santa, robes, and water. lots of water.

We had a low-key and fun weekend- my favorite kind. Weekends can get a little hectic during the holidays, so it was nice to have one with no obligations and plenty of rainy weather that gave us a good excuse to stay in.

On Friday night we decided to be ambitious and take Mills to see Santa. He was making an appearance in our town's community center, about two miles from our house. We figured if it was a bust (and since it was during her normal nap-and-bottle time...it easily could have been), we'd head back home and try again another weekend. But as it turned out, Millie was perfectly happy to be handed off to a strange man in a very soft outfit. 

Why am I wearing this bizarre outfit? Who is this person holding me? Was this sequined headband really necessary?

 I was so excited to receive this extremely ruffled and fancy boutique Christmas tree bubble thingy at one of my showers. I'm not really a ruffles and boutique-y girl, and Millie's wardrobe reflects that...but Christmas is a great occasion to wear something a little out of the norm.

But when I went to put it on her, I was like...what is this outfit?? It's sleeveless (well, like kind of button-up overall thingies...with bows, of course), so I put a white long-sleeved onesie under it. But then the leg thingies are...below the knee but above the ankle. Like capris, but elasticized? Huh? I mean, it was cold and rainy outside. Bare legs weren't really appropriate, but I think tights would have looked really weird. Socks? I have no idea. So if her outfit is totally wrong, I take all the blame and am happy to return to the world of jeggings and moccasins, a land where I feel a lot more confident making choices.

Mrs. Claus looked kindly on as we shunned her in favor of the Mr.

It was the most painless Santa experience ever. There was no line- we walked right in and plopped her in his lap. There was no photographer, so I took my own (not amazing, but FREE) pictures with my phone. And even though Millie is clearly far too young to eat anything but milk, they still gave Matt and me a totally legit treat bag with an excellent candy selection inside.

My parents ate the candy Santa gave me. I will remember this for therapy one day.

  All in all, a great first Santa experience. I'm sure next year she'll lose her mind and possibly care if we eat her candy (??? do one-year-olds notice this?), so I'm glad we really relished this year.

Saturday was delightfully uneventful. It rained. I went to the gym. We mailed our Christmas cards. I could go on, but you'd fall asleep.

I like how Matt's reading her really boring stories with no pictures (Aesop's Fables) and how she looks like she's so interested. That's sweet. She'll probably be the kind of person that acts interested when some random person at a party is telling a really long and boring story. I guess that's a good character trait...or something.

But then on Saturday night, we did get a little crazy. I remembered that there was a robe somewhere in our boxes of hand-me-downs...and there's no time like the present for some Baby in a Robe action!

First she laughed at the impossibly adorable baby in the mirror:

Aaaaand then she had a hoedown. Natural progression.

Matt and I watched Harry Potter movies 1 and 2 on Friday and Saturday nights! I borrowed the movies from a friend ohhhhhh, back in September...and didn't manage to watch any until now. But we loved them and can't wait to finish the rest now! Also, now I kinda want to reread the books...

Sunday was similarly uneventful. Millie hung out with one of her boyfriends at church. He likes a girl with good shoes, I guess. Couldn't keep him away from the shoes...

And I completed my first full week of successfully drinking a gallon of water a day.

I get a sparkly star sticker if I drink the whole gallon. I'm motivated by the same things as a four-year-old. I'm also motivated by the thought that maybe I'll miraculously lose 10 pounds or 10 inches or live longer or something, so that's another good reason to try. Anyway. After a full week of gallon-a-day-ing, I can report that I feel and look no different than I did last week. I just spend 20 times more time in the bathroom.

It's my birthday week, so I'm looking forward to reminding everyone incessantly plentiful celebrations! I also get to make a long-procrastinated trip to the DMV to renew my license, so I'm in the throes of my every-five-years ethical battle regarding how much to lie about my weight. Wish me luck!