Happy Kiwi Christmas!

I've had a few worried messages left for me on my voicemail and email. Rest assured, I am still alive and well. As you can see, I have lots of love and I am well looked after. I was just off camping around the East Cape for a week. I will write more about that in the next blog entry. First I'd better keep you all up to date on what happened here for our Kiwi Christmas and New Year.

Christmas was wonderful! It was the best Christmas ever!! Brian's Aunt Christine and Uncle Roger were here with their kids Jodie, Dion and Nikki. Brian and Roger went out fishing in the boat every chance they got. I enjoyed having a full house and I think Mrs. Peacocke enjoyed all of the company as well. There was never a dull moment.

The kids were throughly spoiled this Christmas. I over-endulged but it was worth it. The look on their faces when they saw the amount of presents under the tree was priceless! They've never EVER had a Christmas like this in their lives. Christine and I had a great time playing Santa. We made sleigh tracks and footprints out of icing sugar. We even left Santa's bum print on our bench where he stopped to drink his cold beer that the girls left for him. The reindeer left poos on our grass and the girls were horrified when I went out to examine them and popped one in my mouth! They were chocolate covered raisins!

Chris and I watched my old Martha Stewart Holidays video and made the best Christmas dinner. I even made my famous Pumpkin pie, but it didn't go down as well here as it would have at home. Kiwis aren't accustomed to pumpkin in pies. We all ate too much and packed on a few pounds.

It was great having a houseful this Christmas. It was truly a Christmas with meaning - surrounded by family who mean the most. Usually I'm a bit lost at Christmas time. I'm always the "odd one out". I never feel like there's the right place for me to go. It's always a bit awkward. Not this year, I was right where I was supposed to be.

Bubba loves Christmas and I am so glad that he was here to share one last Christmas with us this year. Sadly, I had to say good-bye to my friend on December 27th. He developed bowel cancer and deteroriated rapidly. The decision to let him go was the hardest one I've ever had to make. His eyes were still so bright and he was still so handsome. Brian's cousin Jodie came with me to the vet - she was wonderful. I was a mess. The grief was unbearable at times and it is just now starting to ease. The house seems so quiet and my life feels a little emptier. Bubba has been such a major part of my life for 16 years and I will miss him deeply. I lived my life for that cat - and made decisions based on his needs. It's going to be strange going through life without him. He was my bestest friend.

I'm glad the house was full - it was a good distraction. I'm grateful they didn't mind when I started crying. My tears flowed uncontrollably for days. I still have a hard time going out into the courtyard - because that was Bubba's favourite spot. Night time is especially hard for me because that's when he'd cuddle up with me to watch T.V. I always brought him to bed and he slept on my pillow. I loved the smell of his fur.

New Year's Eve was a wild night at the Mount. The crowds were phenominal! There were stages set up down on the main beach and bands played all afternoon and into the evening. We stayed home most of the night. Brian's Gran flew over from Gisborne and our friends Rob and Sharyn came over with their daughter Sophie. The girls were looking forward to staying up until midnight to see the fireworks - so we made sure they had a nap in the afternoon. The weather wasn't go great and it rained right up until about 11:30pm. We threw on our raincoats and went down just before the clock struck twelve. It was a cool way to ring in the New Year - with my family. It was a very busy week! I was absolutely exhausted by January 1st. It's probably the best thing we decided to postpone the wedding - it rained that day anyway. The family started to pack up and the reality of a quiet home started to creep in. The girls were going to spend 3-4 weeks visiting their mum's relatives so we had to get them ready for that. Brian and I decided to go away together on a camping trip around the East Cape for a week. I needed the break and I've never been to that part of the country before.

So hopefully now I can get caught up to date on everything happening over here. I can't wait to write about the camping trip. We had a blast!!!