Christmas 2011!

Last update before we head off to the Big Smoke to celebrate Amanda's momentous 4-0!

We arrived in beautiful Wiscasset on Christmas Eve, just in time for the Patriots kick-off...

DickieJ is quite comfortable down in his Man-Cave, even if his cat was not willing to sit still for a Patriots Game Portrait...

I was hyperventilating whenever they broke into the game with updates from other match-ups. Why the anxiety? Because I was in my Fantasy Football (Newburyport league) Super Bowl Championship. And it all paid off -- CHAMPION! (For entertainment purposes only.)

We had a celebratory Christmas Eve Dinner, and learned some new stories about DickieJ's time playing hockey at Clarkson University...

And here he's telling his best pal about the summer he had to stay in Potsdam and "take a class or two."

Timmy was in charge of Mom's stocking, and included a can't-beat-'em-join-'em-Mainers'-Stereotyping-Confirmation sticker. Awesome.

Loved this gift. Solar-powered Waving Queen. It's mesmerizing.

"A crooked jaw, and three holes in the starboard fluke..." Timmy scored a stunning Moby Dick replica. Harpoons and all. From DickieJ's new Whaling line of carvings.

And here's our newest family member. I had subtly (and not-so-subtly) asked Santa for a Screech Owl, and he's more gorgeous than we hoped. In the summer, the Screech Owl frequently stops by our back Maple tree and we love to listen to his call. Mo once even saw him in a tree one night while walking home from town. This one's quieter, but he's beautiful. Love.

Mo, doing his SSR in his new shirt, not 2 hours after he unwrapped it. Mom knows how to pick winners!

We played a new game called "Would You Rather" in front of a toasty fire on Christmas night. At one point we were laughing so hard, I had to leave the room or I was going to faint. Tears streaming down my face. Another winner picked by Mawan!

No, the New Yorker did not come in Timmy's cracker, it just comes (in a stack of other issues) wherever Timmy goes just in case he can FINALLY find some time to be able to get through them. Someone once wondered if the enjoyment from reading the New Yorker outweighs the guilt from not reading them as the issues pile-up higher and higher, but TRJ does not give up!

In summary, and in case I didn't make myself clear the first 1,000 times I said it, BEST CHRISTMAS EVER. Especially the present of Mom's good health!