I think the best part about Christmas is the anticipation and lead up. From barge delays to cyclone warnings, postal service sorting issues to spotting Santa and of course then there's the food...... This year was no exception - absolutely memorable in every sense of the word.
A Cape Christmas means you will continue to receive presents for approx 5 weeks - one present at a time. Our parcels only come in once a week so if it misses the barge then it goes to no-mans-land for an undetermined amount of time and is only recovered on the odd occasion.... When only one of our bikes arrived a week before Christmas without it's partner I was beginning to panic. Oh oh who was going to get coal this year? I'm sure our kids now think that the postal service here is only to provide them with more gifts. Thank goodness, the other bike came on the Friday before so we were set.
The barge came in late and the mad panic to get food before others was ridiculous. Forget the Boxing Day sales in myer, up here it was more like a whole heap of muddy scrubbers fanging for some fresh fruit and vege before the rush....that was Woolies! I grabbed my vegies and lamb and got the hell outta there before I too was stampeded. We got our cartons off the pallet and erected the 'Christmas feature wall' with yellow bricks, bicardi and wine cartons, stuck on the tinsel and we were set.
Christmas Eve was priceless. For weeks we've been talking about Santa coming and how he would find us wherever we were on Christmas eve whether we were camping or just at home. They'd baked for Santa from a recipe my girlfriend had suggested; processed tim tams with philly cheese, rolled into balls and stuck on a stick affectionately called by my son "Poo on a stick!". They were his favourite. Santa was given milk and beer, "poo on a stick" and the reindeers had a plate of lettuce and carrot. Perfect.
At about 6pm the excitement really started when I was positive I'd heard a thud on the roof. Makayla went bizurk with excitement and they both ran outside to have a look to see if the slay and reindeers had finally found us. It was too dark so they ran in and got their torches. (Their pack torches have a swiss army knife on the base of them). Xavie went armed. We listened intently for 'bells' when you wouldn't believe it but a flock of birds took off from the tree sounding like a stampede in the sky and leaving us covered in raindrops. It was too much for them and squealing in fear they ran inside for safety. After a few more minutes of 'hearing bells' they were convinced to go to bed and wait for the big fella to come in. I tucked them in and handed them their torches in case they heard or saw something then they could check - they were so frightened and excited and bursting out of their skin in anticipation. I opened up their louvers so they could see what was happening outside and we sang Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer again. It wasn't long before there was a thud on the roof, then a red torch light moving outside their window through the garden. It was too much for them and they were hysterical. "Santa" ran up the street, leaping around in the darkness making it look like the reindeers were on the street and our garden.... I thought Makayla was going to cry she was soooo convinced they were there. Xavie on the other hand was beside himself with fear and was trying with all his might to convince himself it was anything but Santa.
What followed next was priceless and I'll never forget it. "Its just a crocodile eye mum! It's not Santa. Go AWAY SANTA! It's not Santa is it mum???? Its not Santa, maybe its just a bird with a red singlet! Is that right mum, just a bird in a singlet?".... What do you say to that?
I told them that Santa wouldn't come until they were asleep so they ran into bed, Xavie more out of fear than anything else, and hid under their blankets. "Please mum, don't go, go away Santa!" and for the second time tonight he went to bed armed....they were cared out of their wits but asleep shortly afterwards.
Dad and I stayed up and put together their bikes. I supervised the work like a great foreman should, with a Christmas beverage in hand and holding the spanner. "Santa" wrote a lovely letter of thanks to the kids for the "poo on a stick" and explained it was his favourite snack as well. Xavie would be pleased.
Christmas morning came and the kids, after their exhausting night, got up around 8 o'clock. Xavie came in first and I asked him what Santa had brought him as I could hear him playing for at least an hour in his room. "Nuffing" he replied. I asked him had he gone out and checked yet in the lounge room? Looking very concerned he asked "Is Santa out there?" I laughed and told him to go and check. He woke up Makayla and they went out together. It was on like Donkey Kong!
Makayla at one stage told Xavie that she had too many presents and started to give him everything in her Santa sack that was green or blue. When he realised he too had the same presents in his sack, they exchanged colours again. Once they opened the cap gun rifles it was over. There was no need to open anything else until that night and the next day as the only thing they wanted to do was ride their bikes up and down the street with the other kids (who'd all gotten bikes as well) with their cap gun rifles strapped on the back. At one stage Xavie went and got his camelpak and made himself a little picnic with his knife/torch, all his caps, a wrapped up "poo on a stick", a museli bar and a water bottle. He was ready for anything.
Our Christmas Day consisted of bike rides, pig hunts out the back, community BBQs, sharing a drink with our beautiful friends, skyping with our families back home in BrisVegas and stuffing our faces with Christmas cheer. I couldn't think of anything better!
For Boxing Day we all went out quading in the mud and spent the day sitting under the waterfalls and swimming in the now full 'crocodile lakes'.
Cyclone? What cyclone? ......
Makayla put it best "Mum, this is the best Christmas EVA!"
