The Eve before Christmas Eve

Today we start our Christmas festivities - Mum will arrive mid afternoon and stay with us for ten days - it is not the Christmas we would have anticipated this time last year but we will do the best that we can to ensure she has a good time or at least the best time possible under the circumstances.  It is not easy for any of us but we will do our best.

Today would have been exactly two years since Elena passed away and it is also the anniversary of the passing of our neighbour Savvas's mother.  Last year we went to church for their memorial services.  This year we were not going to church but we had been invited to Savvas and Persephone's after the service to pay our respects.

In the past Persephone has brought us all sorts of gifts, most recently a massive bag of lemons so we were taking a poinsettia over as a thank-you and had wrapped it in my last remaining piece of hand-made paper that Elena had given me just before she died.   It was was a sort of homage to Elena so that we still remembered her today.

We were up early, there is so much to do to get ready for Christmas and to make sure that Mum is ok.  Tomorrow we are having Di and Rob and Sheila and Klaus around for afternoon tea - my trusty list is in full use!!

We walked across to Persephone's at around 10.00 am.  We were made to feel so welcome and it was really good to catch up with the children Neofitos and Nefeli who are both training to be doctors and who were mere children when we first moved over.   What great kids, so engaging and polite and a credit to their parents.  It was interesting to meet so many people from the village who we know but who would not have know that we know, and are neighbours to, Savvas and Persephone.  It was also lovely to catch up with Galatia who is, when here in Droushia, Persephone's neighbour and one of the first people to speak to us when we moved here permanently - I actually remember meeting her when we were outside clearing the pavements and she had been and got ice-creams for us to thank us for our efforts.  We left having been given a massive red-cross food parcel of goodies for which we have to thank Persephone and Savvas - Kronia Polla to you.  Galatia and Charalambos - Kronia Polla to you too!!!

I had organised with Mum that we would be having soup and rolls this evening rather than a roast and I had taken soup out of the freezer thinking it would be leek and potato but on closer investigation it was cauliflower, pear and cheese which we were serving with a tear and share loaf.  I didn't think this was enough so was making a pudding.  We had some bananas in need of TLC so I had caramelised them and had them in a fudge style sauce and I planned to serve them with some breakfast pancakes (aka drop scones) and ice-cream.  I found a recipe for breakfast pancakes and realised I couldn't halve it as it only required one egg.  I hadn't anticipated that even this quantity would result in about four dozen drop scones!!!  Half of the batch I did plain and the other half were enhanced by the addition of lime and sultanas and were to be included in the afternoon tea tomorrow.

Mum arrived safe and sound and we left her to unpack and get comfortable.  There will be no problem with the heat in the main building - John plans to have the woodburner working to the max but the bedroom building is a different matter but she has the electric blanket and two different heaters in the bedroom to make sure she is comfortable.  She has slippers and dressing gown and tea-making facilities and cats desperate to make sure she is comfortable - what more could anyone want?

I have tried to plan Mum's stay with military precision so that she has enough to entertain and occupy her so that she, and we, do not dwell on the changes to our family unit and those friends and family who will not be here this year to celebrate Christmas.  Tonight our 'game' was Rummikub - the first leg of our Christmas Challenge and then we sat down to watch the film Peter Rabbit which we thoroughly enjoyed, the animation was outstanding.  A successful evening and a nice gentle start to our festivities.