Christmas 2009
Bug = 3 years 10 months
Bub = 2 years Linus at this age
Bud = 4 months 9 days Linus at this age – Ada at this age
Timing and Meals
This Christmas was a little different from last ones, which have had their timing dictated somewhat by Granny’s work hours. This year Granny managed to get three weeks off over Christmas and the New Year. Hence we decided to spend Christmas Eve and Christmas morning at our house with my family, then go to Granny and Pop-pop’s for Christmas afternoon/evening and Boxing Day.
I made a two course brunch at home for Nana, Gaga, Claire, Kyle, Bob, and me (the kids just had Weetbix earlier on!). We had sausages, eggs, toast, hash browns, and mushrooms; followed by pancakes, bananas, strawberries, bacon, and a selection of toppings.
After the rest of the family departed, we tidied, packed, and headed to Mosgiel for a quiet, relaxing afternoon and evening on a HOT Christmas Day. We enjoyed a dinner of roast hogget and roast chicken with various veges; followed by chocolate eclairs, meringues, cream, strawberries, and Norwegian Trifle.
Yum!!
New Traditions
This is the first year that Linus is starting to understand what’s going on with Christmas. As a result I’ve been more interested in thinking about what traditions and memories will make our Christmases special in years to come. I have a few ideas that I’m sure will evolve as the years go on:
- Christmas Eve was feeling a little flat. Neither my family nor Bob’s family had anything particular that they traditionally did on Christmas Eve, and I felt that something was needed to make it special. We got the kids ready for bed, then got out all the presents in the house and let the kids put them under the tree. It was a nice way to make bedtime Christmassy.
- We never had an Advent Calendar as children, but I like the idea of having something to mark each day on the approach to Christmas. I asked my Mum to keep an eye out for a non-religious, reusable Advent Calendar of some sort which I could use each year with my own content. Within a couple of days she’d managed to pick up a felt, Santa-themed one with 24 (25?) individual pockets. I didn’t have time to use it this year, but next year I’ll hopefully get organised earlier and fill the calendar with fortunes, treats, or tasks for each day.
- Aunty Claire has started a neat feature – little passport-sized photos of the intended recipient attached to each gift. The best thing about this was that Linus and Ada, who can’t read yet, were able to “deliver” presents to each person at gift-giving time.
- At Daddy’s suggestion, Linus and Ada left milk and a giant chocolate chip biscuit out for Santa. Of course it had disappeared by morning, and a letter on the fridge from Santa thanked them for their generosity.
Present Highlights
- Bike (with trainer wheels) for Linus from Mummy and Daddy
- Training pants for Ada from Mummy and Daddy. Linus never used these, but then boys’ undies have more layers than girls’ undies.
- Twelve bottles of different beer for Bob from Mum and Claire. The only criterion was that they have interesting sounding names.
- Train tracks for the kids from Mum and Claire. This was to extend the set that they gave them last Christmas.
- Clamshells for the kids from Granny and Pop-pop. These are for using as a sandpit and cover or – as we did on Christmas Day – as a pair of paddling pools.
The lowlight was that the big set of DVDs (15 season of ER) that Claire and I arranged to get and share as virtually our ONLY Christmas present didn’t turn up. Claire and I were both giving each other and Bob and Mum suspicious looks all day, suspecting that they’d been sneakily hidden away on arrival, but no such luck.
