Leftover Night

I have my family so well trained for the annual photo shoot that they actually assemble, cooperate and don't complain. The only ones who didn't get the memo were Rudy and Olive who got into quite a fracas just as we were finishing. The picture we chose shows Olive looking at Rudy with her tongue out as if she was contemplating the fact that he was just a few bites. She was unprepared for the ferocity of his response to her unwelcome advances. Nor were the rest of us.

After the feast yesterday we had a white elephant gift exchange…a game involving silly gifts, elaborate rules and a lot of laughter. In today's picture of the grandkids which I took when we all gathered for leftovers and Dana and Jim's house, Peter is sporting his faux fur vest. The matter of what kind of animal it might be is still very much open for discussion. Will is exhibiting his zebra head wall hanging which I'm pretty sure will be part of the landfill in a matter of days, and Claire is covered by her Hello Kitty snugly. She's pretty sure she got the best gift. Owen wound up with a motion controlled parakeet which Amy gave him because he froze when it was his turn and she felt sorry for him, and Julia wound up with a funnel cake maker, which the kids claim they are going to make at midnight tonight. Maya was quite content with her carnival joke kit, including some gooey substance which makes rude noises when you squeeze it, and a whoopee cushion which makes rude noises when you sit on it.

By tomorrow evening, everyone will have left and it will seem very quiet in the house.