This Christmas was a little different than any other in that we were in ‘our home’ and without family.  I know that I have been away from CT a few times for the holidays, but in those instances we were at Maria’s or my in-laws. Being with family during the holidays is Rule #1 with me, but there were a few reasons why that just didn’t make sense to pop over to NZ year this year.

1.) We are moving there in a month.

2.) I wanted Lana to finish out the school year and participate in all the year-end activities with her friends since she will not be returning next year.

3.) The weather is nicer in Sydney (knock wood, as the God’s have been messing with me lately in regards to this.)

4.) I wanted to spend as much time playing with MY friends before moving.

5.) Last, but certainly not least, Lana wanted to have a Christmas where she woke up in her own bed, in her own house. Fair enough!

So with all this, we decided to stay put.

In order to get ourselves into the Christmas spirit we set up our tree. It’s the same one I bought last year at a tag sale for $5. It’s small, but it’s ours. After putting up some lights, red beads, and some special ornaments Nuno expressed the desire to add some more Christmas ornaments. So while I was in a very long line at BigW he went off with Stephen to pick some out. He came back with colors that did not at all match the decorations we already had up. Rather than insist on a more traditional selection I capitulated and bought the one’s he wanted.

When we got home he & Lana wanted to hang them themselves. Their plan was to hang like colors together. WHAT?!?!? I resisted the urge to intervene and surprisingly it looked really good.

The kids both received Aussie ornaments and Nuno made these two beauties:

The other thing we did to get ourselves in the mood was pull out all our Christmas books.

As I alluded to before, the weather in Sydney had not been so great before Christmas. Although this put a damper on our beach time, it did facilitate a more Christmasy feeling. It’s still difficult to bake when it’s 38C/100F degrees. I have always had the kids help me bake, but this year was different because Lana was truly helpful. She has developed a keen interest in cooking and baking.

The chocolate dipped shortbread cookies were YUMMY!

Nuno of course helped too.

The kids also both had Christmas concerts that were just adorable.

With all the madness at the end of the year, I still wanted desperately to get a Christmas card out. The first day was overcast (How dare that happen in Sunny Sydney!)

It didn’t seem right, so we tried again the next day. Nuno was in a silly mood and tried to moon the camera. Fortunatley his pants were too tight for him to execute this. Not sure where he gets these ideas?!?!

Although the weather was perfect on the second day, none of the pictures spoke to me. My favorite shot did not have the kids in the best position between the Opera House & the Harbour Bridge, but I think it captured their joyfullness, so it’s the one I picked.

So with that we hope everyone had a Merry Christmas & no matter where you are, know that you are in our hearts.

We love you!