We're driving home for Christmas

 It's been a week and a half since I last blogged. Sooo much has happened since then. Where to begin....

When I last wrote I'd just been away from home for 3 days and husband and I both had lurgy. The following week the lurgy really took hold of me and I just didn't have the energy to write. Also our cleaner said she was ill (she's literally only been here 1 week in 5 this year, it's pissing me off). 

This meant that as well as unpacking from my time off, doing Christmas preparation, doing the 3,000 things schools add to your list of chores in the run up to Christmas (food collections, cake competitions, Christmas jumper days, wear a piece of tinsel day - gagghhh), I was also working full time, had to clean the house and on top of that husband's family came over at the weekend for a full Christmas celebration meal.

In the end I took the Friday off as holiday so I could pace things out. 

Christmas meal with husband's family was very nice. Very much depleted from normal though. There were only 9 of us in total this year, it's normally 15. However, the 'kids' are now all grown up - some are travelling, some have their own families and some didn't feel like 'hanging out' with a bunch of old farts. I do this every year because husband is kind enough to let us spend Christmas with my family so we can be with my parents.

That said, Christmas with my family is going to be very strange this year. We normally go to my brother and his wife's house. Not my preference - I'd rather be at my house for Christmas rather than spend it in the car. But brother's house is bigger and this means my parents can stay over and have a drink. They could stay at mine, but it wouldn't be in any level of comfort. 

It's nice not to have to cook on Christmas day, but brother does the 'glory' cook and doesn't even start until about 11.30. Which means that we eat right at the end of the day - having sat around like lemons for hours and hours. I can't speak to brother because he's busy in the kitchen (and like me he doesn't like to be interrupted whilst cooking). Then once the meal is over we go home so we can chill out and brother looks all hurt that we're not going to hang out for another 5 hours - without realising we've already been sitting around for 5 hours waiting to eat.

So why will it be strange... well my brother and his wife have split up and no longer live together any more. Sister-in-law still lives in the big house, they are lucky enough that they had a second house nearer me that they used for weekends (they are loaded). So brother has been living there since the summer (I discovered recently). However, it is amicable. So the idea is we all turn up as if there is no difference. Which is frankly very strange. In addition, as well as last year's Ukrainian family, there is going to be a second family. 

The family that stayed with my brother have moved out and they are sharing with another family that had been living down the road. A great idea I think because it means that they can share the rent. Though I'm sure they'd all rather be living back at home with their husbands. 

So Christmas this year is going to be spent with a lot of strangers and a couple that have split up! Sounds joyous doesn't it. However, the big house is on the market and sister-in-law is house hunting so I suspect it will be the last of these. Next year I suspect those that want to will come to ours. I wonder if I can book a car for my parents or something. Not a bad idea. I'll ask brother if he'll share the cost.

Wow well that was a look into the future and I haven't even finished talking about what's been happening. So cast your mind back a bit - husband's lovely family came over for Christmas lunch. It all went really well, but by the time they'd gone I was exhausted. Then of course the clean up of a huge meal for 9 that had used every plate and pan in the house.

On the Monday I was back at work and as soon as the day had finished I had to pack my case again. At 06:00 on Tuesday morning I got in the car and drove to a meeting in Birmingham. The weather was terrible (in fact it always is when I drive to Birmingham). The meeting was at a hotel in the airport. I have no idea what possessed them to arrange it there, rather than in a nearby hotel. Having driven for hours I got the airport and drove around it about 4 times trying to find the hotel. No luck.

I couldn't find anywhere to pull up to sort out directions, so I had to drive out of the airport after which I found an area outside another hotel where I parked up (much to their irritation because I shouldn't have been there). Somebody from the hotel came out to tell me to go and took one look at my face and backed off. In the end I had my Tom Tom and google maps giving me directions. I drove around the airport 2 more times, on the third time around the airport - practically in tears - an airport worker pulled me over and asked if he could help. I told him where I was trying to get to and he pointed to a huge building without a single sign on it.

Why on earth would you have a huge hotel which didn't have a sign on it telling you what it was! He said to take the next left. So I took the next left and ended up at the barrier of a drop off point. A drop off point that you had to pay extortionate rates for. So I literally went through the barrier, parked up and had to pay to get out of the car park. £4!!!! for just 5 seconds. I was almost at meltdown. Once I got out I did another circuit and the same airport worker pulled me over. I explained what had happened. He said 'Oh I thought you were staying at the hotel, you want car park number 2'. Off I went again. I couldn't find the entrance to the car park. Almost at total meltdown I did another circuit and eventually found the entrance and parked.

I then remembered that the last time I'd parked in a multi-storey in Birmingham my car had been broken into and my luggage had been taken. Given that I drive a mini I couldn't fit the luggage in the boot. So I ended up having to pull up - take my luggage out and leave it on the side, then park. Then taking all my luggage get out of the multi-storey and go to the hotel.

By this time the meeting had been running for an hour - I was late - and utterly exhausted.

Anyway, meeting was held and I went back to the car park to pay my way out and get on with my journey. I arrived at the pay point and only one of the machines was giving a receipt. On the one that was giving a receipt there was a man trying to force cash into the receipt slot. I asked what was up and he said he only had cash to pay. I showed him how he could contact for help by pressing a button and he walked off, but he left his payment - set against his car registration up on the screen (I suspect he was hoping I'd get confused and pay it for him). So I ended up having to press the button for help to clear off his payment.

I put in my car registration and my parking cost for the 8 hours I'd been there came up..... £56 - I nearly passed out. Anyway, I paid the amount praying I would get it back from expenses and got back in the car.

Next leg of my journey was to go to Gosport for a 2 day meeting. The Birmingham meeting had been added at the last minute, in order to get the extra night I'd had to cancel my previous booking at nice hotel. As it's Christmas all the hotels were booked up and I ended up staying in a somewhat dodgy hotel (but not as dodgy as the one I stayed in a couple of weeks ago). Photo from this week is the rather lovely car park - pretty much the prettiest bit of the area!

Waking up the next morning utterly shattered I drove into my official office to lead a meeting for 2 days. At lunchtime on day 1 we also had booked a Christmas lunch at a local carvery. I didn't have high hopes for the lunch - there's not much around there - plus it was £15 for a 3 course meal!

The meal was everything I expected - it did tick the box of us doing something festive though - however, until this point I had no idea that you could overcook peas!

There's not too much else to talk about relating to this meeting. It went on for 2 days and as I was leading it I was shattered. Once finished I drove home - although I was tired I was aware I had one more day of work before I was off for Christmas AND I have no other 'away from home' trips planned (as far as I know).

Last day of work was busy, but not as frantic as they can be. I managed to wrap things up without working late.

Normally son and I break up on the same day and then as a family we go out for a meal to celebrate freedom. This year for the first time he and his friends went out together to celebrate the end of term. I felt that the joy of him spreading his wings and being grown up superseded us going out as a family. I'm chuffed to bits for him. It also meant I could go to bed early!

The following day I did my 3rd and last Christmas cook for this year (assuming brother doesn't cancel Christmas at his). This was for a friend whose wife died a few years ago. He is a great person and does a lot for us (he's the person that helped out with dog walk when I was away and husband was sick). So we had a full Christmas meal, though there was only 4 of us. It felt a lot easier than the other ones I'd done and we didn't have a proper turkey, just a turkey joint.

On Sunday I woke up knowing that I'd finished all my cooking. With a sore throat, I haven't even recovered from the last bug and I seem to have developed a new one.

It was now time to switch my focus to son and his Christmas. Mid afternoon we went to watch Wonka at the cinema. It was utterly amazing. I loved it to bits and could easily have stayed in the cinema and watched it all over again. What made it even better is that it had lots of my favourite people in it, particularly wonderful was to see Tom Davis with such a huge role. I listen to his Wolf and Owl podcast (with Romesh) and feel that I know him really well - I probably don't actually know him that well because I only know the persona that he gives off. But I'm very fond of him and it's great to see his film career move to the next stage.

So here we are, the week before Christmas. As soon as I finish this I'm going to tidy my study (which is an utter pit), plus I still haven't unpacked or done washing from last week. At 09:30 dog is having her scent glands cleared at the vet (she needs somebody to stick a finger up her bum bi-monthly). Then later today son and I are off to see the singing reindeer........ but more about that next week. 

I'll be late again next week with my blog because Monday is blog day and next Monday is Christmas day. I daresay you'll have something better to do and will not even notice.

Have a fantastic Christmas / Break / Holiday - however, you celebrate it and whatever it means to you. We'll chat again when I'm half a stone heavier.