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Will the Yahoo Responsible for This Please Stand Up

Will the Yahoo Responsible for This Please Stand Up

This blog post is directed to the yahoo who buried the pig head carved from a coconut in my doll collection. Yes, it’s pathetic that I finally noticed if over a month after you “won” it in the white elephant gift exchange New Year’s weekend. In my own defense, the ploy worked when Elliot hid ET, surrounded by Drew Barrymore’s stuffed animals, in plain sight.

For your information, Hiram didn’t notice it either.

Of course, no one ever accused either of us of being particularly observant, and maybe that’s what you were counting on. How many of you were in on the subterfuge? Have you been calling each other up and sniggering about it? Did you have a betting pool going to see how long it would take us to find it? If so, whoever has February 7, 2011 at 6:00 AM is the winner. (That would be the day after the Packers won the Super Bowl, in case you’re wondering.)

Personally, I think it’s pretty pathetic that you didn’t take the gift I pawned off to your own home. After all, I sucked it up and carted home the elf fart I won last year. Not only that, I kept track of it for 12 months and rewrapped it so some other sucker could take it home for 2011.

For your information, this raises the stakes for next year’s white elephant gift exchange. You will see the coconut pig head again, along with the Bonanza Christmas CD I relocated the other day. If you win that puppy, it’ll come with headphones, and you’ll be forced to listen to it. All of it.

Start choosing your own white elephant weapons. Unless you want to appease me by forking over the squirrel underpants. Then I’ll forget the whole thing.

Otherwise,
this
is
war.

Christmas Blessings

Christmas Blessings

The house is quiet this morning, after almost a week of fun, family, and relaxation. From Thursday to Sunday, all four of our kids (two by birth and two by marriage) were with us for the first multi-day stretch ever. When they left after lunch on Sunday and a 24 hour infusion of extended family, we were all still on good terms with one another. Therefore, the weekend can be considered a success.

But by my count it was more than successful. In fact, compiling the complete list of Christmas blessings and good memories we experienced would take more time than I have to spare. So here are a few that stand out:

  • Planning meals and cooking with the kids.
  • Tasting the results of the pizza bake-off on New Year’s Eve.
  • Having people volunteer to set the table and clean up after meals.
  • Learning to play the board game Carcassonne, thanks to our new son.
  • Listening to our daughters talk while one taught the other how to knit.
  • Giving the kids hugs at bedtime.
  • Hearing about our kids’ dreams for the future.
  • Watching our sons play with the pen/laser/flashlight keychains from their Christmas stockings.
  • Seeing Hiram’s expression when he pulled cheetah spot patterned duct tape from his stocking.
  • Watching my nephew put together a jigsaw puzzle with lightning speed.
  • Observing Mom’s pleasure when a story she wrote about her childhood was read aloud.
  • Fighting over the squirrel underpants, Twisted Tales from Shakespeare, and travel ping pong during the White Elephant gift exchange.
  • Falling asleep to the sound of young voices and happy conversations.

What Christmas blessings stand out for you? What are you grateful for as the new year begins? What’s making you smile today?