Well, we had a lovely Christmas day for the most part. It started at 2.30am when Toby woke up, found the stocking at the foot of his bed and shouted "Mommy! Daddy! Santa's come!!". Toby, Jason and I got up and Toby checked out all of his presents. Rosie very sensibly slept through this part of the day. J has a cold so he went back to bed and Tobes and I stayed up until 4am trying out his Superman bike, turning the Transformer into a car and then back into a robot half a dozen times, dressing Polly Pocket up in each of her outfits (that's my boy) and opening and examining the contents of every box.
We went back to sleep at four then got up again around nine with Rosie. It was all a bit over Rosie's head. She has a stomach virus and is not a happy little girl at the moment. She did love the tea set Toby gave her and her dolly that opens and closes her eyes. I was surprised that Rosie is already able to play make-believe but she was giving her dolly sips of 'tea' and bites of 'cake'. Very sweet.
While Rosie napped and J and Tobes went out to try the new bike I started preparing lunch. I don't know why I bother with such a big meal but I do like to do the whole traditional thing. Today we had turkey, stuffing, sausages, cranberry sauce, gravy, honey roasted parsnips and carrots, roast potatoes, brussel sprouts and cauliflower cheese. I just can't imagine not doing the whole thing. This year I made the cauliflower cheese with an amazing goats cheese we got at the farmers market. It was lovely. I make a ton of food because the leftovers are almost as good as the meal. I make a turkey pie and bubble & squeak with the leftover veg. So yummy.
So I got the meal ready, just over an hour later than planned, and even managed to shower before we sat down at the table. Toby decided he didn't want to eat anything and would rather go watch a DVD on his own in the living room. Rosie was cranky and grumbling because of her stomach virus. J and I were doing our best to enjoy the meal. I had put Rosie in my lap to calm her and just when I thought I was going to get to actually taste some of the food I had spent the previous few hours preparing Rosie threw up all over me, herself and my plate.
Much, much later I did manage to sit down and enjoy a plate of food without any regurgitated additions. It was worth the wait.
You know, there are families who all sit down together at lunchtime on Christmas day. They're all clean and dressed in their Sunday best, have good conversation and eat well. No one goes off to watch A Muppet Christmas. No one declares the food to be 'a bit yucky'. And no one throws up on the plates. What a strange family they must be.
Monday, December 25, 2006
Sunday, December 24, 2006
Track Santa
We've been having fun with the Norad tracking Santa website today. We just looked and he's in Kabul now giving out presents. Tobes loves checking to see how close he's getting to London and I'm hoping this will provide a good incentive to go to bed at a decent hour tonight. "Santa" has a cold and needs to put a bike together tonight. I'm hoping it won't be a late night or Mrs Claus might have to finish that bike which could be dangerous.
Thursday, December 21, 2006
London fog
Growing up one of the stock images of London was the fog. I remember reading about it in novels, especially Sherlock Holmes. It was as much a part of London as Big Ben. Well, in all my years of living in England I have to admit that I've rarely experienced real fog. The occasional misty morning and early evening but nothing like the current state. When we left the house this morning we couldn't see the end of our street the fog was so thick. The heath looks like something straight out of a horror movie. It's well creepy, as Annelouise's Rowan would say.
It's funny how it changes the quality of sound too. Everything sounds more crisp, as if all the usual background noise is muffled into silence by the weight of the fog. All domestic flights from Heathrow have been cancelled and even some flights to Europe. It's causing chaos for people trying to get home for Christmas. They think we have about another 24 hours of it. Sounds nice to me. I'm actually enjoying it. The legendary London fog. Makes me want to get out my deerstalker and magnifying glass and look for a crime to solve, though I think I would probably look more like Elmer Fudd hunting wabbits.
It's funny how it changes the quality of sound too. Everything sounds more crisp, as if all the usual background noise is muffled into silence by the weight of the fog. All domestic flights from Heathrow have been cancelled and even some flights to Europe. It's causing chaos for people trying to get home for Christmas. They think we have about another 24 hours of it. Sounds nice to me. I'm actually enjoying it. The legendary London fog. Makes me want to get out my deerstalker and magnifying glass and look for a crime to solve, though I think I would probably look more like Elmer Fudd hunting wabbits.
Wednesday, December 20, 2006
Santa's Ho (Ho Ho)
I've been doing my Santa work this morning, wrapping presents and sorting out the stocking stuffers, making sure that neither child has 'more' than the other. This is particularly tough because it's not straightforward. This year much more has been spent on Toby because he's getting a bike but Rosie has more physically large items but Toby has more presents to unwrap because he's getting more little things. It makes my head spin.
The funny thing is I'm not sure the kids will even notice this stuff. Rosie certainly won't. I should probably be careful I don't start projecting my gift concerns onto the children. Geez, I think I need to go lay down.
The funny thing is I'm not sure the kids will even notice this stuff. Rosie certainly won't. I should probably be careful I don't start projecting my gift concerns onto the children. Geez, I think I need to go lay down.
Tuesday, December 19, 2006
Lightning strikes twice
Drove into the village at 8.30 this morning for a breakfast with Santa. Cafe Rouge was having a special childrens' breakfast with a visit from Santa and even little gifts for the kids. J went in with us and while he was sorting out the parking ticket I went around to the boot to get the stroller out. It wasn't there! A quick series of thoughts ran through my head. Why would anyone steal a stroller... deja vu... haven't I been through this once before... oh shit, where did I leave it this time?
After some quick crime scene reconstruction in my head I realised that the last time I had seen the stroller was the night before when we met up with Elizabeth, Andrew and Mary Catherine for a last supper before they go off to the States for the holidays. Obviously I had the stroller when we left the restaurant. I took it to the car. Do I remember putting it in the boot? No. Crap.
I think J was genuinely shocked that I could do something so stupid TWICE. Oh well, nothing for it. We had a date with Father Christmas and a missing stroller wasn't going to get in the way of that. So I picked up Rosie and the nappy bag, took Tobes by the hand and schlepped through the village. We had to pass the spot where I had parked the night before and lo and behold it was a Christmas miracle. The stroller was still there.
Some kind soul had pushed it up under cover and it was fine though a little wet with morning dew. I had a quick sniff to make sure it really was morning dew and not some drunk guy's wee from the night before then plonked Rosie in it and we were off.
Very glad to have found the stroller but I must admit that I was already planning what kind to buy next.
After some quick crime scene reconstruction in my head I realised that the last time I had seen the stroller was the night before when we met up with Elizabeth, Andrew and Mary Catherine for a last supper before they go off to the States for the holidays. Obviously I had the stroller when we left the restaurant. I took it to the car. Do I remember putting it in the boot? No. Crap.
I think J was genuinely shocked that I could do something so stupid TWICE. Oh well, nothing for it. We had a date with Father Christmas and a missing stroller wasn't going to get in the way of that. So I picked up Rosie and the nappy bag, took Tobes by the hand and schlepped through the village. We had to pass the spot where I had parked the night before and lo and behold it was a Christmas miracle. The stroller was still there.
Some kind soul had pushed it up under cover and it was fine though a little wet with morning dew. I had a quick sniff to make sure it really was morning dew and not some drunk guy's wee from the night before then plonked Rosie in it and we were off.
Very glad to have found the stroller but I must admit that I was already planning what kind to buy next.
Monday, December 18, 2006
It's hard being in this family
I was just looking at the photos from Texas. I had some bad parma ham yesterday and wasn't feeling so great while sorting them out last night. It was nice to look at them today without thinking I might throw up. One of the things that made me laugh are the pics of me and Toby trying to take a photo of J in the shower. My family have always been big on practical jokes which was a shock to J when he joined up. He was so reserved and shy and, unfortunately for him, it just made him a bigger target.
When I was little Mom used to play jokes on us all the time. She would hide behind doors and tell us stories that ended with her jumping up and shouting something which made us jump out of our skins. Jon and I were terrible to each other. We would roll each other's room in toilet paper and he would tie my doorknob to the one across the hall so that I couldn't open my bedroom door and would have to climb out of my window and through the hedge. I remember once putting mascara on Jon while he slept, the night before swimming lessons. When he got in the pool the next day the mascara ran. So mean but so funny.
Then there was the time that Jon thought he would really get me. He put cling film over the toilet bowl and Vaseline on the inside bathroom doorknob. Then he sat in his room across the hall and waited for me to go in. Unfortunately, Dad went in before me. Dad shut the door, there was a moment of silence then "Jon!" then the doorknob started rattling as Dad tried to open the greased door and then "JON!!".
So, when I decided to pick the lock on the bathroom and try to get a naked photo of J, I was just following family tradition. The proof of this is that Dad walked down the hall and saw me standing in front of the bathroom door with an ice pick in one hand and a camera in the other. Did he looked shocked? Did he ask what the hell I was doing? Nope. He just asked who was in the bathroom and kept walking. I think he was just glad it wasn't him.
When I was little Mom used to play jokes on us all the time. She would hide behind doors and tell us stories that ended with her jumping up and shouting something which made us jump out of our skins. Jon and I were terrible to each other. We would roll each other's room in toilet paper and he would tie my doorknob to the one across the hall so that I couldn't open my bedroom door and would have to climb out of my window and through the hedge. I remember once putting mascara on Jon while he slept, the night before swimming lessons. When he got in the pool the next day the mascara ran. So mean but so funny.
Then there was the time that Jon thought he would really get me. He put cling film over the toilet bowl and Vaseline on the inside bathroom doorknob. Then he sat in his room across the hall and waited for me to go in. Unfortunately, Dad went in before me. Dad shut the door, there was a moment of silence then "Jon!" then the doorknob started rattling as Dad tried to open the greased door and then "JON!!".
So, when I decided to pick the lock on the bathroom and try to get a naked photo of J, I was just following family tradition. The proof of this is that Dad walked down the hall and saw me standing in front of the bathroom door with an ice pick in one hand and a camera in the other. Did he looked shocked? Did he ask what the hell I was doing? Nope. He just asked who was in the bathroom and kept walking. I think he was just glad it wasn't him.
Sunday, December 17, 2006
Texas pics
Finally got the Texas pics up. They're here. The password is either 'texas' or 'quentin'. Never can remember.
Saturday, December 16, 2006
Stolen from Ebeth's blog
1. Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate? I'd have to go with hot chocolate. Especially if it's Swiss Miss (I'm a cheap date.)
2. Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree? When I was growing up Santa would arrange the toys in little vignettes. I especially remember the year I got a family of dolls and they were arranged around a little playset. The children were swinging, Mom was pushing them and Dad was watching. Santa isn't quite so creative these days and the gifts are usually wrapped in red paper.
3. Colored lights on tree/house or white? White, always.
4. Do you hang mistletoe? This year I did buy some mistletoe from our fruit and veg shop in the village. Once I got it home I couldn't decide the best way to hang it. It sat on the kitchen table for a while but I kept freaking out about the children touching it because it's apparently poisonous if eaten. At the moment it's drying out on top of the TV in the kitchen. The only way anyone could get under our mistletoe is if they laid down on the floor next to the freezer.
5. When do you put your decorations up? The weekend after Thanksgiving which is at the end of November.
6. What is your favorite holiday dish? I love the whole meal. We usually do the full American Thanksgiving and then have an English Christmas lunch with turkey, brussel sprouts, roast potatoes and parsnips, sage and onion stuffing, etc, etc.
7. Favorite Holiday memory as a child? The one that stands out is the year Jon wanted a bike but we didn't have enough money for a new bike. Dad took my old bike and painted it red then painted black web all over it and a Spiderman face on the seat. He put on new handles with tassles and it was the coolest bike on the block!
8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? It wasn't a big revelation. It was the year I got my Lemon Meringue doll (part of the Strawberry Shortcake family). I think I had been suspicious before then but that year I remember laying in bed and hearing lots of shuffling and moving in the living room and Mom and Dad talking. That's when I knew for sure.
9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? Usually just one and it's always pajamas.
10. How do you decorate your Christmas Tree? With a mishmash of homemade ornaments and odd baubles. This year it's dominated by some Lego ornaments Toby and J made and a big rainbow coloured paper chain that Tobes and I made. I still have ornaments from mine and Jason's first Christmas together. We were completely broke so I made all the ornaments for our first tree. I dream of a designer tree but the closest I've come is the tiny tree we had in Tokyo. I had to buy all the ornaments and they were all either white or crystal. Very pretty tree but I think I prefer the mishmash.
11. Snow! Love it or Dread it? Love it but never really experienced it. My first Christmas in England I remember walking down Barnet High Street and it started to snow really hard. It's barely snowed since.
12. Can you ice skate? Oh yes. We're going skating at Somerset House this year. Can't wait.
13. Do you remember your favorite gift? I had a Barbie perfume maker that I loved. And my Pink Thunder Huffy bike. My EasyBake oven too. I was a lucky little girl.
14. What’s the most important thing about the Holidays for you? Being with family and friends.
15. What is your favorite Holiday Dessert? Mom's sugar cookies.
16. What is your favorite holiday tradition? This will only be the second year that we've done it but I love the Christmas Eve procession in Blackheath. A little girl and boy ride through the village on a donkey as Mary and Joseph followed by other children dressed as shepherds. Everyone follows them down to the heath carrying lanterns or flashlights. We all gather outside All Saints Church and sing Christmas carols. I love it last year and I've been looking forward to doing it again.
17. What tops your tree? A little angel.
18.Which do you prefer giving or receiving? Probably giving. That's not me being generous, I just dread getting a gift I really don't like and not being able to hide my reaction.
19. What is your favorite Christmas Song? I love most of them (barring Cliff Richards) from the traditional carols to the children's songs to the modern stuff. I do love Wizzard's I Wish it Could be Christmas Everyday. Perhaps I've been in England too long.
20. Candy Canes! Yuck or Yum? Definitely yum. I carted back over a hundred of them from Texas. The ones here just don't taste right. You can do so much with them - hang them on the tree, make peppermint bark, put them into cookies, smash them up and sprinkle them on ice cream. I even got some tiny ones for the tops of cupcakes. They're so festive.
Really getting into the Christmas spirit now. I went to the grocery store this morning and the Salvation Army band were playing. Lovely to do my shopping with the accompaniment of a brass band playing Christmas carols.
We had the ceremony to turn on the Blackheath Village Christmas lights a few weeks ago. It was a lot of fun. They had a little funfair for the kids and an Elvis impersonator entertained the crowd with some of his greatest hits (and was surprisingly good). The vicar of All Saints blessed the occasion and the lights were turned on to lots of cheers. I love this little community.
2. Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree? When I was growing up Santa would arrange the toys in little vignettes. I especially remember the year I got a family of dolls and they were arranged around a little playset. The children were swinging, Mom was pushing them and Dad was watching. Santa isn't quite so creative these days and the gifts are usually wrapped in red paper.
3. Colored lights on tree/house or white? White, always.
4. Do you hang mistletoe? This year I did buy some mistletoe from our fruit and veg shop in the village. Once I got it home I couldn't decide the best way to hang it. It sat on the kitchen table for a while but I kept freaking out about the children touching it because it's apparently poisonous if eaten. At the moment it's drying out on top of the TV in the kitchen. The only way anyone could get under our mistletoe is if they laid down on the floor next to the freezer.
5. When do you put your decorations up? The weekend after Thanksgiving which is at the end of November.
6. What is your favorite holiday dish? I love the whole meal. We usually do the full American Thanksgiving and then have an English Christmas lunch with turkey, brussel sprouts, roast potatoes and parsnips, sage and onion stuffing, etc, etc.
7. Favorite Holiday memory as a child? The one that stands out is the year Jon wanted a bike but we didn't have enough money for a new bike. Dad took my old bike and painted it red then painted black web all over it and a Spiderman face on the seat. He put on new handles with tassles and it was the coolest bike on the block!
8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? It wasn't a big revelation. It was the year I got my Lemon Meringue doll (part of the Strawberry Shortcake family). I think I had been suspicious before then but that year I remember laying in bed and hearing lots of shuffling and moving in the living room and Mom and Dad talking. That's when I knew for sure.
9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? Usually just one and it's always pajamas.
10. How do you decorate your Christmas Tree? With a mishmash of homemade ornaments and odd baubles. This year it's dominated by some Lego ornaments Toby and J made and a big rainbow coloured paper chain that Tobes and I made. I still have ornaments from mine and Jason's first Christmas together. We were completely broke so I made all the ornaments for our first tree. I dream of a designer tree but the closest I've come is the tiny tree we had in Tokyo. I had to buy all the ornaments and they were all either white or crystal. Very pretty tree but I think I prefer the mishmash.
11. Snow! Love it or Dread it? Love it but never really experienced it. My first Christmas in England I remember walking down Barnet High Street and it started to snow really hard. It's barely snowed since.
12. Can you ice skate? Oh yes. We're going skating at Somerset House this year. Can't wait.
13. Do you remember your favorite gift? I had a Barbie perfume maker that I loved. And my Pink Thunder Huffy bike. My EasyBake oven too. I was a lucky little girl.
14. What’s the most important thing about the Holidays for you? Being with family and friends.
15. What is your favorite Holiday Dessert? Mom's sugar cookies.
16. What is your favorite holiday tradition? This will only be the second year that we've done it but I love the Christmas Eve procession in Blackheath. A little girl and boy ride through the village on a donkey as Mary and Joseph followed by other children dressed as shepherds. Everyone follows them down to the heath carrying lanterns or flashlights. We all gather outside All Saints Church and sing Christmas carols. I love it last year and I've been looking forward to doing it again.
17. What tops your tree? A little angel.
18.Which do you prefer giving or receiving? Probably giving. That's not me being generous, I just dread getting a gift I really don't like and not being able to hide my reaction.
19. What is your favorite Christmas Song? I love most of them (barring Cliff Richards) from the traditional carols to the children's songs to the modern stuff. I do love Wizzard's I Wish it Could be Christmas Everyday. Perhaps I've been in England too long.
20. Candy Canes! Yuck or Yum? Definitely yum. I carted back over a hundred of them from Texas. The ones here just don't taste right. You can do so much with them - hang them on the tree, make peppermint bark, put them into cookies, smash them up and sprinkle them on ice cream. I even got some tiny ones for the tops of cupcakes. They're so festive.
Really getting into the Christmas spirit now. I went to the grocery store this morning and the Salvation Army band were playing. Lovely to do my shopping with the accompaniment of a brass band playing Christmas carols.
We had the ceremony to turn on the Blackheath Village Christmas lights a few weeks ago. It was a lot of fun. They had a little funfair for the kids and an Elvis impersonator entertained the crowd with some of his greatest hits (and was surprisingly good). The vicar of All Saints blessed the occasion and the lights were turned on to lots of cheers. I love this little community.
Wednesday, December 13, 2006
Ye olde U S of A
Well, it's that time of year again. When Toby starts behaving (Look, I'm being nice not naughty, Mommy.) and I attempt to eat my bodyweight in Ferrero Rocher and Matchmakers. My Mom gave me some great little cookbooks called Gifts from a Jar. The idea is that you put all of the dry ingredients for a recipe in a jar, a bit like those colorful jars of sand we used to make at school, then attach a note with the wet ingredients that need to be added and the cooking details and voila! A nice little homemade gift. I thought that it would make a good present for Toby's teachers since it's something he can help me make.
My first task was finding the jars. This is the kind of thing that would be no problem to find in the States but requires a bit of hunting in England. Only people who make their own jams would buy them so I needed a specialist shop. Luckily we have a gourmet kitchen store right here in Blackheath. I went in yesterday and explained that I was looking for the equivalent of an American quart jar. Obviously I grew up with 'quarts' but when I said the word out loud it sounded funny to my ears and I wasn't quite sure whether to pronounce it 'kort' or 'kwort'.
The sales assistant squinted his eyes and said 'Quart? I have no idea.' He then got out a big conversion book but American quart wasn't listed. He scratched his head and said 'Well, I assume it means a quarter of something.' I had never thought about it but that made sense. Suddenly a 'quart' seemed like a strange and ancient measurement. Almost quaint.
After coming home and doing some research I discovered that a quart is very conveniently almost exactly a litre. That makes it much easier. Now I'm planning to use some of the Christmasty chocolate chips that I dragged back from the States for the teachers' jars. I'll be off to buy two litre jars tomorrow and Ms Suki and Ms Carla will get their very own American-style Christmas presents this year.
My first task was finding the jars. This is the kind of thing that would be no problem to find in the States but requires a bit of hunting in England. Only people who make their own jams would buy them so I needed a specialist shop. Luckily we have a gourmet kitchen store right here in Blackheath. I went in yesterday and explained that I was looking for the equivalent of an American quart jar. Obviously I grew up with 'quarts' but when I said the word out loud it sounded funny to my ears and I wasn't quite sure whether to pronounce it 'kort' or 'kwort'.
The sales assistant squinted his eyes and said 'Quart? I have no idea.' He then got out a big conversion book but American quart wasn't listed. He scratched his head and said 'Well, I assume it means a quarter of something.' I had never thought about it but that made sense. Suddenly a 'quart' seemed like a strange and ancient measurement. Almost quaint.
After coming home and doing some research I discovered that a quart is very conveniently almost exactly a litre. That makes it much easier. Now I'm planning to use some of the Christmasty chocolate chips that I dragged back from the States for the teachers' jars. I'll be off to buy two litre jars tomorrow and Ms Suki and Ms Carla will get their very own American-style Christmas presents this year.
Thursday, December 07, 2006
Just opened another book of matches. This time they were from Homeworks, site of the infamous 'you may lose control of your movements' discussion.
Tuesday, December 05, 2006
Motherhood necessitates invention
I was hoping to post our holiday pics tonight but one very small girl has kept me busy. Rosie Rae was not a happy gal this evening. There are a number of reasons why this may be.
1) The GP and chemist can't seem to get their act together and haven't fulfilled Rosie's formula prescription even though I put in my request last Thursday. We ran out of formula powder this morning so I was unable to give Rosie her bedtime bottle.
2) Rosie managed to get to some bread that Toby was eating. She was shoving it in her mouth as fast as possible when I saw her. I'm sure she got at least two good bites. It's a wholemeal granary bread and I'm wondering if the wheat has given her a poorly tummy.
3) She might be teething.
With all of these things in mind and after two hours of trying to get her to sleep I came up with a plan. First, a dose of Calpol to help with any pains she might be having. Second, a bottle of something. I had given her water but that obviously wasn't doing the trick. I thought about fruit juice but if the water didn't satisfy her then the juice probably wouldn't either. She needed something to satisfy her, fill her up. Finally I came up with a concoction. It reminded me of when I was little and would make 'potions' which usually consisted of things like milk, sugar and peppermint oil or milk and food colouring.
Rosie's potion contained 220ml of warm water, a teaspoon of enriched baby rice for vitamins and body, a teaspoon of olive oil for fat, half a teaspoon of sugar for calories and flavour and a teaspoon of Rosie's calcium supplement... for calcium. I put it all in a bottle, shook it up, offered it to Rosie and she drank it down. Five minutes later she was fast asleep. Hopefully I haven't poisoned her.
Better just go and check on her...
Friday, December 01, 2006
Body clock disfunction
OK, so first night back we sleep 16 hours. Last night, not so lucky. Tobes was up until after 11.00 and Rosie finally went to sleep some time after 2am. I lay awake wishing for sleep until almost 5am then Rosie woke up at 10am and the day started. I have a feeling I'm not going to be at my best today. Jet lag is a bitch.
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