24 Days of Martin – Day 18: Gift Swap Parties

Dinner was finished, the dishes had been washed and put away, and the kitchen had been wiped down. Mom had gone upstairs to change, and Dad was tying his Christmas tie.

“Bridgett will be here in just a few minutes. We won’t be gone for long, just a couple of hours. It depends on how crazy the gift swapping becomes,” explained Dad as he finished up his tie and started putting on his Christmas socks.

“Where are you guys going again? I mean, I know you are going to Miss Darcy’s house, but what is it you are doing?” asked Martin as he spun around in circles on the tips of his socked feet.

“It’s called a ‘Yankee Swap,’ but there are other names. Sometimes it’s called ‘White Elephant’ and sometimes ‘Secret Santa.’ Each type of gift swap has its own way of giving away gifts.” Dad was about to continue, but the chiming of the doorbell stopped him.

“Hello, Bridgett! It’s good to see you again,” stated Dad as he ushered her into the living room. “How are your parents? Are you guys ready for Christmas?”

Bridgett answered as she took off her coat and handed it to a waiting Martin. “Thanks for hanging that for me, Martin! I’m happy to be here! I enjoy watching Martin while you are out. Mom and Dad are just fine, and I think we are finally ready for Christmas. Mom and I are going out this weekend for a couple of last-minute items and to make sure we have everything for Christmas dinner.”

“Is that Bridgett?” Mom called as she came down the stairs. “It is! Welcome and Merry Christmas!” Mom said, smiling. “We will be at Miss Darcy’s. Her number is on the little notepad in the kitchen if you need it. Martin’s had dinner AND he’s had dessert. Don’t let him try and fool you,” grinned Mom.

“MOOOM!” cried Martin.

“Don’t worry. I know all—well, most of—Martin’s tricks, so we’ll be just fine. Enjoy your party,” chuckled Bridgett.

Dad had taken Mom’s coat out of the closet after Martin hung up Bridgett’s and was helping Mom put it on. He was already wearing his coat and had the car keys ready. He opened the front door, and Mom started to walk out, realizing they had left their gift on the kitchen counter. “OH!” Mom yelped. “I need to get our gift off the counter. Dad, if you start the car and warm it up, I’ll be right there.”

“On my way. Just call me Mister Heat Mizer! I’ll have that car warmed up in no time!” laughed Dad.

With the gift under her arm, Mom kissed Martin on the head as she walked out. “Be good and don’t create too much mischief for Bridgett.”

“Promise!” answered Martin as Mom closed the car door and she and Dad drove off.

Bridgett shut the front door and turned to face Martin. “What would you like to do this evening?” she asked.

“I want to show you my Red and Green Nutcracker armies and tell you about the crazy Yule Lads,” started Martin. “But first, can you explain what a ‘Yankee Swap’ is? And ‘Santa Elephants’ and ‘Secret Whites’? Dad told me they were all gift swaps, but why all the strange names?”

“I sure can. How about some hot chocolate while I tell you all about them?” said Bridgett as she started toward the kitchen.

“I’ll get the mini-marshmallows!” was Martin’s reply.

FIFTEEN MINUTES LATER

“Gift giving has been popular since ancient times,” started Bridgett. “To make giving gifts more fun, games were introduced as a way to see who gets which gift. The games are what the gift swap parties are named after. The most popular games are ‘Yankee Swap,’ ‘White Elephant,’ and ‘Secret Santa,’ and parties of all three kinds are held worldwide.”

Bridgett stopped for a moment to sip her hot chocolate. “‘Yankee Swap’ and ‘White Elephant’ parties are where you purchase a gift, but you don’t know who it is for. The rules for ‘Yankee Swap’ and ‘White Elephant’ are pretty much the same, but the gifts you purchase are not.”

“Secret Santa and White Elephant make more sense than ‘Santa Elephants’ and ‘Secret Whites,’ but why ‘White Elephant’?” Martin wanted to know.

“The story says that in the past, in a land named Siam, which is now Thailand,” began Bridgett, “the King would give a rare white elephant to rivals, nobles, and advisors who displeased him. Being rare made the elephants sacred. Being elephants made them expensive.” Bridgett picked up her mug again as Martin laughed. “Because the elephants were sacred, the receiver of the gift could not get rid of the elephant. And because elephants eat a lot and need a lot of land to live, the expensive elephants would often bankrupt the receiver. So when you go to a White Elephant party, you take a gift that is more prankish than practical.”

“I get it!” grinned Martin. “Mom really likes puzzles. I could get her the puzzle I saw at the bookstore last week. It was just a big field with dogs pooping everywhere. Like, it was a hundred dogs pooping!”

“Exactly! And what would you get your Dad?” Bridgett prompted.

“Hmmmmm,” pondered Martin. “He likes to do projects in his garage. Maybe something like a measuring tape that was really short, or a package of Band-Aids that look like pickles instead of actual bandages!” Martin started to snicker, thinking about his Dad with pickles on his arms and legs.

Bridgett smiled at Martin and chuckled at his gift ideas. “Those are perfect White Elephant gifts. Now, let’s talk about a Yankee Swap party. Yankee Swap started in New England. The word Yankee comes from the Civil War when Confederates called anyone from the North a ‘Yankee.’ Some people think the original swap was from when Union and Confederate generals would swap prisoners of war. Yankees, being descendants of Puritans, tend to be pragmatic and practical. So when you go to a Yankee Swap party, you take practical, not prankful, gifts.”

Martin set his hot chocolate on the table and sat back. “Well, that makes it easy. I would get Mom a new set of watercolors, or a new notebook, or a tumbler for her tea. And I would get Dad a pack of bags for carrying his sound gear, or a microphone cover for his podcast, or a small drone.”

“Those are great ideas,” agreed Bridgett. “However, there is one more part of the White Elephant and Yankee Swap we didn’t go over yet. You don’t know who is getting the gift. So you have to think about all the people who are going to be at the party and decide on a gift most of them would like.”

“Why a gift that only most people at the party would like?” asked Martin.

“Excellent question! And that is because of how the game is played. At a White Elephant and Yankee Swap, all of the gifts get placed in a pile, and everyone who brings a gift pulls a number out of a hat. The person who picks number 1 selects the first gift. They open it and show everyone else. Then the person who picks number 2 selects a gift and opens it. But before moving on to number 3, person number 2 gets to decide if they want to keep their gift or if they like person 1’s gift better. They can keep what they opened or swap it. As more people open gifts, there are more to choose from. At the very end, the person who had number 1 gets to look at all the gifts opened and pick the one they want.”

“I want to go to a party like that! You would always get the present you want!” said Martin, totally awed at the thought of selecting his own present. “But what about Secret Santa? It has different rules?”

“Secret Santa is when you know who is getting the gift, but they don’t know who gave it. You pretend to be Santa and keep it a secret,” explained Bridgett. “Before the party, you get the name of someone else who will be there and buy a gift for them. Gifts are generally related to something the person enjoys.”

“The hard part would be keeping the secret,” replied Martin. “I’m not always good at secrets.”

“That’s okay,” said Bridgett. “Part of the fun is in the guessing! People leave clues and try to figure out who their Secret Santa is.”

Martin took another sip of his hot chocolate, thinking. “So Mom and Dad are at a Yankee Swap party at Miss Darcy’s house. That means they brought something useful that anyone there would like?”

“That’s right!” nodded Bridgett.

“I wonder what they brought,” mused Martin. “And I wonder what they’ll bring home!”

Bridgett smiled. “Well, knowing your parents, whatever they bring home will probably have a good story attached to it.”

Martin laughed. “Everything in our house has a story! That’s what makes it fun. When I grow up and have my own party, I’m going to do all three at once! A Secret Yankee White Elephant Santa Swap!”

Bridgett burst out laughing. “That would be the most confusing party ever!”

“Or the most fun!” Martin grinned. He hopped up from his chair. “Speaking of stories, do you want to hear about the Yule Lads now? There are THIRTEEN of them!”

“Thirteen?” Bridgett’s eyes widened. “This I have to hear!”

Official rules for a White Elephant swap: https://www.whiteelephantrules.com/
Official rules for a Yankee Swap:https://yankeeswap.com/

Pickle bandages: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09D1V76KW
Pooping Puzzle:https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08RR1SW1W