Christmas in November

Since we live to far from our Northern kin, we exchange Christmas gifts at Thanksgiving. It makes things a bit tense, getting gifts made/purchased in time. Especially, since the adults really have no clue what they want!

We do have a few standbys in terms on interest. Aunt C likes horses and her husband, Uncle E doesn't seem to mind those presents. We didn't really get their gifts done in time, except Kitty. Aunt C & Uncle E have a resale store. We would love to frequent it, but the drive is a bit much!

Little cousin L got a bear puppet that Mommy crocheted and a Little People set. It seems she also like cars - she sounds just like Kitty!

Aunt J & Uncle J are outdoorsy types, which is really cool. Uncle J is usually hunting/taking people out hunting during Thanksgiving, so we don't always get to see him. Mommy & Daddy's gift to them was a paper eagle. Mommy spent time cutting and gluing it together. It is really fragile, but came out great. It is about 2 1/2 feet from wing tip to wing tip. Jules has a present that she wasn't able to quite get done.

Grandma got some origami lilies in a glass vase and a papercraft swallowtail butterfly. Jules also made a painting of some roses for her.

Uncle R likes Ancient Egypt, so we have been doing that theme for a few years. This year, Jules, with some help from Mommy, made a customized matryoska (Russian nesting dolls) set. We are sure no one else has them with, going outside in, King Tut, Queen Cleopatra, Anubis, The Eye of Ra, a mummy and an anhk (the Ancient Egyptian symbol of life.) We chose Anubis, not because he is the Egyptian god of Funerals and the afterlife, but because he is readily recognizable.

The girls, of course, were thrilled with their gifts. Jules got an electronic dog, Tekno, a Bingo game, coloring books, The Frog Princess book set, a Christmas Duck and a necklace, the Sorry! Sliders game

Kitty got a Tinkerbell doll which flaps her wings and talks, a Crayola craft set, a Christmas Bear and a necklace, a Disney Fairies game, a Matchbox pop-up airport set, and coloring books.

We all got some gift cards to Barnes and Noble, which is great, because we can take our time figuring out what we want!

It was a late night, but we all had a really good time visiting with each other, sharing good food and just enjoying the time.