Christmas 2025

Merry Christmas!  Today was a huge day, just like all Christmas Days are, and it started out early for Mom and I.  We were getting things ready for our visitors today, cleaning up a bit and making some more of that delicious cranberry sauce that we did back for Thanksgiving.  Yummy!  We got all the ingredients recently, and got busy with that, and then the deviled eggs, and then this time, Mom's legendary sweet potato casserole.    The weather outside was not frightful at all - it was really warm today.  You could walk around out there with a short sleeved shirt without even thinking about cold.  I took a few pictures around the house as we were waiting for Maddie to arise from bed.  She - in all our history - has never gotten up early for Christmas.  Ever.  If we only knew, we'd not have to stay up so late on Christmas Eve!  Anyway, here are a few pictures taken on Christmas Day in the morning before Maddie got up.

Here's the two gnomes that Nate got for Mom for Christmas.

Our piano room tree.  Looks great in there!

The amaryllis has bloomed - just in time for Christmas Day!

The presents under the tree, waiting for everyone to come and get busy!

Our newest elf on the shelf looks down at the Christmas scene.

Mom's new Charles Dickens collection.

Maddie got up and saw her first Christmas gift:  two tickets to the Star Wars-themed hockey game.

Appropriately enough, they were on the Star Wars tree upstairs!

The Nativity set and some pleasant Christmas fragrances coming from the infuser.

Maddie and Mom on Christmas morning!

The unwrapping begins!

Maddie begins to open gifts, while wearing that axolotl Christmas hat.

A gift from Plaidington Bear!

Oh, film of course.  Gotta' have film.

I got four bars of Marvel-themed soap.  Nice!

I got some great things this morning, including a Terry Pratchett Discworld atlas, movies, CDs, new sneakers, t-shirts, books - Mom loved her sweater we wrote about earlier on this site, the one I snuck out to get Friday.  There was also the hydroponics set that we'll be trying out too - ever since I went to EPCOT in the early 1980's, I've wanted my own hydroponics set!  Mom and I will be chronicling that soon enough.  Mom got some good things, some items with gnomes, some clothing, and some interesting puzzle games we'll be trying out soon too.  

Getting the food ready - including our famous cheese hedgehog.

Candy and cookies - plus our reindeer friend.

The table's set, the Christmas dining room is ready to go!

Here's Mom's tree on Christmas Day.

I got a few more silver coins!  Just a few!

After the Christmas chaos, all the gifts went over to the piano room tree.  Looks nice!

Our Nativity set on Christmas Day.

A new Santa - a POP version from "Nightmare Before Christmas."

Mom's new nutcracker from our recent trip to Dahlonega.

Fireplace candles are lit for our visitors, who are almost here!

Candles lit here too.  And we have Christmas crackers as well!

Christmas fragrances - smells nice!

Love these windmill cookies!

And pfeffernusse!  

These are so delicious!

I ate too many cookies today!

And fudge!  We got this at the Fudge Factory.

Here's that tasty cranberry sauce we made.

Deviled eggs.  Don't worry - we fed the birds outside too, plus our little cat visitors!

Our visitors arrived - Ye-Ye and Nana, Aunt Shain, David, Jonathan and Hannah - plus Jonathan's friend, Miriam.

Time to eat!  The catered food from Cracker Barrel had ham, potatoes, muffins, macaroni and cheese, and and green beans.  Mom and I made other additions too, for a big feast!

Afterwards, it was time to open presents!  I got all kinds of new things: vinyl records, clothing, and some great stuff!  

And then it was time for the White Elephant Gift Exchange!  This year, Mom and I actually did well - I got a Mr. Potato Head and Mom got some "Trolls" themed cars to give to our friend Bailee at the office.  One of the other things we brought was perfectly crazy:  a "Poo Curling Game."

Afterwards, it was time for dessert and the Christmas crackers!  Inside were gifts, paper crowns, and bad jokes.  The paper crowns look great!

Mom heated up the Christmas pudding, and the hidden sixpence was under Aunt Shain's plate, meaning she's got good luck for the new year!  Mom made a delicious custard sauce to go over the pudding, and everyone enjoyed it!

We talked for a good bit at dessert, but it was getting late.  Time for everyone to head back and get some rest.  We said our happy goodbyes, as the day was drawing to a close. 

Ah, here's Maddie with a dog collar on - it's a new game she got for Christmas with silly rules and props... no doubt Nate will be wearing this soon!

Maddie at the base of the tree, checking out the Christmas booty, just like old times.

She started her Star Wars puzzle tonight.  1000 pieces, so it might take a little bit!

We watched a few things tonight under the tree. 

We were wiped out, and just sat beneath the tree watching television before bed tonight.  We checked out "The Chosen" Nativity story with shepherds and messengers, and then a few things about the White House Christmas, followed by us watching this insane drive through a Christmas-themed tunnel in Kentucky.  We even had time to watch the Disney World Parade footage - that was pretty fun as always.  Oh, and the Gävle Goat is still up - it made it another Christmas!

We closed out the day with reading from Maddie's new book, a "Monk" themed one that started out pretty well.  First chapter down, and we'll see what happens next, but we enjoyed it.  We said our prayers after that, and then it was time for some well-earned rest!  Merry Christmas everyone!