CHRISTMAS IS COMING

Christmas is coming....although my house is not in full Christmas mode yet. But we are getting there!!
It is usually round the beginning of December that people start asking: "Are you all ready for Christmas yet?" To which I reply "No, but the getting ready part is what it is all about, because once Christmas is come, it is gone. You just have to enjoy the preparations." Let's face it, if I do not get all the decorations up, no one is going to notice or care. And nowadays, many of the cute, random and tizzy bits and pieces of Christmassy stuff seem to stay in the cupboard. I mean the stuff that used to hang on every doorhandle and sit on every shelf, and sometimes stayed there unnoticed until February or March! Only the really meaningful pieces come out - like my 'Klu Klux Klan' Santa that I think I wrote about two or three years ago:

The tree is important. I am very grateful that I have a very roomy and accessible attic, where our tree stands, all its decorations still hanging there, all year. I do take them off and re-arrange them every 4 or 5 years! This year, I was delighted that one set of tree lights that have refused to flash for three years have now decided to put on their intended show once again...and I did not even fiddle with them!

The fireplace is very important in the scheme of things, no doubt because of my traditional British background.

And the centrepiece, both literally and figuratively, is the Nativity Crib.

We have built this crib up over our 40 years of marriage, starting at a time when Lladro figures were extremely cheap on Norfolk Island. We still add small figures to it every two or three years. Last year, a small kitten and a cat joined the menagerie, representing Basul and Mr Shingles.
Today I have a bit more shopping to do, and the last of the Christmas get-togethers. This one will be our Tuesday Craft Group lunch.
This afternoon, I will make an attempt to tidy the house, and sort through all the piles of papers and miscellaneous clutter that has been accumulating on every table and flat surface. The wrapping paper, sticky tape and other wrapping essentials will have to remain. Our place tends to be "Wrapping Central" at this time.
Oh I can feel the excitement building up!!!