YEAH, we got the camera back! (and Christmas pictures)

First of all, I must show you all the apparatus used to fish out the camera because it's pretty high tech:

A driveway stake...
and a wall hook tied to a piece of string:

That and a magnetic flashlight that adhered to the back of the fridge, along with the brilliant teamwork of me and T, got us back our camera. As I said to several people, think of an old movie with the scene of kids getting a dime of a sewer grate with string and a piece of gum, and that's about the long and short of it.

Thus we had the camera ready for Christmas. This year we once again did the great Christmas Road Trip, but it wasn't nearly as taxing as it has been in past years; we just went to my mom's, my grandmother's in Batavia, and back to my mom's on the actual Christmas day. Christmas Eve we go to my dad's and this year I had the opportunity to speak German to the exchange student who spent the evening with us and Spanish to my stepsister's parents, who are from Spain. Fortunately I remembered just enough not to 1) make an ass of myself and 2) understand about 3/4 of what they were saying. Makes me excited to use them again, in some capacity. It's so true that if you don't use it, you lose it. Have to look into that for 2010, find some opportunities.

But I digress. We had a lovely time seeing all the family we have, direct and distant, biological and situational (through marriage, friendship, etc.). This year we made a lot of our presents, cheese bread and cinnamon raisin bread for everyone except my sister C, and I can't say what I made for them because I haven't given it to her and her BF yet--they spent Christmas in D.C. with his family. We missed her a lot, but I know she had a great time with J. By the way, the bread was ridiculously easy to make, so let me know if you want the recipes and I'll post them. All you need is a loaf pan, yeast, flour, sugar, salt, and a few other easy ingredients. I would post pictures, but the bread was eaten too quickly, so that gives some indication of how it tasted. My FIL also enjoyed it--we got to see him on the 26th. And on Sunday, we rested. All day.

Here are just a few pictures for you to enjoy. Hope all those who celebrate Christmas had as wonderful a holiday as I did.

Mom and R

T and me--he's wearing the jersey I gave him, and I have used the hair straightener he gave me (seriously, it rocks)

Tree at my grandmother's

My sister M and her husband C

C wearing his new blazer, the scarf he gave my sister, and R's new hat we gave him. Quite the ensemble, yes?

Penny in her Christmas bandana

Our tree! Isn't it beeyewteeful?