This was a big ticket Christmas in the Mikkimoto household.

We got a Xbox 360 with Kinect for Ben and an iPad for Matt and I.

Being the nut job deal finder that I am, I happened upon great Black Friday deals for both.

In case you are calendar challenged, Black Friday occurs in November. Therefore these gifts arrived around December 5th.

We aren’t the most mature of folk and therefore it was MERRY FIFTH OF CHRISTMASAKAH! to us as both toys were opened and loved well before the miracle of lights or Jesus’ birthday.

Being this immature also creates problems with the idea of waking up on Christmas morning to nothing but dust under the tree. So I made a decree that we could exchange gifts Christmas morning within a certain budget. (I’m glad someone around here has some sense.)

While I struggled to figure out what to do for Matt and Ben, my friend Shelly asked me to help her come up with ideas for the Twelve Days of Christmas she was doing for her husband. Each day would correspond to the number of the day. (ex: 2nd day – a pair of shoes, 6th day – a 6 pack of beer and so on.)

Since I’m a giver, I helped my friend by stealing her idea.

And because I’m Jewish I ended up doing this backwards. Hebrew is read from right to left so I went from the twelfth day to the first. (I like this excuse is better then the real reason which is, I’m a moron.)

It began on December 14th with Matt and Ben coming home to a dozen Krispy Kreme doughnuts with a sign attached:

Happy 12 days of Christmas to Ben and to Matt.
You’re probably wondering what’s going on. What is that?
It’s my way of making this Christmas special and fun.
Why get one present when you can get a ton?
Now don’t get too excited, they won’t all be big,
Some you’ll have to share and some might make you feel like a pig.
But I love you both for 12 days and more,
So start off with a dozen doughnuts which I know you’ll adore.
Tomorrow will be eleven and ten after that,
happy 12 days of Christmas to my Ben and to my Matt.

and the rest followed like so:

• on the 12th day – a dozen doughnuts
  11th day – a pack of Little Debbie’s snack cakes and a Uno game
  10th -  $10 iTunes gift cards for each
  9th -  Xbox 360 game (get it, 3+6+0 = 9!)
  8th – a Magic 8 ball for Ben and an 8 pack of Coke for Matt
  7th – a pack of seven chocolate Santas for Ben and a 6 pack of beer with a bottle opener for Matt
  6th – six pack of Coke bottles for Ben and a package of six beef-sticks for Matt (I did mention that Matt works for Coke, right?)
  5th – a pair of gloves for each (technically this could have been ten, but shut up. My brain was hurting at this point.)
  4th – four dreidels for Ben and a pack of four pairs of underwear for Matt. (romance is alive and well in this relationship)
  3rd – three packs of gum for Ben and three candy bars for Matt.
  2nd – socks for Ben and a two liter of Diet Coke for Matt. (see day 6)
  and finally on the 1st day – Xbox Wipe-out game hidden in a Fiber One cereal box.

(feel free to steal this idea for yourself next year.  It’s already hot.)

I think the anticipation was more fun than some of the presents, (I mean who doesn’t lose their minds about three packs of gum?) not to mention it reminded me of the Hanukkah’s of yore. Plus four days.

When Christmas morning came I was excited for the 12 days to be over and for Matt and Ben to open the Wipeout game they had been coveting.

I was also curious as to what Matt and “Ben” got me as Matt was acting odd the days leading up to Christmas and seemed almost giddy.

And when Matt presented me with two little gold boxes, I was giddy.

Pause for a brief back-story: During our honeymoon in Jamaica, my birthday fell within that week. On my birthday Matt and I took an excursion into town where he got me The Most Beautiful Earrings made with a stone that is only found in the Caribbean. I loved them so much I wore them everyday. Until sometime in May when I came home after a long day of work, shopping, errands, etc. to find I only had one earring. My stomach dropped as I searched my hair, my clothes, and the house. I’m normally not a “things” person but seriously? A gift that was bought in a foreign country ON MY HONEYMOON, was a big deal. I cried to Matt as I searched for days with no results. Of course I still kept that one earring in my jewelry box thinking maybe someday its twin would ring my doorbell and apologize for its sabbatical.

Back to current day, the small first box I opened were a pair of larimar earrings. Similar to the ones from Jamaica. I gasped and my eyes welled up as Matt said, “I tried to call the store in Ocho Rios – couldn’t understand a thing they said, and they couldn’t help me. So I found these here in Madison. Now open this one.”

With a smile I opened the long gold box and started to cry. In it I found my earring! No, not the one that is still gallivanting all over Madison, but the one that was in my jewelry box now made into a necklace.

It’s perfect and hands down the most thoughtful gift anyone has ever given me. I have yet to take it off.

So Merry Christmas, Honey! You gave me a gift that meant the world, took time and effort while I got you heartburn and underwear.

Here’s hoping your Christmakkah was filled with more jewels and less beef sticks.