I didn't see it mentioned, but I assume you'll be buying a 4WD for winter driving. Do it, you won't regret it even with the year-round MPG hit.
Then take that 4WD and do most of the same stuff again! I wouldn't go as extreme as Lucille, you'll likely start having wintertime traction problems even with 4WD. Keep it to 13's, maybe 12's. Most of the same fun, more utility.
My 1500 has the 8.25 IFS front, if you get a 2500 it will have the 9.25 IFS front. There are no aftermarket l/s or locking front diffs for the 8.25, I spent hours searching. There are options for the 9.25, however, even that front can suffer case failure.
I'll be looking into the option of a front Solid-Axle-Swap with no lift, this would allow me to run front and rear TrueTracs and hold up to higher horsepower. I haven't looked into this much yet, but I'm seriously considering it. I would absolutely need to retain AutoTrac and ABS if I were to do it.
Just putting that out there. You may need to part with Lucille, but nothing's stopping you from doing it again!
*dodges the chair thrown by Moze's wife*