I Wish You A Merry Christmas

The skies were gray and damp at 7AM, when I crept to my Christmas tree. I'd set the remaining presents from Linda and James (and their dog Willow and bird Schuyler) under the tree before I went to bed last night. I guess Linda and James really loved those cookies I gave them last month, because both presents were food related. Linda and James gave me two cookbooks. One highlights dinner recipes; the other features 100 different cookies made from a basic cookie dough mix. The animals gave me my "stocking stuffer," a recipe box with blank cards to write new creations down in.

I made scrambled eggs with leeks, mushrooms, and sharp cheddar cheese in my new pan and watched A Christmas Story after getting dressed. Called Dad after I ate. We were going over to my cousin Samantha's house around 10. I headed over there at 10 of with my bag of presents for the family in Camden County.

Dad, Jodie, and Jessa were all home when I arrived. Dolores and Uncle Ken were with Dolores' family, but they'd left me a great present - a WebKinz Mountain Goat! On Jodie's suggestion, I named him Billy. Dad, Jodie, and Uncle Ken all gave me money. (I loved Dad's cute Mickey Mouse card.) Jessa gave me a huge container of 100 plastic cookie cutters.

We had a nice ride out to Sam and her family's home. Dad took Route 55 instead of the Black Horse Pike like he usually does in order to avoid traffic. (Interestingly, I never saw any traffic anywhere, not yesterday on the way to Cape May County or today.) Sam and David were having breakfast with Sam's mother Jane (Uncle Ken's ex-wife) and her husband Mario when we arrived. Their sons Ethan and Matt were playing with their new Nerf guns. Little Faith was entranced by her new Leapfrog video game. Sam and David gave Jessa a bead set and me a tin of cookies, as they did last year. (The cookies are much-appreciated. The only ones I have left are slices of gingerbread from the Betty Crocker mix I threw together last week.) Aunt Jane gave us both pajamas. Faith loved her books, and the boys loved their balls.

We actually weren't there for very long. Sam and David had been up early with their kids, and they were really worn out! We arrived around quarter of 11 and left a little over an hour later. After we got back, Jessa wrapped a present quickly, and we went over to another grown cousin who lives down the street from me, Mark, his girlfriend Vanessa, and her teenage daughter Brittany who is Jessa's best friend.

Brit, Jess, and I played Game Cube Mario Kart and Mario Party while we waited for dinner. Vanessa and Mark gave me a huge metal rack of various bath lotions and oils, a container of fudge, and an adorable fuzzy boot filled with candy and Hickory Farms-type meat and cheese spread. (Incidentally, the computer Yoshi ended up beating Jessa's Toad, my Princess, and Britt's Luigi by a long shot in Mario Party.)

Dinner early and delicious. Vanessa made ham, roasted asparagus, mashed potatoes and cheese, and sausage stuffing. Everyone had seconds on the latter two. For dessert, there was pumpkin pie with Cool Whip (mine and Vanessa's choice) and Redi-Whip (Mark's favorite).

Drowsy and full, the girls and I went upstairs to the den after dinner to watch one of Brittany's favorite movies, Help!. The girls didn't last very long. I don't think the Beatles even made the Alps before they passed out. I decided to let them rest after the movie was over; Vanessa drove me home.

It had sprinkling on-and-off since we left Sam's house, a fine misty rain that did nothing but make things mildly damp. It was still chilly, but nothing resembling the below-freezing temperatures earlier in the week. By the time I was eating cereal for dinner and watching two Good Eats episodes on fruits often consumed during the Christmas holidays, cranberries and oranges, the mist had finally picked up to a shower and much of the snow was vanishing quickly.

Even if the snow's gone by tomorrow, at least it was still there...and I can still say for the first time in my life, I had real snow for Christmas.

Oh, and meet Billy the Mountain Goat! I made a nice Christmas room for him and whatever WebKinz I get next to share after I got in from Vanessa and Mark's.

No matter what the weather (including those people trapped in the storms in the Midwest), I hope you enjoyed your Christmas Day and your holiday season!