24th Dec day 70 Christmas Eve yippee

I started the day by teaching Nicholas to make toast, including tidying up. Simon is gradually training him to take responsibility for himself. He already makes his own bed, dries the dishes and makes his own packed lunch. It's lovely to do simple things with him such as this.

Before breakfast I had given Nicholas an Adventure Bible wrapped in gold paper which said on the front - more precious than all the money in the world! When we had eaten we had a fun but faith-building time just reading parts from Matthew 1 and 2, and Luke 1 and 2. We read it in short passages in the chronological order of the events rather than in the chapters, it's by far my favourite way to read it. I challenged them both to tell me how many angels are in the story, God keeps sending them at significant moments. Nicholas was captivated and I felt the story came more alive for him. If you are interested in the angels answer why not read it for yourself afresh?

This is Simon and Nicholas continuing a long-held family tradition - the putting out of the sweets - always done on Christmas Eve so that anyone in the family, or visiting, can can help themselves to sweets, chocs or nuts. My grandparents did it and it's been kept going down the generations, it was the only time in the year that children didn't have to ask for some treat.

I also taught Nicholas another family tradition for Christmas Eve a poem - nonsense in case you were hoping for Keats or Shelley.

'Twas Christmas Eve in the workhouse, the snow was raining fast

A bare-footed boy with clogs on, stood sitting on the grass

I went round a straight crooked corner and saw a dead donkey die

So I pulled out my revolver and stabbed it 

And a kipper jumped out of its eye!

Author unknown

Today was really relaxed, Simon went out with Carol to buy some more trendy clothes for Nicholas as this was her first day off. I am so pleased she cares about how he looks, not in a critical way, but like Simon, just wanting him to feel good about himself. Nicholas was delighted to play his X-box, watch tv and read whilst I got things ready for this evening. We did however have a good conversation about his thoughts on Christmas Eve being more important than Christmas Day, as Jesus was born at night. I explained some countries like Germany do use this as their focus for their celebrations. It's good he is thinking about faith connected things and asking questions. When Simon came back we had time to play Cluedo again and Nicholas won yay!

After dinner the 3 of us went to Simon's church for their Christmas Eve service. It's strange to sing carols like the First Noel with lines such as this - on a cold winters night that was so deep - with hot sun still shining! They did a brilliantly, funny sketch about guardian angels coming to earth incognito to search for Jesus as He had gone missing. This was their feedback session to Gabriel. 

One limped in with a black eye, arm in a sling, leg bandaged and with a T shirt on that had footprints all over from being trampled in a mall. Another in a prison outfit, he had been arrested for loitering whilst chatting to vagrants. Two of them had been in a hospital and got in all sorts of trouble and the last pair had become separated at the office party. All of them had been in the type of places Jesus went when here on earth. Although the sketch had us laughing it made the serious point about how little evidence there is of Him in our activities at Christmas. Nicholas favourite part was when the last one finally staggered in from being lost after the office party. She said "I found Him in a place we should have looked first", the prison inmate immediately called out "of course in the zoo"! But her answer was in church and sadly that's not always even the case. This a real challenge to those of us who are His followers about how we show His love in our world today in order that others may be challenged to ask this vital question "could it be the truth?"

We had to dash home as Carol and her family were coming for drinks and desserts. It was the unveiling of the ridiculous cake, made more so as Simon suggested we use Lego figures. I forgot to get the cocktail stick umbrella from Carol so it lacks the beach umbrella, towel and figure.

It was a really fun time with them but I was sorry for Nicholas as Linda's 2 boys of his age were with their Dad, so he was the only child. But he coped well chatting, serving food and asking about drinks, then quietly played on his iPad, before we all went to do the Hawkes Bay Christmas lights tour of the illuminated houses. Here are all the girls and my first picture with Carol and Simon.

Stupidly I didn't take my iPad on the tour as it was dark so didn't think it would work as it doesn't have a flash. But we had to get out to walk around the finale, it was the garden of the people who own a lighting business and was magnificent even down to a sit-in sleigh! It was brighter than day there.