Very nice pics, BK!
And good to hear about everyone's happy holidays.
Der Brucer and I spent our day with his daughter and her family. The lads were very loud, yelling the entire time. Little William, aged 3, was very loud. His older brother Alex, aged 6, was very loud. Their father, Robby, was very loud. For that matter, their mother, Tarlie, was very loud. It is a very loud household.
Apparently there is a competition that takes place every year, amongst the parents Robby and Tarlie associate with, to see which parents can buy their kids the most and most expensive toys. If Tarlie and Robby hadn't bought the boys four-wheelers, they'd have been outspent by their relatives and friends!
Four-wheelers? For a six and a three-year-old? At least they also bought the boys helmets, but what happened to the days when a boy would be very happy to get a
bicycle? Or a
sled? Or a
puppy? No, those days are over. We are now in an age when preschoolers know how to change the oil. I'm just hoping the two can make it through elementary school without a DUI on their records. (Good news there, at least: the parents don't drink, so the bad influence will have to come from their peers.)
I'm going to have to wait several weeks for my present to arrive: a custom-made table for the kitchen, 38" high. Der Brucer deliberately lied to his daughter about what
that is costing us, but the investment will be worth it, to have a table tall enough to work at without stooping over. (He calls the lie "the unethical path of least resistance.") Happiness is having a lover who both listened and understood when I explained the ergonomics behind my wants.
(Me =

, der Brucer =

)