Merry Christmas! Ho! HO! Ho!

Thank you Gramie for the pre-Christmas presents!

Stella and Ryan with Chubaka 
the smallest tree available

Christmas is almost here . It would be a little difficult to recognize if not for some kids wearing Santa Claus hats glued to their foreheads with sweat, some plastic trees here and there, the pohutukawa trees full of red flowers and a ice skating rink that has been installed in the city. It is strange celebrating Christmas in the summer, without the usual wintertime points of reference.

We still found a tree, I called it Chubaka, just look at the picture to understand why. And the poor guy is thirsty! It was decorated with the means at hand, necklaces from Ecuador, shells collected throughout the trip, sea creatures (including a mermaid Gramie made ​​in the U.S.), small hair barrettes( France ), and for the " bling, bling" side, Dad lent us the little brass chain, bronze snap shackles and small bronze rings (I'm not quite sure what that is) . There is an electric garland with stars exhumed from my affairs in France by my Mom, but the days are so long that Stella never sees it on (you see what I mean about no wintertime pints of reference). Regarding the "real" decorations, we have three... The first is a Kiwi, national bird and nickname of New Zealanders. It starts our personal Christmas tradition: we will buy a Christmas ornament in each country where we celebrate this holiday. The second is a metal star with a heart in the center. We never knew who placed it around the back of our car wiper but it appeared shortly after the birth of Stella, our little star…, and a one we received from Gramie this year that says "my first christmas". Chubaka is far from being the most beautiful tree I've ever seen, but I like it because I think it reflects us (Except for having hair like Chubaka and drinking so much).

Stella is not immune to the "bling, bling" side of Christmas

Kiwi Christmas tradition is to have a barbecue, perfect your tan and go camping (at least that's what the kids book "a very Kiwi Christmas" suggests). In our case, we shared our Christmas Eve meal with friends with conflict duck that I managed to find. Christmas morning we made pancakes while playing paparazzi as Stella opened her gifts, we all benefited from a quiet day together and our startd getting ready for camping! Whouhou!

Finally, here is my (funny, yes I'm trying to bribe you so you read the post till the end! ) letter to Santa.

Stella, her personalized stocking 
and a few of Gramie's presents

Dear Santa,

This year I did not asked for anything because I did not need anything. We live a simple life, we have no room to cram dozens of items that remain in the already full closets. Our gift for this year and those to come is a little Fish who took up all the space that was left in our hearts and on the boat! Her favorite toys right now are our keys and my collection of tupperware , but what she is really interested in is to move and discover her territory and her neighborhood. And you can try to say it's all thanks to you, I won't bite it because I was there at the delivery of the package!

So what I want for Christmas is time to spend together, small adventures to live as a family, whether it's the discovery of a new trail, a day at the beach, a field trip to the ice-cream shop or a good meal to share with the wonderful friends we have here. And it is not always easy , there 's Ryan's job, household chores , the days of laziness or fatigue, sometimes all that stands in our way ... Stress awaits us with the preparation of the boat for New Caledonia in 5 months, we are nervous as if we had never sailed before, we have lists long like my two arms with things that have been on it sometimes since we left (so probably nothing vital)! It was not easy and after a few failures and surges hives, I think we should stop , take a deep breath and look at what we are lucky to have ... and I know that appearance this is almost nothing considering the criteria of consumption today ( no house, an old Honda civic with manual electric windows , no new ... "I do not even know what" to expand the list ... ) . And yet there are smiles and happiness that can not be invented, there are simple joys that money can not buy , designer clothes you can abandon without regret, laughter that would make you walk on the head and tickles that we would never stop except that everyone need to breathe !

So Santa, don't be too offended if I tell you that we prefer to fend for ourselves this year, not that there will be no gifts under the trees (especially if you count those from Gramie who spoiled us), but I find it so much easier to want what my family can offer me all year long rather than relying on a gentleman with a long white beard, a big belly, flying in a sleigh pulled by reindeers, including one who has the same fetish for the red color...

Now I got to go , it's time to move to the galley. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to everyone I hope you get what you want and be surrounded by those you love. Talk to you soon after testing our Christmas with a Kiwi sauce !