Family Times, Xmas 2011

Apologies for this long and picture heavy post,  I am just trying to summarise the whirwind affair that was my Christmas with family.  It was so busy and it went so fast that I feel that it hardly happened...thank goodness for the blog as it makes me slow down and reflect on these special moments and thank goodness everyone left me photos as I took none...just too busy 'being' with them all.

The morning after Jesse and Michelle arrived we started the Christmas holiday season with some very sad news...my sister-inlaw Irma had passed away on the 21 Dec.

 

   Jesse set up a little shrine with candles and photos

I feel so incredibly fortunate to have spent a week with her here in Iceland in Sept.  Just after Irma returned to Perth from her Iceland and Italy trip in Oct she found out she had cancer, it was very aggressive and Irma died less than 3 months after diagnosis.  My children found it especially difficult and quite torn to not have been able to go to the funeral or to be with their father, nonno, nonna, aunts and uncles at this very sad time for the family. 

However with the aid of technology we chatted to them all on skype and fondly remembered over the holiday period the special, loving and giving life of Irma.  I think we all still had a fabulous Christmas and New Year and I am sure that is exactly what Irma would have wanted.

Besides family I got to meet Eva's partner John, what a lovely man he is, quiet, easy going and although an only child coped very admirably with the goings on of sibling revelry.

 Eva and John

And Jesse's girlfriend Michelle is a joy, very open and friendly young woman who constantly made me smile. 

 Michelle and Jesse

Also here and travelling with Dom my eldest son, is Lachlan, a next door neighbour childhood friend to them all and special mate to Ross since he was 8 or 9 years old. 

Plus visiting from Germany was the beautiful Anja,  they all met when she was a high school exchange student at  Ross' school in Perth.  Anja returned to Australia a few times and ended up living with Eva and Ross for over a year in Inglewood.

Anja (Henry's godmother) 

Henry perfected the art of crawling over the holidays

 

got into the holiday spirit

and bonded with his Aunty and Uncles.

 Eva told Ross that she was going to miss Henry far more than she would miss him!!!

 Dom allowing Henry to explore his musical genes.

Jesse and Henry having a fun playtime.

It really has just been a family affair, we did not really do any touristy stuff, we basically just hung out, chatting and spending precious time together. 

The weather here at this time of year tends to make going places difficult, some did get to go to Akureyri and Hofsós, however the road to Grettislaug was too snowed in for Ross' little car so they missed out on the hot springs but the Hofsos pool made up for it.

Jesse, Dom and Ross at the Hofsos pool

The boys did do a spot of fishing (no luck though)

         and a bit of jamming in Ross' basement

 

There were snowballs,  

snowmen

and snow angels

and of course let us not forget New Years Eve where they all got to nurture their pyromaniac side for the fireworks.

Huge bonfire on the beach

and fireworks at 9pm to get everyone in the mood.

Dom already in the mood with his firework booty and 

well and truly channeling his inner pyromaniac!

 In Australia it is against the law for private citizens to set off fireworks but here in Iceland over the Christmas and New Year period it is wholly sanctioned and everyone seems to set them off.

Jesse all gung ho and ready to set off his very first fireworks in the old post office carpark.

 It sort of exploded and sent us all back peddling,

 I must admit I am not a fan in such close proximity and would much prefer to watch from a distance.

On the stroke of midnight the town just explodes into a huge fireworks spectacular that continues pretty much for an hour or so as everyone sets off their own stash of fireworks.

 

It doesn't matter where you are there is sure to be something going off somewhere in the town.

View from the graveyard

Olga, Ross and Jesse

 

Olga and Anna

 

It has been so special to have all my children here for their very first white Christmas and hopefully over the years we get to spend more of these times together.    When I moved here I always knew I would be seeing them for Christmas 2011 but now I am unsure when the next next time will be, so it was very sad for me to say farewell.  I miss them all so much, however once the renovations are complete and the business up and running I will start to make plans for a return visit to Australia to catch up again.