Emblemax Christmas Party 2013

On Friday after work, Emblemax had its Christmas party. I had hired a mechanical bull so decided a western theme would be fun. I'd also ordered a Wrecking Ball game but had no idea it would be this big.

It was a monster and barely fit in our shipping room. Joe checked it out before everyone else arrived. It really was very bouncy and I was so pleased that it was something the adults could play on too.

An undressed mechanical bull. Looks a little lame like this and certainly doesn't look capable of throwing a whole company around a room.

Joe and Mike dressed in their gear and looking awesome. I couldn't stop laughing at Mike's outfit which was obviously too small but still looked great. Not sure if the size of his garments was planned to be that small but he brought a smile to everyone's face.

Folks couldn't wait to get on the bull and it was a lot harder than it looked to stay on. It had a very slippery saddle and there was no help with staying put apart from a rope string at the front of the saddle, not even a handle. The longest ride was only about 40 seconds, I'm too ashamed to say how long I managed...

And so they all fell off...

..and Johny here performed the best acrobatic flip. I didn't get a photo at the moment he went over because we were all just staring open mouthed as he flipped vertically into the air, somersaulted and then landed on the bull's head before coming to rest on his knees on the mat. He wasn't hurt but I think we were all in more pain from splitting our sides in laughter. He got the top points of the evening. This photo was of him was launching.

And here is little Addison, the most gorgeous boy I've ever come across. As well as being handsome, he's incredibly funny, a born performer, overflowing with confidence. But even he couldn't outdo the bull, the mat awaited him.

The Wrecking Ball was also very popular with the kids. I tried to get on one of the posts but found it almost impossible to stand upright, most of us big kids gave it a miss after finding it impossible to get up from our knees. The girls were more keen to imitate Miley Cyrus' video by swinging on the ball so we had to put a stop to that!

I made Wanted posters of the guys and pinned them up over the buffet. Jose added an additional decoration to his.

He was the only one of the production staff that came dressed up but he did it in style. He's another great actor and really played the part.

The Washington Redskin's Number One Fan, Billy, dressed up, and wearing a Skins hat from the 70's.

My boot bling. Everyone seemed to have fun. I was disappointed that I didn't get any photos of me but my bad, I should have passed my camera over to someone to take them, so lesson learned for next year. The games proved to be a huge hit so I felt relieved about that, I worry before every Christmas party that I'll choose something that will flop. So now I have to start thinking for next year. Already have some great ideas from folks, so next year should be a breeze.