Merry Christmas, Officer (The Christmas Recap)

Here is my holiday recap, complete with visit from the police. Yes, the police. And no, my family isn't usually the kind that appears on a special holiday episode of "COPS".

Christmas Eve - Made a huge smorgasbord of appetizers. Huge. Way to much food. I admit it, I have a tendency to go overboard. And what's really bad is that before I say the food splayed across the table and kitchen counter, I was worried that I didn't have enough. We had mini cheeseburgers, mini meatball subs, seven layer dip, hot artichoke dip, pizza, boneless buffalo wings and deviled eggs with Christmas cookies and hot mini jelly doughnuts for dessert. And that was because the salami and cheese and cracker tray got put back in the fridge (not to fear, it got eaten on Christmas day.) It was a lot of food. Lots of mini food. Whoever invented the mini food was an evil genius. It's fun to eat and because it's so small you eat like a half dozen mini burgers without guilt because they are so small, only to find yourself enormously stuffed.

We also played the new Wii game I got for the family. "Raving Rabbids TV Party". What a fun and interactive game. It involves these insane bunnies who take over your television. They have these weird television show spoofs that turn into games you play with the Wii-mote, the nunchuck and the Wii Fit balance board. There are more than 65 different games but we only played a small portion of them. One game you had to sit on the balance board and use the wii-mote and nunchuck to mimic riding a motorcycle (steering with your butt) and one game that you had to dance to the Wham! song "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" (I won that one due to my 80's song experience and impressive dancing skills.) Some of the games frustrated my mom but we were all just learning the rules. Val ended up winning by one point over me at the last minute even though my brother had been in the lead most of the game. All in all it was a great game for any time you want to move, laugh and scratch your head.

After Will and Val left my mom and I wrapped presents and listened to Christmas carols. We were up till almost midnight. Long day.

Christmas Day - I scheduled dinner for 4pm so that we had a leisurely day. I made cinnamon rolls for breakfast. After a leisurely morning we got the table set for diner and I put the prime rib in the oven at around 12:30. After failing several times at prime rib to get it cooked to make everyone happy (2 people like it rare, 5 people like it medium well - don't yell at me that that's too overcooked, it's the way they like it and it was still delicious) I finally figured out how to please everyone...2 prime ribs, a small two pound cut for the rare ones, put in an hour before the large six pounder was done. It was rubbed with a salt/pepper/rosemary/thyme/Worcestershire rub then slow roasted. I had made the beets and cooked the carrots the day before and with Will and Val bringing the mashed potatoes, my prep was pretty simple. I made the Yorkshire pudding batter then sat back to relax until the roast came out and I glazed the carrots, heated the beets, roasted the asparagus and baked the Yorkshire pudding. Most of the cooking was accomplished in under thirty minutes which left plenty of time for PRESENTS!

Everyone got a crisp $50 bill from my Uncle and Roberta. Mine will go to buying a bottle of cologne I have my eye on. ("Fresh: Sugar Lemon" in case you care.) The Graminator got a purse, scarf and a ton of Kleenex (inside joke) from Will and Val, a new nightgown from my mom and a puzzle, bath products and a foot warmer from me. Mom got a gift card (for buying a dress for the wedding) and scarf from Will and Val and Gram and I got her new outdoor light fixture for the front of the house and I got her a broom vac for cleaning up the cat litter that the cat scatters daily without having to lug out the big vacuum. Val got the jewelry box she asked for from my mom and me, plus a heated throw to snuggle under from mom and a new DS game and funnel cake maker from me. Will got her a box of socks (inside joke from how he proposed to her last Christmas) and Gram got her a calendar. Will got a new stockpot (an pasta, olive oil and Italian seasoning) from mom and me, plus a new Wii game from me and Wii zapper from mom. I also got him the new Dennis Leary book and Val got him a book too. (If it seems like Will and Val didn't get each other much, remember that they are now headed to Modesto to celebrate Christmas a second time with her family so they had to split the presents up.) We gave Roberta a 'cozy kit' with a snuggly blanket, Audrey Hepburn movies, book, tea and new slippers. Will and Val got her a scarf and hair ties and a gift card to Teavana. Stuart got a bottle of Sake from Will and Val and a coffee table book on antique guitars from Mom, The Graminator and me. I also got him some tea and the worlds largest tea infuser (a joke since he said he uses 11 tea bags each morning.)

The funniest present moment was when my dog found her present from Will and Val. It was a box of gourmet dog cookies but on top was a tiny stuffed toy. She took the present off the stack and dragged the box along the floor, carrying the little stuffed toy in her mouth. The box of treats was almost a big as she was and it was hysterical to see her drag it across the room.

Now me. I got a set of Skull Candy earphones for my iPod and $40 from Will and Val to use for apps for my touch. Mom got me a clock radio/dock for my iPod and two new games for my DS along with a new stylus. If my presents make me sound like I'm a college age boy instead of a 36 year old woman, well, I like my toys, that's all I can say.

After presents I went to the the prime rib(s) out of the oven and start the Yorkshire pudding. My brother came in and helped me glaze the carrots when we heard someone bang loudly on the door. I peeked through the kitchen curtains to see a couple of Las Vegas Metropolitan Police officers on our front porch. We held the dogs back while my brother answered the door. It seems that there was a 911 call that disconnected from our house. It seems that the weather (it was pouring rain and the wind was howling) had knocked our phone out and in older neighborhoods like ours that sends a 911 signal out. When the operator couldn't call the number back they send a unit out to investigate. I checked the phone and sure enough, it was all crackly and had no dial tone. The officer said that it happens occasionally but he asked if he could come inside and check just to make sure everything was alright. Of course we let him in and he could see that we were just enjoying a family holiday. We tried to offer him some food for his trouble but he said they had to go check some other houses. God Bless the police officers who give up their holidays to make sure the rest of ours are safe. And it certainly added a memorable moment to our celebration. We never would have known about the phone otherwise because just a little while later when the rain and wind stopped, the phone rang with holiday greetings from our friend Brigeda.

After digesting a while it was time for dessert. The chocolate fudge cheesecake was delicious as was the apple crumb pie that Will and Val bought. My brother was complaining of sugar shock when he was done but it was still yummy. Here is a picture of the cheesecake. The 'poinsettia' decoration on top is made out of gum, can you believe it? Wish I could say I though of it but I saw it in a magazine. It's so cute!

Will and Val are now on their way to Modesto while they left Pax with us for the week. It was an awesome Christmas, although there is a huge pile of dishes in the sink that my mom and I just couldn't face last night. Hmm, maybe next year I should ask Santa for a dishwasher. But we have a new fridge full of leftovers and I have some new games to play and music to listen to. I hope that you all had as wonderful a Christmas as I did. Happy Holidays, Loyal Readers!