AND THE CHARITY TOTAL IS. . . . . . . . .

For my comment for charity post (see here) . . . . Drum Roll please. . . . . . . .

£42 from me, and £38 for M&D. A Total of £80 !!!!

Mine is higher because I pledged £5 for a special story from my sister and I wouldn't want to pledge that on behalf of my lovely parents (though I am sure they will match it!!!!!!!!!)

I am making the donation online on Wednesday. M&D have disappeared on hols for a short while so they will make theirs on their return.

I'd just like to say a very, very big thank you to everyone who commented. I have just read through them (again!) to count them, and some of them have truly brought tears to my eyes. I feel very privaledged to have such special blog friends. Thank you all for helping me do this for Christmas!

All done for another year!

Well that went quickly didn't it??



The family congregated at DSis's house in Bonny Scotland for Christmas this year, as it was the first year that DNphw had an inkling of what was going on!! - I arrived there on Christmas Eve, just in time for a haggis supper - yumm!!!



DNphw told me he had been a good boy, and that Santa would bring him a train, then he found out that I had brought the Polar Express DVD with me (my Christmas Eve tradition!!), and we hardly heard another peep out of him.!!! DSis read him to bed with "T'was the night before Christmas" and off he toddled, sleepy and excited, having left out his stocking for Santa, and also stockings for Grandma, Grandad and Auntie Noo!!!! (How lucky are we??)



He allowed us a lay in until nearly 9am the next morning - what an angel!!!! as his M&D had kept him upstairs in their room, and hadn't mentioned the CH word!!! We all went down together and his little face when he saw presents in his stocking was a picture. To be honest we needn't have bought anything other than the Gordon Engine for his train track (Gordon being one of Thomas' friends apparently!) as that was all he wanted, and it didn't leave his hands for two days!!!!!



Christmas was all lovely, and a normal over-indulging, tv watching, toy playing time was had by all. My cousin and her DP visited on Boxing Day, which was great as I hadn't seen her since March, and her DP brought my DNphw a sledge - well that won him some brownie points it must be said!!!!! (Especially as he proceeded to pull DNphw around the house on it!)

I must have been good too, as Santa brought me lots of goodies. . . . The lovely messenger bag has "Noo" felted onto it, which I thought was very clever! and the watch strap is hand made by DM. The complete book of Aunts is great, and the smoochie cushion was a god-send on the train journey home! I did also receive a large number of thermal underwear items, but they are already all in the wash (well let's face it I was in Scotland!!) OH and I have also been very lucky and received a two night away break mid -Jan in the Forest of Dean. Can't wait for that!! (It should also be said the OH has decided what my present is to be, but it is not practical to get it before we go away on the break, more on that when they arrive!)

It was all fabulous, but do you know the memory that keeps coming back to me as I think back on all the fun. . . ?? On my last day DSis and I took DNphw to the beach for a walk before I was subjected to 10 hours on a train (!) It was drizzling with rain, so the beach was empty and we played chase, and drew train tracks in the sand, and then for some reason (and with a well deserved reference to our DGM) we both broke into song (mostly from musicals!) and danced around on the sand doing heel kick's and being mad!!! - Our final rendition was "Maybe it's because I'm a Londoner". . . . . . . and when we had finished a little voice called

"Again, again, the London Bus" !!! Words were duly changed and we continued to dance on the sand . . . . . . . .

Such is the stuff of lifelong memories!!!!!