Anything fun from Santa?

this yukon outfitters alpha pack, some jute twine for cordage and fire starting

Vicariously, DS got his new suunto compass, and a yukon outfitters cornelius axe

Santa always brings new long johns and merino wool hiking socks for everyone in our house. This year he left Clif bars and a new BIC lighter in everyone's stockings except the toddler's. (She got new sunglasses instead.) He also brought the kiddos collapsible mugs and LMF sporks. The kids bought my hubby a new folding knife and a jet lighter and, in addition to my socks, I got a lovely heavy wool hoodie, and a new faux fur-lined fleece hoodie too!

Leatherman Signal. My review of it at http://edcforums.com/threads/leatherman-signal-first-impressions.132575/. Also got a new flashlight, but I'm not ready to post about it yet -- I'm still trying to decide if I'm going to return it.

I was thinking about giving some LED area lanterns, and looked at a couple of choices... naturally, I keep the sample... the AA powered Coleman Mini Packer was priced right, and seems pretty rugged... shown with the Coleman High Tech 3 AA LED.... bought the Solar Force M3 and Z2 for myself... the cup is for a diffuser

a Skeletool CX! my precious - loves it forever.....

A pair of binoculars - William Optics 7x50 ED Astro.

http://www.thebinocularshop.com/william-optics-10x50-7x50-ed-binocular.html

"Scuba spider static drone buddy" (100' deep operational limit):

Link.

Tin snips to replace the fiskars scissors my wife ruined, because she doesn't understand the difference between high quality shears and something you use to trim sheet metal, another ratcheting screwdriver from China to add to my robust collection, a Harley Davidson shirt to go with the bike I don't have, and a box of whiskey oak wood smoker disks for a bradley smoker that I asked for, but didn't get.

But it's not about what people give me. Being the breadwinner for the past 30 years, its been my responsibility to make everyone else's Christmas special. After all, that's what it's all about, right?

If I want (or need) something, I just go get it myself. Saves me the trouble of trying to explain it to others, and the disappointment of still not getting it, even when I pay them up front for it.

Isn't that hilarious how that works?

oh, almost forgot, 3 new bicycles, didn't think DS could ride one without training wheels, but turns out he can, so we all got new bikes so we can do some family camping and bike riding this spring and summer

Nothing for the EDC side, but: A Cuisinart Food Processor, Ryobi cordless air stapler, Greenlee dikes, Craftsman Clamp multimeter, bluetooth speaker, and underwear. All that without giving anyone a list. I got to give 22-yo DS a 10-month cello rental (he is teaching himself)and a couple of tube-based microphone preamps. I gave DW a side table for the sofa and a Doctor Who T.A.R.D.I.S. cover for her new Kindle Paperwhite (DS gave her the new Kindle). I got the cover from England. The cover showed up the day after Christmas. So, I gave her a "fancy" substitute on Christmas day. When the mail came on the 26th I was so excited. When she opened the package she was surprised. I hit it out of the park on that one. Supper was sauerbraten, sweet and sour red cabbage, whipped potatoes (with last year's present - hand mixer: I do 99% of the cooking) all served with gingersnap gravy. DW made the meal as an early birthday present; birthday is the 26th, but we had a family to-do to go to. It was a great day with DW and DS.

Happy Belated Birthday, MoBOB! Gingersnap gravy? Recipe please please please???

I bought one, too.

I'm the only one who'd get such a thing for me (ha!) but I do keep an eye for good end-of-the-year sales!

bpj, Thank you for the birthday wishes. The attached PDF is a picture of the recipe from the 1974 Betty Crocker Cookbook we have. The real trick is finding gingersnaps with ginger as the first flavoring agent. Typically, molasses is the first one - not near as good. You could look for a good recipe on the Web and make your own. It seems odd to make cookies and then smash then up for a gravy. Trust me, it makes a difference. Good luck!

Thanks so much, MoBOB! The hunt for good gingersnaps is on!