"It's Xmas - Can't we all just get along"

1) A gift 2) Mindy opeing her fuzzy socks 3) Jimmy's Dremel Tool 4) Old Man's Cave get-away 5) Mindy's gifts under the tree Merry Xmas!! What was that noise? Was it Santa Claus? No. Were the kids up milling about the hallway? No, not that I could see. Where was all this noise coming from? Turns out, Jacob had gotten up at 5am to seek what Santa had brought him. Mindy insisted that he go back to sleep. He found his way to the foot of our bed where laid thrashing about until about 7:30am. His continuous stream of noise woke me several times and for good. I asked Mindy for some time to knock out my exercises before the kids embarked on their Xmas experience, and she kindly obliged me by keeping Jacob at bay. Bella was still sleeping. Jacob came downstairs but Mindy didn't allow him into the family room where Santa had placed most, if not all, of his gifts. I was back from walking Ykraps in no time at all. And for the record, it was a drizzly, gray, & mild Xmas day. That makes two in a row. If you recall, the early wintry weather we endured last year ended abruptly just a couple days before Xmas leaving in its wake, cool, gray, damp, and dreary. The winter chill (daily high's below freezing) never reappeared until February, and even then it never sunk too low. Mindy put the our Xmas breakfast casserole in the oven just before we got going with the gift opening. It was time to open gifts. The kids were as excited as ever. I was there with them last year too, but I had forgotten the mystique that surrounds such a morning for them. They were beyond syked! They dumped their stockings first, a Mindy Thompson family tradition. It was full of all sorts of things - but mostly candy and toiletries. Onto their "Santa" gifts - another Mindy Thompson tradition. They both had a heaping pile of these gifts, although Jacob worked his way through his in a matter of just a few minutes, never stopping to revel in anyone particular item. Bella, on the other hand, took time to celebrate each item and wanted to fully open the package and play. I In fact, we had to encourage her to move onto the next. And just like any big brother would do whose pile was exhausted, Jacob insisted on helping Bella open hers. After the Santa gifts, the kids moved on to their Mommy - Jimmy gifts. They had a healthy stack of those, too. Jacob's most prized gifts seemed to be his new Game Boy Advanced and his authentic junior sized NFL football. Bella got a high-end electronic piano and a Leapster personal electronic game console, too. Sadly, both of her personal electronic devices were defective. They'd both need returned. She found other things to play with though - mostly make-up and stuff. Now it was time to move onto big people gifts. Mindy asked that I go next. In my stocking were lots of my favorite toiletries: some deodorant, mouthwash, chewing gum, and new electric toothbrush heads. Included in my personal pile of gifts were some pink Floyd pajamas, a new running shirt, and a Columbia fleece jacket (I was with her when she bought the latter two items). I also got a Deluxe Dremel Tool kit with a plethora of attachments. Watch out Dr March. Now I'm a dentist too! A warning comes with each Dremel Tool that it shouldn't be used for personal dentistry. :) My surprise gift was a bottle of champagne with a card attached that told of a weekend get-away in Hocking Hills over Martin Luther-King weekend. Next, it was Mindy's turn. In her stocking, Mindy got some sterling silver "big" earrings, some Reece's Peanut Butter Cups, and a Charles Penzone's GC for a full body massage. In her pile of gifts she got two pair of pajamas, some soft & fluffy socks, a case of wine, some perfume. Her special gift was a photo album I built that contained pictures of memorable events from each month of the past year all labeled and in order. Just as our gift exchange came to an end, brother Tommy and his girlfriend Heather arrived (we were expecting them). Glenn woke too. Just as they began opening their gifts, I went and found my running clothes for a yuletide run. I headed out into the Xmas morning air - again, it was gray & mild with a hint of drizzle every now and then, but nothing to heavy coming down. I made my way back home by about 10:30am or so. I changed back into my pajamas then returned downstairs for some breakfast casserole and mimosa. Everyone else had already eaten - the price I pay for being a runner! http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20061227/ap_on_sc/cinnamon_sound Glenn called and connected with my dad to plan his pick-up and ultimate drop-off/hand-off to my mom somewhere close to halfway between Columbus and Jackson. Minutes later, dad arrived to pick him up. Tommy and Heather departed for other family activities. I got in the shower while everyone visited. I bidded Glenn farewell just in case I wouldn't see him after my shower. Despite staying in Ohio until early Friday morning, he very likely had spent his last day with all of us. He would spend the rest of the week with our mother. After my shower they were still there. We said goodbye one more time to both Dad and Glenn. After the left we loaded the Trooper with gifts, goodies, and kids and headed to Mindy's mom's for Xmas with the Thompson's. We arrived at Gloria's house around 1:20pm. We were uncharacteristically late and the last folks there. Mindy said her momma would not be happy. Like last Xmas, everyone was gathered in the family room in the lower level, and more than half the room was filled with Xmas presents. All of Mindy's siblings and their families were there minus the two fireman, her brother Todd and brother-in-law, Larry, who were both on duty today. Her brother Craig brought a couple of friends (John & Steve) who are from the DC area. They have a very interesting story. They met at a Catholic Monastery in upstate NY twenty some years ago. Since leaving, John has become a Community College President and Steve an artist and Clinical Psychologist. The gift exchange began almost as soon as we arrived. Todd, who was on duty, was able to get away for an hour or so to do gifts. The gift exchange went on for nearly two hours as each gift bearer took a turn passing out all of their gifts. The little ones got oodles of presents, but come to think of it, so did the adults. We didn't have a formal sit down dinner, but there was plenty of food for all. We hung out for the better part of the day. Before gathering everything to leave we all headed upstairs for the Thompson Xmas tradition of 'ice box' cookies. Leaving was another adventure. We filled two 55 gallon trash bags full of gifts as well as two other large shopping bags. Plus we had a couple of large boxes. Finally, we were destined for home. At home Mindy readied the kids for bed and then she and I had a drink. I had Jack and Coke. She had wine. We were in bed before 10pm.