I should preface this by saying that I am biased. I was born in Madison, Wisconsin and have spent nearly every Christmas and summer vacation there for as long as I can remember. I love Wisconsin, but I also really enjoy the city. I love the fast pace of the city. I love the cultural opportunities and I really love the food, but there's a magic to being in a place like Northern Wisconsin where everyone on the street says hello to you, there's only one grocery store in town, and everyone knows who caught the biggest Walleye that year. That's a fish for you city-goers.

Every summer, my family and the better part of our extended family head up to Northern Wisconsin for a week or two in the woods. The appeal is obvious. All you need is a boat and a couple of fishing rods and you're set for the week. We spend almost every day on the water, tubing, waterskiing, fishing, paddleboarding-- you name it and we've probably tried it on the lake. If we ever do venture away from the house, it's usually to do one of three things-- make a run to the one and only grocery store in town, pick up some floats from the local Super Walmart, or go to a fish fry on Friday nights.

One of my favorite things to do though is to go for runs in the morning. Last summer I found this perfect loop that takes you around the back end of the lake and then out onto the road and back to the house. It always amazed me that I could run three miles along the edge of one of the main roads and only see one or two cars along the way.

Occasionally, we make a trip to Culver's to get some burgers and frozen custard, where my grandpa will always proceed to jokingly harass the cashier about his senior discount and my mother will always smile as I sit down with my turtle sundae. It was her mom's favorite.

The other activities to do in town you can pretty much count on one hand. There's the local zoo where the highlights are the llamas. There's go-carts and pony rides at Holiday Acres. The town one over from us is home to the world's largest penny; however, I have yet to see it, and our favorite thing to do by far is to go see the water ski show down on the lake at night.

I love Northern Wisconsin because I've really grown up here. Although I technically consider myself a D.C. native, Wisconsin will always be a tiny piece of home for me. This is where I conquered my fear of water, where I learned to bait a hook, where I first got to drive a car, and most importantly it's the one place that I can truly say that I've made lasting memories with my family. I think that by taking the time to step away from the rush of the city and be with one's family really allows us to understand what's truly important in life and how we can expand on those values.