Christmas 2011
Merry Christmas, all! :) I hope you've had a wonderful Christmas and for that matter, a wonderful year. If your year hasn't been that bright, here's to 2012!
We had Christmas over at Mum's tiny unit in her over 50s complex. It was a nightmare dragging a ton of stuff over and then dragging it back, as well as Mum wanting to bring down the decorations today. Not the usual relaxing Christmas where we unwrap in the morning and then head to bed again (we stayed overnight at Mum's and I swear her bed should be classed as a torture device). There are so many rules at that complex - God forbid I even talk loudly otherwise everyone will hear and be 'disturbed'. I doubt we'll ever be doing Christmas at Mum's again. It's just much easier to have it at our house.
Anyway, we went to Toowoomba's Christmas Wonderland in Queens Park on Wednesday night. Lovely display. I took some photos, which I've put under cut.
We've had a lucky year this year as I've had a part-time job for the last few months, so we were able to be more generous with our Christmas spending. See under the next cut for photos of the tree with all the presents under it, as well as each individual 'haul'.
Mum is notorious for packing small items in big boxes (see that really big box on the front left? That actually contained two night dresses all buried in tissue paper). Since she was with us this Christmas, I took a leaf out of her book and did the same, reusing some old cardboard boxes.
Mum's presents - Mum has wanted a lava lamp for so long, so a lava lamp she got, as well as a 2012 calendar, a red glass light, a stainless steel bin, a hamper, and homemade ginger and macadamia shortbread (made it with my own two hands ;)).
There's a close-up of the hamper. I've packed in some Swiss chocolates, German gingerbread, coffee, Boost bars (Mum's favourite chocolate bar). I think it's important to have something homemade there as it says I did more than find something in a shop.
Nannie's presents - a new kitchen cutting board, shoes, blue summer pjs, flowery comforter, watering can, a red toaster, New Encyclopaedia of Orchids, Edmonds Cookery Book (it's a New Zealand tradition - the other edition my grandmother has is almost a decade old now), chocolates, strawberry martini mix, Gardenia by Elizabeth Taylor, a bird bath, seeds and bulb starter mix, throw rug, tea tray, and decorative thermometer. Nannie says she doesn't know why everyone gave her so much - 'cause we love her ;).
My presents - Bonsai book I wanted (I'm going to read it and learn how to keep a Bonsai alive before I buy one), Danish butter cookies (Nannie always gets me some butter cookies every year :D), lemony martini mix, microfibre robe, chocolate mints, two new summer night dresses, my Christmas stocking which contained chocolates, Darling by Kylie perfume (that's my favourite, favourite perfume and I was running out of it), JB-hifi voucher (electronics retailer), roses chocolates (we all didn't communicate, obviously, and ended up overbuying roses chocolates), marshmellow santas (hee, Mum wrote that these were from the guinea pigs!), and a really lovely letter opener (Nannie couldn't afford to have it engraved, but I think we will have that done).
Not included in that photo: the PS3 I'm going to buy myself in the New Year.
Dakota, btw, if you're wondering, got herself a new collar (that unfortunately is too big, so I'll have to take it back for the smaller size), a reindeer plush toy, and a bouncy ball. I love how under our tree we always sign that gifts are for the animals. There were numerous gifts under there 'from' Dakota, Minnie (Mum's fox terrier), and Ellie and Eva (the guinea pigs).
We had Christmas over at Mum's tiny unit in her over 50s complex. It was a nightmare dragging a ton of stuff over and then dragging it back, as well as Mum wanting to bring down the decorations today. Not the usual relaxing Christmas where we unwrap in the morning and then head to bed again (we stayed overnight at Mum's and I swear her bed should be classed as a torture device). There are so many rules at that complex - God forbid I even talk loudly otherwise everyone will hear and be 'disturbed'. I doubt we'll ever be doing Christmas at Mum's again. It's just much easier to have it at our house.
Anyway, we went to Toowoomba's Christmas Wonderland in Queens Park on Wednesday night. Lovely display. I took some photos, which I've put under cut.
We've had a lucky year this year as I've had a part-time job for the last few months, so we were able to be more generous with our Christmas spending. See under the next cut for photos of the tree with all the presents under it, as well as each individual 'haul'.
Mum is notorious for packing small items in big boxes (see that really big box on the front left? That actually contained two night dresses all buried in tissue paper). Since she was with us this Christmas, I took a leaf out of her book and did the same, reusing some old cardboard boxes.
Mum's presents - Mum has wanted a lava lamp for so long, so a lava lamp she got, as well as a 2012 calendar, a red glass light, a stainless steel bin, a hamper, and homemade ginger and macadamia shortbread (made it with my own two hands ;)).
There's a close-up of the hamper. I've packed in some Swiss chocolates, German gingerbread, coffee, Boost bars (Mum's favourite chocolate bar). I think it's important to have something homemade there as it says I did more than find something in a shop.
Nannie's presents - a new kitchen cutting board, shoes, blue summer pjs, flowery comforter, watering can, a red toaster, New Encyclopaedia of Orchids, Edmonds Cookery Book (it's a New Zealand tradition - the other edition my grandmother has is almost a decade old now), chocolates, strawberry martini mix, Gardenia by Elizabeth Taylor, a bird bath, seeds and bulb starter mix, throw rug, tea tray, and decorative thermometer. Nannie says she doesn't know why everyone gave her so much - 'cause we love her ;).
My presents - Bonsai book I wanted (I'm going to read it and learn how to keep a Bonsai alive before I buy one), Danish butter cookies (Nannie always gets me some butter cookies every year :D), lemony martini mix, microfibre robe, chocolate mints, two new summer night dresses, my Christmas stocking which contained chocolates, Darling by Kylie perfume (that's my favourite, favourite perfume and I was running out of it), JB-hifi voucher (electronics retailer), roses chocolates (we all didn't communicate, obviously, and ended up overbuying roses chocolates), marshmellow santas (hee, Mum wrote that these were from the guinea pigs!), and a really lovely letter opener (Nannie couldn't afford to have it engraved, but I think we will have that done).
Not included in that photo: the PS3 I'm going to buy myself in the New Year.
Dakota, btw, if you're wondering, got herself a new collar (that unfortunately is too big, so I'll have to take it back for the smaller size), a reindeer plush toy, and a bouncy ball. I love how under our tree we always sign that gifts are for the animals. There were numerous gifts under there 'from' Dakota, Minnie (Mum's fox terrier), and Ellie and Eva (the guinea pigs).