'Tis the season......

To be Jolly....fa la la la la la la la BAH!
More of the Christmas woes.....happy me and Merry shopmas to you. I'm sure that it used to be 3 or 4 days before Christmas that I would dread having to go to the shops....why is it that suddenly there is nowhere to park and no hope of ever just popping in and grabbing a loaf of bread? I have noticed that that yule tide tempers are here early and we're still in the single figures of December. Actually I exaggerate, it's perhaps only my yuletide temper that is here already, I found myself wishing ill on the elderly mini driver sneaking into the last 'parent with child space' at Sainsbury's. She didn't have her child with her and she sure as eggs didn't have her mother with her , whereas I had both. I was covered both ways in parent and child categories, me, mum and Isaac, I deserved that space and the lone old lady didn't...... honestly it probably would have done her good to have got a bit of exercise.
My festive fury was soothed considerably though when I met with my Sister Julie to meet my Sister Jane from the coach that was delivering her and her babies from Utah . ( Well, from Gatwick airport anyway)......Sweet baby girls, Izzie and Lily, who live too far from grandma, papa, aunties, cousins and Cadbury's chocolate buttons. They are going to have to endure having faces kissed and little bodies squeezed by women they don't know for the next three weeks. Somehow enduring trolley rage and traffic seems insignificant next to the sheer bliss of having family around. Later this week Jane's sons arrive...on Christmas day we will all be at mums house, all her children and their children and a few added extras joined to our family through marriage. My brother won't be there..he is master of the humbug brigade. Bah Bah Bah to you, only son of my parents, you won't know what you're missing. His grown up sons will be there though, the humbugness skipped a generation, hoorah.

By this time next week Grandpa will be here from California, dear grandpa who will in turn be climbed upon, power rangered and loved to within an inch of his sanity until January 10th. Glorious. He has been collecting treasure for weeks to bring with him, Kraft mac n cheese for his boys, cinnamon gum for the girl of the house, socks for H.....it is beyond exciting when grandpa comes bringing with him the missed delights of the U.S. but if he arrived with nothing more than his wicked grin and tales of his somewhat naughty childhood ( I often say that Elijah has a tad more of grandpa's' spark than I would have agreed to but between you and me it is always said with the utmost delight!) he would be just as welcome. He is adored by all in the household.

For every mind numbing and temper fraying nonsense we might be faced with at this time of year, there will be several memory making, heart warming life moments....ain't life grand?



Oh...what did cheer my shopping soul today was having a delicious old man come behind me in the queue at Sainsbury's...he just began to unload his shopping when the till lady said " Oh I'm closing sir" he looked and said " Not now, not right now, surely"
"Yes, I'm afraid so, it's time for me to go home"
In a splendid and booming voice he bellowed " ugh, you old bugger" and strode off to join a new queue. There is something infinitely uplifting about an old person who swears with such relish, may I be one of them one day.