Humanoid?
I got a new jacket, slippers, and new ties. What a lovely Christmas. A beautiful Christmas. Merry Christmas to all of you.
Anything’s possible.
I never opened mine, just didn’t feel like it. Wife will probably make me sometime today though.
I got a Kitchenaid stand mixer, which is something that I’ve always wanted. It’s the best present I’ve ever gotten, and I’ve gotten diamond earrings, which should tell you something about how much I love to cook and bake.
That’s a nice present. 
I know, I’ve already used it three times.
My employer gave me a nice bonus
My brother gave me a calendar of Broadway musicals. With two tickets to HAMILTON inside!
I got a $350 bonus (after deductions). Not bad for a non-profit company. And the Christmas party was at Daniel’s Broiler in Redmond, where most of us had awesome filets mignon.
I don’t know if they come with these now, but if not, get yourself one ASAP. Makes baking a whole lot easier. I can also vouch for the pasta roller and grinder attachments.
I got some Christmas money, with which I got art supplies, a pair of jeans, makeup, a cd player, and a copy of The Last Tsar. Also, someone who I barely know gave me a coat and a couple more pairs of jeans. Not bad.
My best gift was having my family all here and having fun, with two grandchildren chasing each other around the house while the newest one slept through it all.
The oldest (5 years) grandchild’s school had a special gift sale for kids to buy Christmas gifts for family. It was wonderful to see her joy as she handed out presents to everyone.
My big present was a new Brother sewing machine. I also got some clothes, a bunch of stuff for my cube at work (new mini fridge, calendar, clock, two more Funko Pops, an antique-y tissue box), two Gil Elvgren prints, some books, a bunch of pasta-making supplies, perfume, some charms for my bracelet (Guardians of the Galaxy) and a few other items of jewelry, several classic horror movies, a down blanket, a bunch of stuffed animals, a 4th Doctor hat (already had the scarf), a mirror for my bike helmet, and a pair of Converse sneakers. Mom sent a check that we’ll use for a nice dinner and Star Wars tickets.
The better half did pretty well; his big present was a brick on the pathway at the National Museum of the Marine Corps. He also got clothes, Ugg shoes, a drone, the Pirates of the Caribbean movies, Robot Chicken Star Wars, a convection oven, a headphone amplifier thing that I don’t really understand but he was SUPER excited about, some art books* and several statues, a very large box full of Spiderman compendiums, a steam cleaner, a beer-of-the-month subscription, a shoe shine kit, several canvases made from photos from one of our vacations, and a calendar. I also donate money every year to charity in his name; this year it was the WWF.
I joked that this year we had a definite theme going- stuff for work, and stuff involving naked people. It made for an interesting mix.
*Including Michael Stokes’ “Always Loyal” which is ridiculously amazing.
Mine was odd but awesomely great. My side of the family (the part that gets together–my mom, dad, sis and fiancee, and The Fella and I, and my sometimesthere Kinda Krazy Uncle) don’t exchange gifts anymore. Everyone is an adult. There aren’t any kids. No one just wants to buy something to buy something. So everyone but my sis and her fiancee had breakfast together, with everyone contributing food. Krazy Uncle can COOOOOOK! I’m not bad, but he’s great.
Then we had gotten tickets online to see a movie at an Alamo Drafthouse. (You can reserve seats and they serve real food.) Unfortunately, the tickets were bought for one theatre. Everyone from the family breakfast went to one place:my sister and her fella ended up at the correct one . Drama ensued.
It all worked out. Saw a movie. Had a great time!
We drove from Austin to Houston to drop off our ailing dog at home (long sad story) and went to The Fella’s kids’ get together. (All adult coupled kids and one grandchild.)
This was my first Christmas to spend time with his family. (They did stuff with their mom (the ex) on Christmas Eve. )
He’d been in charge of the gifts, b/c I had no idea what the gift giving situation was with him and he couldn’t tell me. So basically every couple got the same gift (tool related) and the grandson got a box of little tikes type plastic tools. MASSIVE HIT.
And then they gave us great gifts. One daughter remembered that I like a certain kind of a pattern of china. (Not an expensive one, just a mid-cent I like) She got me coffee set. My mind was blown.
Another couple got me coffee beans and a HPB giftcard.
Another got us a flapjack/breakfast making kit that looks AWESOME.
I think they may actually begin to be liking me! Yay!!
Best Christmas present ever!
I got a nice scarf, a soft blanket and a snuggie (can you tell I get cold easily?). My oldest son bought me a facebook card for my farmville game and bought his dad a bottle of Patrone (sp) (it’s a tequila).
I bought Mistermage a collection of Clint Eastwood movies, two 30 year old stocking caps (they are his favorite kind but are getting harder to find as 1) they are old and 2) they were a promotion item) and a couple used DVDs from a series he likes.
Mistermage bought me a new pc that I am anxiously awaiting for it to arrive. I killed my pc over the summer but money is tight so I’ve been using an older win 7 model. I go through a lot of pcs. It’s not so much viruses but more the combination of my nicotine residue and the parrot’s bird dust coats the insides and they eventually overheat. Then my sons descend like vultures and pick out the working pieces to upgrade their pcs. This win 7 pc will be placed in our bedroom so Mistermage can surf with it vs using his laptop.
I got exactly what I wanted: an electric pressure cooker (which was suggested when I was asked if I had requests,) and Harper Lee’s new novel (which the Boy chose for me, based on the fact that I mentioned it ages ago, love “To Kill a Mockingbird,” and hadn’t yet been able to borrow it from the local library.) And a nice little mini vacation from my parents, to enjoy with my daughter and her friend - part Christmas for me, part birthday for the girl.
The Littles got Big Wheels and baby dolls and board games and books, and enough Play Doh to sink the Bismarck. (Amazon Black Friday: 36 cans for 12 bucks. Each got a box. And KMart Black Friday - modeling toys for about $5 each. And free shipping on $35 orders. $2 board games, $1 gloves, $2 fuzzy blankets, etc.) The Bigs mostly got nice detailed engravings of dead presidents and founding fathers, plus gloves and fuzzy blankets and stuff. The Foodie Boy is enjoying the “Eat the World” special shipment (3 boxes of random exotic foods for the price of one. Fleur de sel and olive oil and ginger cookies and spiffy moutarde and such. And some really nice dark chocolate with cocoa nibs and Genoa salami that the local grocery put on clearance as they discontinued a brand. He’s fun to shop for!) Girl 2.0 got new jammies for our trip, and much nicer makeup than she can generally afford, thanks to a local Ultra grand opening and some good couponing. The Fellow got the traditional new socks and underoos and gadgety flashlight (I swear, the man has a flashlight fetish!) Plus a small bottle of good bourbon and a wireless phone charger. The kids got him a Bluetooth speaker that he loves - he and the Littles fell asleep tonight, watching movies on the tablet together It was a very good Christmas!
I’m trying to declutter my life, so I asked to be given only things I’ll actually use. We also agreed to spent less than $15 per person, and went out for a nice dinner and drinks.
I was given
1 Scratch ticket from my grandmother (I won $5!)
Tickets to see Loreena Mckennit in March with my mom.
A hand-painted tea mug and a houseplant from my youngest sister.
Nail polish, a scarf, and a houseplant from my middle sister.
A water bottle from my eldest sister (I’ve been really needing one!)
All in all, a great holiday. I bought everyone(my mom and 3 sisters) delicious lotion and perfume from Bath and Body Works. My s/o doesn’t celebrate the holidays (and I don’t celebrate Christmas) so it wasn’t a huge deal this year. It was more like a fun night out with the family. I had a blast!
Mostly awful stuff from my extended family this year - I’m getting the feeling they really don’t listen when they ask what I would like.
High point was the Lego UCS TIE Fighter from my wife and kids. http://brickset.com/sets/75095-1/TIE-Fighter
Makes a nice companion to the UCS X-wing I got for my birthday a few years back. LEGO 10240: Red Five X-wing Starfighter | Brickset: LEGO set guide and database
My dad gave me $100 and that was the only thing I got. Not even a token, “Merry Christmas.” Although I did go to two family dinners and probably got a few holiday type greetings there.
Think I got the same for the last several years and expect the same next year. Unless the cancer does dad in. No check in the mail then.
My mom gave us a check. Our daughter gave us a framed photo of her dog with one of the cheeziest Santas I’ve ever seen!
We did a white elephant and a $10 gift exchange, both tied to games, so much stealing was involved. In the end, I had a pashmina and a box of my nephew’s field day participation medals. Honestly, the games were much more fun than any gifts could have been - they started before dinner and continued for several hours after.
I’m glad it’s all over for another year. Back to work…