The Potty That Stole Christmas

This past Christmas was extra special for several reasons: It was our first Christmas as an old married couple, it was my first Christmas as a Jew who married into a Catholic family, and of course it was especially meaningful because hubby won't be here next year for Christmas.  Excited about bringing food for Christmas Eve, we cooked up a storm pausing only for a few impromptu dance sessions in the middle of the kitchen floor.  My husband made his famous buffalo chicken dip:

I made the always crowd-pleasing White Chocolate Cherry Chunkies (courtesy of Paula Deen):

Also on the menu was Black-Bottom Peanut Butter Mousse Pie from Epicurious:

                                                        side photo from epicurious.com

My husband told me to "never make this again" as he inhaled the pie in one large bite.

Finally, I made Alton Brown's Shepard's Pie.  Unfortunately, I forgot to take a photo of the finished product (Peppermint chocolate martinis...need I say more?).  Trust me though, it was delicious.

We spent Christmas Eve catching up with family, sharing stories, eating, laughing, and getting tipsy (or more than tipsy) on those deadly peppermint chocolate martinis.  Hubby and I stayed at my sister-in-law's house overnight, which allowed us to experience a truly magical moment - our 2 1/2 year old nephew waking up for Santa in the morning.  This was the first year that he really got what Christmas was all about so it really was priceless and so special.

For several months he has been announcing daily (or sometimes multiple times a day) what he wanted for Christmas.  It was unequivocally this doll from Toy Story:

He already had a small doll that was similar but he wanted "Big Woody" and he was not afraid to tell anyone that fact.  Let's just say it sparked quite a few jokes.  Imagine Santa's (from the mall) surprise when our nephew sat on his lap and proclaimed that he wanted "Big Woody" for Christmas.

When he walked downstairs and saw "Big Woody" sitting on the couch, he seriously almost passed out from glee.  Never in a million years did I think that level of happiness could be beat by any other Christmas gift for the rest of the day.

Boy was I wrong.

Here's what stole the show:

He screamed "CARS POTTY CARS POTTY CARS POTTY!!!" and started shaking and revving his engine (which coincidentally looked very similar to going potty).  He then proceeded to stand in the middle of the living room floor and attempted to pull down his pants and sit down.  Thankfully, my sister-in-law quickly interjected and swept him and the new potty into the bathroom.... 

Potty Success!!!