It's beginning to look a lot like...

...Christmas :0)

More pics from today start here.

Up early again this morning although I'm not complaining - a 6.30am wake-up call (the sound of a nappy being filled) is much nicer than a 4am sleep break. I got back to the bedroom to find Ben had curled up with his head on my pillow and had fallen fast asleep waiting for me - no chance of me going back to bed then! Took Charley back downstairs and wrapped him up in the mobywrap while I fixed some breakfast. Ben joined us and we waited for Steve and/or the rest of the family. Figured walking around in Brighton was probably not the best idea given I'm still only 2 weeks out of hospital so opted to stay with Steve instead, and attempt to go to church.

Played with candles and tree lights while the house woke up - Charley liked staring at the tree lights at least, then fell asleep in the wrap :)

We managed to get to church 10 minutes earlier than last week! Still missed nearly the entire meeting though :) Good to see people even so.

Shops on the way home picking up supplies for the coming days (and for today to feed the family!), relaxing with cheese and bread waiting for the mob to arrive home from a day out in Brighton. Not, apparently, to be confused with another place, Brighton le sands.

While we waited we got the Wii Fit out and weighed everyone, measured Ben's height on the newly appointed "height chart wall" (he's just shy of 3 feet tall at 3 years old if you want to know!) and adjusted his Mii accordingly; created a Mii for Charley and weighed him although we forgot to see his actual weight (just noted that he was about 8 and a half pounds still!) and was pleased to see I've not lost too much weight with the pregnancy!

The afternoon felt decidedly Christmassy - playing on the Will, lots of laughter, Ben playing with everybody and getting in the way and managing not to get hit by the Wii remotes, playing swordfighting duels again and again and again, making mulled wine, pasta carbonaralike, drinking mulled wine and finishing off the chocolate guinness cake, putting Ben to bed, more Wii games...

Steve now has a video of me being a chicken. And I thought he was being a good father looking after Charley at the time. Hmm.


We had a bit of a reminisce about Christmases gone. Mum's been trying to write down some memories about the Christmases she remembers from her childhood, and watching Ben enjoying the beginnings of his third Christmas she started asking what we remember about our childhood Christmases.

I remember one year getting a fairy costume for Christmas, and spending most of the morning pretending I was a fairy hiding under the tree. I remember Grandma and Grandad would stay with us, Auntie Rene would stay with Grandma Katy and they would join us for the day; I remember the sacks of presents being brought in, and the Christmas dinner in the dining room because it was bigger than the kitchen. I remember Grandma Katy getting tipsy on Irish Cream, and my brother re-filling mum's wineglass every time she went out to the kitchen one year and mum actually not noticing! I remember the Christmas Stockings - always one of dad's socks. Shiny coins and chocolate coins in the toe with a satsuma and a couple of walnuts, some chocolate coins, and a couple of small wrapped presents for us each. I remember the year we were considered "too old" for stockings and I cried! I dug out a baseball cap for each of us and tried to keep the magic going by filling a Christmas Hat for my brothers.

I remember my dad's cousin coming one new year, with her daughter and a strange man (apparently a neighbour!). I must have been 5 and her daughter 11 or something - just the right ages for me to be in awe of her grown-up-ness. She had a short tartan skirt and lots of curly hair. I coveted a skirt like that for years, and I suspect she was my inspiration for wanting a perm when I reached 16!

But most of all I remember the New Years which always felt more "Christmassy", at Tony and Kate's house with their two sons. Tony was dad's best man at their wedding, and mum and Kate still go out walking together. They were always Uncle Tony and Aunty Kate to us. I remember the tree (always a real one, and always such beautiful decorations on it), the tins of quality street, the nuts that we were obsessed at cracking, the dinner and crackers and silly hats, the laughter. It's the laughter that draws me back to the memories I think. I remember laughter! I remember some silly computer game involving hamster jam, and the model railway our "cousins" had. We would play Pass the Pigs and Trivial Pursuit and the questions in TP were so old that half of us had no idea of the answers to half the questions.

Gonna be a late night tonight - parents are still here playing golf, and Steve's just realised he's back at work tomorrow!

Speaking of tomorrow, I've got an appointment to see the GP tomorrow. Need to talk about my joints. They've been almost pain-free throughout most of the pregnancy but less than two weeks since the birth and they're as painful as they ever have been. I'm hoping for a referral for physio again, the exercises I was given years ago helped my shoulder at least but I've forgotten them as I've not needed them for the last 7 months! We'll see what he says anyway.

Golf still going. We're doing dreadfully. Not enough sleep, and too much mulled wine and laughter!