I haven't posted of late, as we have not been up to too much, other than holiday preparations, and planning for our holiday. (No, it's not to France, or to the south of Spain or Italy.) G was stateside for a visit, and the kids and I did not do much, other than see Father Christmas at Speke Hall (previous posts). The day G returned, we purchased our Christmas tree that we'll be using for the next 3 years. In the past, we've always went to a tree farm and cut our own. We decided to go with an artificial tree here, as most likely it will be me setting up the tree each year while G is in the US (G will be returning to the States each year roughly about this time). It is different than our artificial (kids) tree we had in the US, and maybe a bit smaller-not sure on that one. We put red lights on it, rather than the usual white. More of a kids' tree than a adult tree, as far as decorations go, but it'll work.
One thing Christmas related is the decorations here. Not a lot of people put outdoor lights up. Maybe one house for an entire block. Another observation: I had to laugh to myself today at a sign that read, "Chester shops open late til 8:00pm for shopping." How very different than in the States where stores all stay open til midnight, or even 24 hours. Really, how many people go shopping that late anyway? Is it worth what it costs to pay the employees, lights, heat, etc..? Another observation is the Christmas cards. In the US, most families send out a photo card. Here, not so much. And, the kids write them out to every kid in their class, just as we do at Valentine's Day. There are much smaller cards available (about the size of a kid's Valentine, actually), so it is economical. Rumor has it they don't really send Valentine's to classmates.
One final observation. Today the temp is 43. We drive to school, and home from school in the dark-at least to/from J's bus stop. Today's sunrise: 8:22am, and sunset is at 3:54pm. There's not much "sun" during the day either, but at least there is light. Soon this will be starting to reverse. One way to notice that we are farther North.
So today, a few simple observations, in the absence of anything exciting to post. Have a good week, everyone, and keep up the wrapping!
We saw your adorable Christmas card that you sent Kristie last night at 4-H. It's great! We are getting our first real snow here in Germantown today-up to an inch we are told, but it looks like that's what's out there already! It's fun (for us) hearing about the differences you are finding. But, I have to say, I am one of those late night shoppers! The stores aren't as busy at that time.
ReplyDeleteAndrea Schmidt
I can't believe you have an hour and 20 minutes less daylight than we do! I already think our days get too short in the winter. I suppose, Chester is at about the same latitude as Edmonton, Canada. That's pretty far north. It snowed today enough to turn everything white, but there is a winter storm warning for Wednesday night into Thursday. Up to 18 inches of snow with 45 mile per hour winds Thursday afternoon. Everyone is hunkering down. The weather forecasts vary by source, and the storm could go north or south of us yet depending on the jet stream. Should be interesting! Either way, it's going to be a very white Christmas here. :)
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