After looking at my x-mas list, my wife has come to the conclusion that this is no longer a hobby. Doesn’t everybody have a microscope and hemocytometer regardless of what their hobbies are? I am of the opinion that every home needs a QC lab. 
My wife and I were discussing what kind of layout we want for our basement when we eventually get it finished. You know, bar area, someplace to put a TV and couches. I almost blurted out, “I wonder if there’s a little spot for a lab.” but managed to catch that before it escaped my lips. We’ll keep that one under wraps for the time being ;D
If you’re not making money doing it, it’s still a hobby. There are different degrees of seriousness when it comes to hobbies, is it that hard to understand? Hopefully she’s just being tongue & cheek with you.
Wait’ll she finds out you’ve really only just started
Getting a microscope on the Christmas list is easy if you have kids. It’s educational. 
Kai
you can use the hemocytometer to teach counting, right?
Never call it a lab. I leave it as “Brewing Stuff”. As long as she can refer to it as the beer that “we” brew, she pretty much leaves me alone to do it. When the bills come in, it’s just “Brewing Stuff”, just like sacks malt or hops or sanitizer. Never been able to get enough space for it, but then again, never will.