You’re welcome. I’m not ready to decorate yet, just hunted out the decorations for the shoot. As usual I left making my Xmas cards til the last minute, and the cut-off date for overseas posting has been brought forward 😬
Our town ones are up but not lit yet. It’s always beautiful to walk through Tavira on a December night. 🙂 🙂 A friend brought me a poinsettia in a pot yesterday. Always synonymous with Christmas for me. Have a good weekend, Su!
I was going to say that you are early, but I read the other comments. On the other hand my Aussie grandsons have their tree up already! Far too early I think, and actually I never have seen the relevance of a Victorian tradition (the fir tree) in southern hemisphere countries. It just does not look right in a blazing summer! But your little stars are lovely and the photo is beautifully composed. We don’t bother any more with Christmas, cards or trees or decorations. Instead we donate to charities that help people at this time of year to get a shower or a hot meal.
I have the same struggle with northern hemisphere (Victorian) traditions in the sweltering heat of an Antipodean summer. We used to have a tree when the boy was little, but these days T and I don’t bother. We do put lights up though because we both like them.
I’d pretty much given up on cards, but this year it feels that so much of life has been lived online, I wanted to send something physical. Given the cost of postage (which I discovered yesterday), it could be a one-off 🤔
We’ve traditionally supported the City Mission at Xmas, and will do so this year too. But I also learned about a charity that’s distributing donated new books to kids through the Mission and Women’s Refuge, so instead of buying books for us, we’ve gifted copies of our favourites to that. It satisfied my love of book-shopping, supports an independent book seller and local authors — and puts books in the hands of kids who wouldn’t get them otherwise. I love simple things like that which do good in multiple ways.
We really are so alike! I love the idea of donating books. Books are so essential. I usually send my grandsons a book for Christmas – one about Cornwall so something they won’t be able to get in Australia, but this year has been so difficult in sourcing them – my usual shops haven’t been open and the bookshop I did manage to visit didn’t have what I wanted – they have to be paperback because of the cost of postage. I haven’t quite given up, but they certainly won’t arrive in time for Christmas.
I used to send books to my UK nieces and nephews, but the postage from here is so exhorbitant I resorted to sending their parents money and letting them choose (rather than patronising Amazon). But I read recently that independent booksellers in the UK have set up on a few different platforms to provide an alternative, so I’ll try that. Not the Kiwi books I want to send, but books nonetheless.
Good luck with your quest. 🙂
That’s a good point! I used to love getting Christmas parcels from my gran and aunties. The always seemed to arrive in late January, so it was like getting another shot at Christmas.
Quite. They don’t really care when the parcel arrives, it’s just the fact they have something with a foreign stamp. Although these days it tends to be a boring computer printed ticket.
Getting ready for Christmas is rarely too early. After all, it is the advent season starting tomorrow. I like the sparkling stars with warm colours in the background.
Su–this is beautiful! Out downtown turned on the Christmas lights last night but it was raining too hard to drive there. And today is Small Business Saturday, so we will get there.
The bokeh is beautiful! More practice for me…
I do like Xmas lights. I read yesterday that one of the best displays we have in Auckland has been cancelled this year because of Covid. Understandable, given how any people would go to visit it.
Zimmerbitch 
I’m ready to start putting up Christmas decorations, Su, so thanks for the beautiful reminder.
LikeLiked by 1 person
You’re welcome. I’m not ready to decorate yet, just hunted out the decorations for the shoot. As usual I left making my Xmas cards til the last minute, and the cut-off date for overseas posting has been brought forward 😬
LikeLike
Sigh.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Our town ones are up but not lit yet. It’s always beautiful to walk through Tavira on a December night. 🙂 🙂 A friend brought me a poinsettia in a pot yesterday. Always synonymous with Christmas for me. Have a good weekend, Su!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank Jo. I think Christmas lights are almost my favourite part of the season. Wishing you a good weekend too.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Oh, I like this composition,Su!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks Sue 🙏
LikeLiked by 1 person
already?!
LikeLiked by 1 person
The shots were for my Xmas cards and I needed them done and in the mail in time for overseas posting. Early this year because of Covid.
LikeLiked by 1 person
ahha! Your cards must be so lovely 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks Becky. I’ll probably end up posting the images here too.
LikeLike
Fabulous news 😊
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you 🙏
LikeLiked by 1 person
I was going to say that you are early, but I read the other comments. On the other hand my Aussie grandsons have their tree up already! Far too early I think, and actually I never have seen the relevance of a Victorian tradition (the fir tree) in southern hemisphere countries. It just does not look right in a blazing summer! But your little stars are lovely and the photo is beautifully composed. We don’t bother any more with Christmas, cards or trees or decorations. Instead we donate to charities that help people at this time of year to get a shower or a hot meal.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I have the same struggle with northern hemisphere (Victorian) traditions in the sweltering heat of an Antipodean summer. We used to have a tree when the boy was little, but these days T and I don’t bother. We do put lights up though because we both like them.
I’d pretty much given up on cards, but this year it feels that so much of life has been lived online, I wanted to send something physical. Given the cost of postage (which I discovered yesterday), it could be a one-off 🤔
We’ve traditionally supported the City Mission at Xmas, and will do so this year too. But I also learned about a charity that’s distributing donated new books to kids through the Mission and Women’s Refuge, so instead of buying books for us, we’ve gifted copies of our favourites to that. It satisfied my love of book-shopping, supports an independent book seller and local authors — and puts books in the hands of kids who wouldn’t get them otherwise. I love simple things like that which do good in multiple ways.
LikeLiked by 1 person
We really are so alike! I love the idea of donating books. Books are so essential. I usually send my grandsons a book for Christmas – one about Cornwall so something they won’t be able to get in Australia, but this year has been so difficult in sourcing them – my usual shops haven’t been open and the bookshop I did manage to visit didn’t have what I wanted – they have to be paperback because of the cost of postage. I haven’t quite given up, but they certainly won’t arrive in time for Christmas.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I used to send books to my UK nieces and nephews, but the postage from here is so exhorbitant I resorted to sending their parents money and letting them choose (rather than patronising Amazon). But I read recently that independent booksellers in the UK have set up on a few different platforms to provide an alternative, so I’ll try that. Not the Kiwi books I want to send, but books nonetheless.
Good luck with your quest. 🙂
LikeLike
Yes, the postage is expensive and I’ll only do it while they are small as they get such joy out of receiving a parcel from overseas!
LikeLiked by 1 person
That’s a good point! I used to love getting Christmas parcels from my gran and aunties. The always seemed to arrive in late January, so it was like getting another shot at Christmas.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Quite. They don’t really care when the parcel arrives, it’s just the fact they have something with a foreign stamp. Although these days it tends to be a boring computer printed ticket.
LikeLiked by 1 person
True; parcels used to have so many stamps on them — and were wrapped in brown paper.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Getting ready for Christmas is rarely too early. After all, it is the advent season starting tomorrow. I like the sparkling stars with warm colours in the background.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks Peter
LikeLiked by 1 person
Su–this is beautiful! Out downtown turned on the Christmas lights last night but it was raining too hard to drive there. And today is Small Business Saturday, so we will get there.
The bokeh is beautiful! More practice for me…
LikeLiked by 1 person
I do like Xmas lights. I read yesterday that one of the best displays we have in Auckland has been cancelled this year because of Covid. Understandable, given how any people would go to visit it.
LikeLike
It does look Christmassy Su. Our tree is up with the express effort of our older son. He’s even baked some gingerbread cookies.
Leslie
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks Leslie. Ohh gingerbread cookies; I must make some for our afternoon tea.
LikeLiked by 1 person
That would be delightful Su.
Leslie xoxo
LikeLiked by 1 person
We need to start decorating our flat too! This was the perfect (and beautiful) reminder.
LikeLiked by 1 person
We always really enjoyed our UK Christmas’s; hope you do too.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks Su! They really know how to do Christmas here 😁
LikeLiked by 1 person
Cold weather and long nights definitely help 😀
LikeLiked by 1 person