Christmas Time

I hope everyone has had a lovely Christmas day in whatever way you chose to spend it. We had a lovely morning together with the bratlets (Cookie and Bramble) and then we went round to Ken's sister's place for Christmas dinner with the family.

I was very brave this year and had my first attempt at making turkish delight for my beloved as it's one of his favourite sweets - it turned out quite good and Ken seems to like it.

We exchanged gifts and as always my gorgeous man spoiled me rotten. My mum sent us a lovely quilted bed runner (below) as she's incredibly clever when it comes to this craft.

One of my favourite pressies was from mum, and it is a packet of Mint Slices - my favourite biscuits in the whole world that aren't sold in the UK. My challenge now is to try and eke them out over a week so that they don't disappear too quickly.

Groovy Christmas socks from my friend Catarina - perfect for the day.

It was lovely spending the afternoon with Jean, Brian, Murray, Fergus, and Ken's brother David. It was also really nice to have some kitten therapy as Jean has just recently adopted two adorable kittens, so we were in our element. The black one is Dudley and the tortoiseshell one is Ivy.

Santa hat selfie.

Ivy looking adorable in my santa hat - I remember when our brats were that little and that they grow very quickly.

Uncle Ken with Dudley - he's slightly bigger than his sister and so adorable. We were very tempted to slip him into our bag as we were leaving but I think Queen Cookie might not have been impressed by that.

Love this sign that Jean has up in the window - you know I'm a big kid at heart when it comes to Christmas.

As Jean was cooking dinner we did the desserts - pavlova and mum's Christmas pudding. It looks a little ugly but that's because it's cooked for four hours in a cloth and finds it's own shape.

Look at gorgeous Paddy - she's learning the joys of having two kittens around the house, taking a lot of the fuss that she would normally get. Such a lovely dog.

Another picture of Ivy the cutie - can't wait to see how their personalities develop over the coming months.

Boxing day was a quiet day at home and then today we went for a walk at Ardersier. There was one brave soul out kite surfing in the cold weather.

Selfie with Princess Bramble Jelly - we managed to keep her away from the sea as it was a bit cold for that, though I'm sure she wouldn't have minded.

A gorse bush providing a splash of yellow amongst all the naked bushes.

I love the starkness of the bushes without their coverage - it totally suits the bleakness of the weather at this time of the year.

The sun setting over the firth.

Rugged up selfie.

So Christmas has come and gone again, now the countdown begins for next year - only 363 days until Christmas. We hope that you and the ones you love are safe and warm wherever you are.

Until next time be good, stay safe, and take time today to think about all the things you have to be grateful for this year.

Pamela & Ken
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