Hello 2011!

Firstly an apology for not being in touch with you wonderful people for a while but having bored you all before about my family's traditional Christmas programme, this year, the first since my Grandmother died, the family decided to get together at the folks house in France (again I apologise as I know I have bored you about this place......but it is amaaaaaaaaaaaaaaazing!)

The plan was that on Christmas eve eve....okay the 23rd my Sister and I would travel down to Bordeaux from Hull, picking up her BF on the way, meeting up with my lil Sister, her husband and lil Niece on route somewhere in France to arrive at Barie early on Christmas eve.

So after the usual work routine.....up at 5 and on the train to Manchester and back it was time to drive about 986 miles South, not helped by what was supposed to be the worst winter weather "EVER" (it really wasn't that bad at all!) and airport closures causing a 3 hour delay on the Euro Tunnel (man that is the weirdest experience ever.....to sit in a stationary car, whilst feeling definite forward motion, and seeing your passenger get out and walk away from the car at what seems a huge speed!) But after 22 hours of continuous travelling, split between my Sister and I (well mainly me.....have to do the whole manly thing of taking control!) the family was pretty much all together, with friends from the neighbourhood. 

Christmas and New Year were fantastic, although strange without my Grandmother although we still tried to maintain our Christmas traditions. Getting up for stockings, followed by breakfast and then presents and it was fantastic to see the excitement in the Lil niece's eyes when she saw the soot boot prints by the chimney, the half eaten carrot and the piles of presents.

To commemorate my Grandmother and all that she meant to all of us, we set off Chinese lanterns on the stroke of midnight on New Year's eve, taking our wishes to her and to remind her that we were all thinking of her still.

I can almost hear the sleigh bells.....

Not only are the lights up around town (both Hull and Manchester) and the Christmas Market is in full swing in Manchester.......but now it is also snowing!

I realise that reading back through some of the past blogs it does seem that I am a little bit like a kiddie on Christmas Eve (Boy wanty pressie! Where Santy Clause? Want pressies now!) but it's not so much Christmas itself (although I do love Christmas) but rather the whole season of winter.

Walking to the station in the morning there is nothing quite like seeing your breath in the air and that almost painful first few breaths, almost burning the lungs.....and I love snow. I think it is a further regression to childhood.

When we were a lot younger.....I think I was about 6.....my parents bought us a set of cross country skis. They did not want us throwing ourselves down a hill on skis at a young age...that was the plan! Instead we would go to Beverley Westwood when there was snow to slog round with planks of wood on our feet, to drag ourselves up any slight incline to experience the thrill of a little gravity driven acceleration. This was the birth of a lifelong love of skiing......so I am even more excited about the snow.

So with the cold, lights, decorations and snow......bring on Christmas.

Christmas is definitely just around the corner.

I'm not one of those people who can give you an exact count of the number of days to Christmas from any given day in the year, nor am I one of those people who organise presents throughout the year for that one day.....(I must admit I kind of cheat and when I am with someone, I tend to make notes of the things that they point out that they like so I can avoid the difficulty of making decisions on what jewellery, or pyjamas, or books etc to buy - being single can kinda suck at Christmas time)

I love the house fully decorated, the chance to spend the time with the family is fantastic, and the joy of watching my niece's face when she opens her presents makes all the time an effort worth while.

My family has a tradition at Christmas. Christmas eve is usually spent doing the last wrapping, and preparing the veggies for Christmas dinner, followed by a few drinks with friends and Midnight Mass. Christmas morning usually starts early, with my younger Sister who tends to be up at about 6.30am, even after Jess was born, and be dying to open the stockings. Stockings are opened upstairs, then breakfast of cold ham and boiled eggs and then onto the important job of opening the rest of the presents. After presents for the last ten years I will go and prepare Christmas dinner, typically with my Father's help (I tend to ensure that Dad has got at least one DVD which he can watch whilst having a drink whilst I cook! I find it so much easier that way round!)

After dinner the traditional Christmas activity takes over of sleeping through the Queen's speech, and pretty much everything else that is on TV.

I really enjoy this time of year, and Christmas seems to be just round the corner. This feeling was heightened today with the opening of Manchester's Christmas Market, a huge continental market spread throughout the centre, with all manner of stalls all festive and full of cheer (oh and mulled wine!)

P.S. - I apologise my posts are somewhat like buses.....you wait all week for one and then two come along at once!