with a few things around the house. We got a new ceiling fan in our room, some more storage space in the attic, and a couple other odds and ends. Thanks Mom and Dad!

To celebrate the Christmas holiday - we were lucky enough to stay in a great cabin in Helen, GA. We joked that it was a little nicer than our cabin in SD - it had running water and indoor toilets (3 even!) not to mention a hot tub, pool table, and gourmet kitchen. Honestly, it was a great place for us all to be together and enjoy the holiday. We also spent a little time in Helen, GA sightseeing. Helen is a cute little town with a Bavarian theme - we went to a winery, attended Christmas Eve Mass where Santa brought a gift for everyone which was Baby Jesus, we hiked, and we even played a round of mini-golf. It was very relaxing and we were sad to leave.

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Christmas in Helen, GA

National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation moment

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We spent a few days in Charlotte, NC with Matt, Cara and their dog Maslow. It was nice to see where Matt and Cara live, work and go to school. We were able to attend the Belk Bowl where U of L played NC State in football. Sadly, U of L lost - but we enjoyed the game none-the-less.

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GO CARDS!

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We spent New Year's Eve at our house with some great friends - playing games, eating, and drinking champagne. If the results of 2011 are any indication on how 2012 will go, then we have a great year ahead.

Wishing everyone best wishes in 2012. Let us know if you want to visit South Carolina - we have a few extra rooms and some cute dogs to pet!