Tree’s done!

Jack Skellington holds the last strand of lights. Here he will stay for the Christmas Day party and the New Year!

I finished the tree today! Yep started the lights day after thanksgiving, damn I work quick!

It is loaded with 500 C-9 LED lights and hundreds upon hundreds of ornaments. In this photo the ornaments are hard to see but it is beautimus!

We have a tradition of hosting a chosen family Christmas each year. There will be 28 of us this year. It is a close group of friends whose families live elsewhere. It’s a wonderful party with delicious food, a free flowing bar, lots of champagne ( Martinellis for me) and a hilarious gift exchange. The gift exchange can get downright vicious. Each year has a theme. This year it’s The Nightmare Before Christmas and the gifts are to be at least $50 in cost, something that you yourself would want to take home for yourself and are to be something unexpected. The goal is that all the gifts get stolen and the laughter flowing.

I fully believe in family. Family can be blood, family can be chosen. For us thanksgiving is blood, Christmas is chosen. We are a group who loves and supports each other. Many of us for more than 20 years now. I love my family, ALL of my family.

Cheers to love, cheers to family!