So, how was YOUR Christmas?

Weather-wise, it was quite perfect here in Melbourne. At this time of year we could be in a heatwave, with the thought of traditional roast followed by plum pudding, simply unbearable. Or it could be the other extreme - cold, wet and windy. This year it was a mild to warm day with enough clouds to take the sting out of the sun. Cool enough to enjoy the hot roast dinner, but warm enough to also have a seafood salad. We had both! We had lunch at Ken's sister's home as usual, and we brought MIL from the hostel to have lunch with us. MIL seemed to enjoy herself most of the time, but had a few bad moments too, as you would expect from a nearly-97 year old person in poor health. But for the most part, a good time was had by all.

I had dropped hints to Ken that I wanted an electric knife or an electric can opener for Christmas, and bless his little heart - he bought both of them! MIL and SIL are very superstitious, and I had an awkward moment when they asked what Ken gave me. I said "An electric knife - but I ASKED for it!!" and they just said "Don't forget to give him a silver coin", so I handed him 50c when we got home. He just grinned. For those of you who are mystified by this little anecdote, it is supposed to unlucky to give someone a knife or scissors for a gift - "It severs the friendship", says MIL. But if you pay the giver a silver coin, it negates the bad luck somehow...

Moving right along, my other pressies included a board game version of Sudoku (I'm addicted to this), chocolates, nuts, biscuits, an LED flashlight, a cupcakes apron, cat fridge magnet, an Elvis oven mitt, some doilies, a beautiful owl brooch, handcream, ceramic Xmas dishes, bling and beads for embellishing my stitching, a silver keyring and a Gorillapod. Gorillapod??? Leave a comment if you are curious! Val has one of these nifty little things and I always commented on it, so she bought me one for Christmas! Spoilt again by dear friends and family!!