Christmas in Clare

Happy Day After Christmas, readers.

Today, as tradition dictates, the Houghs packed up our stuff and drove up to celebrate Christmas with Dad and Cindy in Clare.  'Cause that's what we've been doing since the '90s.

Jill and the Whites would end up showing up in the afternoon.  My brother Chris was also on hand, with his twin boys in tow, but his wife Nicole was down for the count and couldn't make it this time around.  Neither could Jeff and his clan, who would be making an appearance the following day.  We ended up picking up Cindy's Qdoba order (she went with the catering option this year, which was amazing) in Midland at 10:30am, then hit the road for one more day of gift-opening and Holiday revelry.

Behold. . .

Cops and Doughnuts pillows.  As hats.

Chris and Louis (they had shown up earlier in the morning.)

Kris and Sam (not sure who's impersonating who here.)

A very appropriate shirt from Nana (that's her nickname for Abby.)

Dad and Cindy wanted to center their gifts this year around our family's upcoming Florida vacation (we're traveling back down there in June to revisit the theme parks and meet up with all our old friends - I'll tell you guys more about it later.)  They go to the theme parks regularly, and have gone numerous times with us, so this was very fitting.

Gift cards to Disney, for use in the theme park stores (souvenirs.)

The girls have been saving up souvenir money here and there as well (just like my brothers and I did when we were kids), so these girls should be all set for theme park shopping.

Dad and Cindy's main gift for the girls this year was something for the girls to use in the Universal Studios parks. . .

Harry Potter wands.  Hermione Granger (Abby's) and Ginny Weasely (Alayna's) - the girls' favorite characters from the series. 

These wands are interactive, and work at various Harry Potter locations and attractions throughout the parks.

Sam lends a hand.

New threads

Enjoying some yuletide craftiness.

We got Dad the NES Classic - a pretty solid reboot of the classic system, pre-loaded with 32 games in HD.

Perfume for Cindy

We were lucky to nab one of these - Nintendo discontinued the product shortly before we snatched one up.  Now they're going for three times as much as their usual price online.

Kris gets really excited about cookware.  I don't get it.

Civilization 6, for my Nintendo Switch.  I'm a history nerd, this should be a no-brainer, folks.

Kris is in Heaven.

I guess I shouldn't fault Kris too much for her level of enthusiasm for cookware - I got really, really excited over these plastic record sleeves.

The girls additionally picked out some soaps and stuff for Cindy at their school craft show (whatever it's called, I forget.)

Snack time with the disaster twins.

Assisting mom with her big gift. . . both literally and figuratively.

A 15-lb weighted blanket.  Who knew weighted blankets were even a thing?  Kris.  Kris knew they were a thing.

Like being gently crushed in a comforter.

This was so-so.

Abby and Samwise.

The Qdoba spread, all systems go.

The Whites showed up just as we began to tear into the food. . .

After folks ate we exchanged kid gifts with the Whites. . .

Jax and his new art kit.

More floor time.

Blake is nearly man-sized now.  That kid seriously grows six inches a year.

After gift-opening, most of the kids descended downstairs.  The girls decided they were going to 'run a bar,' though I felt the service was lackluster.

Pinball Wizard

Jax, mid-meltdown.

(If you look closely, you can see Alayna keeping score.  She insisted on this.)

Frickin' middle schoolers and this hand sign. . .

The girls and Papa.

Grandkids

 Nana takes Sam for a stroll. . .

Sam doesn't get how Peek-a-Boo works.

Later that evening, after we had returned home to Midland, the girls lounge out to some last-minute Christmas movies. . .

. . . and Watson enjoyed his donut-shaped dog toy from Cops and Doughnuts, courtesy of Dad and Cindy.

- Brian