hey there... what on earth have i been doing since Christmas Eve! not an awful lot due to the weather... and feeling a little sad and helpless regarding my Mom, she is sounding so bad, i have a trip booked for her birthday, but will be going back well before then i know.

looked at flights for next week, horrendous! will have to wait till nearer the second week of January to fly.

☺i hope all your Christmas dreams came true...☺

Christmas day it rained, again, after the lovely sun on the day before! and sunday was glorious! Franco Barry and i were out and about all day! La Cañada, La Trocha on way home, with several stops that were actually outside inbetween!

very christmassy in La Cañada, soooo manyt people all out and about present buying, remember present giving day is the evening of January 6th here the Day of the Kings, and it was one of the Kings giving out gifts to the little'uns sat on his throne in the big area near H&M and Zara etc. we popped into Marks & Spencers, well one had to didn't one! it was.... well M&S! looked a bit empty, not just of people but the whole area really, there is a small over priced, of course, food area!!!! not much more to mention about it again, and probably wont go in again either that i can foresee...

yesterday Barry and i went to Malaga, by bus, the driver pulled up on time, then got off the bus to check the time table? there are two buses at that time, the half past then the quarter too, so although he arrived on time he decided to not leave until just before the next one was due? then proceeded to talk all the way to the front seat passengers, loudly and bodily! apart from the time he ansered his mobile when he had both hands off the steering wheel for a while, at road works on a steep hill as you leave our town the light was red, a small van in front then us... at no point did he put on the hand brake so instead we rocked! as in he pulled up to back of the van, then rolled back, then forward again, then back... then.... well you get the picture, no clutch control whatsoever, and the guys in the van and the driver behind must have been most amused... NOT!

at a round about entering de la Torre, he was so engrossed in conversation with passengers that he didn't see a car and braked so hard i hurt my hand on the seat in front, but it was my hand or my head, so i shouldn't complain... but i do so love to!

Baz and i had a good walk around and had stopped for some lunch, out side, luckily under a para sol, when it started to rain quite heavily, but as i say, it was a para sol, not para agua! so although the rain kept off we had a fine mist, our own little eco system! quite a few of the people and tables weren't so lucky and were just plain wet!


as Barry and i came round towards the bridge into the old town i could see the top of this hot air balloon! so took a photo!

on our way back it was gone...

so... we have the dehumidifier on up stairs every day for a bit to help dry out our bedroom, the first day i put it on the container was about ¾ full of water! and yesterday about a third when i switched it off.

frightening to think of all that moister just hanging around in the room, settling in the walls and in us!

Pippa had a few days without walks with all this rain, that looks set for the next four or five days now too! but we have been out the last few mornings, a new shop we pass has a board above the window, i think when i first saw it i must have been half asleep or just mis lead, i thought it said *Anon y mas* as in a brilliant play on words anonymas! meaning of course anonymous and more! but... dopey here mis read it completely! there was first a picture of a jamon, a whole leg of ham, then *amon y mas* so it really read jamon y mas, ham and more!!!! so its a butchers...

the photo at the top of today's blog is our tree... this year its all new, well except from the angel that my step Mom gave me donkeys years ago... but the tree is black with white bits on the ends like snow and we bought white star lights and silver baubles... and that's it! the last few Christmas's i have got so strange putting up the old one with all the memories... i know i said already but we just threw out *nearly* all the old stuff, i just kept a couple of baubles and put them away safely out of sight! and i am sure next year there will be something about this one that will make me sad... i dont know what it is about Christmas i always have this huge expectation about it, not presents i hasten to add, but just about Christmas itself, the day, the meaning? i don't know what it is, but i expect this great moment in time... then on the day! phf! whatever it is i expect isn't there and i feel the loss of something.... maybe one Christmas *it* will be there whatever *it* is and i will have the answer to this dilemma...

TTFN
Marian