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*Fake Louis Vuitton Speedy Bag
*1 Liter of Kiehl's Creme de Corps (came with Kieh's magnet!!! yes!!!)
*Pink v-neck cashmere sweater
*Dark grey straight skirt with pleats in back
*Light grey silk top
*Funky black hoodie with buttons and zips
*Black corset top with polka dots
*A few other things I'm returning (my sisters and I are all returning a lot of things, lol)
*Stuffed white teddy bear
*Chihuahua book
Twinkie got a stuffed cell phone. It's a Grrrrrizon, and the number to call her is 1-800-CELL-BONE.
A sterling silver heart from Tiffany's, two rings, lingerie, and a whole lot of satisfaction from seeing the faces of my family as they opened their gifts. A very Merry Christmas!
Oh yea, that was one of my BEST gifts- seeing my mom's face when she opened her Diane von Furstenberg wrap dress I got her at a sample sale. And it fit perfectly, thank goodness!
A pink DS Lite
Super Princess Peach
A Hello Kitty iPod dock/alarm clock
A picture of a bird flipping me off
A jacket, two shirts, one pair of pants, a scarf, a bunch of undies and a bra (from mom, ever practical)
A nice picture frame with a photo of me and my best friend
A Gilmore Girls box set
A heating pad (!?!)
A wine rack
Seriously best haul in years and years, makes me feel as if my own gift selections were inadequate.
To top it all off, I found some Abita Amber, Louisiana's finest beer, at Stop and Shop the other day. Now THAT is a Chrismannukah miracle.
Well it is not yet 9am and our teen will sleep till like 11, so no gift opening yet and when we do it will be modest.
I got my wife a memory foam pillow. . .she's wanted a tempurpedic for years but that is not in the cards but hopefully she till like the pillow, for starters. Got daughter a gift cert. for art supplies so she can pick out her own.
My mom gave me $250 which, coincidentally, is the price of the ipod that was stolen from me that I will replace, come friday.
Gave my brother the cookbook Diabetic Cooking for Dummies, and my semi closeted sister an Ellen Degeneres audio book. . they seemed to be succesful gifts, according to my mom on the phone.
I have no idea what I got, from the family, as of yet.
Merry Christmas to all of you bunnies and thanks TPS for starting this thread.
Oh, and a print from my mother's boyfriend, by the artist Rie Munoz. Check out her work! It's playful, colorful, and sweet. (Not the print shown, but they are all neat)
Cool stuff I got for Chanukkah:
-GPS unit for my tablet PC
-Subscription to Craft magazine
-A year of Peet's coffee
-Membership to the local botanical gardens
Cool stuff I gave for various winter holidays:
-Grownup-size Heeley's for my husband (those are the shoes with wheels that all the kids have these days)
-Harry & David honey pot along with a jar of gourmet honey
-Penzy's spices: a set of curries and a crate of different kinds of peppercorns with a couple of grinders
-Bug vacuum contraption for my 8 year-old nephew (with a catch-and-release feature for all the bug lovers out there)
-Monty Python bunny slippers with teeth
-And for the present I gave out to folks I didnt get unique gifts for: handcrafted dragon soaps with aromatherapy scents of Ylang Ylang, Clary Sage, and Bergamot for calming (custom blended by MeFis dejah420, who is a master soapmaker and all around sweetie)
My in-laws are big gift givers so I got quite a haul as well.
*ipod nano (product red) from my lovely husband
*design-your-own baseball team monopoly
*tops from banana republic
*notecards
*really funky swedish glassware
*some random kitchen stuff that I asked for
*itunes gift certificate
*scrubs dvds
*ann taylor gift certificate
*amazon.com gift cert.
*subscription to the Economist
*basset hound calendar :)
Replacement Griffin Ear Thumps for my iPod, beer from Ithaca brewing and a portable car battery charger (I have an alarming tendency to leave the dome light on).
An Oxo Mango Splitter (wanted one of those for the longest time)
A gizmo to allow me to neatly trim photos I've printed
Silicone bakeware (yay!)
Great chocolate, very dark, bitter chocolate
A little collection of plush Birds of America (eagle, cardinal, duck, etc.)
A candle that smells like ice cream
A calendar of scenes of Ohio
My family doesn't really do Christmas gifts, but I got some old jewelry from my grandfather that belonged to my grandmother. Nothing valuable at all, but oh so very valuable to me...
We do not exchange gifts in Christmas. Traditionally in Greece it is New Year's eve that Saint Basil (his nameday is on New Year's Day) comes to bring presents to kids. So. I will wait till then. But I know what I am getting. ipod. yay gaspode!
BUNNY SLIPPERS, a hairbrush, bath products,a teeny digital camera on a keychain, a Target gift card, two sets of earrings, the movie Wallace and Grommit: Curse of the Werebunnies, an art kit complete with easel,and a three-shelf vegetable bin that my dad made himself. That last one is a work of ART, I tell you. Carpentry is his hobby and he is very good at it-and now I have a place to put my potatoes and onions that is attractive to boot! Oh, and a hilarious apron which said on the front-"What part of 'it's not ready yet' don't you understand?!!"
We went over to my parents' house last night (sans pregnant daughter and son in law ) and had dinner and opened presents with them. My favorite aunt and uncle popped by-they knew the situation with my daughter and knew I'd not be stopping at their house the next day so they came to see me-telling me privately that daughter is always welcome at their house...then I got up at the crack of early today and made our own Christmas feast. Daughter and son in law joined me, hubs and the other two adult kids-opened tons of presents, ate way too much and had a blast. And yes, I wore my new apron. Heh.
This year had the potential to be a real trainwreck with my parents and my daughter not speaking. But it actually turned out to be an awesome holiday. Go figure.
brina, I have a couple of heating pads, the grain ones that go in the microwave and they are just wonderful. I use them to warm the bed, and they save on heating because I'll warm one up and lay it next to me on the sofa and it keeps me toasty warm. They're great for all kinds of aches and pains too.
I think the above post means I am officially an old lady
Christmas 2006 was pretty low-key for us; we didn't really realize it was happening until about a week ago.
I got my nephews some big fat gift certificates for iTunes. I got my mom a CD filled with different variations of the Pachelbel Canon. I got my grandmother a gigantic Pannetone and a couple of Valrhona chocolate bars. Normally, I would get her a book of crossword puzzles but her vision's going so I thought these would be more appropriate. I'm also going to help her move to a different nursing home.
My loot:
A gift certificate to Lenscrafters, so I can get myself some contact lenses.
essexjan: my friend bought me the heating pad so I'd stop complaining about my cramps every month. What she doesn't know is that I just need to renew my Rx for Tylenol 2, or have a laparoscopy. Either would do just fine.
I got a outdoor fire pit, some books(sex lives of cannibals, getting stoned with savages...both very good,) some money from the folks and some new shoes...a shirt from my favorite bar in the states(Jack o' the Wood in Asheville, NC)
Made some aromatic massage oils with some essential with my girlfriend for all the female relatives...solar power magazine subscription for my pops...
Nintendogs! There's the cutest little shih tzu puppy running around my DS now. Also a silver necklace for me to convert into earrings.
That's it really, my family isn't huge on the gift-giving or anything really Christmas-y, but we've been doing a lot of feasting with friends this year.
Twinkie got a stuffed cell phone. It's a Grrrrrizon, and the number to call her is 1-800-CELL-BONE.
I've never really understood Christmas, but that just warmed my cold, bitter heart.
I bought wells for two Honduran families that lack clean water for my mother, and gave the Environmental Law Institute money for my father. My mom sent me a Powells gift certificate, but I'm hoping she'll skip that next time and just send the money directly to a chimpanzee sanctuary. They need money a lot more than I do.
Apple iWork '06
Power Squid
The Book of Jhereg by Steven Brust
Be the Coolest Dad on the Block book
Swiss Army wallet (with $ in it!)
Gift cards for Apple store, Macy's and restaurants
T-shirts, underwear
Truffles
Gum
AND
an IOU for the impossible-to-find-at-retail-price NIntendo Wii!
dodgygeezer's stash sounds very cool. I love Pinky And The Brain - I didn't know you could get them separately on DVD.
I got my usual stash - nada. I gave up presents a few years ago - I don't give or receive anything. The present giving thing is so false, but I enjoy watching people get theirs with all the incumbent "if you don't like it, I've got the receipt" blurb.
My sister got The New English Kitchen, which is actually fairly low on recipes but high on excellent advice on what to buy, why and where from. I'll probably buy that myself. My sister also got engaged, much to the relief of my mum :)
From the mister:
- eighteen dvds (eight are on order)
- two candles
- a cool gargoyle
- four shirts
- a beautiful silky robe
- two pairs of GeekGirl earrings (on order)
- two SM Stirling novels (on order)
- miscellaneous yummy stuff
From Mum:
- The Gardner's Home Companion (my mum's a long time gardner and she says this is the bestest book for various reasons)
- a FiestaWare bowl (Heather)
- miscellaneous yummy stuff
The mister went seriously overboard this year. He gave me a limit to buy for him and I assumed it would be the same amount for him. We need to have a talk.
- A new purse (I actually saw it in the airport in Iceland and was drooling on it, so my husband confessed that he had planned to buy me a purse and bought it for me - though I had to wait until today to have it) from Marimekko.
- Pink and red striped Puma sneakers.
- Socks, underpants, and pajamas. (It's a tradition that my mama always gives me underpants and pjs for Christmas)
- Hats. I'm always losing mine, so my mother gave me three.
- Lotion, and lots of it. (Praise Dog, I had left my body butter in Iceland!)
- Towels
- CDs: Skakkamanage (an Icelandic band) and Damien Rice
- Black work shirts
- A book from my husband about someone who grew up with elephants. (This is the only book I got because it's out of print and thus followed my "You can't get me anything I can buy at Borders, because I work there and get a 33% discount" rule.)
- A funk looking scrubby brush for the kitchen, given to us by one of the Icelandic Yule Lads
Oh, I forgot to tell y'all-one of my husband's presents was pajama pants. Printed all over with the Monty Python killer bunny, and assorted sayings and blood spatters from the movie.
Some shirts and a nifty grown man wallet from my pops - my old wallet cost a dollar, was nylon and I was getting ready to write Black Sabbath on it with a silver paint marker.
I bought myself a bottle of Laphroaig, cheers.
That's it, all surplus money is spent on the kid, she got what she wanted* and we gave a sheep in her name to some people who needed a sheep, which she was into.
*Auntie gave her an ipod so she kicked her little ipod shuffle down to me in a move of charming little kid generosity. I also gave my darling wife and myself a pound of bacon to the dome for Christmas breakfast.
We did not open gifts until late tonight. We go crazy every year, this year I didn't have the money to buy a lot between being sick repeatedly and having pets attacked, dying pets, and all sorts of other fun. So I kinda felt bad about what I bought everybody else AND I had to borrow more money from my mother. I will likely not have her paid back until spring at best. Bleh. I hate it when I owe someone money. I kinda wish people had gotten me a bit less, but I know then they would feel kinda bad just like I do, so whatever I guess. Maybe next year I can go crazy and spend 3x what any sane person should.
I got:
Castlevania - Portrait of Ruin for Nintendo DS
Final Fantasy III for Nintendo DS
Final Fantasy V for Gameboy Advance
Star Wars Empire at War + Expansion for the PC
God of War for PS2
Castlevania for PS2 (the second one)
a pair of cargo pants, a pair of sweatpants, a handful of shirts, some flannel pajamas, several pairs of boxer briefs, some new flip-flop shoes (house shoes basically)
some sort of funky candle thing... it's shiny, I can't really describe it. i'll flickr it later
New electric razor (needed it badly, didn't expect it though)
Electric clock radio that displays the time on the ceiling and has "nature sounds" to wake you up like rain, lightning, forest, etc have not played around with this yet but looks interesting
a swiss ball
indoor/outdoor digital thermometer that can have up to 4 "stations" to check at various places (only came with one though)
a nail/staple gun with air tank (not a big one, smallish one for carrying around)
a little funky-shaped jar of jelly belly beans
a light-up keychain that will "find" your keys if you whistle at it (somewhat james bondish, that)
a crank-powered emergency flashlight
an eagles farewell tour dvd set thingy
the games are the only things i asked for and only because i couldn't think of anything else. i didn't get anything that I expect to take back though, which is always nice. i hate returning things.
and a friend gave me two memory cards for my camera and some flowers just before christmas, now if i can just get finished burning crap so i can send her gift before i go to floriduh (i am soooo slow, this is why i did not try to do xmas cards)
It's been a Very Tom Waits Christmas: got his new 3-disc set, plus the soundtrack to The Black Rider, plus The Tom Waits Reader (a collection of articles and interviews from the past several decades). Needless to say, this is my idea of heaven.
Also got several other books (I'm most looking forward to starting Thunderstruck tonight), some gold earrings, a new (and very cozy) bathrobe, a J. Crew gift card (got it last week, actually, and already made out like a bandit with all the pre-Xmas sales), a hand-decorated coffee mug (courtesy of my nephews), and a very cool vintage art deco mantel clock. Apparently something else is on its way, having got held up in shipment because of the blizzard earlier in the week, so I guess its not over yet.
-Perfume
-Necklace
-Jewelry tree
-Light up globe (!)
-Tiny stuffed moose with shirt that says "HUGS"
-Nice lotions
-Subscriptions to Cosmo & Cuisine magazine
-Stuffed hippo with a cupcake in its mouth (!)
-Andy Warhol wallet
-Hand-blown glass vase made by my friend
-Sunken Treasure DVD signed w/ personal message from Jeff Tweedy (!!)
-Candle that smells like french toast
-Pedicure kit
-Candy
-Cookbook
-Procrastinator's Planner 2007
...and my X-mas is not even over yet! Seriously it has been so good. Hope yours has been the same!
two pairs of knitted socks;
lots of chocolate;
a couple of books: "Fontanka 19", "The BFG (Big Friendly Giant)";
some Yerba Mate;
a "Gypsy Lock" (a literal translation from Estonian; it's a wooden puzzle thing that you take apart and have to put back together again);
AND a new tripod for my camera! Yay!
The New Tom Waits.
Beer.
Beer Glasses.
Cash (they were belated wedding presents).
We got everybody else nice gift baskets with Irving Farm coffee, booze, italian chocolates and a sweatshirt we found in Red Bank, NJ bearing the legend "Irish Italian Princess" for my sister. We got a great big plush Tigger for my neice and a baseball themed onesie reading "Rookie" for my new nephew.
I, well, we got a new computer!!! And a network router and right now I'm on the old computer and my son is on the new computer and two people can be on the intarnets simultaneously. Yay! Except that the router is acting as a firewall and it won't let us download that last all important patch for WoW and my son is pitching fits and now instead of just mellowly surfing I have to fix it. Also I have to fix the old computer which has taken to crashing regularly. Still. New computer!
And a bracelet, a tripod (which is the only thing I really, really wanted,) an Indian bedspread, a gift certificate to a local music store and a Barnes & Noble gift certificate, lovely, yay to my brothers for the gift cards. I gave my son a top hat & a bunch of clothes; my daughter also got a bunch of clothes, everyone got socks & shampoo & conditioner & coal in their stockings; I got my mom a jade turtle & I made Flickr/Qoop calendars for everyone which turned out very nicely.
i got two boxes of choccies. one contained 6 different chocolates from a local make that specialises in unusual flavours. they weren't labelled, but we're pretty sure one was oregano, another clove, and a third might have been a local hot, smokey spice whose name i can't remember (still have 3 to eat :o). the other box was more "normal", but very good quality and variety - an excellent creamy fudge, for example.
daniel - do you normally drink mate? if not, take it easy at first! the first time i tried it, i used a pretty full gourd and fresh mate at work. my co-workers thought it was hilarious that i ended up locked in the bathroom 30mins later. i was told later that it's best to start by emptying out the first few brews (so, pile the mate into whatever you're drinking from, add hot water, pour off, add more hot water, pour off, add more hot water and drink...)
ooh. The chocolates sound great. We picked up a dark chocolate and hot pepper bar a couple of days ago, but I was sort of disappointed; it just tasted like good chocolate + hot. I was hoping a little more actual pepper flavor would be apparent. The hot/smoky/spicy one sounds intriquing.
they were very subtle, although the oregano one was a bit weird. initially they taste like coffee chocolate - i think because that's the one "normal" chocolate flavour that's a bit more savoury - it's only as you have them in your mouth a while you start to think "ooh, that's ...". paulina says that she tried a celery one in the shop, when she went to buy them, and even that didn't have a strong taste.
i just found that they have a web site and this seems to be the closest to what i had (although i think pauli just picked 6 chocolates from their display cabinet).
subtle is good. Those look wonderful. I'll have to actually go have a look around and see what I can find along these lines. The one we tried was nice enough, but we just happened on it by accident, and I'd like to sample some other fun weird chocolates. Something with Indian spices could be interesting...
photo by splunge
photo by TheophileEscargot
photo by Kronos_to_Earth
photo by ethylene
