Continental Drift 1/11/2018: Holiday Plans.


This is what the holiday season in Sydney is all about in one photo.
Sun, surf and beach.  For the early birds amongst us, the days begin here after a run or walk.  For others, days off and school holidays are spent on the beach on towels as we draw energy from the sun.  

The summer holidays are fuelled by watermelon chunks

and festive takes on bubbly beverages (only if you’re of age, of course and have a designated driver).
Master SSG was born on December 31 but we have his ‘friends’ party early in the month.  My days of baking a cake and frosting it are behind me (already).  2018 will see all the catering outsourced.  Except for the lolly bags because I’m good at assembling them….

The day after Master SSG’s birthday party sees me fully engage with all the Christmas supplies that have been at the stores since late October.
Master SSG’s school participates in Operation Christmas Child so a new tradition for us will be assembling the special box, filling it with gifts, adding a card and dropping it off for delivery.  It’s a task Master SSG has taken seriously this year and it was heartwarming to see his generosity and thoughtfulness at work.
A fair bit of holiday self gifting also occurs. Starting with a fancy skincare advent calendar.  Which reminds me, I still haven’t decided which one to get this year.  Watch this space.

The QVB is one of my favourite places for Christmas shopping and the catching of the Yuletide vibe in Sydney and I’ll be there for Santa photos as well as a side trip to the Haigh’s chocolate store.

Work winds down a bit and there’s this collective dropping of hunched shoulders and slowing of habitual walking speeds as we surrender to the holiday season.  The wards get decorated, we have lunch in the multi-purpose rooms and Master SSG is already asking about his invitation to said lunch.

I love seeing the decorations on the streets of the ‘hood as well as the endlessly creative ways that the stores interpret the spirit of Christmas in their front windows.

There’s something about garlands, holly and glistening bells that never fails to help me pick up the pace in those final K’s on the run home in the morning.

Master SSG and I will be at the Opera House again this year for our annual matinee and lunch.  Jay Laga’aia was brilliant last year and I can’t wait to see who the Opera House has lined up this year.

The tree tunk ‘snow man’ we discovered on a walkabout with mum and dad last Christmas…

Mum and Dad will be coming to stay with us for Christmas again this year and this is the most treasured gift Master SSG and I receive. Mum and Dad love going out for dinner and even better if it’s a slap up Chinese meal which ends with fried ice cream.  We also do things like just go driving for a bit to see what’s what and I invariably end the drive having discovered yet a little more about this city thanks to their curiosity.

Christmas Eve.  It takes on even more importance in Master SSG’s mind as the years pass.  Hopefully the weather will be kind this year and I’ll be able to make melting moments for Santa to snack on as he deposits the gifts under the tree.  I’m not sure if my unconvincing photoshopping is going to cut it this year.

After laying out the snacks for Santa, I’ll be taking one last look at my Donna Hay trifle before heading for bed.  All is always well on the night before Christmas.  I drift to sleep in a cloud of excitement, fatigue and anticipation of the day ahead.

The door does not lie.  Christmas Day is a day I spend living, loving and eating with feeling.

Morning tea is a celebration of baked goods.  I have a thing for almonds and marzipan at the moment so it’ll be stollen over rum balls and fruit mince pies for me.

Christmas lunch is a 50;50 split of Chinese staples like hokkien noodles and fried rice as well as a roast and veg.  Full disclosure – there’s going to be an Aldi turkey roll on my table but the gravy will be made from scratch and involve me roasting chicken wings and deglazing the pan.  So much effort but so worth it.
Boxing Day sees us fussing over Lego, online Boxing Day sales (just to browse, mind you), making fancy turkey and camembert jaffles for lunch and generally savouring the surreal quiet and lack of bustle that briefly touches the streets of Sydney.
All good things come to an end and that first proper day back at work does hurt a little.  The pain is cushioned, however, by the comforting fact that we’re all having those post long, long weekend feels and that we’ve all brought in some of that extra Christmas chocolate to share.
Before I go, I had to share this uniquely Australian Christmas break photo.

It’s a longstanding joke here that the first Hot Cross Buns for Easter hit the supermarket shelves in the first week of January.
Wishing you a holiday season filled with family, down time and happiness.
Be well.

Welcome to our Continental Drift linkup! The reason we are  dabbling at a link up was that we wanted to connect and learn from bloggers from all across the world about their passions and lifestyle.  We will host the  Continental Drift link-up the first of every month.  The concept for myself and my fellow hosts (Mutton Style & Bo’s Bodacious Blog) is that we, the hosts, will write a post about our life on our continent/Country/state over the past month (hence the name) and our favorite thing from the month. 


From  June 1st we began writing around a prompt.  You are welcome to join us using the prompt  or link-up with  any family friendly topic that you like,  be it DIY, cooking, sewing, crafts, lifestyle, de-cluttering, traveling, moving homes, fashion, style, beauty, make up, etc. Your hosts to this linkup come from UK, Canada and Australia.  Enjoy getting to know each other!



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