College friends and soul sisters Blaine and Carrie and I barely get to see each other, especially now that I live on the other side of the country and they each had small humans exit their bodies recently. So being together in the same place requires great forethought and planning,  and whenever we manage to make it happen, we take so many pictures it’s like we’re members of a sacred endangered species, like we might soon disappear from the earth, which really, WE MIGHT, AND OTHER DARK THINGS YOU DISCUSS WITH YOUR FRIENDS WHEN YOU’RE 35 BECAUSE YOUR MORTALITY HAS NOW SETTLED AROUND YOU LIKE EVERY SPRAY FROM BATH AND BODY WORKS . We also discussed Pants. Lookit these beautiful Rhinos:

SaveSave

SaveSave

The happiest of birfdays to my Mama, who just a few weekends ago, in a 48 hour visit, played yard games, SKIPPED ROPE and did an Irish Car Bomb all while remaining classy, virtuous, kind as pack a monks, aspirational and GOSHDARN ADERABLE. Love you ma!

Facial giving person (technical term?): Aw, You guys look like sisters! 

Later, my Mom snickers.

Me: What?

Mom: Sorry!

Me: For what?

Mom: That’s an insult for you, and a compliment for me! 

(BUT REALLY MOM THANKS FOR THE SKIN.)

This weekend is tiny baby brother Tim’s bachelor party in Boston, and since I can’t be there (BUT REALLY, WHY WOULD I BE THERE) I asked other best man / bachelor party coordinator brother Dan if he might send me a picture for my blog. These are not dudes who take pictures, so the fact that I received this last night is NOTHING SHORT OF A MIRACLE.

I imagine it going something like this:

Dan:  (to bartender) Hey, could you take a picture of us real fast, my sister wants a picture of us, I don’t want a picture, it’s for my sister. (to group) Hey guys, this is stupid, but my sister wants a picture for her blog, everyone like, hold your whiskey and smile. (bartender takes picture) Awesome, that was stupid, that’s done, everyone be normal now. 

THANK YOU DAN FOR PUTTING YOURSELF OUT THERE FOR ME, AND HAPPY BACHELOR WEEKEND TIM!

A few moons ago, I found myself filming for two days in a creepy westside mall that seemed to include only a Baby Gap, a pretzel place a store that sold only dream catchers, and memories of walking by Abercrombie and Fitch just to smell it and be smelled. Smelt?  Naturally, I spent my lunch breaks losing my mind in said Baby Gap, and spent basically my wages for the week on sweaters for my niblings. Just  yesterday, I happened to receive status reports of said sweaters from their said parents and just — HERE.

Olivia, in pink:

Luke, in Charlie Brown:

I continue to be obsessed with said sweaters. Is this how said works? You say something, and then you say you said it by saying said before it? ENGLISH WHY ARE YOU SO OBSESSED WITH YOUR SAID SELF

EVERY LITTLE STEP SHE TAKES

Happy first birthday to this blessed flower, my sweet niece and soon to be confidante (like as soon as she speaks words) Miss Olivia Grace.

Presenting a new player on the ever expanding team Foster-Keddie roster:

Elizabeth ‘Birdie’ Lee Miller, born ON FREAKING VALENTINE’S DAY to Morrison’s sister Anne and her husband Michael.

JUST IN CASE THIS MESSAGE WAS NOT THOROUGHLY RECEIVED THE FIRST TIME, I REPEAT, A LITTLE NIECE NUGGET NAMED BIRDIE WAS BORN ON VALENTINE’S DAY. Put THAT in your drawer of stickers and bows. I love her already, and I already feel a little bad for every person she ever dates. Y’ALL BETTER BRING IT.

I truly couldn’t really care less, but if the game ends  with the winning players holding their tiny daughters who are wearing tiny headbands that match their Dad’s uniforms and tiny headphones so that their tiny ears might not be harmed by all of the revelry, COUNT ME IF FOR ALL FUTURE SPORTS.

The Foster-Keddies kiddies were all fortunate enough  to grow up on epic hiking trips led by their father (which, I’m fairly certain, is the main source of their fine character) so naturally I asked IF NOT DEMANDED to be taken on a family one, up (a hill adjacent to) Mt. Rainer.

LOOK AT ME GO! I HAVE A POLE AND EVERYTHING! MY WATER BOTTLES ARE EVEN STRAPPED TO MY PACK! I EVEN HAVE A ‘PACK!’  AM I HIKE PERSON NOW?

OH HI, are you taking a moment away from your family, be they great, to retreat into the calm of internet, which is to say, take a contemporary deep breath? WELCOME! Don’t forget to also breathe actual breaths. I just wanted to share that All I Wanted for Christmas is a Mother-In-Law who respects and appreciates Christmas ornaments as much as myself and my own mother:

and also  Snow in my Gob.

I AM LEGIT SATIATED FOR LIKE 3-4 MORE CHRISTMASES. Merry Christmas, everyone. I hope you got not just Christmas List Things, but Things that surprised you, that made you feel known and loved. OKAY, BACK TO CARBS.