Holiday roundup

Well, overall, we had a wonderful Christmas. I heard the first little stirrings around 6:30, so I went and put the coffee on and turned on the lights for the Christmas tree.
Sebastian came out and said, "Oh no! I think I overslept!" No you didn't, dear.
Commence unwrapping!
The kids got some really great presents. (I won't deny that I'm particularly fond of some of the ones I picked.) The boys are demonstrating some of the fun to be had with the Bilibos they got.
I originally asked my mom to get one for Dorian and then I saw that there were lots of cool things to do with two of them, so I ordered another one for them to share. They spent a long time standing on top and then jumping off. And, as you can see, they are also good for pretending to be a turtle, or for sitting in and rocking and reading.
They also got a plasma car which is powered by turning the wheel back and forth. The grown-ups can even use it since it supports up to 220 lbs. (You know I tested this one out myself.)
My brother sent two games, one of which is Cranium's Hullabaloo. We played for a long time yesterday. Basically, you spread these colored, illustrated shapes out on the floor and follow the directions called out by the electronic doohickey. Sometimes you just have to bounce to a circle. Other times, it gets more complicated and Twister-like. For example, you might have to touch a circle, put your elbow on red and touch your nose to an animal. (Not exactly pleasant, as it seems to be off-gassing.) Eventually, you freeze and whoever is on the lucky shape wins. Then you have to do a funky dance. They were begging for this one as soon as I woke up.
We also got a kitchen set, some pattern blocks, and some fun kits. Enough to keep the kids busy for another day or two, at least.

Jeremy was the proud recipient of a new pair of mittens from me. You don't even want to know what his old ones look like. Knitted probably 10 years ago now, they were green acrylic, loosely knitted, too short in the wrist and starting to unravel. I've learned a thing or two since then. You've got to give the man credit for wearing them faithfully for so long and not losing one or both of them. I love you, Bister.
I got lots of goodies I won't bore you with, but they were all lovely.
Here are some of the more notable ones:
Most practical: the tent, so we can go camping at Acadia Nat'l Park next summer
Most unexpected: a PeeWee Herman knitting stitch marker
Most horrifying: a candy toothbrush (Yes, the "bristles" are made of a lollipop type hard candy, while the handle is filled with candy tooth powder. God bless America. Jack, you win forever--Lifetime Achievement in Terrible Candy Procurement!)
Most inspirational: a tie between Nicky Epstein's Knitting Beyond the Edge and the three pack of exciting grains: amaranth, kamut berries, and flax seed
Cutest: also a tie between the owl bag and the frog flashlight

Thank you everyone for everything!
Hope your holidays were merry!