The great Christmas tree hunt
On Monday, we thought we'd go and get a Christmas tree. Not really leaving it to the last minute, no - we never get ours earlier than a week before. We went to five places that we knew were selling them, and they were all out. Well, not exactly. One place had two trees left, but they were rather too much like Charlie Brown's tree for our taste. (Mind you, most of the trees over here are like that, compared to North American ones. They seem to grow them specially with a three-foot long spiky bit at the top and all the bushy branches at the bottom.)
Finally, we came home and Ian phoned a few places until he found a garden centre on the other side of town that had some. In fact, they had plenty - I don't know why. So we did get one and it now stands in our tiny living room, decorated rather crudely with plain white fairy lights and some wooden toy style ornaments we got at Canadian Tire a few years ago.
Ian is watching the BBC weather, and they're saying we're due to get a blast of cold air down from the north by Christmas Day. Too bad - it's been very mild up to now. I gather it's been a little chilly in the Toronto area?
Tuesday was Amelia's last day at day care for a couple of weeks. She came home with a large envelope of things, including a Christmas card she'd made for us (with some help) and a calendar with a tracing of her hand and foot. We also had her "school report" - a large scrapbook into which the staff at the centre glue in photos of her taking part in activities and write reports and observations of how she's progressing in particular areas, such as Language and Communication or Personal and Social Development. All very impressive.
We will be here for Christmas Day, and then up to Ian's sister's in Birmingham on Boxing Day, where a large and no doubt boisterous gathering of the clan will take place.
Cheers for now,
and Season's Greetings.