There's no place like Holmes for the holidays

Having picked up Master Chris from the airport Tuesday evening, the family was assembled around the dining room table once again for Christmas eve. It was the complete consensus of the group that the sauerkraut soup was a triumph and the fish superb. Even the prunes went quickly, and it was no time before the little band was cracking walnuts and picking through the cookie trays for dessert. "Can't we open just a few of the presents tonight?" they cried, so the wrapped surprizes from siblings were drawn out of the pile under the tree and opened. The dinner had come so late, though (mostly because Mistress Colleen had to work until 7:30) that there was only time for a quick look or two, and then it was off to the Basilica for midnight Mass. It wasn't until sometime around 1:45, that the big black car, filled with sleepy heads, slid back into the hanger again. With the youngsters shuttled off to bed, Mrs. Hall arranged the rest of the bootle around the tree. Mr. H. watched approvingly, then taking Mrs. H.'s hand, noted the time at 2:30 am as they went to bed.

Seasonal Shenanigans

Sometime around 5:00, Wookie started barking like crazy. Wondering why the hall light was on, Mrs. H. staggered downstairs to find Ian tearing through his stocking gleefully. "It's officially Christmas, you know," he said. Apparently he had wondered into Colleen's room a bit earlier to get her up, and ended up waking Wookie instead, who took it upon herself to reset the Homeland Security Level to Black Watch Plaid. Mr. Hall was not amused, but Mrs. H. stayed downstairs to revel with Colleen and Ian just long enough to take a few pictures, finish a cuppa joe and head back up.
So it was, with some surprize when she came back down around 8:30, that she discovered a couple of new packages under the tree! She checked the pictures that she had taken; there was no record there of the mysterious boxes. It turned out Mr. H. had renigged on their previous agreement, and slipped out to do some shopping for Mrs. H. unawares. She chided him, but only for a moment, for it was off to the kitchen to make waffles for everyone with her brand new waffle iron! Mistess Katie, who was in town for the week, came over, and they exchanged gifts, and Mimosas, as well. Non-stop grazing is heavily encouraged at the Hall during the holidays; meals seemed to expand endlessly, without distinct divisions, sliding from one into another, forming a sort of giant "Breaklunteasupsnak".
Warm temps brought an afternoon rain, but it wasn't enough to dampen the spirits of the group, nor even melt the snow from the previous week. They dashed off to the mall for the opening of the new movie, "Sherlock Holmes", yet an other incarnation of one of the Hall's favorite literary characters. As far as Mrs. H. could see, the biggest mystery around was how all the kids, stuffed plum full of candy, cookies and waffles, could polish off a ginormous bucket of popcorn at the movies and still come home and eat. All in all, a most satisfying holiday at the Hall.