our neighborhood christmas party…

was beautiful, and silly.

two homes to our right is one of the most beautiful homes in america.

the homeowner builds homes {check this out!},
and he and his wife are both artists {check out her etsy shop, here!!!}
and what they created with this home, is stunning. unbelievable, actually.

every time i visit their home, it transports me, to somewhere far from here.

you really have to experience it, to have any idea what i’m talking about.

needless to say, we were all thrilled to find out they were hosting
the neighborhood christmas party!

joseph, who owns this and this, was the attending dessert chef for the evening. also, needless to say, the desserts were phenomenal!

the evenings events included a white elephant gift exchange…
this is where things got silly.

the pictures bear witness:

this is summer and i, playing with my new phone.
i didn’t know the 4G iphone had the funky little switch-a-roo button on the camera.

a-MAZ-ing.

needless to say, i was dying over it’s coolness. techy gadgets rock.

back to the party…

husband and i have a knack for choosing ‘crappy’ white elephant gifts.

literally.

the last time we went to a white elephant gift exchange,
we took home a toilet seat and a can of beans.

this year,

we took home an underwear briefcase,
which included this calendar.

this gift was a riot!
someone put a RC car in a box,
and from the back of the room using the remote, they were making it go CRAZY in the box, so the box was shaking/moving…

someone said, “it’s a chicken!” and everyone was dying to see it!

melanie was totally nervous to open it –

and, my mom chose the gift/book, “sex begins in the kitchen!”
{maybe the best laugh all night.}

if you’re looking for a white elephant gift idea, this season…
here’s what i did:
{very practical with a little twist.}

and, while walking home, one last picture to remember the night ~

{thank you, burtons, for a beautiful evening.}