Hooray for Christmas! “Merry Christmas, Gimme Presents!” as Animal is wont to say.

Today was a great day. Amy spent the night with me (as per a tradition we’ve had since we separated into our own bedrooms as kids). And last night we watched A Muppet Family Christmas. This morning, I woke up early in order to call a friend in England. We opened presents over the phone and it turns out Dave got me the “Songs from the Street” collection (35 years of Sesame Street music). Woohoo! Also winging its way to the US is seasons 4&5 of The Tomorrow People DVDs. A lovely start to the day! (For him it was nearing lunch time and he and his housemates were cooking the turkey – doncha just love time zones!)

By the time I was done, Amy was moving and ready to head next door. But I’d yet to have my bath. So she had to wait a bit. But soon I was ready and she grabbed her stuff and my sack o’ presents and I grabbed Leo. He protested some, but once he got to mom & dad’s (next door) he was ready to explore. And they have STAIRS! (The only stairs I have are to the basement and I don’t let him there. I’m afraid he’d collect all the dust bunnies down there and weigh 400lbs.)

Once we were there, Amy and I got to check out our stockings. Santa brought us a number of nice things – including a tire pressure gauge! (Long story…) We then had breakfast – sour dough coffee cake, scrambled eggs, and bacon. Everyone else had coffee (one of many beverages that I just don’t understand… Tea and alcohol are two others…)

After breakfast, it was time to open presents! It was the bestest Christmas ever! Lots of cool things. From Amy, I got a framed poster of Eric Idle’s Greedy Bastard Tour (which she “liberated” for me) and two pairs of socks (one smiley face, one with cards). I also a pair of photos of Amy & Rachel from the two of ’em – and was so touched, I cried. (They’re really cool photos – they used ’em on their engagement announcements.) Rachel had sent along a set of hot cocoa mixes from Starbucks (and with the staff discount she gets, they were “thrifty” presents! Yay!)

From the parents, I received quite a few lovely gifts. Not sure I’ll remember ’em all, but I’ll get as many out as I can. Several nice outfits for school and two casual shirts. A Santa Claus nutcracker (I have a nice collection of nutcrackers). A 2-quart Calphalon chef’s pan w/ lid. Pretzels (we’re talking LOTS of ’em) and two types of cool pretzel dip (one was raspberry, wasabi, and mustard). A 14-in-1 wooden game set. The latest Terry Pratchett novel. A cookbook on recipes for 1 person (woohoo!).

The gifts I got for people were also well-received. Amy got a $30 gift certificate to the Guthrie Theatre and some MrBeer bottles and a MrBeer funnel & strainer (which were shipped to her apartment) – I’d made fake labels and stuck ’em on an empty bottle and wrapped that in lieu of the actual bottles & funnel. Mom got Cooking Thin with Chef Kathleen (Kathleen Daelemans) and Nocturnal Admissions (from the Sunday Night Sex Show). And dad got two Blue Man Group CDs and the Stomp Out Loud DVD. Mom & Dad both got things that I want to borrow from them. 🙂 Leo, meanwhile, got a new toy (fun thing where he can get frustrated trying to catch a mouse that moves away from him) and a window perch.

After the presents, it was time for lunch. Mom made chicken casserole and we had it with cottage cheese, green beans, and “real” cranberry sauce (you know, the kind from the can). Leo ate some casserole and cottage cheese. It was very delicious! And everyone gets leftovers for lunch tomorrow.

The rest of the day was just time for conversations, games (we played the Pachisi and Mancala games from my 14-in-one pack) and another Star Wars movie (Return of the Jedi). Supper was an assortment of cheeses & cheese spreads, ham & summer sausage, wine (or Sierra Mist for trinas), and other cold finger foods. We toasted to family and later to the new year. Mom got to use her new wine glasses (and the wine glass markers I’d bought for her birthday).

The final adventure for the evening was another hand massage and waxing and helping Amy pack up her luggage. She’d packed a duffel bag in with her luggage cuz she knew she’d be bringing more stuff home than she brought. And that was indeed the case. So she’ll leave with 2 checked pieces. And tomorrow morning dad & I will take her to the airport – and soon she & Rachel will be together again! Yay! (*sniff* for us, however – no more Amy in person!)

So all in all, a lovely day! Hope everyone who celebrated Christmas today had one even half as lovely as we did!