CHRISTMAS EVE

On Christmas Eve Hubby and I made a quick run into town to take care of a few last minute errands.  First we grabbed a bite of lunch at Wimberley Cafe, where the festive window decor made me feel like I'd been transported back to one of my childhood hangouts in Hillside Village -- the little neighborhood shopping center in Dallas where I grew up.

Then I headed off to Rancho Queso for some cheese and crackers...

and hubby headed off to the little liquor store that just went in across the street. Hard to believe this town was completely dry when we first moved up here, and the only way you could get anything to drink in town was to join a "club" that one or two of the restaurants had. Anyhoo, I finished my errand before Hubby did, so I went over to join him. Good thing I did, 'cause guess what  I spotted, soon as I walked in that door?  This!

Merry Christmas to me!

Not long after we got back home, the critters began to arrive.

Then it was time to finish up our Christmas feast of standing rib roast, Yorkshire puddings (popovers), mashed potatoes and roasted Brussels sprouts.

Calvin provided the entertainment.

Little Goob Man barely made it through dinner before running out of steam. Once he was in bed, Austin and Areej went to work on dessert -- two different versions of Sudanese Basbousa, a semolina cake, served with amazing hot chocolate made from their own special mix. Oh yeah, almost forgot. They brought Guinness cupcakes too!

Then it was time to kick back with our traditional "bad Christmas movie" while Lexi put together any toys that needed assembling, one of which came from IKEA. Good thing she's an IKEA wizard! In case you're interested, this year's not-as-awful-as-some-we've-seen-feature-film was Santa's Slay.

Last but certainly not least, we all laid out our stockings and left Santa John to do his magic!