The 2015 Christmas Card & Letter

 A holiday hello from me to you.

I really hope you like my card. The theme I was going for is, “look how incredibly happy we are!” I think we nailed it.

But if you look really close you can actually see me telling Chris to just “Chill out! Only ten more minutes. Stop being a child.” All while I keep a happy smile on my face, no less!

And Chris is responding through gritted teeth, “You promised NO ENGAGEMENT photos. Yet here we are. Typical, Tay!” All is bright indeed. A picture really does tell 1,000 words.

Truthfully, I chose this photo because Harlow looks so damn good. That’s normal, right? To choose a Christmas card photo based on your dog’s smile.

And now to share my annual Christmas letter written by a random narrator in which I humbly brag about how much better my family is than yours. Tis the season!

****

My Dear Friends and Family,

Where or where did 2015 go? I say this every year, but it feels like just yesterday we were ringing in the New Year and here we are already preparing for 2016. Time truly does fly when you’re having fun.

2015 was a big year for everyone! Just a few highlights include:

*Harlow filmed a commercial for Volvo.
*Chris took a promotion at work.
*And Taylor finally learned how to fill in her eyebrows! After years of shaving them in middle school, she’s truly understanding what it feels like to have a face.

Like I said, a big year for everyone! How blessed we are.

Harlow’s career has really taken off. Not only did he film a few promotional videos for several ad agencies in Chicago, he is also highly sought after for product reviews. In his own words, “I won’t even get out of bed for less than ten jerky sticks and a new squeaky toy.”

He’s just such a special, talented dog. He almost always sits on command and hasn’t been kicked out of the dog park in nearly six days. I have a good feeling 2016 is the year he stops sucking on his foot and eating random trash he finds in dirty Chicago alleys.

As mentioned, Chris took a promotion at work. He gets in on time every day now, as long as Taylor gives him a ride. Sometimes they even talk on the morning drive, permitted Chris doesn’t tell her when to speed up, or to take a right turn in front of the bus.

Chris has really taken to his new role nicely and is so good at his job. If Taylor didn’t have such a problem with authority and being told what to do, she’d even go so far as to say he’s exactly the type of person she’d like to work for.

In October, Chris and Taylor announced they were both going to run the Chicago Marathon in 2016. They’re very excited about this and trained quite intensely for one day in preparation. They haven’t gone on a run since that one day, but they are still telling everyone who will listen that they are going to run a marathon next year.

As for Taylor, well 2015 went exactly as she hoped it would!  She is finally the t-shirt lady she’s always dreamed of becoming and can’t get enough of that online retail life! It’s as if she’s finally found her calling in life.

As for her art, after being cut from every comedy institution in Chicago she decided to go off on her own and produce her own comedy videos. Her vids are growing quite popular and as one critic said, “I don’t get this, is this on the youtube? Why did you do this?” -her mom. Her outlet of choice is snapchat because she just can’t get enough of that instant gratification.

For the time being, she’s put aside writing that book she spent so much time on this past summer in lieu of concentrating on more meaningful work- like posing photos of all of her things on a white background to post on Instagram. She almost always gets 200 likes now and feels so validated!

Most importantly, after ten short years of dating, Chris and Taylor will be tying the knot in Steamboat, Colorado this summer. They’ve been engaged for twelve short months now are finally starting to get the hang of wedding planning. July 23rd can’t come soon enough when Chris, Taylor and Harlow get to walk down the aisle and exchange vows with each other.

What a blessed year it has been. Wishing you nothing but a wonderful Christmas and Hanukkah season and so much love in the future!

Warm Holiday Wishes,
The Hillis Wolfe Family

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27 Comments

  1. December 22, 2015 / 11:07 am

    That's such a great picture! I agree, Harlow looks amazing. But question from one crazy dog mom to another- how did he get into filming videos for corporations?? Kind of want to do this with my dog….

  2. December 22, 2015 / 11:35 am

    Okay that picture on the back? ADORABLE! Also, yes totally normal for you to choose pictures based on how your dog looks, I totally do it too 😛

  3. December 22, 2015 / 11:57 am

    Love it! This in particular cracked me up: "like posing photos of all of her things on a white background." In all honesty, it's a really great card though!

  4. December 22, 2015 / 12:13 pm

    As usual, Harlow steals the stage!

  5. December 22, 2015 / 12:30 pm

    Such a good photo! I love it 🙂

  6. December 22, 2015 / 12:36 pm

    Okay, LOVE your cards! Seriously, they are adorable- can't even tell that was the dialogue behind-the-scenes! 😉 Nailed. It.

    xo

  7. December 22, 2015 / 12:37 pm

    You know.. when I learned to fill in my eyebrows, it changed my life as well!! I was shocked to learn the "overly plucked from middle school and never grew back" look wasn't that hip… ha. I love your Christmas letter, you always give me a laugh at work when I need it! Merry Christmas to you!!!

  8. December 22, 2015 / 12:43 pm

    How do I see the famous Harlow in the Volvo commercial??

  9. December 22, 2015 / 12:57 pm

    The part about running the marathon killed me.. that's hilarious. Great card!

  10. December 22, 2015 / 1:02 pm

    How are you incorporating Harlow I to your wedding?! We are debating between him being a ring bearer and walking me down the aisle. I'm leaning towards his walking me down because I just think it's way too cute and then it'll be my little beautiful family at the altar.

  11. December 22, 2015 / 1:11 pm

    Best Christmas letter ever. Your snapchat is seriously my favorite (one of the only ones I will listen to win the sound on and not skip through without listening to entirely).

  12. December 22, 2015 / 1:43 pm

    Loved your letter – it definitely had some lols!! How did you get Harlow to pose with his paw on your hands? That looks really hard to do!! Happy holidays!

    theritzyglitzy.com

  13. December 22, 2015 / 2:07 pm

    you always come up with the best post ideas. you had a great year- admit it!

  14. December 22, 2015 / 2:34 pm

    I love your Christmas card! I totally pick cards based off how Dart looks too because he's my baby and he needs to look his best!

  15. December 22, 2015 / 3:41 pm

    Bhahaha this is a great letter!! Those Christmas letters can be pretty funny! Hope you have a great Christmas!

  16. December 22, 2015 / 4:33 pm

    What a funny letter!! I love your card 🙂

  17. December 22, 2015 / 4:58 pm

    Aw I love this – the photo is beautiful, and what a year it's been for you all (Snapchat success most definitely included in this!!)
    Here's to next year – I look forward to reading all about the run-up to and aftermath of your big day (I may or may not actually be referring to your marathon by this!)

    Merry Christmas, and Happy New Year to you all

    Steph xx
    Oh Steph

  18. December 23, 2015 / 8:17 am

    During the reading of your letter, I kept thinking to myself "Please Taylor, send this out to all of your family". You nailed it. I feel as though my letter would look a lot like this except I'm no comedian and I still have no freaking idea how to do the whole eyebrow thing.

  19. December 23, 2015 / 1:31 pm

    Love the picture!! So cute!! Your letter seriously cracked me up. And you really do have the best snapchats!! Merry Christmas to you, Harlow, and Chris!

  20. December 23, 2015 / 7:29 pm

    Awww the pic on the back!!! But for real, maybe some people like doing/getting newsletters at Christmas but I DESPISE them! My step mom does one every year and I sound like such a loser each time. I don't even ask to see them anymore lol. I nannied this year and I'm sure it went something like, "Morgan is 27 and still babysitting" lol. Whatever. But your snapchat is the best. You should go into babysitting by the way 😉 😉

  21. December 24, 2015 / 4:49 pm

    Love it! I too learned how to fill in my eyebrows this year… but now I always get them TOO dark. Better than not having any eyebrows, though.

    Also, totally normal to choose the photo based on how Harlow looks.

  22. December 27, 2015 / 1:51 pm

    I love this! I also include a letter with our Christmas card and this year, I had to write our 12 separate letters. It was quite the process haha your card looks beautiful!

  23. December 27, 2015 / 11:22 pm

    Judy says to give Harlow a high paw for those commercials!

  24. December 30, 2015 / 8:40 am
  25. February 22, 2016 / 11:24 pm

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