Christmas time around here is always a time of great fun and excitement, and this year was no different. As mentioned in my previous post, my Nannie, my mom's mom, moved in, and so there was a bit more incentive for the entire family to come here. Usually they all end up swinging by, but it was easier to just have one dinner in one place, allowing everyone to spend time together.
We had 25 people seated at dinner. We have a huge dining room, so that was no big deal, but the meal was amazing as always. My mom has it down to a science now, and while I know it was a lot of work for her, it's spread out over a series of days so it wasn't that bad. Getting the place cleaned and in order was a little annoying, but in the end, the house looked great and even with that many people in the house, we weren't uncomfortable. We managed to Skype with my cousin Roxanne, who's in Winnipeg and celebrating her recent betrothal, so that was nice. Later, the family moved downstairs and we turned on the Kinect.
The next little bit may sound like some promotional work for Kinect, but I love that system. Last year, we had everyone in the house playing except for my two grandmothers, which is saying something considering some of the more reluctant members of my family. This year was more of the same, with some new games, and some new fun. The Kinect unit is really responsive and I am always impressed with how well it works. Also, the games are only getting better, adding voice commands and making for some great fun. We ended up playing until 4am, losing track of time. One surprising and memorable moment was when my dad got up and danced while we played the Michael Jackson game! My dad is a quiet and not very outgoing man, and I've only seen him dance 3 other times in his life, one of those being during my parent's wedding reception. Anyway, it was a really great evening, as I've said.
Christmas Day. Finally. It was a quiet day, and well, anything would be compared to how we spent Christmas Eve. My mom, dad, sister, and Nannie spent the entire day in our pajamas relaxing together. While my parents had said they weren't doing Christmas gifts this year, Santa did happen to give us some movies to watch as a family. Additionally, owing to some ignoring of finances and an overwhelming desire to give back, I got my family some gifts. The one I was most excited about was a Dungeons and Dragons Player's Handbook for my sister. I'd mentioned it to her and to my mom and both are interested in trying it out over the break. I will work on getting my dad involved, but he may see it as a silly waste of time. We'll see.
So, back to movies. We watched Mr. Popper's Penguins, which was actually quite good; Cars 2 which was better than the first one, having a spy theme and Michael Caine in it; and Cowboys and Aliens, which I had seen before but enjoyed watching again. It was a nice evening, and one I really was looking forward to and needed.
That being said, I look forward to the rest of my holidays. I have a few, very important things to do, and it is my goal to get them done. I hope you all are having a great holiday, and whether you celebrate Christmas or not, I hope you take the time to celebrate being with family, and taking care of what matters.
I've been neglecting that, but I'm working on it. Thanks for reading.
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