Underneath the Christmas tree 🎄

[smonikkims]

It looks like we have a budding Petzy event planner on our hands because CatCreature dipped her toes into organising a small secret Santa (her first!!) and it went swimmingly <3 With her permission I've started this thread for the participants to show off their hauls - and hopefully, to gauge interest for more, potentially larger gift exchange groups in the future ... (I can help...!)

Thank you CatCreature for organising this and I hope everyone who might be interested in similar events will enjoy and comment!!

Nostalgic Kel Bunni Thor Ratqueen CarolynHorn Bec

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I got CatCreature herself as my Santa, and she really did a great job of handling my unique need to really click with every member of my crew in order to keep them... My gifts came with no obligation to keep, on a tryout basis- which allows me to enjoy them for a while without any worries...! She also included so many choices, but these are the guys I decided to have stick around, at least for a while!!


This is Kasumi, and she has the look CatCreature was originally going for when breeding my gift - and she definitely got the right idea. There are many features I really like in this one; full white patches (AND gypsy marks as a bonus!), green eyes, and a two-tone coat that looks very close to being one-tone. Plus, she's an RB, which is currently my favourite SCP. She's quite proud and definitely knows she's attractive - a strong independent woman, this Kasumi.


Silk stood out to me for much the same reason - as CatCreature mentioned to me when she sent my gift, she thought this was a one-tone cat, but nope, we've got red and brown together, a gem!! She's just as precious.

And although this was intended to be a bred Petz exchange for the ease of a first time, CatCreature did surprise us with this Christmassy file... <3


This is Gingersnap, sporting that same "two-for-one" look (we need some kind of 'official' term to describe two coat colours that are very similar...). I love that dusting on the nose, and especially her little ribbon! She's all wrapped up like a gift, but she belongs to the wild, and she's so very CatCreature when it comes to the hexing style! Iconic. I love her little deer tail too. A lovely surprise <3

[kathleen]

they’re all gorgeous!! looove those two-tone coats <3 I can’t wait to see the rest of the gifts that were exchanged! <3 this sounded like such a fun swap!

[Kel]

Awww they’re all super adorable! Silk is definitely a true gem, that red and brown coat blend so well.


I’ll be posting mine as soon as I’m able.

[Ratqueen]

^ Your two-tone kitties are really stylish and pretty, Smonikkims! Gives me a new appreciation for this type of color combination! And your deer kitty is adorable! I can't wait to see them all! I'm afraid I don't have your restraint when it comes to petz, as is obvious from the veritable Christmas haul below

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I wasn't prepared for a showoff, so this is kind of "quickly" put together, even though I have so much to show and tell!

I'll start by admitting that my list of likes and dislikes was long and detailed... (I felt so bad for whoever was going to be my Secret Santa).

I'm picky with petz (or just about anything according to my exaggerating partner) because I usually have two things in mind: breeding and showing. So I pay close attention to petz personalities (some I avoid completely), colors, markings, shapes, sizes, specific body parts (tails and legs are important to me, because they matter when posing)... you name it. I love colorful, unique-looking, even weird-looking petz, but not so much the very wide-spread Calico (except for its colorful patchiness). My poor Santa.

I had a real kick out of finding out Thor was my randomly-picked Secret Santa, because we play board games together every week! Luckily, she wasn't put off by my "slightly" demanding wishlist, and delivered above and beyond. So much so that half of the catz she bred for me went straight to my show team, while the rest lined up for my breeding team! There isn't a single one I'm not excited about for one reason or another, or several. As icing on the cake, she named all the kitties after popular board games! How cool is that?? (not to mention I had tons of fun finding related show names for them!)

I found these catz really striking, some bred with my beloved P5 breedz, others with unusual-looking markings and patterns I didn't recognize, but absolutely loved. I learned later that some of them had been bred with overwriting breedz by Amanda (namely her Bicolor BWs and Patchy Calicos), so I gained more than just beautiful, unique kitties, but also a way to breed more myself, as I will be using those two OWs as my default B&W and Calico breed files from now on.

From my Secret Santa Thor, joining my show team (and breeding team):

Eldervale Thor / RKC's My Dwelling is Better Than Yours	Arnak Thor / RKC's Help! I'm Lost in the Ruins!	Azul Thor / RKC's Is Laying Tiles Infantile?
Crewmate Thor / RKC's I Can't Tell You What's in my Paw	Viscounts Thor / RKC's The West Kingdom is Welcome to my Wisdom	Gloomhaven Thor / RKC's Someone's Gotta Do the Dungeon Crawling

From Thor and joining my breeding team (maybe more later):

Dune, Etherfields, Nidavellir, Spirit Island, Reef, and Vanguard.

Thank you Thor!! That was some masterful breeding you did there!

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Then CatCreature completely surprised me with a large number of petz bred to my liking. Whaaat?!?!

I haven't had time to fully sort out who wants to be what yet, so here's a group pic:

Such beauties!! Can't wait to have time to breed with them and select some to join my show team!

On top of that, CatCreature sent me one of the cutest, most amazing little hexie I've ever seen (or heard, as she meows loudly in the voice of a Honey Bear, doubling on the cute). And her name is...

* * * SUPERSTAAAAR! * * *

Right off the bat, Superstar proceeded to show me that CUTE wasn't all she was born to be. Oh no, not at all. Her name was Superstar after all! So she started alternating the unbearably cute shots with professional-grade show poses in a head-spinning photoshoot. As if still necessary to prove her worth, she managed to place BIS in both her first and second shows, despite hefty competition!

Superstar

Lily / RKC's Beyond All Expectations

Thank you Lily for these amazing surprise gifts, and for organizing the event!

That was a lot of fun!

[CatCreature]

Kel was my uh..."Secret" Santa. x'DDD Thing is, I randomized the names...and so I was the only one who could see who got who, so of course I knew who my Secret Santa was. It was funny and awkward to go up to her and be all, "So you're my Secret Santa and you have to give me stuff. " x'DDD But it all gave me a good laugh, so it was fun!

I haven't actually seen a lot of Kel's bred Petz before, and had no idea what to expect, so I was very eager to see what I would get! Honestly, I'm quite pleased!! All of these guys will get another showoff later, but this is just the 'sneak peek' for now! Kel, I can't thank you enough for these guys! I'm so in love with them all and can't stop thinking about them and going to play with them some more! ^^

They were all sent as babies, so I decided to raise them naturally! They're currently in my P4 game, since P3 is clogged with other babies at the moment...which is obvious if you've seen my last post in this board. x'DD But they'll move to P3 when the others there age up!

I -think- my favorites might be Jordash, Korifah, Liska and Winterberry, in no specific order! But I love them all, so it's really hard to say! So many of my weaknesses are caught here, it's insane! <3

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Also, if there's any confusion for why I was Smonikkims' Secret Santa, yet other people got Petz from me...it's because I felt like trying to give gifts to everyone in the group. xD If I can start doing a forum-wide Secret Santa event another year, I'll obviously be unable to keep that up, but since I was doing a small experimental group, I thought I'd go all out and give each participant a hexie from an unreleased Fuzzle Cat variation (two, actually! They're combinations of Reindeer and Ribboned!) and some bred Petz!

Smonikkims, being the person I was randomly set to be the Secret Santa for, got the most attention. I bred for her tastes, trying to get one very specific cat (yay, Kasumi!!) and it took quite a long time! Most of the bred Petz that went to others are leftovers that I sorted to people I thought would enjoy them! (So Kasumi has family scattered out among the people in this event! xD) I think I bred one or two other litters to get some more variation for people who had other tastes...but yeah.

I'd also like to thank Thor for coming up with this idea! I wound up sorting and arranging most of it, but Thor's the one who had the idea in the first place. I was thinking to myself I wanted to do something nice for my friends this holiday season, but I was feeling a little down and small, and not like I could manage it this year. Then she randomly messaged me, asking if I might be interested in arranging a smaller scale Secret Santa...and I realized if it was kept to a small group of people, it would actually be much easier for my very first time, and it seemed like something I could actually handle.

So she gave the idea, and further inspired and motivated me! Thanks a ton for that, Thor! I think you really made this a great holiday for all of us! You made me feel like I could do something, and I did it! And you helped me bring joy and Christmas spirit to a bunch of people...and that really was something very special!! <3

If time allows it next year, and someone else doesn't beat me to the punch, I might just give a forum-wide Secret Santa thing a try! I just hope people will be forgiving if mistakes are made! xD (I may take you up on the help, smonikkims ! Haha!)

Happy holidays, everyone! I hope you had a good one!! <3

More on these lovely little Petz from Kel later, when I get their individual graphics made! ^^

[smonikkims]

Whoa! Bricella is my favourite of your haul by far CatCreature !!

And I absolutely love the theme behind your gift Ratqueen , oh man everyone outdid themselves.

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By the way CatCreature, I'll be honest I didn't know if I'd actually end up clicking with my guys from you and that felt absolutely awful, but hearing more depth behind Kasumi's story, I felt all sentimental, and brought her out again in my game, and had another look.

I wasn't kidding when I mentioned her attitude - she's feisty and loves to play, in fact she'd rather play than eat. She has such strong shoulders, and she reminds me of the uchi villager type in Animal Crossing... And actually, I had intended to change her name if I kept her, so I'm going to have a look through the uchi villager list and see if there's a name that suits!

*flip* *flip* *flip*

No. The answer is no.

But here's another thing... I'm an idiot, I assumed she was RB SCP because of her looks, and it turns out she's a Maine Coon! That explains the attitude and playfulness... While I was in her file to check this, I noticed she actually has the ittiest littlest bit of Chartreux in her - that's a file I don't have in my game, but she has so little of it that she still works fine.

So I thought to honour that, I'd change her name from Kasumi to whatever that meant in Japanese, but in French.

*flip* *flip* *flip*



it's a no from me

But then... Her name means Mist, doesn't it? You know, that could be a Rune Factory reference all on its own, without the need for any language shenanigans...

Mist it is. After all... she almost *mist* her chance at being part of my permanent crew...

But thank you CatCreature. She's now off to meet the rest of the gang.

[Buck]

This looks really cute! Looks like you guys all got some really awesome new petz! Thanks for showing off

[Thor]

OK I'm here! Sorry for the wait!!!



My Secret Santa was Bunni !! As per my request, I asked for a few special petz-- so she sent me Ritzy and she came with a letter!



And an adoption certificate!! <3


I had mentioned briefly to Bunni that her graphic skills are so cute that should should do little adoption certificates-- and she remembered and made me one 🥺 I am touched.

Ritzy is a very special dog indeed!
Her spot placement is super cute-- she has these three dots on her left shoulder that form a little triangle and she has a Madonna mole on her left jowl.
She hates wearing clothes (but I forced her to wear a bow anyway because I'm a mean mommy).
She snuffs most toyz and runs with her nose so far in the air, its no wonder she trips every 5 seconds when she runs.
Ritzy makes these faces like she's judging me or seems annoyed.
But she's very smart and poses like a champion (def going to be a very special show pet <3)

I had a little dog I adopted from Rho during the Duke's Group Advent Calendar, Hiver, and she seemed to really take a liking to him 😉





I got a little gift from Bec that I haven't had a chance to add to my game yet but--

Those colors are really nice! And that fluffy tail!! Mutts are soo pretty 😍






I also got a gift from Ratqueen , I think unrelated to the Secret Santa thing but the Christmas timing was perfect so I would like to show off Noelle!

I'm in love with this color scheme so much-- black and white with green eyes is just perfection. And she has an Orange Shorthair face with a Calico personality!? I love these catz so much! She's the daughter of RQ's show catz too so she'll def be showing when I have more time!





I also received a gift from CatCreature ! She was not my Secret Santa but she gave everyone these adorable reindeer kitties and my heart ♥ I love this file so much where should I start? It's cartoon-y vibe just fits so well with Petz ballz. The tail is just too cute for words-- its a DEER TAIL ON A CAT 😭💜 my heart can't. He has deer antlers, a little bow! His color scheme is gorgeous-- gray/white, blue light green eyes 😍😍, the pink nose, white whiskers 😍😍, and the matching white antlers?? CatCreature are you able to just read my mind and know exactly what I like??
His name is Grumpington because well-- I guess you'll see--

He's an alley cat personality-- angry, crazy, and lovely all at the same time.




I decided to let this group all meet. Noelle is a weirdo. Everyone was mean to poor Grumpington it seems 😭 but no one hated each other.


Here's Noelle being a weirdo. And Grumpington just wants to be left alone.



Sadly we had a bit of a problem when Grumpington decided to jump on a ledge.

</3



Cute little group photo to end this


Thank you for the gifts :) <3


I think I've said this before but I don't really celebrate Christmas at all-- not to do with anything religious I just never really enjoyed getting physical gifts because I want to have as few material possessions as I possibly can in my life (except food and cookies and desserts-- those Christmas traditions I 100% celebrate)-- and if I give people gifts, then they have to give me a gift back so sometimes I just avoid it all together and gift nothing. Its awkward and has kind of made me the Grinch in my family 🤣

The Petz Community has made my Christmas spirit return! I love giving and receiving DIGITAL petz gifts so much! It's nice to be able to actually celebrate this fun holiday and actually give gifts and receive gifts!! This has made my year feel the most Christmas I've ever felt :') Thank you all so much.

[Rho]

Aughhhh Bunni that certificate is the CUTEST!!!

[Thor]

smonikkims gosh wow! I love both Kasumi-- RB personalities are super nice. Wow CatCreature knows you well eh! Kasumi, Silk, and Gingersnap are all that two-tone colors but looks like one! Yeah we def need a term for that because I also love the gray/blue and brown/red combos!
Awww Mist! <3 (a Runefactor Reference now haha I feel like we've played a lot of similar games you and I haha)



Ratqueen I love the show names you picked! I'm glad you liked them :) it was fun to breed P5 breeds! I basically bred litterz and I tried to give you a unique kitty from each litter (so they wouldn't be related)-- so I believe none of these are siblings. Since I bred about 3 per litter, I ended up keeping some as well! The P5 ones were so pretty!

Those are lovely from CC! I can see you love RB and MC faces! I even see an Oshie from CatCreature ! That means she managed an Oshie not Calico-- I tried but all the Oshie faces I bred were Calico or Oshie personalities!



CatCreature I am in love with all the cat reindeer so far 🥺 <3 they are SO lovely....!
Also-- I appreciate the kind words. I tried to donate a little something to every event that people were hosting this year on Petzcord, WW, DG, and PKC and am glad I was able to bring some cheer to every part of the PC I was able to-- especially with your help :) thank you for hosting!

[CatCreature]

smonikkims I'm sorry! I could have SWORN I already told you about her name! xD I must have thought to, but it didn't go any further than that! But yes! Kasumi means "mist" or could even go for "misty" and I chose the name because that's what her colors make me think of. The blues and grays...she looks like a misty night, or something! Haha, I need to get back into Rune Factory! I tried one of those games, before getting distracted by something else, and forgot to go back to it. xD It looks right up my alley though!

Thor Haha! I'm very glad you like Ritzy! Bunni actually showed her to me, asking my opinion on if she might work for you, and I jokingly tried to get her to send Ritzy to me instead. x'DD That's an absolutely stunning pup, but I knew you'd like her! <3 Those graphics are precious too, wow!! And the way she turns her nose up at most toys...LOL Wow, she really is surprisingly Poodley for not being a Poodle!!

And of course, I'm so glad you like Grumpington! xD I think he and the one I gave to Bunni were my top favorites! <3 Very hard to resist those two! He's actually got a light minty color for his eyes! 190, one of my favorites! I'd say it's more green than blue personally, but that's just me. xD

And I think the Oshie I gave RQ might have had a Chinchilla Persian personality, if memory is correct? Or Persian. It was something very laid-back. xD It was kind of fun to try and find her unique looking mixies without her disliked personalities in there. xD

EDIT: Also, Smonikkims...I have no idea how some Chartreux slipped into her genetics!! o-O I'll have to look into that!!

EDIT2: Wow. Okay, so it was closer to the parents than I thought. Mist's grandmother is a Chartreux! Apparently this lady, Lasire:

Carried the gene.

This is Lasire's mother, a 1st gen Chartreux...Babyface:


Anyway, Lasire is correctly organized on my site. Usually I use my site's breeds to pick who to breed, but come to think of it, I think THIS time I was digging through my personal "Calico Russians" folder...which was a bad idea, because some with breedfiles are added into it. That was a close call, and very stupid on my part. xP That could have ruined the -entire- breeding project!!

[Thor]

Whoops I meant green eyes-- honestly I love that green but sometimes I have the hardest time being able to tell if its blue or green-- either way I love it 🥰
Also yes! Ritzy is amazing <3

[smonikkims]

CatCreature Lasire... She is absolutely stunning! She's got the same thing going on... Okay yes, we need a name for the two-close-colour thing. Am I allowed to coin a term for that this late into the PC's life? XD How about "analogue"? Lasire and Mist have analogue coats~

[Nostalgic]

This secret santa was so fun!! I've gotten so many wonderful petz, I'll be sure to come back and give them the show off they deserve 

[smonikkims]

Oh... Oh my gosh French Rose I'm so sorry!
I completely forgot to show her off...

Unrelated to our secret santa, Thor noticed my ad up on WW wasn't answered - an ad for a poodle! I just can't with Dogz, but I so want to! Then I remembered how much I loved the poodle personality, and just everything about them, really - and how many poodlies I had missed out on in the past... Anyway, the ad wasn't answered, until Thor came to my rescue at Christmas, and French Rose was born. A brexie, and Thor let me fine-tune her just to my liking.

She's still a puppy, so she's so playful even though her poodle personality should say otherwise. She'll still only eat the healthy treats and gets a lot of beauty rest, though.

Thank you so much Thor, you gave me such a wonderful surprise with her, we've clicked, and I'll treasure her. <3



Well, at least she'll look at me now.

I will note that Arie also approached me after I removed the thread with an offer of a lovely looking poodle cross, but my void had already been filled - thank you Arie, too <3