The Adult Baldwin Christmas Party

Do you have a friend or family gathering you look forward to with anticipation?

Christmas Tradition #3 . . . started 26 years ago when we moved to Las Vegas. Even though we were living in a small apartment, we invited family over for a holiday get-together. It has proven to be a highlight of the season for all of us. The Baldwin clan knows how to laugh and have a great time together. Some of our most memorable moments have been while playing The Newlywed Game with questions carefully written to ensure couples were still talking at the end of the evening. Sometimes it was questionable. This event is always in our home with a dinner, but we take turns providing the entertainment.

I used to call this gathering the Adult Christmas party to clarify it was for us older folks and then later to include any married children. When we acquired a s.i.l., Brian said, "When I heard there was going to be an adult party, I thought, Alright! I married into the right family." So, finally, this year I started calling it the Christmas Dinner Party. Oops . . . too late.


Kaymee and Brian introduced us to the game of Partini.
Six games include:

"Straight Up"-Write something true or funny about a teammate. Will you get points for telling it like it is?

"Mime Twist"-Zip your lip and act it out. Will your team guess "stud muffin" in the Lover Boy category?

"Bouncers"-Ready, aim and fire balls into cups. The action changes with every draw of a card.

"What Not"-Don't say what it is, say what it's not! Will your team guess "hot dog" when you say "It's not a cool cat"?

"Clay Smoothie"-Mold and fold clay into shapes that your teammates just might recognize..like a snowman.

"Hum Punch"-Hum it up in a musical challenge! No singing allowed.

Of course, the hilarity comes when you watch your family's "characters" do their thing. Can I say how hard it is to "hum a few bars". J just threw the ball of clay at her husband when trying to fashion a computer mouse. While playing the game of Mime Twist, with the category of "things that get your heart racing", it was so easy to guess the act of lap dancing. "But wait, maybe we could be wrong -- Can you do that a little more, just to be sure?" This exotic dancer will remain nameless. I will mention though, thankfully, it wasn't me. A visual of that would be hard for my married children to stomach.