You know your kids are getting older when you almost get through Christmas without having to fight with a twistie-tie in the packaging for their gifts. 
This year, the plastic clamshell packaging took over as the most-irritating part of the unwrapping process. We didn't have one toy around here that had packaging like the kind pictured at right. In fact, I only had to battle three twistie-ties this Christmas.
Unfortunately, the upgrade from toys with twistie-ties to electronics with clamshells and CDs with maximum-security shrink wrap, labels and tape has not proved to be much of an improvement. Now we need tools to help us open the gifts. Kitchen scissors, Boy-Scout knives, and even can openers were employed as we tried to break into those annoying plastic packages that contained things like a wireless mouse, new headphones, and Bakugan paraphernalia.
For the record, that whole thing about using hand-held can openers to open plastic clamshells is a rumor. It doesn't work. Stick with the kitchen shears and Swiss Army knives.
It's almost enough to send me running back to the kinds of toys that come boxed with a full complement of twistie-ties.
COUPON TIME
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