Right...so we booked our plane tickets to go to the States for Christmas. After spending the last 2 Christmas' in Finland my folks pleaded with us to come to the States. So we said yes. I also wanted to go as I missed our family Christmas celebrations a great deal. Let's just say that Christmas dinner at my family's house consists of 35 people..ALL IMMEDIATE FAMILY. Mira is an only child. Not a bad thing at all, but she has yet to experience the full on Roche-Gaudreau family christmas/drinking/yankee-swap fest that is our holiday cheer. Tons of food, presents, egg-nog (spiked and whimpy for the underaged ones..although I think they sneak a few from the "grown-up" batch occasionaly - not that I would know ANYTHING about doing that..ahem..) and the ever present Yankee-Swap. A hillarious swapping of presents which I will describe: Each person involved buys a present and wraps it. They then put it under the tree without anyone looking. Say, for example there are 15 people - The numbers 1 thru 15 are written on a piece of paper, folded up and then put in a hat. Each person then picks a number from the hat. The person with the number 1 starts the whole process. The only rule is that you can not pick your own wrapped present from under the tree..although you may get stuck with it later..
...so person Number 1 picks and opens the present. Everyone "ooh"s and "ahh"s or cracks jokes at the gift. Then person number 2 picks and unwraps - repeat of the "ooh"s and "ahh"s ..however, Person number 2 then can look at the present that person number 1 got and decide they like that one better and swap the presents. Person number 1 can not refuse to swap. This continues up to number 15. Each person can pick from the previously opened presents. Wait! I know what you are going to say: But person number 1 gets totally screwed! Not so my friends. At the end, Person number 1 gets to swap their present (which may have changed 15 times in the course of the game) for ANY present in the bunch! Lemme tell you it can get quite stomache splitting funny! - This will be a first time for the little Finn :)
Now to the fire breathing light switches. I promise never to make fun of my step-mom's paranoia with thunderstorms ever again. She is petrified of them to the point where she will hide in the basement family room if one is going on with all the lights out and a candle while chain smoking until it has passed. I always thought her rather daft. Well..their house got hit and fire shot out of a wall switch. Dad was Mr. Speedy with the fire extinguisher and luckily everything was okay. The Electrician had to come and replace the switch and a socket. The cable box got blown apart with melted wires and everything. Luckily they are both fine (including the pup) and there was no serious damage to the house. BUT HOLY HELL BATMAN!!!
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