You can always count on Kippy to spread a little Christmas cheer. You might also notice that Kaboodle does her fair share of finding laps to sit on throughout these pictures. Everyone seemed to be enjoying their gifts. The boys were happy to get their traditional box of underwear and socks. That's an inside joke in our family. If any of my kids come to my house for Christmas, they will always get their underwear and socks replenished. They might not get anything else but at least they will get that. But I did manage to get Lee some gloves, too, and Kip a new set of sheets for his bed. He hadn't had a new set of sheets since Bill and I got married nearly 8 years ago and those sheets were pink and black and flowered.

Someone at the library gave Bill this present. They must know him pretty well. He thought that was a hoot. We're always chiding him for being such a Scrooge at Christmas time. That's what our Christmas fights are usually about. Him not getting in the spirit and me, being like a six-year-old, expecting the whole Christmas bit. Each year I keep thinking that somehow I'll get around that but I haven't yet. In case you're having trouble with the lettering on the pillow. It's bahhumbug.com. If Bill looks a bit apoplectic, uh, he really is. Every time the Muckheads come to visit, it stirs up more dust and they bring dander from their cat with them so his allergies kick up a bit. Heh, heh, serves him right for being such a Humbug... Nah, not really. Just kidding, honey.

And, then, after a spot of lunch--a bit of leftover Christmas Eve vegetarian lasagna in which poor Brittany had to pick out the spinach. Then I engaged Lee, Kim, Brittany, and Kip in a game of Cranium while we waited for the other Muckheads to arrive. Before we knew it, Amy and Todd arrived bearing more gifts and with Todd singing "We Wish You A Merry Christmas" Neil Diamond style. That was the fun part. That they had brought recycled gifts. Things they had gotten from Todd's family but didn't have a use for or were duplicates of stuff they already had. We really liked the recycled gifts. Bill and I got a cedar birdfeeder, which I was very glad to get. I had been wanting to get more feeders around the yard but kept putting it off. I also got a gag gift, as shown in this lovely picture, which Amy insisted I HAD to open before dinner. A hair net. That's another inside joke. Every meal comes with at least one of momma's hair. Amy declared that this year's Christmas meal would be without one. It worked, too.

Dinner was a gay affair. Lee helped me get dinner together. He chopped up potatoes and when they were cooked, he mashed and seasoned them. Scalloped potatoes had been planned but I realized they would take too long. Maybe next time Kippy visits he'll get his scalloped potates he's been asking for. Usually we have turkey but I went for ham this year. The mashed potatoes were a bit gummy, the Brussel sprouts were overbreaded, and the scalloped corn was more like a cornbread casserole (which Bill doesn't like), and I didn't get the mincemeat pie made past rehydrating the mincemeat but the ham was awesome. Jokes were flowing, tales of Christmas's past were retold, and Todd and Kip broke out into more Neil Diamond singing around the table. I wasn't sure what Brittany was making of all this but she was doing a lot of laughing. We opened the recycled gifts after dinner. Kip couldn't let us be without our Neil while opening presents. Note the cat again. Kip says he is a cat magnet. Our cats do seem to like him. Good ole Dusky even trusts him. He was up and about in the house just like normal within two days of Kip staying here, letting Kip pet him like crazy, and even jumped up on him once. Notice, too, that I don't have but one picture of Amy. I dunno why. I had others but they weren't in focus or were too dark or too light.

Before we knew it, it was time for Lee to go. He had a long drive back home to Jackson and he had to get up early to go to work. And I mean early. Like at 4:00 a.m. Reluctantly, he took his leave. Brittany, I noticed was eager to leave, not that I blame her. She rounded up all their presents and trotted them out to the car without any prompting. I think she did very well for a gal her age being around a bunch of strange, wild people she hadn't known before. I also think that she developed quite a liking for Kip. The Muckheads and I promptly got involved in a game of Star Wars Life after Lee left. We stayed up later than we needed to but not quite as late as one would think we would. I think it was 1:00 by the time we went to bed. Amy and Todd were still recuperating from colds so they were more than ready to hit the hay. I was pretty bushed from such a low to high busy day. You probably could have turned off the tree and basked in the glow that was coming from me. Thanks kids for such a merry Christmas.

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