Some Unintentional but Much Needed Quiet Time

We had alot of fun this festive season. Family have been here visiting from New York and Dublin, so there was alot of family get togethers, sight seeing and catching up. Christmas swung around before we knew it.

We have a Christmas Eve that is the same every year. I guess it has unintentionally become a tradition for us, but we love it. Always hanging out at home together, an early dinner, Mass, driving around all the fabulous local Christmas lights, home, kids to bed, red wine poured, the last of the Christmas presents out to be wrapped, the Melbourne Myer Bowl Christmas Carols on tele and then we watch Love Actually. We never tire of it. We always laugh about it. We love it though. Our in laws are here this year, so it was nice to do it with them as well.

An early start on Christmas Day - 3.45am. WHAT??!! It was back to bed for that young lady, with them both finally waking at a much more decent hour of 7.30am. Oh, the excitement of Santa's visit and receiving much anticipated and hoped for gifts. Santa didn't fail to deliver this year!

A busy morning prepping and finishing organising Christmas lunch - 13 adults and 6 kids this year. A very fun day - food, laughs, drinks, karaoke, cleaning up, more drinks, exhaustion. A very fun day spent with family.

Then Boxing Day rolls around - another unintentional tradition - any friends who are in Sydney come in to say hello, swim, eat, share a bevvie and a few laughs and it is always a fantastic day spent with great people.

Towards the end of the day though I started to feel really off. Mum had a bit of a bug on Christmas Day and spent most of the day upstairs in bed. I thought I was getting her bug. I felt dreadful and had a fairly early night. 5am the next morning it was clear that Miss Z had caught Nanny's bug, and she spent the next 24 hours vomitting. Poor little poppet. Miss C seemed fine. As for me, I couldn't drag myself out of bed. I don't think I have ever felt so unwell. So off I went to the doctor yesterday and it turns out it is a flu virus and an ear infection - who knew!? The rest of yesterday I spent snoozing on the lounge. Today I am feeling brighter but still achey and lethargic. I have manged to indulge in (much needed) quiet time and do a few things I enjoy most...

Gotta love the Ashes! Listening to the English supporters is almost worth watching it for that alone.

Some mindless colouring

And I finished a fantastic book, set in a beautiful coastal village I know so well.

Hopeful that tomorrow I will feel up to getting up and doing alot more. Everyone is getting cabin fever here in a huge way.

Wishing you a happy new year and all the very best for 2014.