And Merry Christmas! And Happy Christmas Eve! I am late and/or behind on everything, including cleaning up from Caroline’s birthday party. But because we’re in Virginia visiting my family I’ve managed to avoid all my housekeeping and cleaning and laundry and cooking responsibilities for the past week. It’s the best Christmas present a girl could ask for. Well, except for my awesome day-after-Christmas shopping trip to Nordstrom Rack where I scored my first pair of jeggings and some sweet ankle booties. Yep, I’m ridiculous.

As much fun as being here with my folks is, traveling at Christmas is a special kind of awful. I’ve been super sick and Little Evan started randomly throwing up so much we had to take him to the ER. Tomorrow we have to somehow get a zillion presents back in the car and battle the terrible I-95 traffic with two super tired kiddos just in time to take down ALL the Christmas decorations. At least I have a giant bag of half-price holiday candy and some cute pictures of the kids to comfort me.

Playing on MorMor's steps

2 and a half, going on 14

Someone didn't really care for ice skating

Maybe we'll try again next year

But he LOVED the Zamboni

Bundled up

Christmas morning!

Aunt Carolyn totally showed up Santa with the basketball hoop

Oh goody, more toys with balls that roll under the couch

Making us breakfast

Hugging her moose

A zillion new toys so of course she's playing with the plastic packaging

I hope your holidays were lovely and much healthier than ours were!

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Tempur-Pedic and Clever Girls asked me if I would write about my holiday comforts, and since I can’t seem to STOP writing about the holidays it was easy to say yes.

For me, the holidays are all about the cookies. I have so many memories of my mom making Christmas cookies as a kid – papparkakor with piped white icing (recipe coming soon!), thumbprints, spritz in “S” and “C” shapes through the cookie press, toffee, tea cakes, raspberry bars, these amazing little meringue mushrooms (they look so much like real mushrooms people are scared to eat them) and most of all sugar cookies with colored frosting and sprinkles. (more…)

Today I am thankful for photographs (even the ones that live in my computer instead of on my walls) so I can remember weekends like this one.

And YOU can be either a) thankful for something to look at on the internet besides funny misspelled kitten pictures b) thankful for the “x” in the upper right hand corner so you can skip a zillion pictures from our weekend and go look at funny misspelled kitten pictures instead. Here, let me help you.

Zombie Baby hunts for trees AND brains

Helping Daddy cut down the tree

How am I supposed to eat leaves off that tree if it doesn't have any?

A gaggle of gingers

Evan tried to ride the tree and ended up dragged across the field instead.

Family Photo avec un two and a half year old

Ridin' dirty

We accidentally went to the local holiday parade because it was at the end of our street.

Giving the traffic cop the side-eye

Parade dog

He liked the fire trucks

The parade was at least 50% emergency vehicles

Self portrait in my husband's glasses

I'd say she liked the parade

So cute

Best seat on the street

Colored lights & a lifetime of ornaments on the tree

Helpers

Twinkly

Failed (mostly) photo shoot

The magic of Christmas

Sharing his holiday spirit with you

Oh man, I am SO HAPPY to be home vegging on my couch and staring into a long, boring afternoon of regularity. No more traveling, no more driving, no more pack-n-play, no more guest bed, no more unbaby-proofed houses, no more stuffing my face with pie, no more long afternoons with no naps, no more rushing around to get thing unpacked and Christmas decorations up. I love spending time with our families but everything about traveling with kids is stressful. It’s hard to be “on” as a mother constantly – sometimes I just need to lock myself in a bathroom and scream, but in a house full of people there’s always someone knocking on the door to make sure you’re OK. I have trouble explaining yet, I’m fine, I’m just GOING TOTALLY CRAZY for a moment. It will pass.

Instead of letting Nick Jr do all my parenting today, I managed to get the kids out the door to Stroller Strides and the playground for a few hours. We’re having that week of insanely mild temperatures where all the New Englanders run around in shorts and tank tops and say “This is crazy! I can’t believe how warm it is!”. I think this happens every November – I definitely remember wearing flip-flops to my OB appointments at this time last year – but it still feels SPECIAL. I’m determined to take advantage of it as much as we can before I have to deal with winter coats and hats and mittens and blankets and running out to start the car at 7 am so it defrosts before we leave the house. And the snow. There’s going to be so much snow.

I’m already sad about Christmas being over, which is CRAZY because it is NOT AT ALL OVER. It’s not even December. Why am I letting myself get depressed about taking down decorations while I am putting them up? It just feels like the month is so full of things that I can’t possibly enjoy all of them enough. And I WANT to enjoy them, especially because Caroline’s birthday is coming up in 3 weeks and I’m trying to throw together a tiny party for her. Of course, by “tiny” I mean I’ve already started decorating, made a lace garland and I’ve bookmarked seven different kinds of cake to try making. I SWEAR it’s going to be low key though, if only because I won’t have time to clean up before we have to get back in the car and travel AGAIN for the holidays.

So excuse me while I go take a nap. Today I am thankful for easy, quiet, boring afternoons like this one.