What the Vanderboeghs got for Christmas gifts.

I have been asked what I gave and got for Christmas this year enough times that I guess I'll just post it here. And no, it wasn't ammo. This Christmas, like most folks everywhere, we didn't have a whole lot of gift-giving going on, just mostly enjoyed the time together, for the girls haven't been home long enough for anybody to be stir-crazy and edgy yet. (Anybody who has female progeny, especially soon-to-be adult and testing-the-limits sisters, you know what I mean.) I got my wife Rosey a modest gift certificate for some new shoes 'cause I'm sure not dumb enough to be going out on that limb to buy them myself. In return, she found a copy of the DVD set, The Pacific, which I've never seen and she did darn good to find one left in the store as well as doing great on the price. The girls got me a new wallet to replace the one I've had for at least 10 years by our best reckoning. (I guess they got embarrassed every time I pulled it out, it was pretty threadbare.) Rosey got the girls some clothes and such. I play no part in that process other than forking over my contribution to buy them. (I try my darnedest to stay out of chick stores like Target, so it is a good trade.) Other than a box I'm working on for Matt, Nicole and Gabriel, that's about it. In return, they are about to present me with my first granddaughter, who will likely be born this week and will be named Olivia. Pretty name. Gabriel is pretty excited about getting a sister. I'll post a picture here when Olivia arrives. Let's hope she looks more like her beautiful mother than any of us male Vanderboegh mugs, or, worse, Matt's grandfather on his mother's side. Ouch! It would be terrible to be born with an innate purchase order for cosmetic surgery that drastic!

In any case, a wonderful time was had by all. So thanks for all the good wishes we had in the mail and email. As you can see, they all came true.