December, and The Christmas Loot!

 I do have to apologize for yet once again another delay.

The December holiday season slammed into us like an oncoming freight train.

My wife and I were overwhelmed by all that was (and still is), going on.

But with Christmas, I DID score a bit on the gaming stuff.

And Christmas was good to us both...

"The Old Girl"....

Diligent readers of the past entries will know that our house (aka: "The Old Girl"), is something "of her own", and this is especially true at Christmas, when she takes on her own special magic.

A wonderful friend of mine has nicknamed our house "The Hallmark Christmas Movie Set House..." because well, as he says "It looks like a set for a Hallmark Christmas Romance Movie".  I couldn't agree more. And to be honest, she is so beautiful. These pics don't do her justice.

("Mr. Bear and the Stuffies" sit patiently next to the tree peering out the window and waiting for "you know who" on Christmas Eve...)

(Looking into the dining room from the foyer...)

(Ready for the entry scene....)

("Mr. Bear and The Stuffies" are sitting in the chair next to the tree, patiently waiting and peering out the window for "You know who...")

("The warm, steaming glow of electric sex...."  Well, you have to admit that it DOES slow down traffic on our street...)

And even my game room in the basement got it's very own Christmas Tree!

(Hmmm...I dunno....Does it really say "Christmas"?) 

We also got a chance to host a December dinner for some friends of ours. Food, friends, fun, fellowship, and gift giving...

And the Hallmark House did it's magic....

("Now this is the scene where we meet the family....")

(Insert charming Christmas dinner music here...)

Christmas!!!!!

Christmas Day came and my wonderful wife's (Gawd bless her!) stocking was (as usual) stuff to the gills and overflowing with goodies.

She deserves it for putting up with me.

(Stocking envy? Naaaaahhhh.....)

(Soldaten's Gunther and Hans guard the German Candies. They do their duty as all good German soldiers do.)

Also, if you like Sweet Tarts candies and can find these, get them.

They are indeed that good.

Oh and our dinner dessert with our friends was mini-chocolate eclairs.

(Need I discuss in devilish dialogue their delightful deliciousness?) 

Christmas morning came around....

(Mr. Bear waits to open presents...)

(Yeps. He got a candy cane! He's happy!)

(Look at all the surprises beneath the tree!!!, and um...get a look at those two German soldiers guarding the boozy chocolates...)

And the present opening trashed the house...just like in a Hallmark movie.

(Mr. Bear looks like he is passed out from too much eggnog!)

And then we ate!

(Ham, sweet potatoes, scalloped potatoes, asparagus, cranberry sauce, and Italian bread...) 

And then we had wine...

A 15 year old bottle of Ruby Port....

And we had a lemon thingy for desert also....

After that, we watched football....(also known as "How the Houston Texans got overwhelmed and spanked hard by the Baltimore Ravens....)

(Mr. Bear doesn't understand football, but he likes to watch it....)

("A Man and His Bear...." As you can tell this isn't going well for the Texans....)

After the game, I went outside and in true tradition, got pics of the old girl on Christmas night....

Her 107th....

My Christmas Loot....

And so, we made it through Christmas Day, and the day after, (Boxing Day).

I took inventory of my loot and for gaming stuff, made out pretty well.

First off was some 3D printed buildings 28mm from Ender.

There are really nice and detailed 28mm scenic pieces that fit in with fantasy/historical settings, and should paint up quite nicely. The rooftops are not removable, so they are solid pieces.

(These will look good in my pirate, fantasy, and witchfinder/horror/pike and shotte games...)

She also got me the Sarissa English Timber Frame Manor.

This thing is pretty big and intimidating looking.

(Gonna look great once it's done and on the table....)

(That's a lot of pieces there...)

And then she scored big points by getting me the 6' X 4' Countryside mat from Cigar Box Battles.

A quick measurement shows this to be a little more than 4' wide, but I am not complaining.

This is beautifully done and very high quality.

(This is very high quality. I am impressed and it will look awesome on the table...)

She also scored for me the basic dock set and market place set from Things from the Basement.

And I got the Osprey "On The Seven Seas" book....

And finally she picked up some figures from Eureka.

These are the four 18th Century Vignette Sets that I have been eyeing for a while.

(More figures and more painting in the future...)

So that was my gaming loot for Christmas. I scored on other loot also including a pretty awesome metal detector and some much needed other items.

Christmas was once again a wonderful time, even with the Texans getting stomped.

I made wonderful memories with my wonderful wife, and treasure them.

I do have to keep this in mind and once again pass this onto all of my readers out there, (and feel free to pass it on yourself.)

So at this point, I am happy and blessed and am at peace. One of these day in the future, I myself will be "one of those that didn't make it", and I am hoping that this blog and these words and pics will continue, and those can't take enjoyment in it.

(My Santa hat....Las Vegas style....)

And of course I save the best for last.
The reason for the season.
May the light of our Lord and Savior shine upon you and your loved ones for this year and the coming years ahead. 
For he is indeed, the light of the world...
Merry Christmas....

Thanks for reading this year and for all the years. There's more to come and please let me know if there is anything you'd like to see.