Merry Christ-mas

Far be it from this family to wish you happy holidays or merry crimble. Politically correct or not, it is Christ-mas. Tis the reason for the season. Yes we know that it is unlikely that Jesus was actually born at this time of the year - that's not the point. The point is that He was born. In fact, the whole point of Christmas is Easter.

The family is very well. John and I have just had our work Christmas dos and my birthday is almost upon us - sure signs that Christmas is not far off. Björn has drawn up the menu (although I'll be doing most of the cooking, no doubt) and Torvy has designed the table and bought the required items for the execution of his design.

I have already had one birthday gift: my permanent residence permit came through this morning. After six months of waiting and chasing and phone calls and and and. Wahey!

John has done a lot of travelling this year; New York, Paris and a little place in Italy called Carpi (no, not Capri). He has managed to shed some of the load from the Ops side, so that he can focus on getting the newly acquired businesses on track with their IT systems. Their legacy systems range from "state of the ark" to modern-but-incompatible. He is still playing ice hockey and racking up the injuries, but loving it as much as ever. He has broken at least two sticks and one skate blade this year. He still has almost all his hair, but it is now a combination of white and grey.

Björn is officially the tallest member of the family. He looks a lot older than 15 and we have to rely on his good sense not to accept the things he is offered by people who assume that he is old enough. So far, so good. He has been a bit bored at school, since the teachers are focussing on those in danger of not making the cut in the forthcoming GCSEs, so the brighter kids tend to get a little disaffected. He has a sweet girlfriend called Chaz who has lasted longer than anyone since Chrissy.

In spite of being a real cutie, Torvy is still "single, but looking"! His curls are now below shoulder length. He continues to excel at his music lessons. His teacher is now teaching him bass as well as 6-string accoustic. He plays with a band called Me, Him and Him (don't ask!) and they get together every Saturday to practise. He has settled in beautifully at high school and seems to have made a good impression on most of his teachers.

I am still singing in the church band and John and I still lead a cell group (although that isn't going very well). John looks after the technical stuff at the back of the meeting one month out of two (not the sound desk - we have a pro in for that). The boys go to the youth activities and help out as stewards during meetings. Björn also teaches Sunday school occasionally. Torvy is hoping to join the youth band as soon as he is proficient enough to be able to improvise when he encounters a new song. I still do the PowerPoints for the lead elder's sermons.

I am still with Capita, but there are plans afoot for a restructure and I am hoping to move into a new role. More about that if and when...

I am going great guns with my Master's degree, although I have yet to learn anything new. Strange as that may sound, I take comfort that my self-directed learning as been effective in bringing me up to a postgrad level. I'm sure I will reach new territory in due course, but for now I enjoy the opportunity to discourse with my classmates.

We recently traded in the black Peugeot for a newer model. This one is silver. We still have John's "longboat" (the huge Volvo) although it only gets used about once a week.

Other than that, I think all that remains is for me to wish you and yours a blessed Christmas and a wonderful 2007. Remember: wise men sought Him then and wise men still seek Him now. God bless.