Rings On Her Fingers

It was a smaller Christmas party so I brought in a smaller tree.  It set my heart to fluttering when I got the text down in the barn, "We're on our way!"  I make no secret of how I feel when my Kids are coming up and besides, it was Christmas!

 Bessie Anne nosed through all of the packages that Deb and Craig brought in until she found the ones with her name (they never forget her or Pearl).  This lucky pup got a new "Skinny" toy (the kind without stuffing) and a big container of special treats.  "Open it, Mom!  I have no thumbs.  Open it now!"

The gang that was here for Christmas-I left their gifts for Deb and Craig, so poor Craig was left to play ninja all by himself and that made Deb the target of the blowgun and throwing stars.  He managed to squeeze into the ninja vest (made for a four-year-old).  The whole family agreed that putting a five-dollar limit on gifts calls for creativity and a lot of fun.

Let there be light!  Craig is modeling the wonderful hardhat with LED lights he made some years back for me.  He put new fixtures on it, even brighter than the old ones.  This hat is so great for nighttime walks with Bess or after-dark chores, leaving both hands free.  I always laugh at the thought of anyone seeing these disembodied lights floating above the ground at night and wondering if aliens had landed from outer space.

"Rings on her fingers and bells on her toes.  She shall have music wherever she goes."  So goes an old bit of doggerel.  For me, from now on it will be rings and bells and phones (and lights) wherever I go.  Deb and Craig stuck to the imposed limit, but their cat, Clyde, went way over the top.  My wireless phones had given up the ghost and only the base station still worked.  Once having had the freedom of a wireless, being tethered to the land line was like going back to the dark ages.  Clyde, who never minds anyone, presented me with a five-, count 'em, five-phone set of wireless.  I will even have the luxury of a phone in the bathroom!  How's that for one-ups? After a wonderful day with two of my most favorite people in the world, I spent several happy hours with the instruction manual programming the phones.  In addition, I was given a set of (3) nightlights that have a battery backup that kicks in during a power outage.  These could quite literally be lifesavers on a dark night.

I am all for having two (or more) Christmases a year.  Just think, when the boys come up again they will open the gifts Deb and Craig left for them.  It never ends!