Christmas is coming

With our topsy turvy weather no one can make any plans for outdoor activities. So many different Christmas pageants have been cancelled in the past two weeks here on the Gold Coast that it is not funny - and I suspect that this trend is not isolated to here. Rain is covering Australia and even the Hairy Nosed Wombat in the desert area of western Queensland has become a water rat with a flooded burrow. (For those of you who do not know this rather rotund huge guinea pig, it is a very endangered member of our native animals!)
Lucky for us, I planned our Christmas break-up for our Visions Group yesterday as an indoor celebration. As Santa was invited too, I asked a few children along to brighten our day. It worked!
Our Santa was a champion and the children - who ranged in age from 10 months to eight years - really had fun with this playful character.

Our youngest party-goer checks if the beard is real.

Santa's real life wife had come along to our celebration too and she remarked that she was amazed at how the children reacted to him. Perhaps it was because we were all in a party mood and the children felt safe and excited. Being in a home with Santa is a lot more relaxed than being in a shopping centre surrounded by strangers.

Being asked to give a "hi-5"

Once the children and Santa had left, the exhausted members of Visions also made their departure. Oh yes, we all had a turn at having our photos taken with the gent in red! Our cheeks were aching from all the smiling! We had a lot of fun.
But now it is pouring with rain and the back yard is not lawn but water frontage! The creek has flooded and is over the banks again. If the weather had been like this yesterday we would have had fewer people at our party because many roads are flooded and those that are not are quite dangerous because of the driving rain.
Christmas carols that are normally held as fund raisers for charities are being cancelled left right and centre. Our local carols were supposed to be held this morning - but it has rained all day so I bet they didn't happen. A big event with one of the "You've got talent" winners, plus two others in different parts of the Gold Coast will be casualties of our rain since they are supposed to start at six this evening - and it has just turned six as I write this story. It must be dreadfully disappointing for the organisers - as well as the performers who were expecting to make their appearances. Even our Santa from yesterday will miss out on his appearances too.

On a lighter note. I will share my email address with you. If you need to contact me it might be useful!

AJ    joanren@gmail.com