This is Essentially A Photo Dump....

....because if I'm being honest, this day has been some kind of hectic, stressful and nerve-wracking. I don't have the brain function to string thoughts together today, so what I'm giving you is a whole bunch of pictures I took the past week...perhaps just posting this will serve as a brief point of decompressing for the day?

My childhood teddy bear, discovered somewhere in some box on Monday evening....

Cruising along...the mountains a blur out of the corner of my "eye"

The before & after of my rather dramatic hair transformation. Yes - it's RED. I know. 

I loved it immediately & took about ten pictures...as did my hair stylist. Love.

The most delightful package arrived on Wednesday - and with it, a note letting me know something even more delightful would be arriving in March - baseball tickets!

It's red y'all.

This sweet face - always doing something that makes me want to squeeze him.

I know - up close of my toes - what a weirdo. Isn't that snowflake amazing though?

Star Wars business casual on Friday - because...DUH.

Why yes - I did race down to the front of the theater to have my picture taken with the Stormtrooper, Kylo Ren & Rey - because not that deep down (it's not deep at all) inside, I'm a nerd.

A special Star Wars menu...my delicious Imperial Red & me being a little TOO excited  about the first Star Wars movies in ten years...

The sweetest little puppy sitting under the Christmas tree.

When my Mom says "your hair looks purple" - um...no, it doesn't.

Just a wee sampling of the decorations at the US Botanical Garden for Christmas.

Seriously - aren't these amazing?

A wee ice skating rink in the midst of the National Gallery Sculpture Garden!

I honestly have no clue - it was in the middle of the road & I liked it, ha-ha!

Zoo Lights - how cool? The zoo is all lit up, some of the animals are still awake & to me, that's a pretty good situation right there.

The cutest Fennec Fox ever, asleep. He was sending subliminal signals - get out of the Small Mammal House...

Two of my favorite small people...singing solos at church...and my phone camera turned them orange & blurry. Blegh.

Amelia says "this is MY human now...go find another for yourself..."

What's that Watson? You think my macaroons from the DC Holiday Market should be yours? Um - no.

These faces - always mean muggin; and she still looks cute!

Three spoiled rotten little sweethearts.

The best choice for a Christmas seat? The Star Wars bucket; obviously.

So - there you have it. A whole bunch of pictures, not a whole lot of stories. Sorry about that, but today has just not been it. Whoosh.