And the Present of the Year Award Goes To...

Each year there are always a great mix of presents, from those that wow you to those that simply don't impress.  As much as I feel competition to be the best gift giver is completely overrated, we play this game for a different reason.  We've learned a lot by the "present of the year" game I played with the kids.

I started this whole thing two or three years ago with my daughter, just because I was curious which toys were a total success, and which ones weren't so well planned.  I figured this would give me some good resources on what to think about for her birthday presents, and it would help me figure out her interests and tastes so I'd be able to advise everyone next year.  I mean, I know what my kids like, but sometimes it's nice to get a little bit of variety in.  As much as my daughter swears all she cares about are Littlest Pet Shop toys and my older son wants nothing but Transformers, nothing is better than to surprise them with something they didn't expect and totally loved!

At first I felt a little guilty.  What about the givers of all the other gifts?  Well, in truth, it's better to know if a gift was absolutely hated so the giver knows what to avoid next year.  Still, I've often found that when it comes to things that don't seem to thrill early on ("I got...more books...?") end up being a lot more thrilling on a deeper look ("Wow!  The girl in this book dresses like Sarah on Liberty Kids!  I bet this book is for doing more homeschool like that!  I like reading the Liberty Kids book together!  I think that was a great idea!") or turn out to be a lot more favorable down the line when the thrill of all the new stuff finally wears off.  I can't count the times I've seen my daughter toss something aside because it was out-shined by something else only to find that a couple weeks later it's become her favorite present.  Thus far we haven't had to worry what we'll do with a gift that's absolutely hated because we haven't come across one yet!

So, without further ado, on to this year's winners!

My daughter felt pretty spoiled this year.  She at first she was unsure on what she would pick as her favorite present of the year.  It wasn't until we'd finally opened the presents from Santa that she had her mind made up.  There wasn't a doubt.  She knew exactly which present got first place this year!

The present of the year award in the category of my daughter goes to...

My aunt for sending the Barbie Preschool Teacher set.  Not only did she send the doll, but she sent some hand-crocheted clothing for both the dolls in the set!  My grandmother also helped make that the best gift of the year by including some clothing for the adult doll as well.  This isn't the first fashion doll my daughter has gotten, nor the only hand-made clothes she's received, but they never fail to be a hit.

This year has two runner's up.  Second place is Santa, with the kitchen set bought for all of the kids.  Third place is also Santa with Mousetrap, a game we've already taken out and played.  I have a feeling the list of favorites for the year will grow as we start reading the books together, play the game from her dad, and so much more.

The present of the year award in the category of my older son goes to...

Daddy with the tub of gears!  That's kept my son's attention for a good long while, something he's played with today again as well.  He almost likes it better when other people build with the gears for him.  He just likes to crank them and watch them go.

This year it was a close call.  He got some really incredibly great gifts, and he almost couldn't decide which one his favorite was.  The gears only one by a nose, so to speak.  Closely behind was the crochet food an cooking stuff sent by his aunt.  He especially likes the bowl of food, the frying pan, and the spatula.  The cups are up there in the favorites as well.  The play kitchen was the perfect accent because he can now have somewhere to keep his kitchen stuff, and something to cook on.  Third was again, Santa, with Hi-Ho-Cherry-O.  We played that game as well, and my son won!  He was so happy!  He was also so excited to show off that he can count to five with no problems, and can count to ten with only the occasional mix up along the way.

And the present of the year award in the category of the baby?

Well, that one is hard to tell.  The poor little guy got so overwhelmed by everything that he didn't know what to do.  At first he was thinking it would be fun to unwrap the presents, but then he got tired and needed to take a nap.  He woke up for round two of the present opening with Santa, but he wasn't so much into opening the presents.  There were too many other interesting things scattered all over the floor.

However, the present of the year was definitely the little crocheted people made by my aunt!  Those were such a hit.  He's decided they're babies.  He's started calling them both "Bebebe", which we've come to realize is his way of saying baby.  At first he was all upset because Daddy took the half chewed up package from him and started to open it.  Then he saw what was in side and smiled.  He kept laughing.  He said "Bebebe" and Daddy said, "Yeah, it's a baby, just like you."  He laughed some more and continued to call it a baby.  He patted it on the head a couple times, and then decided it was the only toy that mattered.  The little dark haired one that came later was also a quick favorite, though it was quickly tasted.  I guess he had to make sure it was genuine baby toy!

I'm not sure if I could name just two runner's up, or put them in places.  He loved pretty much everything he got, from the cars to the rubber duckies to the books.  The only one that wasn't a fantastic success was the hat, but that's because he's not such a fan of wearing hats.  While he may not have been thrilled about that one, I certainly was!  He may not like wearing hats, but when we have a cold day, I'm sure he'll appreciate it!  He always does!

For present of the year in the category of my partner there wasn't much competition.  The choices were Santa or me.  It was a close call, but I think I took the cake with that one, between the candle, the sausage (which he started in on the same day!) and the Magic cards.  Of course, the kids decided he needed to have Magic cards, so I'm glad that was his favorite of the year.  That was partly from the kids, so I'm glad they got the joy of knowing something they helped pick turned out to be the present of the year.  Of course, he says that the sausage was definitely present of the year!

What was my present of the year?

I've gotten a lot of jokes in the past about my life being like Alice in Wonderland and Alice Through the Looking Glass.  The running joke has always been that I was Alice, and the only people who ever stay in my life long term were "the Wonderland Crew".  Even people who have never met me before have said, "Your name was Alice, right?" even though Alice is not my legal name and I don't introduce myself as such.  I've had ten people in the past three months mistakenly call me Alice, not just once, but repeatedly!  Over the past year that makes something around forty people who have called me Alice by mistake, both those who know me well and those who barely do.

Going along with the running joke, and the fact that it's my favorite childhood stories, my daughter and my partner decided to get me Alice.  Even my daughter said that they had to get it because I am Alice in Wonderland.  We watched the movie that night.  I have to admit, I was a bit skeptical at first.  There have been so many bad versions of Alice in Wonderland out there, the latest one that hasn't impressed me being Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland.  Most of them indiscriminately blend characters from one story to the other, as though the original aspects of the book were meaningless.  I guess I'm a bit of a purist when it comes to my classic literature!  After having read The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, I feel that the classic movie, The Wizard of Oz, doesn't do the story justice.  However, much like my feelings for Tin Man, this version of Alice (made by the same production crew apparently) has many of the aspects of the story with a refreshing and original twist.  It's darker, and a look at Alice's life, all grown up, but apparently not ever having been in Wonderland as a child.  They bring in many aspects of the book that I absolutely love, and when they've blended or modified characters, it's been very tastefully done.  I have to admit, I was inclined to believe one of my other gifts was the present of the year, even though both my partner and my daughter were the most excited about this one.  It wasn't until I watched it that it suddenly became present of the year!

All in all, the family had a great Christmas!  We all had so much fun.  I also think we're definitely done on presents for a little while!  The kids definitely got their present fix in!