Here are my highlights of the Holidays!

* Work was nuts, and we seemed to have a higher number than usual of stressed-out mean people. When you think about it, it's just soap. Why is everyone so uptight?

* We had a really crazy Christmas Eve, full of the most crankiness. Halfway through the day, I went out and bought fake mustaches. I figured that if we all had fake mustaches, customers couldn't possibly be cranky with us. It worked fine. Must remember that for the future.

* Stephen's family has a kids' table at Christmas day dinner! I have never had a family dinner with people who did that, so it was really exciting. There were also Christmas Crackers at everyone's plate, and before we started eating, we all crossed hands and pulled them all at once. It was so neat! My family's Christmas dinner is usually just six of us, so there's no kids' table and my parents always forget to buy crackers.

* Our Secret Santa thing didn't work out so well. The issue was with the stocking stuffers. We had a limit of $100 for the gift that you give your Secret Santa, with the understanding that everyone else you just get little stocking stuffers for. Then the problem became the limit on the stocking stuffers (we never established the cost of these). The next thing I knew, we all bought smaller gifts for each other that were anywhere from $15 to $30, and no limit on how many stocking stuffers you get for one person, so it looked like every other Christmas. No one had any self-control! It was hassles. Cute, but still hassles. Next year, we are setting more definite ground rules.

* I spent New Year's Eve at home with the cats. Stephen had to work, so I watched a movie and went to bed early. At midnight, I got four phone calls just when I was getting good and sleepy, so I turned off my phone soon after and slept away the last dregs of 2008. PARTY ANIMAL, RIGHT HERE.

* For 2009, my single goal is to BUY LESS STUFF.