December 9th ...

- worked this morning, had another lovely student nurse with me for the morning

- finished work in time to get to the Primary School assembly and saw Jack & Lachlan singing in the JP group

- the boys both had class parties afterwards

Lachlan back at school

Jack's class made these little Christmas trees

- filled in a bit of time in town by having lunch at the bakery and calling into Sheoak Craft Cottage

- Rohan had a birthday party to attend after school time at the Bakery ... lots of noise so I figure lots of fun!!

- shopped for a few items for our Thai Chicken pizza (for tea tonight) and headed home!

I was thinking last night about Christmas things and what we did when I was a child and what we do now in our own little family.

Something that I love now is that we can have Christmas lights. When I was growing up we lived on a sheep station and the power was turned off at night so not really compatible with Christmas lights!!

This year we have lights under our new pergola, in the window at the back door and on the tree ... I love them ... often I get up in the middle of the night and they are on still and they look so good!

We also always had a real tree when I was a child ... it was called a native pine tree ... I can almost still smell the smell of it. For the first 8 years of being married we had a real tree but then I bought a fake tree and it is very much easier to hang decorations on! And no mess with pine needles! I do miss the smell of the real trees though.

When I was a child we received gifts from just Father Christmas but John always says that we have to give "parent" gifts as well as the gifts that Father Christmas gives and they all have to be wrapped up ... lots of work for me and Mother Christmas!!

Each year I try and make at least one Christmas decoration ... this year it is a wall hanging that might just be done before Christmas day!! Some years friends and I exchange hand made decorations which are very special. I even have some decorations that my friend Sarah's Mum made when I was in about year 8 or 9 at Boarding School ... nearly 30 years ago!

I'll try and think of some other traditions or things that we did when I was a child or that we do now with our children.

Leave a comment with something you do with your family ...