holiday-themed in betweens

not only were our christmases loads of fun, but it seemed to be a trend for all of the little moments in between. there was a holiday high tea, trivia night, stumbling onto a bar with champagne on tap (!!), seeing the latest star wars movie, viewing christmas lights in the snow, and seeing so many of our friends from out of town. holiday fun aside, it felt like the theme for this year's break was reunion of old (read: great) friends. 

you know that gal pal who is always game to try out any idea you have, even if they aren't completely sure about it? one, keep them always. and two, jana is the epitome of that friend. i asked her during a camping trip if she wanted to check out holiday high tea with me. neither of us had ever gone, or really knew what it was about aside from seeing it in movies. 

picture festive decor, inviting finger foods, unique tea samplings, and christmas music being played on a harp. we loved everything about it, start to finish, and already can't wait to go again next year!

[the cutest way to add sweetness]

[feeling festive]

[champagne campaigning]

next up, brunch with my fellow champagne lover, pinkey. a long-overdue catch up with dashes of sharing holiday traditions had in our families. the food, delicious (as always); the atmosphere, cozy and warm; and the conversation, varying from silly to serious every few minutes. 

[post-mimosa glow]

after our initial plans fell through, T and i wandered around the myriad gardens to see all the twinkly lights and festivities. after awhile, we needed to warm our toes and decided check out a new (to us) bar nearby. there was a roaring fire next to us, a glass of jammy red wine in hand, and a divine pot de creme to satiate the sweet tooth. it was perfectly cozy and tucked in from the crowds, just the way we like it. 

[mmm]

[cute date]

[star wars viewing]

[funky lighting, and champagne on tap]

much later, T and i got to finally see one of his dearest friends, chris. he happened to be back visiting family while we were in tulsa, and it was oh so good to see him again. he's the perfect example of a friend who makes all the distance and time apart melt away in an instant. it was like we'd just seen him yesterday, even though that was not the case. (move back please!)

[love these two]

[my hometown]

having not seen candace and daniel since our chocolat party, we'd been missing them quite a bit. and they were sweet enough to meet up with us during the weekday when they had work the next morning. 

i really love any opportunity to get to see these two and catch-up. i just wish we lived in the same town so we could see each other more! 

later that night, we saw more of our tulsa crew (minus jules and melanie...:( ) for trivia night, but the most surprising moment happened while we were there. an unexpected reunion with one of my dearest friends, who i had not seen since high school. that surprise meant so much to me, and it's been so amazing to reconnect after so much time. 

[the boys are back]

once we returned home, we got to reconnect with brian and nicki who were back in town visiting family. seeing how happy the guys were to finally be back together was equal parts adorable and hilarious. 

plus, i love getting to see nicki and talk wedding plans with her. (it's getting so close!)

[cuties]

[late night drinks]

and last, but most certainly not least, one of T's best friends, corbin, came home for a brief break from the peace corps. i cannot explain the excitement T and i shared counting down the days for him to come home, and then to finally have him here...it was everything we'd hoped it'd be, and then some. 

[comforting lunches]

we spent the remainder of our holiday break soaking up as much time with corbin as possible before he headed back. 

and now our countdown to seeing him, and our other friends, as started back up again. but it made for an extra lovely time. it may have been one of the few times that an overly packed schedule didn't exhaust me...but, i imagine that was due to the company :)