The last of Christmas pictures! Never-ending holidaze pictures! :)
Hope everyone had a merry merry merry! :D
My Grandpa Jim and mom at a Christmas party! I just love this picture!
Meghan's seasonal looks for the occasion: candy-cane eyeliner and a hair bow!
And Olive Burger was a huge success. :D
Santa's Village was really fun to walk around. It was our first Christmas in the Richardson area, so we didn't know what to expect. I was so excited to see the "Christmas recital" performances from local dance schools (memories!) and a really adorable petting zoo... all the animals were so charismatic!
Standy pig! He think he's people!
Afterwards, one of our best neighborhood friends, Jacob, came over to spend the night with R3 (which turned into all the boys watching "The Cleveland Show" for a hot minute... doesn't that always manage to happen with boys? ;P)
Came home to clean, folded laundry (thanks to my sweet, amazing husband!!!) after a day at work. :)
One evening, we went to a party at Tristan's! It was such a fun evening -- he knows the most adorable people (if I say so myself, ha) and has the most beautifully curated apartment. Seriously, it's a dream.
#nofilter
And his sweet puppy, Norman!
Tristan, myself, and Shaleah. :D
Then, a whole 6 days before Christmas, we finally got the Christmas tree up. Better late than never! And the girls had a great time wearing one of my favorite things from high school. :) (Remember Spencer's? My mom got that hat for me from Spencer's and only because I wanted it really really bad! Still happy I have it, to say the least!)
I took as much of the week off from work as I could and managed to get the girls out to the park one afternoon while R3 stayed at home to play with the neighborhood kids. The weather was gorgeous!
Emily, who's smile confidently indicates she has more zest for life than most people. :D
A hilarious post-it I found on the couch one afternoon... XD
In the continued spirit of "do lots of Christmas-y things this year!" we took the kittens to the
famed Deerfield subdivision, which is a neighborhood in Plano that is renowned for it's residents' holiday light displays. It certainly did not disappoint!
After a rendezvous in Deerfield, we ended the night at
Henry's Ice Cream, which is an amaaazing homemade ice-cream joint in Plano that I can't get enough of. The vibe is so home-y! They make all their flavors (crazy, fabulous flavors!) in house and they are ridiculously rich. I couldn't finish my
small salted-caramel cone!
Sushi sushi! My bestie, Hilary, was in town from Chicago and after hanging out at home with the family for a hot minute, we went for a girl-date to our
new favorite sushi joint to show her what's up. She even got me to try hot sake for the first time! It was the besssst.
The following morning's donut run to send off Hilary after our living room slumber party. ;)
Christmas eve cooking!
Followed by Christmas Eve at Mema's! We had a fun night hanging out, eating cheese-y things, watching "Golden Girls" and opening presents. I mean, it's never a bad time with Mema around. ;)
Sadie, being eyed at by furry, cheese-eating vultures. Vultures! ;P (And notice her hair-bow Meggie did for her!)
Annnd the most amazing picture I found on Mema's fridge. Little Meggie and baby Emmy! AHH! XD
We came home from Mema's and continued cooking (phew!)... here's Meg and R tearing off bread for stuffing. :)
And me trying to find the energy to carry on via husband kisses ;P
Santa's rum cakes (which were awesome).
And the sweetest notes to "Santa..." *heart melts*
Post present-opening madness, haha.
And a gift to us from Sadie: "It's a melted snowman ornament!" *heart-in-eyes emoji*
And the most amazing video of R3 and Sadie on his scooter! I may or may not have watched this video 10,000 times, it makes my heart sooo happy. :D
Amazon gift cards for Cody and Ryan that made me chuckle. ;)
Darrah on Christmas day, wearing a scarf from my mom in a very regal fashion. ;P
And other holiday regalia from my mom. :D
The
Wendy Darling sail R got me for Christmas. I love it sooo much! It actually can fly, but we just placed it decoratively in our bedroom. :)
A quiet evening, with all the little dumplings enjoying their Christmas bounty!
A fun afternoon at Granner's with Jack and Terri!
Meggie and her new blue hair, taken at Granner's. :)
A post-Christmas date-night at
Taco Joint after the kiddos were picked up. Plus, we went and saw "Into The Woods" afterwards! It was such a fun evening, and we are definitely going back to Taco Joint soon!
Not pictured, but worth remembering:
- a fun family evening with Aaron, Debbie, and Matthew hanging out, eating pizza, and chatting by the firepit :)
- vegan gingerbread scones! Meghan made them for Christmas morning and they were diviiine
- the fabulous "wrapping service" provided at my work that saved me time (and my life!) twice :)
- the joy of being able to be at home with the little dumplings throughout the week and help R with every Christmas task imaginable so he could just come home from his retail job and just chill the hell out
