I spend New Year's Eve with my oldest sister and her family every year. Two years ago we were all sitting around her kitchen table in the wee hours of the new year discussing how her husband Jim annually participates in the Polar Bear Plunge. The Polar Bear Plunge is a tradition in Racine where anyone and everyone is invited to jump into frozen Lake Michigan on New Year's Day. Jim was searching for someone to accompany him in his plunge, so my sister proposed a deal to me. If I jumped in the freezing lake with her husband, she would bring me on her family and friends' upcoming vacation. They were taking a trip up North to a ski resort to ski and snowboard for two days, and to finish off the trip, they were going to the Wisconsin Dells for two additional days. (The Dells is an area in Wisconsin that is famous for its waterparks and amusement parks.) They had made reservations at one of the nicest hotels in the Dells, which was equipped with a huge indoor waterpark complete with slides, a lazy river, and multiple indoor/outdoor hot tubs and pools. I simply couldn't refuse a free trip to two of my favorite places with my favorite people, so I agreed to take the plunge with my brother-in-law. On a freezing, snowy, and extremely windy New Year's Day I donned my bikini and ran straight into ice cold Lake Michigan. After I jumped in I knew that this was my first and last Polar Bear Plunge.