Christmas and 2011

Christmas was bitter sweet... it was great to have my parents and Jose's parents come out for Christmas day and stay for the week - made it feel much more normal. We had Christmas dinner (roast ham, scalloped potatoes, glazed carrots, pomegranate/feta/walnut salad, arabian rice and lots of baked goodies) at our place with the parents, my sister/Ger/Jess and Ashley/Gerald. Jose's parents stayed with us and he had the week off; we kept pretty busy with skating, tobogganing, pub nights (yes, plural), shopping, Christmas zoo lights and lots of yummy food. Christmas is still hard without my brother Mark, and I miss him dearly, especially on holidays and birthdays. The weeks leading up to Christmas were difficult, missing out on parties, girls night, friends and family. I was feeling pretty blue, although the Christmas party I hosted did help.

It feels good to be starting a new year, with Lucy back in preschool 3 mornings a week, as well as skating and ballet/tap. Ainsley and I are doing Kindermusik, she's on a waitlist for gymnastics and she's in a preschool class once a week for 1 hour a week. And tonight, Jose and I are off to a parent information night for a Spanish bilingual school for Lucy. It sounds really great! New year = new activities = new opportunities to make some more friends :-)