Christmas and all that!

Well, Christmas has been and almost gone. We had a reasonably quiet Christmas day,the kids were up at their usual time of six and whispering loudly across the landing to each other!I caught them creeping downstairs looking for their stockings which were hanging very obviously at the end of their beds! Then they piled onto our bed to open them all very excitedly, they then went off to play with all the bits and pieces while we tried to get some more sleep before facing the day!

After a yummy breakfast and a few more presents we headed off to church. Back again, prepared dinner, more presents, ate too much, more presents, watched telly, more presents, played, played, played and then the kids went off to bed.......phew!!! Although we didn't think we had brought them much this year they still managed to end up with stacks of new things and both were very happy with everything they got so a really good day! We had an evening watching my new Mamma Mia DVD (GREAT!) and drinking my new Ginger Wine and eating yummy chocolates......heaven!

Boxing day was a lovely clear sunny day so after a late brunch we decided to head off to get some fresh air and went for a walk around Troutbeck village. It was a lovely walk of about 3.5 miles, beautiful scenery and lovely weather, what more could you ask for?
Unfortunately today it was back to work, while Ben and I went off to sort out one of the cottages, Dave and Eilidh went shopping and trying to sort Eilidh's new (to her!) bike out with a new wheel. We ended up having a very late lunch at 3pm and then the kids put on a Circus show and then we all read a book together while Dave snored loudly in his chair!!

It's been a really nice Christmas this year, not too much rushing around and just seemed to be so much more relaxed than last year, I actually felt quite calm most of the time (unheard of!) and of course Christmas Dinners are the best!!

Christmas Eve!!!

Today, Eilidh and Dave went out for last minute shopping and taking Customers Christmas cards around. Ben and I had a quiet morning, watching telly, having baths and getting presents wrapped. Ben still has a nasty chesty cough and snuffles but seems ok in himself. Eilidh managed to come back with a bag full of sweets from one of Daves customers whcih was really sweet of them.

This afternoon we packed up a big box of Christmas dinner goodies and a few presents for our friend Paul. We havn't seen him in ages and he has had a horrible year, backwards and forwards to about five different hospitals all over the country for Cancer and other treatments. I had spoken to him yesterday and he had said he was staying at home with his cat on Christmas day as he didn't feel like being sociable so we wanted to make sure he had something decent to eat!!! He has a very bad habit of having no food in his house! I think it's just as well we took a load of stuff over because as usual his cupboards looked bare!! The kids love Paul and were very excited to go and see him for a while, it was really good to see him.

This evening the kids had one present to open each as it was a new pair of pyjamas and then we finished reading the last chapters of our Christmas book we have been reading and then to sleep. The presents have all been put out in the living room (how many????) and stockings are stuffed ready to go!! I think we are reasonably organised for a change!

Last Friday was the kids Christmas party with the home ed group. They all seemed to have a great time, running around, playing lots of games, dancing and eating lots of food! It was a really good day, we took along our friends two kids, Zeph and Isaac and they were all absolutely worn out by home time!

On Saturday we had to go and turn on heating and christmas lights at the cottages and then went straight off to see Dave's mum in the North East for the night. Sunday was spent rushing between family and friends and then heading back over for the Carol Service at church in the evening. Dave was singing in the choir, they have only had about five practices together but they sounded amazing, really professional!!! Hopefully they will keep it up after Christmas!

Ben has come down with a nasty cough just in time for Christmas(!) but everyone else is ok and the kids are very excited already. We haven't done a lot else, tidied the house up a bit, done the washing and ironing so we can have a relaxing Christmas! Dave has just finished working for Christmas although he is on duty at church on Christmas Day, (not quite sure how he ended up being lumbered with that one!)

Ummmmm, can't actually remember what we have been doing for the last few days, I think my brain has gone into pre-Christmas melt down!! Ahh yes, we went shopping, managed to get most of the Christmas presents sorted and now have no money again, hurrah!! Dave has been busy working when the weather is up to it and I have been attempting to amuse the kids whilst wanting to curl up in a ball and go to bed most days! Think I might go and have a glass of Schnapps and a warm bath and then to bed! Maybe my brain will be in gear after a decent nights sleep!!!

Eilidh had a dance workshop on Wednesday which our friends Jayne was taking her to so we headed over there in the afternoon to drop her off. They apparantly had a great time, dressing up in wigs and things and dancing, it was all being filmed and linked to another dance workshop in Canada! Something to do with a new arts initiative or something, she seemed to enjoy herself anyway.

Meanwhile I had some time with Ben, just the two of us. Apart from sometimes popping to the shops with him we don't seem to get any time on our own any more and it was lovely. He wanted to go to Cartmel as there is a couple of great toy and gift shops there, unfortunately the one he wanted was closed but we wandered through the other one looking at all the lovely things we couldn't afford!! Then we headed off to a tea shop for drinks and a piece of cake overlooking Cartmel Priory. Ben then decided that he wanted to have a look around the Proiry but it had just shut when we got there so we had a wander looking at the Christmas lights and then back to pick Eilidh up. He was as good as gold, he walked through the shops nicely, looking at everything and chatting away happily, sat still and chatted some more while in the cafe and held my hand while wandering around. What a difference!!! We have recently come to the conclusion that he really need to have some one to one time with us but I didn't quite realise what a change it would make!! We had a lovely time, it was so nice to be able to relax and enjoy his company without worrying about what was going to happen next!

The conclusion being that both the kids would really benefit from having one of us to themselves every so often, not so easy to put into practice but I think it's something we have got to get sorted.

We got back to Jayne's before they arrived so Ditch (Jayne's hubby) installed Ben on the computer to watch Tomas the Tank Engine on You Tube to wait.

Dave has been busy building walls and putting up fences and today was back onto decorating the windows on someone's house so was absolutely frozen being outside all day. We took him down some gloves, scarf and hats this morning and then headed off for a walk by the river in Kendal with a stop at the play park for the kids. Not much else happened!

On Saturday we had some friends come over in the afternoon to go sledging with. Their two boys had a lsedge which had sat for two years doing nothing so were really desperate to give it a run out. Where they live in Lancaster they had no snowjust ice! The kids all had great fun, the sledge runs were really icey and fast, Kevin (their dad) set to work building an igloo with Eilidh which ended up looking really good. A few hours later, after me and Trixi had given into the cold and gone indoors they all appeared back for hot chocolate and biscuits before heading home. Four tired kids (and parents!)

Sunday we went off to church, Ben decided he didn't want to go into his group so went into church with Dave and behaved brilliantly! I was roped into helping with the littlies as someone was away and then home for a quiet afternoon in front of the telly watching Madagascar

Eilidh had an appointment at the hospital physio on Monday for her leg. I hate these appointments, there always seems to be about three people there all talking amongst themselves about Eilidh and pretty much ignoring anyone else! I tend to get 'het' up and never think to ask the right questions while I'm there and the questions I do ask seem to get the reaction that it's not their department and I have to ask the consultant!!?? Anyway the upshot is that her leg isn't any better, she's now going to be referred to a paediatrician so we will have three seperate appointments, no doubt in different hospitals for them all to say the same thing...GRRRRRR! So from what I can gather we see the physio about her shoe rise and if it needs changing, the consultant for any other questions and the paediatrician about goodness knows what???? I was also really wound up because the physio turned around and asked about her reading and writing and asked her to bring in a story or something she has written next time we see them. WHAT HAS THIS GOT TO DO WITH HER LEG????????? Eilidh turned around and told her she had the reading age of an 11 year old and she didn't like writing but could do it when she wanted to so I somehow don't think they will getting anything from her for the next appointment and I certainly won't be making her!!

Anyway.. another quiet day today, making Christmas cards (at last!), listening to story CD's whilst painting and playing with the Magnetix. Eilidh has posters put up all around our house for a play she will be putting on about Robin Hood on the 19th so if anyone wants to come??!!

The snow is still hanging on! We did a bit more sledging and snow man building yesterday and today was Cookery group. Chocolate, chocolate and more chocolate!! Me and Eilidh made some Petits Fours(?), little chocolate fancy sweets in those little sweet cases. First we had to brush chocolate round each one to make a casing and then filled them up with a mixture of chocolate, cream and Rum Essence. When they cool down they have a hard chocolate outside with a sort of soft chocolate fudgy filling. Not very easy to describe but they are scrummy. I think we will make some more as little pressies for our neighbours and friends.

Ben didn't join in (as usual!) I sometimes wish I could chop myself in half so I could do something with him while Eilidh wants to get on with stuff in the group. He doesn't really settle in any group situation, we have even been told by his group at church that if he doesn't settle down soon they may have to chuck him out (said very nicely and politely of course and not quite in those words!?) That would be a first....being excluded from Sunday school....just makes me even more sure of the reasons for NOT sending him to school. I really feel that he may be somewhere on the Autistic Spectrum but don't really know what to do about it.

Anyway.... tomorrow we have NO cottages to do...Hurray!

The snow stayed all of today for a change! We popped to the library this morning and then headed home to play in the snow! The kids had great fun sledging down the hill in the field opposite, very handy having a perfect sledging place so near to the house! I even had a go and I hadn't quite realised how fast you could go until then!!

Then back indoors to a nice warm fire and watching Wall-E on DVD. The kids have wanted to see this for ages and amazingly we managed to get it out of the library this morning...Hooray!

Ben doing his impression of a fly in a spiders web! This was the boys way of amusing themselves while the girls did the craft show!

We woke up to a white world this morning, unfortunately I had to go out to do one of the cottages today so after finishing the ironing we headed off. Stupidly I decided to take one of the back lanes to get to the main road which was like an ice rink and ended up doing a rather elegant skid and then getting stuck going up a really small hill! Fortunately the car eventually made it up and we went at snails pace all the way along and breathed a sigh of relief when we got to the end. I should have known better as I did something similar last year down the same lane....dur!! Ben thought it was fun though!

On Sunday I was still really tired after being at the craft fair all day on Saturday so Dave took the kids off for the monthly Home Ed walk. This was before it had snowed down here but they had a lovely sunny day for it and went up Dixon Heights which is a hill not far from here and ended up in snow anyway! They got home very cold and tired and spent the rest of the day in front of the fire.

Yesterday we took some boxes of stuff to our favourite charity shop at Shap (the only one around here that does'nt charge extortionate prices!) and then had some fish and chips at the best chippy! We managed to bump into our friend Kate (and Florence) up there so we took the kids up to the playground for a run around before heading home. They only lasted five minutes because it was sooooo cold!

There have been a few cars skidding and revving up our road tonight so I think we may be staying in tomorrow! Dave was busy working outdoors last week doing decorating and has come down with a horrible cold, he was snowed off today but we shall have to see how it goes this week. Ladders and ice don't really mix!