how it is in december

It rained nearly all of last week. We started wondering whether summer was really coming. But it did. It's been mostly sunny and warm since Monday. The rain hasn't really bothered us that much, but it was funny having to hang out washing inside the week before Christmas. 

We had our Christmas service at church and the kids all got up and did a kiwi rendition of the Twelve Days of Christmas. It was pretty cute and they had a lot of fun. Back at home we finally got our Christmas tree up. And then came the lights. According to my husband, you can't get lights that don't flash anymore. The Christmas tree flashes red and green, and the lights around the french doors do a rolling medley of flashing so fast it should have a health warning for epileptics. It's lucky we found our old fairy lights which are strung up around some of the windows. They are small and still, just how I like them. I actually got a bit grumpy about all the flashing lights, as my family will tell you readily. It wasn't just that they were flashing, it was that they outshone my advent candles. I got beeswax tea light candles especially, but next time I'll find the biggest candles I can. Christmas is not the season for subtlety, obviously. 

It's not just the lights I've been grumpy about either. During the last week of school the girls couldn't stop talking about Santa. We've never been anti-Santa, but neither of us has ever had the energy or enthusiasm to support the fantasy either. So the girls figured things out pretty quickly, and up until this year have never shown much interest in Santa at all. This year was different. Greer's been singing Christmas songs about Santa at the top of her voice, and under the christmas tree is a creation made of blocks and wooden trees which is apparently "Santa's Grotto." Sure, whatever. But the last straw was when I heard Isobella tell Greer she wasn't going to make her a Christmas present because she "hadn't been nice." Just in the same way we hear everywhere that Santa only brings presents to children who have been good. At that point I told the girls that I was grumpy with Santa and that I didn't want to hear any more about him! For a few days afterwards they'd ask me every so often if I'd "stopped being grumpy with Santa." Eventually they stopped asking!

I know I probably sound like the Grinch. If you know me, you'll know I really am not like the Grinch at all. But I hate the "you'll get presents if you're good" thing.  It's manipulative, untrue, and quite frankly a bit low. I love my kids, we all do, and that's why we give them gifts. Our love is not conditional, so why would our gift giving be? And Santa? Does he actually love anyone?

Anyway, I am actually really happy about Christmas. I love looking at my diary for this week. Every day is covered with lists and scribbles, except for Sunday. Sunday is completely blank. Sunday will be lovely. Mum will probably take the kids to church while I stay home and cook the turkey. Then we'll sit at our enormous table, us, Mum, and my sister and her family, and we'll eat and talk and enjoy each other's company. Later my Dad and step-mum and sister will probably come around, and we'll eat and talk some more. We're pretty traditional around here, as far as Christmas goes, so it won't matter if it rains. We've never had any urges to go to the beach or have a BBQ; turkey and pavlova make us all very happy.