Old Skool.

If you remember, last year I came across this Atari set to give my brother for Christmas. It was a huge hit. He is an early 80's baby so he's getting to that age where it's fun for him to go back to his childhood sometimes.

I had actually planned to go completely practical this year, but c'mon. It's Christmas. We all buy practical gifts for ourselves. I kind of enjoy being that person with a reputation when it comes to getting gifts - I keep people on their toes since they never know what's coming.

Anyhoo, this year I searched and searched. I knew I wouldn't top last year, but I was going to try to at least be in the same ballpark.

While perusing through the crazy collection of stuff at Think Geek, I found this gift that is perfect for that playful person who grew up in the 80's:

DONKEY KONG JENGA!
$24.99 at Think Geek



My brother, his wife and their friends all love playing games. I'm pretty sure they don't have Jenga, but even if they did - now there's this extra step of trying to get Mario to the top without getting hit by the barrels!

Kind of hoping he wants to break it out right then and there when we celebrate Christmas...

Nyuck Nyuck Nyuck Nyuck

I’m kind of the self-proclaimed queen of random. You’ll never catch me giving my father a tie for Father’s Day (although I’m pretty sure I have in the past…but no more!). With giving gifts comes the potential for that element of surprise. I LOVE that look on people’s faces when they open a gift to find something they didn’t even know existed!

I found one of those gifts for my father in law this year for Christmas. My husband vetoed it, saying it was just “clutter” (*gasp* how dare he??). But I still think it’s pretty awesome.

What is it?

My husband, father in law and brother in law all love the Three Stooges. (Ohhhh the jokes I could insert here).

Life sized Three Stooges cut outs! (Amazon)

If you don’t like this scene, there’s multiple ones on there, just pick the episode you want!

I  thought about getting them Three Stooges masks too but maybe that’ll wait for another day…

Toys for Boys!

I’ve mentioned before, but my husband is one of the most difficult people to buy gifts for on earth. If he sees something he wants or needs, he tends to just buy it himself. I’m a person who likes to buy gifts in advance, so I have to start talking him out of purchases in September if I want to make sure he’s not buying something I already bought.

Or, as I told him this weekend, I just buy him things he doesn’t know he needs yet.

My husband is outdoorsy. I think he’d live in a tent all year round if I let him. My only stipulation for our honeymoon was that I did not spend it in a tent. I’d say one of his top five favorite stores on earth is R.E.I. I think pretty much anything I get from there, he’s okay with (especially since we are R.E.I. members so we get a percentage of anything we spend back to us at the end of the year AND they will take ANYTHING they sell us back at any point...even if we've worn running shoes for 50 miles!).

This year’s Christmas R.E.I. purchases?

Night vision goggles. He’s joked about wanting them before but they’re incredibly expensive. Luckily, a quick search of R.E.I. found a decent pair for $50. When we were in the R.E.I. store Saturday, I saw actually saw the same ones I had ordered and they were in the kids’ toy section (haha). But anyway, they’re supposed to see in the dark for up to about 50 feet I think. Plenty of room to have a little fun in the dark!

Next up? A pocket blow torch. $19.95.

Just insert a regular lighter and bam! Instant extreme fire!

What will he use these things, you ask?

What boy doesn’t like toys to make him feel like a kid again? And when Brad feels like a kid, I’m usually laughing nonstop for a solid few hours. Which makes me feel like a kid again.

Laughter = Love