Christmas lights and orangutans.

I think I probably drive my mom insane. The instant we're apart, I'm calling her, missing her like crazy, and begging her to come visit. Sometimes, I can actually come up with a good enough reason for her to make the trek to Indy between chemo sessions and life in Ohio. Thanks to our wedding pictures, this weekend was one of them.

Our photographers unveiled them to us on Sunday morning during a wonderful photo party at their house, complete with drinks, snacks, and a slideshow of their favorite shots from the day. More to come on that later, but I'm obsessed.

Wheat had a Pacers game on Friday night, so Mommles and I filled our evening with dinner at Slippery Noodle, random TV, and lots of girl talk. Saturday, we decided to check out the Christmas light display at the zoo because a) my mom has been wanting to see the incredible orangutan exhibit for over a year and b) the weather was unreal. By unreal, I mean 70º in December. It didn't exactly help usher in the Christmas spirit, but it sure made walking around without a coat nice. Seriously, we opted with ice cream cones over hot chocolate at one point.

Thanks to the high temperatures, most of the animals were out and playing around (with the exception of the plains animals). My personal favorites were the tigers, the penguins, and of course, the orangutans. We spent most of our visit in and around the Simon Skjodt International Orangutan Center, admiring and interacting with these incredible animals. While we watched Rocky (the one in the picture below) play, he built a bed for himself by dragging a platform over, creating a stack of hay, and covering it with a blanket. They seriously blow my mind with their intelligence. One of the orangutans is pregnant(!), so I'm currently planning a return trip to the zoo in the spring to see the baby!

Indianapolis was the first zoo in the country to do a Christmastime light display, so I wasn't surprised to see that they do it right. There were so many gorgeous lights - some in the shapes of various animals and plants, others that looked like dripping icicles. Christmas trees, completely decked out in entrancing lights and ornaments, filled every corner. Local school choirs sang Christmas carols by a bonfire. Santa and Mrs. Claus posed for pictures with children while a live reindeer stood on display nearby. Even the conservatory was transformed into a yuletide retreat where children could do a holiday-themed scavenger hunt.

I'm notoriously not much of a Christmas person (will you still be my friend?), but watching all the lights set to music made me feel like a kid again. I mean, I didn't feel as much like a kid as my mom did while watching the orangutans, but still...

After the zoo, we ordered some Bazbeaux pizza and watched Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer because Christmas. Maybe I am getting into the holiday spirit, slowly by surely. Now, if only these presents would buy and wrap themselves...