Most Creative Christmas Present: battery operated head-lights (literally) that are rechargeable by hand crank! You may be skeptical but these babies have been more popular with my kids than I thought possible! Thanks D and K for your insight into the minds of my slightly wacky kids.

Most Co-operative Child:

Most Uncooperative Child:

Best Picture of Uncooperative Child Taken After Begging, Coaxing & Threatening:

Best Picture Where Kids are not trying to injure each other of Both Kids: Kieran was so unwilling to do this we all but promised him a big old sack of sugar in return for JUST ONE SMILE.

Only Family Picture Not Betraying Kids Who Were Way Overtired and Wound Up By All the Pre-Christmas Sugar Excitement:

Christmas Hits for Boy-Child: A hobby horse. I had suspected this would be a popular present but I far underestimated how much he loves it! If only I’d realized how ear-shatteringly loud the sound effects are. We should never have pointed out that the horsey was capable of making noise. And the Thomas the Train set was worth it, even if we did have to take out a second mortgage to pay for it. Both kids have already spent hours entertaining themselves with it. Time not spent annoying mommy = WORTH EVERY PENNY.

Christmas Hits For Girl-Child: Could she be ANY HAPPIER about a new doll (that giggles! and says “mama”! and, heaven help us, cries!) and doll clothes and bottles and “real” diapers for the dolls? Oh my goodness, no she could not! (As a side note, there are some incredibly frightening and bizarre looking and sounding dolls in toy stores! I dare you to walk through the baby doll section! I swear some of those things are sentient!)