Ooooooklahoma! and the Runup to Christmas.

If I thought the "Finley's birthday-to-Thanksgiving" turnaround resembled a slip 'n slide, Thanksgiving to Christmas was a luge run. 

Impossibly, we are already in the last minute sprint to stocking stuffers and fighting crowds for Santa's list items and gift wrapping. And naturally, our holidays at home are anything but relaxing, with December work requirements sneaking up on both of us. 

Thank goodness for these two, who have held the fort down on everything from dogwalking to Sunday school to school mismatch days.

Seriously, public schools hate parents. On top of alltheChristmasthings, we needed costume week?!

 

Finley got promoted at swim school and is now on the Swim Force team. Naturally, we celebrated at Pistone's.

Seth went to Finland for work and fell in love with all things pickled fish and saunas.

F+F became fully vaccinated, and took their grandparents to the zoo to see the bison.

Finley cut her own bangs, and went Christmas shopping.

Ford routinely and voluntarily appeared in public in this outfit.

Jayne and I explored the instagram-able hell that was Enchant DC with friends.

And we took Grandma and Grandpa to the always-stunning Kennedy Center for their first time, and an excellent Veterans' salute concert. Not to mention the debut of these sweet holiday outfits.

Then it was off to Oklahoma so I could attend the stupendous Miranda's wedding, and the kids could spend a few precious days in Tulsa with Ana & Ata while Dad was in class.

We discovered the- no kidding- world's best Christmas lights at a megachurch in Broken Arrow,

explored the quirky and fantastic Tulsa Zoo-

which featured a very underpublicized baby Tiger and a surprisingly aggressive goat-

and were reminded just why we love traveling to new places, stumbling upon (OK, after Mom researched it) the absolutely incredible Gathering Place (click the link, it's something else.) 

Home of the actual World's Best Playground.

Photos don't do it justice. Tulsa was a pleasant surprise, and we loved every second of our time in Oklahoma with Ana & Ata. We can't wait to go exploring with them again.

Now we're recovering from our whirlwind trip, trying to get in some holiday downtime, and doing all the holiday baking.

And at least one of us is snuggling with the cat.

Thankful.

Once you have started the dizzying downward slide into the holidays, there is just no stopping. 

Unbelievably, since surviving Finley's birthday we have already consumed two- count 'em- fried turkeys and several pounds of  prime rib, along with myriad carb-y sides and an embarrassing quantity of holiday libations, in that most American of all celebrations of gluttony: Thanksgiving.

Weather and work and travel mayhem combined to keep us home and- against all my Walters instincts- chilling for the long weekend. Luckily, we got a couple warm days so we got to add "beach time" and "s'mores in tank tops with friends" to our long, long list of things to be grateful for this year.

That and "world's best in-laws who not only cook but also do home improvement chores."

Even F+F got in the spirit, and not just because it was 60 degrees out today. (Also because their father upped their allowance.)

The weeks between Halloween and Thanksgiving were a blur, but they did involve some sightseeing,

the slaughter of waterfowl,

game nights and vaccines (!!)

and a "race-cation" to Hagerstown (and Gettysburg) for the small matter of a 50 miler (for Mom)

and the far more important matters of hotel pools and breakfast waffles (for the hooligans).

Plus, cannons.

Somewhere in there, we also celebrated Seth's 9th Alive Day with a trip to the National Cathedral. And, naturally, steaks.

Now we head into December with the big guy off conducting international arms deals in Finland, and the World's Best Trained Service Dog (naturally) at home sleeping on the couch, howling at random, and chasing the cat.

And the rest of us grateful for a warm fall, Thanksgiving leftovers, good friends, and even better family. And that Mickey has yet to eat the cat.

We hope everyone had a wonderful holiday, skipped Black Friday (as we always do with glee), and jumped in some leaves.