The Last Christmas Post... Finally.

After doing the Christmas thing in Logan and at home, we moved on to my parents house. Here is Uncle Dennis hoarding Eva's Christmas present. Completely class, nephew is entertained with a box.

I got my parents these blanket sleeping bag things to use when watch TV. A few weeks before Christmas, my dad showed me the Cabella's catalog and said that is what he wanted. Just like a little kid. They are actually perfect for vegging out. Here, my mom happily models hers.

This has been tradition for as long as I can remember... everyone hangs out in the front room playing with their Christmas presents. Even though there are places to sit, most of us choose the floor. There are always lots of naps and tons of junk food.

Alvey's chocolates, and a crab dinner are also tradition.

There were also a few new additions to the dinner table... all of it super delicious and super beautiful. My mom is an amazing cook. Man, I love eating at her house.

A few bonuses this year:

We always drink a ton of root beer during the holidays. This year we found this keg, it was perfect. Bo made a great pho dinner with chicken wings, (one of my favorite salads ever) green papaya salad, and fried bananas and mangoes. We are always excited for Dennis and Bo to come visit, and we always hope that she will cook for us. My whole family loves food. It isn't just me.

I have no idea how the topic came up but Dennis somehow got the kids excited about a "clean room contest" that he invented. Samuel, Eva, and Katie, were especially excited. I just kind of thought Katie would be a shoe in (she seriously has asked me to wipe my counter off before she sat at it, the whole family is totally tidy). Dennis calls and says he is stopping by. I don't think anything of it and, and mention it to my kids. They move faster than I have ever seen them move and the start cleaning their rooms like mad. Samuel piled everything he owned onto his desk. As Dennis and Bo were "inspecting" Eva's room, Eva kept pushing the lid of her desk down. Any ideas where she stashed all her stuff?

Dennis then took it even further. During dessert he stands up with envelopes and starts giving awards like, "the biggest room," "second place," and, in case the winner is not able to keep her room clean the, "first runner up." In each envelope he put cash and the winner got $10 in the envelope and a trophy! He went a got a trophy made with "UNCLE DENNIS cleanest room award 2008" engraved on it. Eva won. Samuel got second place. Katie, who got first runner up, felt totally cheated (I think it has to do with the fact that she has probably never seen Eva's room clean and hers is almost always clean). Samuel was so mad that he didn't get a trophy. Every time Dennis walked by he would say, "I hate dollars."

And last but not least... in all the holiday celebrations, we seemed to end most nights with a little (or a lot) of Settlers of Catan. Dennis was the champion, with four wins. I wanted to beat him so bad.

I love games. Games are my favorite.

What do you mean Christmas was almost a month ago? Oh, well, I guess that just kind of shows how my life is.