Top Three Christmas Favourites

Favourite Christmas Gifts I Received:

First place:

Silky silver P.J. set. from Jim -- who is normally a solid pro at keeping secrets, but couldn't wait. He knew I'd love 'em, so he gave them to me two or three days BC. Y'see, there's more than one reason why we've been living in our p.j.'s lately... it's not just because we haven't been able to leave the house, but since I've opened the box, this pair of p.j's has been in a constant rotation between my body and the laundry machine. Love, love, loooove them!

Tied for second place:

* An incredibly groovy spice rack that I've been searching everywhere for, for at least five years.  With a simple twist, it measures your spices out for you in 1/4 tsp. increments. So awesome! Thank you Cheryl n' Jay!

* The one Sears Wishbook item I've had my eye on since I was child -- A ROCK POLISHER!! It grinds rocks and tumbles them in sand until they're smooth and shiny. If this geeky item surprises you, then you've obviously never seen my pebble and rock collection. Yes, I'm a nerd... and I embrace it. I love you, Jim!

Third place:

A $50 gift certificate to La Senza! Because you can never have too many unmentionables. Thanks Mr. & Mrs. Santa Cliffe.

Honourable Mention:

On Christmas Eve, with complete envy, I found myself coveting Cheryl's large bottle of Snow Fairy shower gel. Only sold at Lush during the holiday season, it's delicious sugar sweet scent is enough to give you a toothache. So much to my delight on Christmas morn, I discovered that I had a large bottle of my very own! Thank you Shayla n' Libby!

Favourite Christmas Gifts I Gave To Others:

First place:

Well, first and foremost, is obviously The Jim Cliffe Collection ~ Limited Edition.  I went though a big box of VHS tapes that've been collecting dust in our spare bedroom closet, and took all of Jim's "blackmail tapes" (as he calls them), and had them transfered to DVD. Thanks to the fabulous assistance of Cindy's husband Jeff.

I started this project of going through the tapes back in late Sept./early Oct. There's everything from the goofy spur of the moment shorts he made with his friends in his teens and early 20's, as well as his student films, and OSIF (Okanagan Society of Independent Filmmaking) shorts that he made in his mid-late 20's.

Of course he was immediately embarrassed to learn that someone outside of our household had actually seen his so-called blackmail tapes. But he got over it.... or at least is gradually getting over it. Ha. He said he'll try not to let his embarrassment stand in the way of his appreciation of my gift.

Second Place: 

I organized my dad's gifts as a bit of a puzzle, with instructions on the order he should open them. Here's how it went...

Open first for the map - Between two place mats, I included driving directions from my sister's house to a mystery location in Ottawa.

Open second for the journey - I included a Tim Horton's travel cup and a $10 gift certificate to Timmy's.

Open third for the experience - In a box was a sushi set for two, complete with plates, dipping bowls, chopsticks, and chopstick rests. Also in that box, I included a gift certificate to take a class at the Chinese Cooking School in Ottawa. But they teach more than just Chinese cooking. They also have classes for Japanese, Vietnamese, Korean, and Thai.

As for my sister, when she opened her book on angels, she found a $25 Petro Canada gift certificate for the drive to Ottawa, and a certificate to attend a class as well. My sister and dad are very close, and they both love to cook, so I thought it was a neat idea to give them something that they could do together.

Third Place:

Apparently in Sunday School my niece, Josephine, learned about the children her church sponsors. So for Christmas she wanted her family to not just sponsor, but adopt a few kids from Africa too.

I absolutely love her angle... She told my sister, "Since baby Jesus was born on Christmas Day, wouldn't a baby just make the most perfect Christmas gift?!" Ha. Nice try. She even promised to share her bedroom and all her stuff, until my sister explained that it's just not possible to adopt a child for Christmas. (Unless, of course, you're Brangelina or Madonna.) Still, that didn't stop Josie from going through all her toys and clothes so that she could donate them to children who are less fortunate than her.

Her next strategy was to send apples to Africa, because that way the people could eat the apple today and then plant the seeds for apple trees later on.

I thought that since she's just so precious and thoughtful, that we would get one of those living gifts for her, and send some vegetable seeds to a family in Africa.

I also think that if Amy doesn't end up sponsoring a little kid from another country, perhaps Jo could write to our little guy. Jim n' I have been sponsoring a boy for a couple years now, who is about her age. (He also shares my birthday... which is actually 3 days before Josie's too.) It might be kinda nice for her...

Favourite Christmas moment

1. Waking up in my own bed! And starting off the day, just me and mon garcon. That was really nice.

2. When my niece Shayla came up to me and said, "Melodie... I don't like you, you know. I looooove you!" Aw, doesn't that just melt your heart?

3. My other niece Libby singing to Cheryl's ring tone, "All the Single Ladies". Okay, so she doesn't sing the words, but she goes, "Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh..." and dances as best as a one year old can. Or, better yet, at dinnertime when she was singing what we think was Jingle Bells. "Mumble, mumble, mumble, jibberish, mumble, HEY!!!" Repeat X 100. So funny. Or at least I got a kick out of it.

Favourite Christmas food

1. Cheryl's homemade almond rocca. Simply sinful. I limited myself to three pieces, because it just would've been too easy to pig out on more.

2. Mary-Ann's cheesy hashbrown dish at brunch.  I added a lil' tabasco and ohhh... so yummy! (Not that they weren't already tasty before the tabasco.) Jeez, my mouth is watering even now. It's just like when you think of salt n' vinegar chips and your mouth automatically waters... the same happens to me whenever I think of tabasco sauce. I like it hot!

3. Acorn squash and apple bake, which Jim made on his very own. (With step-by-step instructions from moi.) Jim kinda fell into making it, which I thought was sorta funny. I was preparing some other dishes to bring over for Christmas dinner, and Jim offered to lend me a hand. I asked if he could peel the squash and apples for me, to which I added, "Now when everyone comments on how delicious this dish is, you can tell them that you made it!"

Jim replied modestly, "Well, I didn't really make it. You're doing all the work."

Me, "No... You're doing all the work."

It's actually super easy. You just mash it all together with butter, brown sugar, n' cinnamon and you're done. But as simple as it is, Jim did a lovely job and I really appreciated his thoughtful offer to help. ;)

And those are my top threes!