December 25th

Mornin' all.

I might have said this already, but I've really been looking forward to this Christmas.

This year really has been a time for us as a family to bond.
It started with last Christmas, Andrew, Pete and Laura (Pete's then Fiance) had just got back from Oz. It had been a year since we were all together so being together again meant a whole lot more than in previous years.

Then there was Pete and Laura's wedding. I can remember the morning of the wedding, the air of excitement, the banter, the weather (it was a perfect day!), the drive to the church, conversations about how weird it all was. I was really proud to be one of four brothers, I finally felt accepted. Then there was the rest of my family. Cousins, second cousins and lots of little kids to play with! It was awesome. It completely brought us all closer together (which reminds me, must remember to email a picture to everyone tomorrow and wish them merry christmas!)

Then there the the groove armada gig with my brothers, I've never EVER laughed before. We talked about growing up, pass injuries (- like the time Pete and I tried to pull down a young sapling tree in a local woods. Some kids had already ripped its branches and all the remained was it's very flexible trunk. I can remember hangin underneath using my weight to try and pull it over while Pete pushed it down. At some point I decided it was a wise idea to let go, it was at this point the tree pinged up hit Pete square in the face. I'm gonna have to post a video showing you how it reacted, it was beautiful. Blood went everywhere and we walked back to my grannies, him crying, me trying not to laugh!so much until I cried so much) our Dad and how all we had was each other, Pete's unborn child (due in April), everything. It was a great evening!

And then there was Christmas eve. After months of feeling really goog about it all, it almost seemed to crumble away. Andrew wasn't in the best of moods and Jonathan was feeling ill and had gone to bed. Mum and I talked in the kitchen til about 2:30am about the next day.

It is tradition that we go to Mum's church for the morning service, this has a tendancy to cause stress. Firstly because Jonathan isn't a christian, secondly because we see people that we'd rather not, thirdly its a cliche that we only go one day a year, forthly I can't stand that church, the morning service seems to just be the same bad carols, the same bad jokes and the same uncomfortable 45 minutes of clock watching. So then Mum said something I didn't ever expect, she decided not to go. We've been going every Christmas of my life and as much as I can't stand it, I almost missed it! However, this christmas day, instead of rushing about, getting there late, arriving home with tempers rising, we took the morning quite chilled. Andrew was still kinda gruff and Jonathan was still in bed feeling ill so I prayed. Well, actually, I prayed the night before and pretty much every time I went into Jonathan's room to check on him. The day progressed, Pete and Laura arrived, we sat down for Christmas dinner and everything seemed just right. We opened our presents together, one at a time and enjoyed the feeling of giving and recieving. I just asked Jonathan how he is and he feels "alot better", Andrew went to bed a bit earlier than everyone else as he is driving to work in london tomorrow morning. But all in all, it's been a really good day. Thank God! I mean it, I'm thanking him because he heard my crys and intervened. Yeah, I feel god right now.