Gifts of Christmas past

We got talking Christmas Eve about the best Christmas presents we were ever given... not in value...not in experiences......but in longevity. You know, those practical gifts that don't really give that feeling of luxury necessarily, but turn out to be well used and appreciated over time.

Here are my top five, in no particular order.

1) my mixmaster. I think, without looking, it's a sunbeam. I received it when the boys were little little. There aren't any fancy attachments. Bowl and beaters. But it's been well used and made lots of cookies and cakes and loaves for my boys.

2) Duffle bag. My sister got us these probably 23 years ago. We had no kids at this point and DH and I each got these black leather duffle bags.  Those suckers have come with us  on infinite hockey and camping trips. Just the right size to toss a few things in and off you go. The leather  is wearing in places, like on the handles, but the zippers keep on zipping on. I used mine 2 weekends ago on our road trip for curling with the team.

3) My Keurig. All environmental issues aside, it has been one of the most used gifts I have ever received. We never have a ton of company, and that coffee pot sat on the counter, unused for so long. Too big to make a pot in the morning, or it would just go to waste.

4) My fitbit. That was last year. I do go through spurts of wearing it, but it really makes me think about how much I move. Much more so than my pedometer used to, as that sucker fell off lots.

5) A coffee mug I got for Christmas my first year of full time teaching. Not a Christmas one. Just a white one with simple script saying "For everything, thank you" on it.