Cost of Christmas 2006

Each year the PNC Financial Services Group calculates the cost of Christmas based on current pricing of every item in the "12 Days of Christmas" song.



This year the value came in at about $18,920 which represents a 3.1% rise over 2005. Why?

“The Christmas Price Index reflects trends in the broader economy,” said Jeff Kleintop, chief investment strategist for PNC Wealth Management. “After years of stagnation, wages for skilled workers, including the song’s dancers and musicians, have increased as the labor market has tightened. Also, a decline in the housing market has dampened demand for luxury goods, such as gold rings."

Here is the list for 2006:

• One Partridge in a Pear Tree - $144.99 (+38.1%)


• Partridge - $15 (0%)


• Pear Tree - $129.99 (+44.4%)


• Two Turtle Doves - $40 (0%)


• Three French Hens - $45 (0%)


• Four Calling Birds - $479.96 (+20%)


• Five Gold Rings - $325 (0%)


• Six Geese-a-Laying - $300 (0%)


• Seven Swans-a-Swimming - $4,200 (0%)


• Eight Maids-a-Milking - $41.20 (0%)


• Nine Ladies Dancing - $4,759.19 (+4%)


• Ten Lords-a-Leaping - $4,160.25 (+3%)


• Eleven Pipers Piping - $2,124 (+3.4%)


• Twelve Drummers Drumming - $2,301 (+3.4%)

Total Christmas Price Index for 2006 - $18,920.59 (+3.1%)

All of a sudden, those $3,000 Playstation 3 deals on eBay are looking a little more attractive.

Rawk! The McRib Farewell Tour 2006!

In the what better way to show your body how much you hate it department...



This week the McRib joins Babs and Cher and the countless other pop stars who just refuse to go away after an initial "farewell" tour. Some key differences:

• The McRib really does look ageless.
  
• No poorly conceived or unasked for political commentary in the middle of the sandwich.
• The McRib costs the same as the last tour.

Needless to say, Amy loves her McRib. I'm ashamed to admit that I like to get my McRib on whenever they are available. I'm fascinated by the lack of a bone. How do they do that?

Decorating for Christmas 2006

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Today we got down the old Tannenbaum and put it up. We made it a family affair. We ventured on foot to the second floor. Together, we opened up the attic door and peered carefully into the room. At first it was dark, pitch black in fact. Then we realized that the light wasn't on. We switched on the light and suddenly, there in the distance, we spotted the perfect tree! I trudged through the piles of boxes and picked up the trusty ol' axe. Finally, I reached my destination - I set down the axe and grabbed this year's tree, wrapped carefully in cardboard.



After removing the tree from the attic, it's important to thoroughly check it for squirrels. I learned this from a classic Christmas documentary entitled Christmas Vacation.



You have to look very carefully as they tend to hide in every single nook and cranny. After several long minutes of searching, we deemed that no squirrels were present.



The finished product. Not exactly the attic, but our living room makes a nice surrogate environment for this tree.



All the stockings are hung by the chimney with great care ... to not scratch the paint in our new house. This year we used the stockings that my Grandma Clarkson made for us. Mine (on the far left) is probably about 30 years old and has held up to a lot of phat l00t over the years.

Nothing says Christmas like a raging fire in the fireplace and a cold snap outside. Unfortunately, we don't have our gas logs installed yet, so we settled for a raging candle arrangement. Cozy-licious.

Gobble Gobble 2006!

Happy Thanksgiving 2006!



This year we spent Thanksgiving with Amy's family. We loaded up the family truckster (literally) and headed from Pflugerville to Amy's parents' house in Fulshear. This was the first time that we have ever had to actually travel somewhere for Thanksgiving since we were married in 1993.



Amy and the kids picked me up early from work on Wednesday and we made the 2.5 hour trip to Fulshear. When we got there, Granddaddy had decided to buy a swing set for all the grandkids to play on. I looked left, then I looked right. Yep - I was the only son-in-law in the immediate vicinity.

Why had Granddaddy decided that today of all days he needed a swing set in his backyard? Gabby was playing with Cooper the dog earlier that day and she told him, "We could play on the swing set, but Granddaddy won't buy one."



The finished product. Now I know how Leonardo felt when he first gazed on the finished ceiling in the Sistine Chapel.



Any good Thanksgiving meal starts with the women in the kitchen while the men are outside building swing sets.



Best. Potatoes. Ever!



Keely standing in briefly to make it look like she was helping. As soon as the camera turned off so did she.



Gavin's giving the camera a look of approval that he's not in the kitchen with the girls.



No Thanksgiving would be complete without my Great Aunt Helen's Jailhouse Rolls...



...or Grandma Barclay's chicken & noodles.



Amy buttering the piping hot Jailhouse Rolls.



Speaking of buttering rolls...



The Hooper sisters gathering for a quick photo.



Keely making labels so people know where to sit.



All the kids gathered around the table for the feast. Caleb is clearly disappointed that this year's bounty did not include chicken nuggets and ketchup.



The fellas sitting in the Sistine Chapel enjoying some pumpkin pie. Of course, Colton's smile is lacking one tooth due to an early morning accident that involved a golf club and a rambunctious neighbor kid. It just wouldn't be a holiday without a little bodily harm...



Gabby and Camdyn hamming it up. Gabby's just happy that she now has a swing set to play on.

Earlier today Gabby was playing in the house when all of a sudden she cried, "Damn, damn, damn!" All of the adults stopped what they were doing and turned to look at this foul-mouthed little girl and about that time Gabby finished her sentence, "Beavers build DAMs!"



Nothing says Thanksgiving like a quick dip in the pool after dinner.



Caleb always finds just the right accessories around the house.



This looks like it will end badly for Camdyn, but it didn't. After all, Colton already satisfied the holiday requirement for bodily harm earlier in the day.



Ummm... yeah.



"Amy did you just dig something out of your bra in front of the camera?"



Frick and frack all ready for bed. Shortly after this picture, both girls fell sound asleep after a long, hard day of feasting, playing, and swimming. No not really. I think Camdyn is still awake somewhere in Missouri City.

Assignment: Timeline

Today in Bible class, Gavin's assignment was to create a timeline of his life. These are the results:

• 0 - Born
• 5 - School
• 7 - Move
• 10 - Get an iPod
• 17 - Graduate
• 36 - Man
• 200 - Die

Hmmmm .... I don't even know where to go first. The iPod? 200 year life? Nah. I'll let this speak for itself.

Father & Son Campout @ McKinney Falls

Friday night, Gavin and I went on a church-sponsored Father/Son Campout at McKinney Falls State Park. We also had Devin with us, who is a good family friend. He served as entertainer and official photographer, which is good because that left me with two less overall responsibilities during the weekend.



This (believe it or not) was my first father & son campout. In fact, as a family we haven't been camping since Amy was pregnant with Gavin. It's not that we're AGAINST camping - we're just generally FOR comfort. And since I refuse to be one of THOSE people who pack up their entire house...



In general, you tend to see some really interesting things during a father & son campout that you wouldn't normally see if mom was around. These include (but are not limited to):

1. 7:00 AM, 42 degrees, junior running around in a short-sleeve t-shirt.
2. Fire pit with open flame, junior(s) playing catch with a football OVER said flame.
3. Fire pit with open flame, junior(s) waving burning sticks at each other like swords.



Not really sure who this kid is.



Ah, but I'm pretty sure this one is Gavin.



You would think that McKinney Falls isn't really a destination for legendary British Pop stars, but there you have it. We tried not to gawk, but we eventually had to take a photo.



Like many things in life, the ACTUAL McKinney Falls was a little underwhelming. However, if you actually stop and think about the number of times in your life that you have personally witnessed any sort of natural waterfall it puts things in perspective - no matter how big a trickle.



I figured the moms viewing this post were getting a little bored, so I thought I'd include the requisite "Awwwwwww" moment. Go ahead - get it out of your system.



You can't really tell, but this is the body of water that feeds McKinney Falls. I kept warning Gavin to be careful - that he could end up getting swept away by the current and taken over the falls, but this kid just doesn't listen to me. Thank goodness he ended up staying dry.



If you look closely at this photo, you'll see a lovely wedding being hosted by Mother Nature. And if you look even more closely, you'll see Devin walking right by the wedding in the middle of the ceremony. I'm not quite sure how the wedding planner explained that one to the wedding party - you plan and plan and plan...



This isn't exactly staged - I knew Devin was taking my picture. However, had I known that he was taking a vertical picture with my body completely filling the frame I probably would have balked. Big guys like wide angles, okay Devin?



Gavin and Devin didn't really get the Kilroy reference. Sigh.



There's a hole...

Reagan is NINE!

Today was Reagan's ninth birthday!



Sweet, an iPod! "Be somebody! Things are going to start happening to me RIGHT NOW, I can FEEL it."



Ummmm... who let these knuckleheads into the bday action?



Ah, the Mexican tradition of ice cream, cardboard, chocolate syrup, whipped cream, nuts and bad singing...



The look of a man who thinks he's getting lucky (but he's not - it's not HIS birthday).

Happy Birthday Reagan!

Good Day, Mr. Kubrick

"Stanley, why aren't you directing 2010?"

Happy Halloween 2006!

Starring (From Left to Right): Reagan as an Undead French Maid, Alison as a Pirate, Keely as an Undead Stewardess, ahem, Flight Attendent, and Gavin as a Bionicle!



Come see these wacky characters unleash terror and misgivings on a small, unsuspecting neighborhood in Pflugerville. Rated G.