Family time, lots of preparations, fake lottery win from Spanish reporter, our first Christmas with Elliot, The Queen's Christmas broadcast, an unexpected parcel from England and other stories.

Sunday 29th December, 2019

Happy Christmas from us all

Dear friends and readers.

I hope you have had a great Christmas and are enjoying the seasonal good spirit. After all the preparations, it seems so unfair Christmas is now over but of course there is still New Year and in our case, Kings' Day, to celebrate.

Last Sunday we saw the end of Storm Elsa. Last Sunday was also the first day of Winter but it wasn't too cold here and Eladio and I got our walk in that morning. There was zero sign of Suzy all weekend as she was out and about with friends. But we did have the pleasure of the company of Miguel, Oli and little Elliot. 

Oli and her family last Sunday

He's not so little anymore I can tell you. If last week I wrote that he weighs a whopping 6.2 kilos, we measured him that day and found he is 68 cm tall which is an increase of 15 cm since he was born on 17th September. He is now the size of a 6 month old baby yet he is only 3 months old. Hopefully he will take after my dear brother George who was slender and tall at 6 ft. 

We had lunch together and then Oli and her little family went out to do more Christmas shopping. Thankfully I had  all of mine. When they were back it was play time with Elliot and then time for his bath. I do love bathing him with Oli. We made dinner later which we had in the luxury of our own company with no guests and in our festive dining room. 

We had hoped to become millionaires or at least win a decent amount of money in the Spanish Christmas lottery called "El Gordo" (the fat one). With a total of 2.2 billion euros it is considered the world's richest for the total prize money won. Well we didn't yet again but many people did and it's always fun to watch them celebrating on the news. One of Miguel's TVE colleagues in Valencia, a reporter called Natalia, went a bit crazy reporting from San Vicente del Raspeig (Alicante) claiming live on TV that she herself had won a ticket from the top prize, "El Gordo" itself. She shouted out to the studio she wouldn't be going to work the next day. Her reporting was over the top. But it later transpired she had made it up. She had not won the lottery. Miguel knew that as her cameraman, a friend and colleague of his, told my son-in-law, she had made no mention of it to anyone until she was live on camera. She quickly became trending topic on twitter and then she was found out and RTVE had to issue a statement to say she hadn't won the top prize of El Gordo but a smaller one of 5000 euros. Miguel told me there is no 5000 euro prize in the Christmas lottery and that she was making that up too to save face I suppose.  The story went viral and was later reported on all around the world even in The Sun and The Washington Post. You can see the video in this article. Her behaviour and downright lying are unthinkable for a journalist especially from the country's top broadcaster.

The Spanish reporter, Natalia Escudero, and my son-in-law's colleague who made  a fool of herself on camera this week

If she worked for a private  broadcaster no doubt she would have been fired there and then. I just hope her conscience makes her reflect on her own stupidity. What a silly thing to do. 

So no we didn't become rich overnight and once again comfort ourselves saying we have won our own lottery with little Elliot and that we have all we need in life. No complaints compared to so many other people in the world.  Later in the week we were pleased to find out that we had in fact won just a little money, 160 euros, which at least saw the return of some of what we spent. But it would not last either as my husband immediately spent the winnings on the next lottery draw, "El Niño" which is said has more possibilities for winning. I hope so otherwise we have just thrown our money away hahaha. 

Monday came, 23rd December, just 2 days to Christmas. With  the present shopping out of the way, I turned my hand to all the preparations for our festive meals. First things first though and Eladio rang a few garages to see whether the Volvo could be mended as soon as possible and I rang my lovely dentist, Dr. Garralda, to see if he could fit in me for some emergency treatment for my broken tooth.  All this went on as our daughters and Miguel had their breakfast. I love seeing both girls together with their son and nephew and had to get this morning photo.

My girls with little Elliot on Monday morning

I got an appointment at 12.30. In between time Eladio and I went out to do the food shopping, well some of it as we would have to go out again the next day. Thankfully the tooth was ok, it just needed filing and I was out by 1. I rushed home to see to our lunch which had been cooking in my absence; chickpea and meat stew.

In my absence, Oli had dressed little Elliot in the Santa outfit I got him at H&M and he looked a treat. Here are mother and son together with him in the lovely red outfit.

Little Elliot in his Santa outfit together with his Mummy

It was Eladio who took the best photo of Elliot posing in the outfit on the sofa in our study. I liked it so much I turned it into yet another Christmas framed photo. Doesn't he look lovely?

Little Elliot - a Christmas picture post card

We were all together for lunch but all did different things in the afternoon. Oli, Miguel and little Elliot had a siesta or I imagine they tried to have one, Suzy did some of her evaluations and Eladio and I went on our walk. By then storm Elsa had gone and the sun shone that day as it would all through Christmas. That really cheered me up as non stop rain and wind last week tended to get me down.

I came home to get out the lobster and giant prawns from the deep freeze for dishes I would make for Christmas Eve. I also made the base of the trifle for our dessert on Christmas Eve. I took a quick look before we went to bed and it seemed as though the jelly hadn't set which worried me. Thankfully the next day it was all jelled and ready for the toppings.  I then set about making a simple dinner. Making dinner for 5 is more time consuming than for 2 but oh what joy to be around the dining room table all together again and looking forward to Christmas. We stayed up quite late, sitting in our festive lounge until it was time for bed.

Tuesday, Christmas Eve, came and I was awake early at 5.30 already thinking about all the things I had to do for our special evening meal. As soon as I had had my coffee, I finished making the trifle and it looked a treat as you can see in the photo below.

Trifle for Christmas Eve, always a favourite with everyone

We joined the girls, Elliot and Miguel for breakfast and then we all went off to do different things. Suzy had to give her lessons and Oli and her family went for a lovely sunny walk in Boadilla. Eladio and I went out on final errands for Christmas. First we went to the post office to pick up a parcel and were gutted to see it was closed. We then made our way to Carrefour Market to pick up a few last things for our dinner that night and lunch on Christmas Day. We also went to our local bakery, Alverán to get the croissants and pastries for Christmas Day breakfast. There we had a coffee and it was then I realised that Eladio was wearing slippers and had forgotten to put his shoes on. It was such a funny moment I had to record it to share with you. Oh my husband does live in the clouds sometimes, hahahaha.

Eladio wearing slippers when we went out in the morning on Wednesday

We came home to unload everything, see to the lunch (leftovers for everyone) and then went out on our walk again in glorious sunshine. I came home to finish making the potato salad I had started on very early that morning. We always make it for Christmas Eve as one of the dishes and it is my mother's recipe or actually her father's as she always used to tell me. Looks good eh?

My potato salad, made to my mother's recipe - one of our dishes on Christmas Eve

Lunch was a family affair again as Oli and her family had come to stay over the festive period. We all had  a tipple of our favourite Juan Gil wine; well Oli had just a sip, followed of course by more Spanish turrón. Then it was time for a short siesta. I was too excited to sleep and kept thinking of all the things I had make for our dinner. In our family we follow the Spanish tradition of a special meal on Christmas Eve and the English tradition of a proper Christmas lunch. There was lots to prepare and I got the help of Zena, our Ukrainian home help who takes over from Lucy when she has time off. Zena celebrates Russian Christmas on 7th January so doesn't mind taking over on the 24th and 25th December. She also contributed to the meal by making her daughter Oxana's courgette blini concoction which Suzy and I had first tried at the cousinade this year (Oxana works on and off for my cousin Zuka). This is it:

Zena's Ukrainian dish

The staple dishes are always potato salad, bacon rolls, perushki (Russian pasties) and lobster salad. But this year we added a Moroccan touch by ordering falafel, humus and "pastille" (Pastela) a flaky chicken and almond tart, from the El Tuareg restaurant in Villaviciosa. The food came with traditional flat bread and unfortunately at one stage it was within the dogs' reach and they ate nearly all of it hahahahaha. Zena helped me lay the table and peel things, Oli made the bacon rolls and Suzy was in charge of the turrón sweet tray.

Suzy with the sweet tray

Meanwhile Eladio got the fire ready in the TV lounge and here are my family sitting by the fire enjoying a quiet moment.

My family relaxing by the fire before dinner

This year my father preferred to skip  the big meal on Christmas Eve. After all he is now 100 and no doubt it would have been too much for him but we missed him. When little Elliot and I were dressed in our Christmas outfits I went down to his room to say goodnight and give him a kiss. He was delighted.

Soon the table was groaning with delicious food which no doubt would last us days. Here it is looking similar to other years except for the Moroccan food.

Our dinner table on Christmas Eve

We all got dressed up in our Christmas outfits, even little Elliot. Here he is with his mother feeding just before she had her own dinner.

Oli and Elliot kitted out in their Christmas outfits

Eladio and Suzy wanted to dig in as soon as possible but I begged them for a few photos and a toast and to savour the moment after all my planning for one of the two most special moments of the year. My begging had no effect on anyone hahahahaa.

Eladio, digging in with the girls and Elliot - all kitted out in our throw me back Yoigo Christmas outfits

We had made far too much food, enough for a meal three times over but that's no problem as it would mean I wouldn't have to cook for a few days hahahaha.

The meal was made complete with crackers and party poppers. Later after we helped Zena clear up, we moved to the lounge to sit by the fire. By then we had taken off our far too warm Christmas outfits. We watched a bit of a silly TV show with lots of comedy acts. Two of them had us in stitches so it was worth it. Then it was to bed at around 11 when most people in Spain would probably only be into their second course.

Eladio's last task of the day was to place the girls' stockings outside their rooms. The girls are now 34 and 35 but still get stockings. Next year, when he is old enough, Elliot will get one too.

I was awake at just after 5 on Christmas morning but forced myself to go back to sleep. I finally got out of bed at just before 6.30. While everyone was asleep and as soon as I had drunk my first cup of coffee, I laid the table for a festive family breakfast where we would gather for the first of the many events of the most special day of the year.

Suzy's day started when she was woken up by little Elliot. By then Oli had already opened her stocking and soon it would be Suzy's turn. But first Elliot's aunt wanted some special time with him. It was as if he was her first and biggest present of the day.

Suzy being woken up by Elliot on Christmas day

The stockings were knitted by my mother for her granddaughters when they were children. Next year Elliot will have his own, already bought by Suzy for him and personalised by Etsy.

By just after 9 am we were all gathered in the dining room for a very large breakfast comprising largely of the most delicious pastries, mostly mini croissants which we all love. Here we are about to start.

All of us at breakfast on Christmas morning

After the breakfast and in line with the traditions passed on to me by my father's mother, it was time to gather around the tree. To the accompaniment of Christmas carols we would spend the next hour and a half opening all our presents. I think I have written before that we always go more for quantity more than quality although each one of us gets a main gift.  In keeping with a new tradition of ours, I asked my son-in-law, Miguel to take the annual photo of my husband and I (to quote the Queen hahahaha) for which we always dress up and for which Eladio always wears a bow tie in which he looks most dapper.

Eladio and I - this year's official Christmas morning photo

I like to think we are ageing gracefully haha. But someone was missing and it was Elliot so we had to have one with him too and here he is.

Our photo with little Elliot 

It was of course his first Christmas but as he is only 3 months old I suppose he won't have noticed much. He got lots of clothes and a lovely first eating set from Suzy from Zara Home for when he starts on purées in a few months time. I especially love the festive outfit I Eladio and I got him from Zara in which he too looks dapper and is also wearing a bow tie like his grandfather.  Later I took a video of him in his new suit which included a waistcoat and the bow tie. Oh how smart he looks and oh how happy he is in the video. Watch out for Suzy's famous last words in the video which you can see here.

Elliot in his new clothes

My father enjoys the Christmas present opening ceremony as we all do. Here is Suzy showing him the blanket she and Oli had bought for him.

Suzy and her grandfather

I had to have a Christmas day photo with my father too. I remarked that I hoped he would be with us for many more Christmases to come. I cannot ever envisage Christmas without him, as, after all, every one of my Christmas days, except for one when I was in Mexico in 1978, were spent with him. Here it is and I shall treasure it.

My father and I on Christmas Day

When all the presents had been opened and everyone had gone off to do their own thing, it was my responsibility to go into the kitchen and start on the Christmas day lunch. Thankfully I had Zena to help me and she peeled the potatoes and laid the table. I was not at all hungry and found the task in front of me a bit uphill. I would have far preferred to go out for a walk but we would have to leave that to the afternoon. I had to have a full roast with all the trimmings for 6 people on the table by 2 pm. I did it of course and by then we were all hungry again hahahaha. Here is my father waiting at the head of the table.

My father at the the lunch table

Before digging in again I had to restrain my husband and family as we had to have a family photo. Thankfully Zena was there to take it. Unfortunately Elliot was not in as he was asleep. Here it is:

The five of us before lunch on Christmas Day

After we had all enjoyed our meal it was time for the Christmas pudding which we all love except for Oli who doesn't like it. I wish I didn't either as it makes me so full hahaha.

The fun didn't end there. There were still the crackers to come, some John Smith ones I read the Queen has every year. The exception is that she puts in expensive presents. My poor dear father mistook a mini sellotape dispenser for a chocolate and automatically put it in his mouth. Thankfully Zena noticed and removed it immediately hahaha. My father loves chocolates, as do I, and to quote Zena "he eats anything". It was  funny but rather a dangerous moment. We soon got over it when we tried out a 6 hand cracker I had ordered on line. Out of it appeared all sorts of items we later wore for a picture, such as moustaches, lips, glasses etc, all made of paper and not doubt made in China. Here we are with them on in another photo of all of us together.

A fun photo of the five of us after our Christmas lunch

As we were preparing to take my father down to his room in his wheelchair we all wished him a Merry Christmas once again. He said a few words, rare for him, and treasured by us all. He thanked us for all the details and reminisced on Christmas as a child at home. He said he didn't think he and Mummy celebrated it much but I reminded him that we did, especially at his parents' house when George and I were children. He was very thankful for a lovely Christmas and we are very thankful that he is still with us today.

We all chilled out afterwards. Eladio and I slept while Suzy and Oli were with the baby. At 5.30 we all went for a well needed walk to work "the turkey" off and of course all the chocolates hahaha. Here we are in a selfie on the walk. It was crisp but sunny and I ended up taking my coat off.

On our walk on Christmas day

Just as we arrived home, Miguel was back from lunch with his family and we all gathered around the fire in the TV, library or cat lounge as it is alternately called. It was then that we thought up a video to make to send to Amanda (my oldest friend) and her family who had sent us one that morning. So with Miguel as the cameraman and Oli and Suzy the choreographers, we made one sending greetings to each member of my friend's family. Oh what a laugh it was and it needed a few takes I can tell you. You can see it on my You Tube channel here.

It was about 8 pm by then and I couldn't believe it when the younger generation started talking about food. I really didn't think I could get a morsel past my lips but I did of course. There is an expression in Spanish we often use which says "comer y rascar, cuestión de empezar". It means "eating and scratching is a question of starting" except it sounds better in Spanish as it rhymes. I let them get on with preparing the dinner which of course was made up of Christmas Eve leftovers and told them I was on kitchen strike as I had done all the cooking. Thus there was limited service (hahaha) which was quite noticeable but for once I didn't care if the table wasn't laid properly or if there weren't enough glasses, etc.

Later we gathered around the fire in the TV lounge and watched the end of the news. I had missed The Queen's speech, officially known as "The Queen's Christmas broadcast" which I watched on Boxing Day the next morning. I have a lot of respect for the 93 year old monarch whose year, like mine and many other's, has been bumpy.  Her very first broadcast was made and televised in 1957, coincidentally the year I was born.

The Queen at Windsor Castle - photo taken of this year's Christmas broadcast. 

We had watched the (Spanish) King's speech on Christmas Eve and hers was a hundred times better. I read recently she writes her own speech and that gives her even more credit. It's unbelievable how well she speaks for a nonagenarian. What I love about the broadcast compared to the Spanish version is the setting and the pomp that goes with it, not to mention the national anthem at the beginning and the music provided by St. George's Chapel. If in the Spanish King's speech we were all looking for hints about the Catalan issue, in the Queen's speech we were all looking for a mention or hint of Brexit and it was there but very subtle.  The Spanish King's speech was boring and predictable in comparison. Her majesty's bumpy year of course refers to the issue of her son Prince Andrew and the woes of her grandson Harry and American wife Meghan Markle.  But it also refers to Brexit.  Her speech starts with a mention of the 50th anniversary of the moon landings and the famous words "one small step for man and a giant step for mankind", adding and "womankind". In a comparison to WW2 she asks for small steps to overcome differences. She cites the example of Jesus and how "small steps taken in faith and in hope" can overcome "long-held differences". She ends her speech praising young people for their action against climate change and protecting the environment and adds, after her reference to the 50th anniversary of the moon landings, "it is often the small steps, not the giant leaps, that bring about the most lasting change", I have to say her speech was very well crafted and I also hope she will be here in the coming years to continue to inspire us. I am not an out and out monarchist but the Queen has been there throughout my lifetime and I cannot imagine it without her, as I can't imagine my life without my father. I am sure he too liked this year's Christmas Broadcast.

There was not much news on Christmas Day and in any case we had missed the main section. When Elliot got a bit fretful, we all went upstairs to start the going to bed process. Before going to my room I was asked into Oli's to join the girls singing carols to our little baby. He was delighted.

Our day ended watching the first 2 episodes of the series about Chernobyl which needs no explanation to any of you. I well remember it happening in 1986 when the Ukraine was still part of the USSR. The series has caused a stir in what is Russia today.

I woke up on Boxing Day to a clear and sunny day. It was another day spent mostly with the family. In the morning Oli, Elliot and I went out on errands, principally to the post office to send off my father's book to an ex pupil but also to pick up a mysterious parcel. It turned out to be a Christmas present to my family and I from my new found Airbnb guest from last January, Joanne W. Joanne who is a teacher of Spanish in Lancashire, has become a friend and was instrumental in researching my father's book. She must like me a lot as she sends many gifts, even to my father who she actually never got to meet. She even sent gifts and cards on the birth of Elliot.

Oli and I opened the parcel when we went to have a coffee at Alverán and while little Elliot slept in his pram. It was so sunny we sat outside. It took a while to open the well wrapped parcel and we were astonished to see that inside there were various parcels which were beautifully gift wrapped, each with their own pretty label, as well as some fabulous cards. One of the cards was to me; a bereavement card for the loss of Fátima. That was very thoughtful. We saw there were cards for us all, luxury cards that can only be found in England, as well as presents for Elliot, my father and myself. Oli and I were overwhelmed at the generosity, thoughtfulness and creativity right down to the final detail. Joanne had even wrapped Elliot's presents in baby themed wrapping. So what was inside the unexpected parcel? Well, gosh, things you can't get here as Joanne well knows. For me there was a most beautiful metal poppy brooch to wear on Remembrance Day, something I shall keep for always. For Elliot there was a lovely Christmas decoration for the tree personalised with his name. Imagine. This is it and I know Oli will hang it on her tree every year from now on.

The beautiful tree decoration for Elliot's first Christmas.

Knowing Elliot's first Christmas with us was so special, Joanne had even found this little outfit for him in which he looks so cute. Don't you think?

Elliot in Joanne's "My first Christmas" outfit

Later I gave my father his present. He was surprised and asked "who is it from?". I had to tell him that my newly found friend from Lancashire had once again surprised us all and to explain who she was. He was delighted to see a pack of mint Aero chocolate, his favourite as my friend knows. I have no words to thank Joanne for her kindness and thoughtfulness. All I can say is: "Thank you my friend for remembering us at Christmas and for all the effort taken to come up with the most delightful presents possible".

Lunch was a sort of repeat of Christmas Day. I had plenty of trimmings left, so just roast a few chicken legs and made more stuffing to serve up the perfect roast again. Everyone appreciated it. We all needed to sleep off the excess later, except that I couldn't sleep. Instead I watched a fascinating film on Netflix, based on a true story, called "Brain on Fire". I was fascinated by the story and later downloaded the book by Susannah Cahalan, a reporter for The New York Post. She wrote her own story after suffering a most terrible brain disorder. It was just up my street and I was thankful for a happy ending.

It was just Oli, Eladio and I on the walk that afternoon. Suzy was working and would later meet her friend Elenita. Oli and Miguel would join them for dinner that night.  Before they left, Oli and Miguel bathed their baby. Later Oli sent us a photo of little Elliot in the bath. He always closes his fists as if to protect himself. I think he is a little scared don't you?  But just look at how big he is now. He is only 3 months old but is the size of a 6 month old baby!  Eladio loved the photo and remarked he is resembling our family now and looks like Suzy when she was a baby. I can't see the resemblance.

Elliot protecting himself in the bath as he is still a little scared. 

Thus that night we were sort of "home alone" and it was actually a bit of a respite, at least as far as providing food on the table was concerned. That night we watched two more episodes of Chernobyl. What a frightening story it is.

I woke up quite late for me on Friday, at about 7 a.m. Christmas was over but I still had to plan for New Year's Eve, our trip to Montrondo and for "Kings' Day" so there was plenty to get down to. I had to do my purchases online as Eladio took my Mini while his car, the old Volvo, is at the garage. Thus I had to stay at home all morning. Oli and her little family left to go to his parents for lunch and we wouldn't see them again until today. Suzy was busy with her lessons so I made lunch.

Our afternoon and evening were quiet. Suzy left to go away for the weekend and we stayed at home, once again "home alone" but not for long. At just after 7 pm, our last Airbnb guests of the year arrived; Silvia, her husband and one of their mothers. The young couple live in Lisbon they told me and spoke great English which is unusual for Chinese guests in my experience. The mother did not and all I could say was the only word I know in Mandarin: "nihau". After they settled in we had dinner on our own and later watched the last episode of Chernobyl. It's a great series but focuses on the story of the scientist, Valery Legasov, played by Jared Harris (King George VI in The Crown) and how he gets to the bottom of what really happened at Chernobyl and how the communist authorities wanted him to hide the truth. That part is very interesting of course but I would have liked to see more of the effects on the population, not much of which is shown, except for the terrible deaths of those involved in trying to stop the explosion or stopping the fire after the nuclear explosion happened. We later started watching The Handmaid's Tale which I was keen to see after having read the book. Eladio thought it was weird and it is so we changed to The Spanish Princess about Catherine of Aragon. She is a very important figure in Spanish and English history but the production didn't really convince us.

With so much TV, we switched off our lights at well past midnight. I was awake at 6 am yesterday morning and got up at 6.30 to a quiet and dark house.  Saturday was quiet without the girls. I took the opportunity to go to the hairdresser to see to my roots. I also dyed my blonde eye lashes; not that it makes much difference. I was there early and was lucky to be second in the queue. Thus I was out and free just over 1.5h later. I do hate going to the hairdresser but I'm glad I did now as I hated the dreaded white roots. I dashed into Carrefour Market on the way home to get some food for lunch. Yes, we were running out of provisions hahahaha. We had a healthy lunch of fresh fish and vegetables followed by more chocolate which is too irresistible at Christmas I am afraid. I can feel the pounds piling on and can only comfort myself by promising to go on a diet in January which I know I will. It will be my main New Year resolution.

The rest of the day panned out quite routinely which of course included a long walk in the afternoon. We didn't see our Chinese guests at all although we heard them arrive last night. This morning they will be leaving and we shall now have the house to ourselves until 8th January as I have blocked the calendar until then.

Today I was up again at 6 a.m, far too early but here I am. I have a pleasant day to look forward. Oli and her family will be here for lunch and in the afternoon my dear friend Julio will be here to see us. He is coming to visit Elliot really and bring him a present. Both Julio and I miss Fátima dreadfully this Christmas as well as our annual dinners with her. We didn't have the heart to carry on the tradition but his coming for afternoon tea this afternoon might spark off a new one. I hope so.

For the first time ever we shall be holding a New Year's Eve party. There is quite a lot of planning going into it and yesterday the silly glasses I ordered online arrived for everyone to wear. I just had to try them out on Eladio hahahaha.

Silly glasses for our NYE party

I have never really liked NYE, but this year will make a big effort, not only because we shall be celebrating the beginning of a new decade but because all my family and all of Miguel's will be here too as well as my Uni friend, Sandra. My life would not be the same without my beloved family and all I wish for 2020 and the coming years is good health and happiness for my family. May I take this opportunity  to wish all of you who read and follow my blog, health and happiness too, the pillars of a good life.

Cheers till next year my friends,

Masha

Suzy is home, my two best presents arrived early, Elliot turns 3 months, El Clásico riots, Trump impeached, family dinner and a very Happy Christmas to you all.

Sunday 22nd December 2019

My two best Christmas presents, Elliot and his Aunty Suzy. 

Dear all,

Another week has gone by and it's just a few days to Christmas, my favourite day of the year always. Everything is ready and my second biggest present after Elliot came in the form of my darling eldest daughter Suzy who arrived last Sunday. Her arrival would make our Christmas complete.

Last Sunday saw me preparing lunch in the morning for all the family. I also went on our walk with Eladio avoiding the fields because of the shooting. I came back to go out again to do more food shopping as we would have a full house and were running out of fruit, etc. Meanwhile Eladio went off to Oli and Miguel's place. Their car had broken down so they needed a lift home. They would join Eladio to pick up Suzy who was arriving from Bali via Doha at 13.30 approximately after a 25 hour long haul journey. 

I stayed at home as I would not have fitted in the car and also I had to finish making lunch. Suzy and co didn't get home till 3.15 pm and my poor father was getting tired and hungry of course. But he was all smiles when he saw Suzy and Elliot. Suzy was ecstatic to see her little nephew who had grown so much in her absence. 

Lunch was wonderful, not necessarily because of the food, but because we were all together, just how I like it to be.  That morning our tattooist guest and his girlfriend left and our other guest, Julia, was out at her classes. Thus the house was just for us. This meant that Suzy had her room back. I had no more reservations until 27th December but if I did I get any, she could always either sleep in Oli's room or the makeshift bedroom in the gallery just off our own bedroom. I later got a sudden one yesterday but more about that later. 

We all took a siesta and it was dark when we woke up. That's when Suzy finally slept and she did so in our bed. I had to have a photo of my peaceful darling daughter who needs lots of love and tender care after everything that has happened in Bali. Here she is. Aren't our kids - whatever their age - adorable when they are asleep?

My dearest darling Suzy sleeping off some of her jet lag

We all let her sleep while spending time with little Elliot who is our pride and joy. Oli and I prepared our dinner, a healthy choice of baked fish, steamed asparagus and some boiled potatoes to which I added  home made mayonnaise. I thought Suzy would sleep on until the next morning but she got up to join us, thus we were reunited again around the table.

Later while Miguel, Oli and Elliot left for their flat, Suzy and I had a good long chat together. It was late by then and time for bed so I joined Eladio and we finished our silly soppy but entertaining American series.

Monday came. It was a bright and sunny day.  Our second but last guest to leave this week was young Julia from the Canary Islands who had come to do a course in some fancy new alternative therapy technique which I didn't really understand. Suzy did though and was very interested. Julia will be back in January or so she told us. 

Suzy set up her teaching office in the annex off our bedroom which we call the gallery and Eladio and I went for a walk We all met up for lunch. Later in the afternoon, Suzy worked, catching up on the evaluations she has to write up after every class which is very time consuming. I read pleasurably by her side soaking up the Christmas atmosphere I had created in our main lounge. I am reading the story of the Duke of Edinburgh's mother, Princess Alice who married Prince Andrea of Greece and is also the mother of Lord Mountbatten. What a fascinating life she had with many ups and downs. 

Oli and Miguel were at the local clinic for little Elliot's meningitis vaccination. God forbid he ever gets that most deadly disease. His parents were told he may get a temperature and be a bit unsettled afterwards. He was more the latter than the former. He was also weighed and the scales showed a whopping 6.2 kilos (13.6 lbs).  Oli asked the nurse if it was normal that he wants a feed nearly every hour and the reply was; if that's what he wants then there is no way round it. No wonder he has put on so much weight hahaha. 

While they were at the clinic, we prepared a meal that no doubt Elliot would have loved if he was a bit older as it's obvious he is going to be a good eater. We made tortilla with salad; always a favourite. Again the nicest thing was being together. Elliot sat with Suzy while she ate, giving her parents a break from eating with one hand only. Our little boy doesn't like his cot or pram unless the latter is for going on walks. He wants to be with us all the time. Thus I captured them on camera, my two best Christmas presents this year, my grandson Elliot and my daughter Suzy who I had thought wouldn't be with us this year.

My two best Christmas presents that arrived early this year

Tuesday came and it was a bit wet but I hoped it would dry up later so as to go on our walk. Luckily it did. On Tuesday, Elliot turned 3 months old. Oh how much love and joy he has brought to this house and how much our lives have changed, especially Olivia and Miguel's. It was time for some photos to mark the day and here they are. Isn't he an adorable baby?

Elliot at 3 months

Eladio playing with Elliot during his photo session

Everyone was staying for lunch so Eladio and I went shopping to get more provisions. The cashier who knows us was not surprised to see our two huge trolleys loaded to the top and remarked "your usual style". It's amazing how much fruit and veg we get through. We must be among the top ten customers of our local Mercadona hahahaha. 

While we were out, Suzy was giving her animated English lessons to Chinese pupils but in one of her breaks she spent time with little Elliot. Suzy always dresses up with special headgear and glasses to look the part. This very special photo of my two best Christmas presents, Aunty Suzy and her nephew together, had to be this week's feature photo.  Love the photo don't you? She makes the different headgear using my scarves of which I have a huge collection but in one big mess. I must get round to organising them haha.

Oli and family went to the local pool for Oli to go swimming. By 2.30 we were all seated around the table having lunch. After lunch Oli and Miguel went off Christmas shopping, Suzy stayed behind, hopefully to catch up on her evaluations and later the three of us went on our walk. It was a beautiful evening, clear and crisp.

Suzy and I had a cup of tea when we got back and spent some precious mother and daughter time together until she had to get ready to go out, have dinner and stay the night at her bosom friend Elenita's place. I commented how I had lost my best friend here in Spain and that all my close girlfriends live abroad; Kathy and Amanda in the UK, Anne in Finland, Sandra in Brussels and Adele in France. Fátima was my closest friend here and she leaves a huge gap in my life in Spain. I have lots of girl friends but none that I am as close with as I was with Fátima. She was like a sister and is irreplaceable. 

I spent the hour before dinner reading my book - I call this my quiet time and I love it. Dinner for a change was just Eladio and I and we had it - the remains of the tortilla - while watching the news which was quite depressing. Our evening ended watching a new series on Netflix called Mythos. We are not sure about it yet.

Wednesday came. I woke up really early at about 5.30 and got up at 5.45. Eladio had forgotten to tell me the alarm was on so it went off and I woke up the whole house. Thank goodness there were no guests except for Andy. I always like my quiet time in the morning too with my first cup of coffee when I read my messages as well as check my Instagram and Facebook accounts and the latest headlines. There was a lovely photo from Oli in one of the messages of the three of them. It's funny to think she has her own family now.  I'm so happy for her. She has taken to motherhood with all its difficulties like a duck to water. I'm also very proud of her.

Oli and family

Wednesday was a busy day. Eladio and I went for our walk as usual - our walks are so important. Once home I organised the men's lunch as I had a lunch date with a friend and Oli and Miguel were elsewhere. My lunch date was to be quite special. It was with Fátima's other best friend "Tere" who were school friends. I laughingly told her we were rival best friends as I think our dear departed Fátima used to refer to us both as her best friend. I knew Tere a bit from over the years but our friend Fátima compartmentalised her different groups of friends. At Fátima's death bed I suggested to Tere that now that we had both lost our best friend, we should become friends ourselves. She agreed immediately and we have been in touch a lot since the funerals and on Wednesday we formalised our new friendship. I am sure Fátima would approve wholeheartedly. It was wonderful to have lunch with Tere, to talk about Fátima, about our own bereavement and to get to know each other more. We chose De María, an Argentinian restaurant in Majadahonda next to the Atlético de Madrid training fields. Unfortunately I did not take a photo. I promise I will next time.

Later I joined Suzy for an important appointment in Madrid. The highlights of our outing were her buying some Christmas lottery and having coffee together. I treasure every moment with her.

We were home late. Both girls went out to dinner to Elenita's, leaving Eladio and I alone in the kitchen for our own dinner. We watched the news and it was mono themed; the security around the Madrid Barça match.  "El clásico" had been postponed because of rising tensions in the Catalan city and there was huge security around this week's match for the over 90.000 spectators, not to mention the crowds outside, many of them hooligans, radicals and the new "tsunami democratic" movement which promotes violence. And violence there was, outside the stadium with rubbish containers set on fire and varying objects thrown at the police. Eladio and I were horrified to see the disturbances and I wondered what the world thought as no doubt images would be seen worldwide as the "Clásico" is one of the biggest sports events in the world, watched from everywhere. I reflected how sad it is that football is now tainted with politics or disturbances. The least important thing about this match was the score which is ridiculous. The score was disappointing as it ended in nil nil but the only news coming out of the event was the violence. Thankfully and due to the extreme security measures the match itself was almost incident free. I think the players from both teams and the teams themselves were horrified at the events and concentrated just on the football. Good for them. Way to go.

Violence erupted around "el clásico" this week

We ended up watching the riots in bed until late into the night. I kept thinking what an awful image for Spain. Luckily Oli and Miguel arrived bringing little Elliot to cheer me up. They had been clothes shopping for our little cherub as he has grown so much and he came clad in a beautiful yellow coat with matching boots. Earlier in the day Oli sent us a photo of him with his first pair of denims. Don't tell me he doesn't look adorable. It's hard to think he is only 3 months old as he looks a lot older.

Elliot wearing his first pair of denims

I immediately switched to "grandma mode" and swept him up into my arms and them went to change his nappy. Changing his nappy is now second nature to me although I learned the job more than 30 years ago and hadn't changed one till Elliot's arrival. He was in a playful mood afterwards feeling clean, fed and content and Eladio and I spent time enjoying being with him.

It was late by then and everyone went to sleep. I couldn't sleep as is normal for me and turned to TV streaming for entertainment. I watched the film "Snowden" about the famous CIA whistle blower and it made good watching. I eventually fell asleep and was awake on Thursday morning at about 6.45, a bit later than usual hahaha.

The news that morning was of Donald Trump's impeachment, the third in the history of the USA. Voting took place the day  before and impeachment was passed by 230 votes to 197. All this came from the now well known story of the Ukrainian affair where the US President abused power by putting pressure on the Kiev government to investigate his democratic rival Joe Biden. When I read the news I thought that's it, he's impeached, so he's out. It's not as simple as that I'm afraid and Trump will remain in office for at least another year before the the next stage which is a hearing in the Senate where there is a republican majority.  Really the impeachment is only a vote in Congress to support a trial against the President. Thus the story will go on for a while. He is the third US President to be impeached but did you know that not one US President has ever been kicked out of office after impeachment? I doubt Trump will either although I wish he would.

The other news was domestic and depressing. It's hard to explain if you are not familiar with the ins and outs of the Catalan independence issue dividing the region and causing tension in the country and in the negotiations to form a government depending on one of their parties (ERC).  This week the  European Court of Justice ruled that its head, Oriol Junqueras, who is in prison, has political immunity and should be allowed to take up his seat as an MEP. The Spanish courts ruled that when he was voted an MEP, he could not take up the position as he was in pre trial detention and thus could not swear the oath of the Spanish constitution. Therefore the European Court of Justice has overruled Spanish law, something that has infuriated people here. To top it all, this same ruling allowed the two independence politicians, Puigdemont and Comin who fled to Brussels to escape Spanish justice, to pick up their MEP credentials the next day. It's one big mess and what infuriates me and many other people is that the PSOE (socialist) leader, Pedro Sánchez, needs the support or rather the abstention of the ERC party to be sworn in as President. This means the next government will have to depend on the Catalan independence parties for every move they make, independence parties that are enemies of the unity of Spain. If only Pedro Sánchez would come to his senses and not rely on ERC but get suppory from the other constitutional parties, the PP and Ciudadanos. Meanwhile the European court ruling has given the ERC party even more fuel in its negotiations with the PSOE. They will be asking for even more concessions for their 10 MPs to abstain in the investiture. To me it seems that Pedro Sánchez has sold himself to the devil. When I saw little Elliot later my thoughts turned away from the disastrous political situation in Spain to my darling grandson. 

It's always lovely to have Elliot with us in the morning as we did on Thursday. He is at his best in the morning except that day he was quite sleepy which is pretty unusual for him. He was in and out of slumber land and I love the photo his father took of him with his eyes half open and his arm under his head in his green and white striped pyjamas.

Elliot content and half asleep on Thursday morning

It rained all day and this was apparently the effect of what was dubbed "storm Elsa". It's funny how storms have names these days. Thus there was no walk for us. The weather got worse as the week progressed and 6 people died which is a very sorry toll. Wind battered Spain and it was very strong and quite frightening. We kept wondering if one of our trees would fall but thankfully we were incident free. 

The highlight of the day was a family dinner at Oli and Miguel's place. We always love going there, not just to be together but because we are always served excellent grub. With his new cooking device, similar to a Thermomix, Miguel had made a delicious mushroom soup as well as anchovy and sardine spreads. The table was groaning with food as you can see in the photo below.

The dinner table at Oli and Miguel's on Thursday night

Elliot behaved perfectly as we ate, sitting in his little rocking chair until he started protesting. What he far prefers is being at the same height as us which I suppose is natural. Soon he will be able to sit in a high chair. Now that will be fun.  Oli and Miguel plied us with all sorts of chocolates and turrones (Spanish nougat) after dinner and we all felt full and content, too full really. It was then time for a family photo. It was a pity Elliot was asleep while it was taken. Here I am with my lovely family, Eladio and my two gorgeous girls, Oli and Suzy. I am so pleased she was finally able to join us for Christmas this year as it just wouldn't have been the same without Suzy. 

With my lovely family

Later I turned this photo into a Christmas greeting which everyone loved but nearly all asked where was Elliot? Well, he was asleep when we took the photo but no worries, we shall do another Christmas greeting photo on the 24th to include my father and our grandson.

Our online family greeting card without Elliot I am afraid as he was asleep when I took the photo:-)

We drove home in torrential rain and came home to deal with the dogs who had been locked in the kitchen in our absence. They were all reluctant to go out in the wet weather to do their business hahahaa.

We were in bed quite late but even so watched a bit of "telly". We watched the end of a very interesting documentary on the Kennedy family. What came next was the most depressing documentary I have ever seen. It was about a psychiatric hospital in Aleppo of all places. Thankfully we soon fell asleep.

Friday came and I woke up to more rain as storm Elsa lashed across the country.  I went out with Eladio to order the "bird" for our Christmas lunch, far preferring a "pularda" which I think is called a poulet to turkey. We then went to buy more Christmas lottery tickets and afterwards to our favourite bakery, Alverán to order pastries (mostly mini croissants) for our Christmas morning breakfast. Just as we were leaving Alverán and before driving home, I geared Eladio towards a local florist. I wanted to buy a big Poinsettia plant to add to our Christmas decorations as the one I had bought a while ago had withered to death. I also wanted to buy one for our neighbours as a Christmas gesture as they are such nice people. We couldn't have better neighbours than the Russo Spanish couple, Ekaterina and Julio. Here I am leaving the florist, plants in hand. I do love poinsettias and in Spain where they are called "flor de pascua" they are very Christmassy.

Buying poinsettia plants

We were not home long before we went out again on our walk. Thankfully by then the rain had stopped. At around 1.45, when Suzy had finished her lessons, I accompanied her to an appointment she had in the nearest town to our house. Thus we missed lunch with my father and Eladio and had it on our own when we got back. Again we went out, not long after on a lovely mission; last minute Christmas shopping together. I had bought all our presents when Suzy announced she was coming home so I needed to buy her her presents and she wanted to buy her presents to us all. Suzy, being a vegan and living in South East Asia, has become a bit anti consumer so we could only choose things we or she thought we really needed. Our expedition was a success, despite the traffic and the crowds and we were home by 6.30.

We were all going out that night; Suzy to  Elena's house and Eladio and I to dinner with friends. But first Suzy wanted to try on some of my dresses and Olivia's for a night on the town on Saturday. She looked stunning in everything but in this little black dress she looks simply gorgeous. Even Suzy, who usually finds fault with herself, could not find anything wrong with it and was quite pleased with how she looked. I do wish she would love herself a bit more. This is my daughter in Oli's dress, by the way, looking simply spectacular. I am sure you all agree.

My beautiful daughter Suzy dressed in black

I got ready to go out too but did not look nearly as spectacular as my daughter hahaha. In any case there is no photo to compare. Many people say that Suzy looks like me which I can only take as a compliment. It's funny, but as a mother, I do not see the resemblance.

Eladio and I were going out to dinner with our friends Javier and Ana whom we hadn't seen since the summer before last, far too long a gap. There was lots to catch up about each other's lives. Amazingly their second child, Laura had got married since we last saw them and their two eldest, Ignacio and Laura made them grandparents this summer of two lovely boys, Pablo and Matthew who were born within 12 days of each other. Since we last met we all became grandparents. A lot of our conversation at dinner at Tanteo in Majadahonda was about how our lives have changed. I think we all expressed a feeling that although we are delighted to have grandchildren, the fact that we have become grandparents has made us realise just how old we are now. Of course we are older but having Elliot in our lives, compensates any negative feelings about age, at least in our mind. The food was great; tapas of different sorts, but there was so much to talk about I hardly noticed what I was eating. In fact we sat and talked until terribly late. I couldn't believe it was past 2 in the morning when we finally got into bed. That is incredibly late for us who usually go to bed at just after 9 pm hahaha. I knew I wouldn't get much sleep that night and woke up at 7 am on Saturday morning.

Suzy was staying at Elena's, Andy had gone back to France for the holiday so it was just Eladio, my father, Lucy and I at home that morning. We had no guests coming until the end of next week, a fact I relished. I have, of course, blocked the Airbnb calendar for the most festive days.  But then suddenly I got a request to book for that very night. It came from two US scientists from Alaska of all places. They would be arriving later last night. Thus we had to turf poor Suzy out of her room and get it ready for their arrival. The green room was ready so if they needed a room each all would be ok.

On Saturday morning it was raining again - oh how I hate rain. Storm Elsa was at its worst yesterday and we never left the house. It was so windy it was too unpleasant to go out. Saturday was not a good day. It was full of bad news. Poor Eladio's 98 old year mother fell and broke her hip and will be operated on in a week's time. It's a very dangerous operation for such an old woman and I really hope she is ok with the anesthesia. Another bit of bad luck is that Eladio damaged our old Volvo which will need mending and of course with it being the Christmas period it will take some time. Thankfully we have my mini although Suzy uses it most of the time. Over dinner alone with Eladio I suddenly broke one of my back teeth. Oh dear I thought, tomorrow is Sunday so I won't be able to do anything until Monday but will my dentist be open then I wondered. I will  find out tomorrow. It began to hurt during the night. I knew I should be taking antibiotics which I don't have and wonder how I am going to get today. The last thing I need now before Christmas is a tooth problem as I can only eat on one side but most of all I dread the pain.

On the bright side, we loved watching The Two Popes on Netflix last night. It was right up our street. We were interrupted by the arrival of our Alaskans who didn't get here until past 10 at night. As I write they have left so it was a short stay.

Today is Sunday 22nd December, the day of the Spanish "El Gordo" lottery draw. Will we become millionaires? It's no doubt wishful thinking but one likes to dream. If it's not us who wins we shall still be content as we have our health and all things necessary for a good life so I am not complaining. My complaints are always minor. That is something I appreciate even more after my dear friend Fátima's departure on 5th December, something I shall never ever forget. I still miss her and will miss her always. She did not get the luck I did and I only wish I could have given her some of mine. Sorry to end on such a sad note.

I have now come to the end of the tales of this week and all that remains is to wish you all a very Happy Christmas. I'll be back next Sunday when it is all over. Hope you have a great time.

Cheers till next Sunday,
Masha