Wrap-Up

For a ham-handed male lacking an artistic bone in his body, I'm a servicable gift-wrapper. What often puts me on Gift Wrap Tilt, however, is the rusty ol' pair of scissors and my meandering, rather than razor-sharp, cuts of the paper. I may not be artistic or even possessed of average motor skill, but I am a perfectionist, so when my wrap is more jagged than fine, I threaten to blow.

Imagine then, my excitement to find a handy tool to make the job easier. During last night's foray to Target, these little beauties were prominently placed in every aisle. Like an exacto knife, but with a paper "guide," it turned my full evening of holiday cheer into...well...actual holiday cheer instead of the frustration of the season. It still took me two hours to wrap everything, though I could have probably cut that time in half if I had a third hand to help with the ribboning. Regardless, it was painless and the tree has most of the presents beneath it.

I didn't finish though. AJ's a bright one and last weekend when we went shopping for the rest of the family, I let him pick out the colors of wrapping paper he wanted. A number of the presents I wrapped last night were slated to be from Santa and it occurred to me that he would definitely wonder how come Santa used the same wrapping paper that we bought at the store. There's no doubt in my mind he would notice and comment. This is the same kid who wanted to know how Santa was gonna get into the apartment since we don't have a chimney. Who personally scouted the neighboring rooftops and analyzed whether the Big Fella could squeeeze his way down the air conditioning vents. Who insisted we write Santa a note to tell him we'd leave the balcony door unlocked so he could get in. Who wondered whether Santa will leave him presents at X's apartment, too. He really leaves no stone unturned. So I have to go get different wrapping paper tonight.

I don't want to say I'm over-compensating for the holiday, mine and AJ's first Christmas since The Troubles, but I may have gone a little overboard with the shopping. Among other things, I got him a dog, a pony and a two-bedroom condo with mountain views.