The Muppets! Ahhh...total love. The DVD's sound like a must have, even with the missing content.

I got Wicked - the book!!!!! And Serenity. I'm quite the happy camper. The rest of the family is in post-unwrapping-rapture. DH is the only one who seems less than thrilled with his haul, though I'd gladly take his loot.

Fay is such a babe.

We have yet to open presents, we're waiting for the rest of the family to get here. Then, we will start gorging on cookies and crackers and finger food galore until the roast is done.

I'm just so happy to have my family around me. I spent so many years overseas with just friends, that while I always had a good time, there was always something a little missing. Family. Even when it means stupid presents you can't use and arguments over politics, it's still the only way Christmas feels like Christmas.

Presents have been opened. JZ got Emmett the Puppybowl on DVD which caused much squeeage, and is now playing while we eat our way through cheesy eggs and bacon and raspberries and mimosas. EM and Emmett are assembling Playmobil. JZ is contentedly flipping through her Taschen book on the history of fashion.

I scored an iPod! Last member of my family.

Emmett got a Mega-Gir and has been hugging his Calvin & Hobbes box set.

I'm getting JZ a sewing machine but decided to just go shopping with her to select one since I didn't want to buy it without her input. So I felt my presents for her were a little inadequate until I walked into Things From Another World on Friday and they had the just released Battled Damaged Angel Puppet from Smiletime. The clerk was pimping it to me, and I said, the main question is whether the nose comes off. He bent and looked and twisted and announced, "I see velcro! It comes off." JZ laughed and laughed and laughed like a drain when she opened it.

Emmett got so much stuff it's ridiculous. Insane amounts of presents. And he's still got presents to come from his godparents and JZ's family.

He's not complaining.

I'm drinking an Odwalla mimosa with Chandon champagne. Pretty spiff.

The Puppybowl=too cute.Loved it. I've never actually done the mimosa thing. Rocky says Hi. Actually just meow, but hey...

Not a single present has been opened here. Other peopel's families are so weird!

It's a changing world, Stephanie. When I was a kid and when my daughter was younger, we could barely last through breakfast without opening presents. Most of the time, we didn't. Now, it's all about delayed gratification. It's 12:30 here and we still haven't opened. Of course, we're waiting for my father and my brother who are both constitutionally incapable of being on time for anything.

Yeah, I just need to chill. Not have expectations. I just had this vision of Ellie's Firt Christmas and it's not working out that way. It will be okay, I know. I'm going to try vw's radical acceptance thing and see if that helps. After all, it's been a fine day, just not what I thought.

Merry Winter Thing, everybody!

We opened presents last night, which included a yoga mat and Kate Bush's latest for her, and a small Peruvian chess set and a brand new 10" c-wrench for me.

The Kate Bush cd is just fantastic. I've missed her these last twelve years. Her music is amazing and her lyrics are, as always, uniquely Kate Bush. The last song on the first disc includes the following bit of imagery that is as masterful and poetic as she's ever been:

There's a city, draped in net
Fisherman net
And in the half light, in the half light
It looks like every tower
Is covered in webs
Moving and glistening and rocking
It's babies in rhythm
As the spider of time is climbing
Over the ruins

Happy Season's Weirdness, everyone!

Deena, insent (not necessarily coherent, but I was in the middle of a coughing fit, so what can I say?)

I may have talked my sister into drinking a hot toddy. All of her boys are very musical - the youngest in 8th grade is in some kind of regional multi-school-district honors orchestra or ensemble, and the older three are all in garage bands. The eldest is earning extra cash not only leading the occational worship service at church, but also just about ready to be actually getting paid for gigs with his band.