Christmas

Amazingly this was the first 'white' Christmas that we have had since returning to England eight years ago. I love to see Christmas through my children's eyes - teenage eyes, no longer big wide-eyed kiddy eyes but not yet adult I've experienced so many Christmas' eyes. They have opinions now, which gets annoying as they all want their say in which tree we choose and where exactly the tree should stand - this year arrival of  new slightly too large sofa put paid to any discussion over location of tree - there was only one suboptimal possibility.. by the front door.

Yet it is still sweet to see them get the same decorations out of the box and remember them from last Christmas and the Christmas before and in doing so remember where we lived... where they were bought...each decoration placed carefully on the tree is part of our story.

Sam (kid's cousin), India and Jade

 Milo and India

This year I decided to make home made crackers...definitely a ' lol' moment on Christmas eve when the only shop still open in my kingdom was the co-op. So apart from a box of quality street and a bicycle repair  kit purchased from said shop I rustled up all sorts of things to put inside my crackers which I made from brown paper, of which I had plenty and coloured ribbon, of which I had just enough. I have an old printing set, which must have belonged to a grocery shop, which I used to personalize each cracker...inside I wrote quotes from famous people  (with the help of google, Einstein and Marilyn Munroe) and instead of paper hats we just wore hats of all shapes and sizes.