Happy new year!

Wishing you all a happy new year!

I really love Sundays, I currently work Tues-Sat so Sunday is the only full day I get with my family. Today I didn't wake up until 7.40 - what bliss!

 

It's the day that the doors all get flung open, the dusty floors get swept and washed to some upbeat music (today it was Blood Sugar Sex Magic by the Chilli Peppers) and the rugs get washed of the red earth that clings to everything. Then the day is ours, some films, snacks, maybe some time spent gardening, sometimes we go out for lunch. It's just so nice to have no obligations for one day. I always feel so happy once the house has been scrubbed of it's weekly dirt. Many people here employ an 'amma' - an Indian woman cleaner to keep their houses, laundry etc in order but I prefer to do that work myself.

 

C is currently digging out front, we're putting in more grass for now and K is playing with his lego collection which got bigger over the festive season.

We had a wonderfully different tropical Christmas. The day dawned at 6am and K followed not long after. The snack we left out for Father Christmas had to be put on a dish in a dish of water to prevent the ants from getting to it before he did!

 

Then it was time for opening a few presents before breakfast. Some from Father Christmas and a new lego set from us which C also had fun building.

 

A very different Christmas morning view:

 

Then breakfast followed by a few more presents and a celebratory glass of wine for me and C with 'Now That's What I Call Christmas' playing on the laptop. 

 

New scooter:

 

 and Hot Wheel track from C's mum:



 

 Us 3

 

Then it was off to a Swedish Christmas brunch with some extended family of C's mum's partner. It was really nice especially as K is friends with the other two boys - the eldest is in the class above him at Kindergarten. We left full of goodwill and the most amazing pumpkin pie and spent the afternoon watching a film feeling stuffed and, of course, opening a few more presents including a couple of brilliant sets of books from my Uncle and Grandma:

 

 

In the evening we went to the Youth Centre for their Dosai night which was a nice way to finish off the day.

 

On the 28th, the Youth Centre hosted it's annual Christmas Fair - this year entitled Fair Extrordinaire. K got his face painted:

 

 

 Whilst C tested his strength...

 

 ...and went on the 'Rowdy ride'.

 

K met up with his new friend A and they spent a happy few hours running about. 

 

 Fresh handmade pizza from the pizza oven

 

Capoeira

 

 Indian dance performance

 

 Tightrope walking

Climbing at dusk

 

It was a lovely day, bringing together the community and I was even chosen to help judge the junior  cake competition (was a very yummy job).

 

Next up it was New Years Eve, we went to a fancy restaurant in Pondy called Rendezvous for dinner, then came back to AV and went to a lovely chilled party for a few hours before getting K home to bed at 11ish (bit late but it was a special occasion). Then me and C climbed onto our roof and saw in the new year under the stars with fireworks going off in the distance around us, lovely.

 

All in all a very busy couple of weeks, especially with K being off school and us still working. He's goes back tomorrow and we can get back into some kind of rhythm. The Tamil harvest festival of Pongal is coming in a couple of weeks so it will get busy at my work as the major Hindu holidays warrant a new set of clothes for all the family.

 

Wishing you all a happy new 2014.

 

Laura xx