Calm before the storm

We all finished work and school on Thursday the 23rd but with the freezing temperatures persisting and the ice and snow all around, we forsook a Christmas Eve trip into Winter Wonderland and went to a soft play instead. It was Sean and Finn's first time at the extensive Monkey Bizness at Fountain Park and they had a good time, though it was Angus who was the real adventurer. Climbing all over the structures with only a little assistance from Sean, he came down the large slide several times on his own. We decided just to lunch there too, as the fare was decent and the price very reasonable, but it took an age for the food to arrive. Angus was just about falling asleep into his lunch when it came.

Once home, we settled down behind closed doors. The penultimate advent calendar chocolates were consumed and a Christmas DVD was watched. (When I was young, advent calendars only went up to 24, which seemed a scandalous oversight to me so I remember making my own one with a big double door for the 25th). Sean and Finn were keen to get to bed after making and placing their present markers in the sitting room, and helping Rowan and Angus with theirs. Since I bought the speakers for the laptop and positioned them on the stairwell bookcase, the laptop has provided music for the upstairs landing dance zone by day and a more sedate soundtrack for going to sleep. The festive favourite is the Mister Men Mr. Christmas CD.

With stockings set on the ends of the beds and the boys warning each other and especially Rowan about the consequences of getting up early and disturbing Santa and possibly not getting any presents, the boys settled down to sleep. Sharon and I were able to sit down to a festive curry in peace and anticipate Santa's arrival.