This one's a tough one. It's Christmas and the show must go on but this year without its star. Most of you already know but for those that do not: we lost Jackson a few days before Thanksgiving. He made it a month past his 15th birthday which was indeed a miracle but that was not nearly long enough. We miss him so so so much. This tradition started before his arrival and it will continue past his departure but I will admit my heart is not in it this year. I could share a dozen adorable photos of Jack rocking his Christmas finery but you've seen those. Farewell, beloved boy.
Without Jack, we have struggled to get in the spirit. Crash of course rebounded first. We spent Thanksgiving with dear friends again this year, and Crash loves being part of a pack of giant dogs at their house. The annual doling out of the leftovers was photo-worthy again this year.After Thanksgiving, we added a new adventure to Crash's history - a visit with Santa himself! Santa helped Crash get his hat on straight
but then he insisted we ditch the traditional boring outfit and let his personality shine. Crash and Santa are pretty cute together, right?!
Crash is living his best life here, with way more doggie friends and social activities than he had in California. He especially loves hanging with his buddies at our favorite winery, even if we do make him wear ridiculous outfits.
The perpetually naughty boy has found his tribe.
We celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary a few days ago with a quick trip to California, our first since we moved. We surprised everyone by showing up unexpectedly and we had a fantastic time visiting everyone. We returned just in time for Armageddon picture-taking day and we were blessed with another white Christmas (or day-before-Christmas, anyway). Stripped of the vinyl siding, freshly painted and landscaped, our house is finally beautiful on the outside even though the inside is still a work in progress.
Hopefully by next Christmas we'll be showing off the interior. Hopefully. Sigh. Here is a sneak peak at one of the finished rooms:
And now for the main attraction. Oookie had to carry most of the weight this year but thankfully he has matured into a star in his own quiet way and he rose to the occasion gracefully (well, mostly). The first Santa suit did not {ahem} suit him and it took a little damage.
But then we changed him into a softer, more Oookie-appropriate Santa suit and he started to feel the magic.
We tried another blingy accessory and added the new sleigh prop - and promptly lost him again.
So we ditched the sleigh for this year and went all out for the blingy elf costume of MY dreams. It might not be Oookie's dream but he humored me remarkably well and we got the shot of the year - finally!
However, the resentment in that face did not go away so after a few less whimsical shots we gave up.
Some of you already know that we did adopt a new kitty the week we lost Jack, mainly as a companion to Oookie who was not okay being a solo cat. His name is Eeek! because that is his main expression and so far, his personality. He is polydactyl and fluffy and his right hind foot is on backwards and we thought he would fit in quite well around here. He and Oookie have bonded very well and are truly adorable together.
However he is still warming up to us and is quite shy, which means that he was duly horrified by our holiday tradition. We tried, we really did, but the best we could do was to put this boring Christmas sweater on him and squeeze off a couple quick shots before he bolted back under the bed - sans sweater thank goodness!
Hopefully by next year he will have adjusted to life with the Beagles and will embrace his humiliation like a seasoned trooper.
Since we are still unable to decorate inside for Christmas due to the remodel, we'll steal this picture of the tree at our favorite winery for the ending shot. We will be tramping through the snow to join friends there tonight and that makes us feel very much at home in our little home town.
Merry Christmas from Dan & Robyn!
Dauntless Wines, Forest Grove, Oregon
