About a week before New Year’s Eve we realized that several other couples didn’t have any plans either for the big night. What would be a better way to spend it than with each other and exchanging some awesome gifts. Wait a second, did I say awesome? I meant awful because we did a white elephant gift exchange. For those of you who have never heard of such a thing, then you can go here to read up on the rules and history: white elephant gift exchange. Basically, people bring a wrapped item that they will gladly give away. Each person/couple gets a number and picks the gifts in that order. Each gift can be stolen 2 times. There were 5 couples, and each couple brought 2 gifts which meant each person got to open one gift. I know you are just dying to see what all those gifts were, so I’ll happily go through each one.

Mike was first to pick, and he received this wonderful set of swords/knives. Of course, all the guys wanted these. And they were stolen twice (the maximum number).

The next gift opened was a game from the original Nintendo system. What a collector’s item! Sadly, this gift was never stolen even though the couple next to the owner look like they have demon eyes for it.

A set of “Noel” coasters didn’t cause as much of a stir. I played it safe though and stole these on my turn. Nobody wanted them from me. That’s fine. I now have another cheesy, holiday decoration.

This upcoming gift was definitely one of the creepiest, yet favorite presents. It was a very detailed sculpture of a diamond-back rattle snake. Again, the men took turns stealing this until it could be stolen no longer. Just so you know Mike purchased this wonderful gift from the gas station located in the “dirty” part of town. I’m inserting the large version of this picture so you can really see the detail.

This lovely lady was so pleased to acquire this gem, a rooster clock. The man who stole it from her tried to convince his wife that it would go nicely with her French country kitchen. The bonus was that one of the legs was broken.

What a great thing for a manly man to have: a decorative perfume holder. The rose-colored, etched glass really enhanced its beauty. Unfortunately, this was stolen by the giver because guilt kind of set in about giving away a gift that her grandmother had given her.

My contribution to the gift exchange was this snazzy candle. I had actually purchased this long ago to take as a gift for a party at one of Mike’s boss’ house. Mike refused to let me give it to the hostess. In my defense, I grabbed it quickly while picking up some last minute grocery items on our way to the party. There wasn’t much to choose from in the way of gifts at the local supermarket.

After her snake was stolen, she obtained the Indiana Jones series on VHS. This is fine if you still own a VCR which she does.

This next gift had to be the best, and by best I mean worst. Just look at the confusion and wonderment on everyone’s face as he was opening it.

Viola! A beautiful angel with genuine feathers and small children at her feet. Just look at the detail Apparently, it used to have a plug which lit her up via fiberoptics.

The last gift of the night was the greatest, according to Mike. It was a framed poster of Tupac Shakur, may he rest in peace. Since Mike was the first to choose a gift he got the be the last one to steal and promptly chose this. Thank goodness his intention is to hang this in his office at work and nowhere near our home.

So there you have it. All the best gifts of the season. When I had originally planned for our party I figured the party-goers would be on their way home well before midnight. Not so, all couples less one decided to stick it out until the strike of midnight. Well, a second couple decided they couldn’t make it another 15 minutes due to their unhappy 18-month-old. Mike and the other guys went out to shoot off some firecrackers, firecrackers that I had no idea about. The kids were spent by the end of the night, but they certainly had a fun time with all those kids. They kept themselves busy riding bikes/scooters down in the basement, running around alot, jumping off the top bunk (yes, we promptly stopped this and locked the girls’ door afterward), eating lots of desserts, watching movies, and making a brutal mess of my house.

Now for something random. Sara has been requesting a picture of our buckeyes that we made for Christmas. As luck would have it, we still have a few left. Here you go, Sara. I hope this makes your day.

If you’re interested, here’s the recipe:
Buckeye Cookies
1 1/2 sticks butter, softened
1 box powdered sugar
1 tbsp. vanilla
12 oz. peanut butter
12 oz. chocolate chips
Thoroughly mix butter, sugar, vanilla and peanut butter. Roll into small balls. Melt chocolate in double boiler. Keep on low heat while dipping balls-use toothpicks for dipping. Leave a small space open at top to give appearance of a buckeye. Put on waxed paper to dry. Enjoy!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!