Our early Christmas

Christmas Day every second year is a quieter one for us. It's the year when Becky and Jared and Eden and Steph spend it with their other families.  This year they will be away for Christmas so we decided to have our big family Christmas yesterday instead while the 'whole' family was here (except for Chrish).   It was a nice distraction to our usual going to the Carols By Candelight which we go to every year.  We knew we wouldn't enjoy it at all this year, but it was nice to be family instead.

The kids were loving picking and eating Grandpa's raspberries.

It was a really nice afternoon just hanging out, playing, eating and talking. 

My builder brothers checking out the leak from the skylight.

Obviously some stimulating conversation between the boys.

 

Because we are having Christmas lunch at our house this year, Mum decided not to put up a tree this year. The boys weren't impressed and Harri said 'you are crazy Grandma as you have no Christmas tree!'.  Jalen decided that he was going to be the tree instead.

 

We exchanged gifts yesterday.  We've decided that we want to tone down the present part and instead of everyone buying for everyone, each cousin just had one other cousin to buy for which was lovely.


Eamon had to give a gift to Kobe, and Becky made him an awesome reversible cape with Batman on one side and Superman on the other. He LOVED it.  Lachie also got one and they zoomed around the house together all night.

Some crazy sister in laws who won't be named (not hard to work it out when I have two sister in laws on this side of the family! :) claim that Eden decided it would be fun to do a 'homemade' Christmas. We were 'encouraged' to make homemade Christmas presents for one other adult. 

I had pulled out Steph's name and was stressing about what to make her, but during the week she had come into town with the kids and we had met at the park. I snapped some photos of them and framed them for her.   

Jared loved his t-shirt which Steph made him.  His nickname is 'Buffy' so it was perfect.

It was really nice to have an early Christmas with the family, and it was really relaxing as it wasn't the usual rushed feeling of Christmas as we are trying to fit so much in.  We missed Noah so much, but it was nice to just be with family.