DSCF4614, originally uploaded by L.B.

Okay, so I'm a few days late, but there were several pictures to sort through (100's upon 100's!)....Anyway...they're here now (and many more at Flickr).

Christmas morning started with me sneaking two large saucepans of sweets and little gifts onto the cooker, then creeping back to bed.

Christmas then restarted when Chris took Alex downstairs for his breakfast...and I heard the scream of "YOU SHOULDN'T HAVE!!!" from Chris....Well, she has a sweet tooth and I did promise that I wasn't getting her a stocking of them this year....so two saucepans it was!! (I'm a first class sneak!)

With the house awake and fed, I took Alex for a walk around the lake whilst Chris prepared the Christmas Dinner (I have to leave the house, or everything gets eaten before it hits the table...)

Alex would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone for his presents....which he went to work on as soon as he came back from his walk....although he wasn't the only one, as the three cats soon sniffed out their catnip stockings....

Trouble takes a sniff...

...Spice joins in under the watchful eyes of Alex...

...and then she hits pay-dirt as the stocking comes free...

Miew was asleep upstairs and not too bothered...yet.

Alex started out gently...setting a slow pace, but with great ripping motions! He's been practicing on my post and the local newspapers...

He soon got into it though, and it wasn't long before everything was either covered in wrapping paper or drool....or both!

He might not know what it is all about, but it doesn't stop him enjoying it all!

When fingers start to tire out, it's all hands - or teeth - to the pumps. Heck, if you have a tooth, you may as well use it...

Miew finally joins me on the sofa...and he's not a cat to get in the way of when he smells the nip...

...mind you...once he's had some, he just flakes out...

...but even in this state, if he's disturbed he becomes all points and sharpness - but you'll have to take my word on it!

Alex has his Christmas Dinner, then has a play whilst his Mum and Dad eat theirs (oh how I love my Christmas Dinner! and Chris always does a superb one!).

Cake for desert (and oh boy! what a great cake!!!) and then Alex shows signs that he's had enough excitement for the day...

Bless him...unfortunately he didn't get much sleep before he woke up again, as Dad and Junior were both suffering a Christmas cold...

Never mind though, a quick nap and he was playing and drinking and trying on new clothes again!

So that was Christmas! Best ever - thanks to little Alex and his catching smile!

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It's through..., originally uploaded by L.B.

"All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth..."

Well...one will do for now! Yes, Alex has his first tooth poking through now...and boy is it sharp!

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First toof!, originally uploaded by L.B.

You see that little lump on his lower jaw.....Sure you do - it's on his right lower gum....

Well, maybe it doesn't show so well in a photo (you try taking a photo of a baby's mouth!), but little Alex has a tooth trying to push through.

In other news....Our first Christmas at the new house, and our first Christmas with Alex....so this tree sees in two new events! Chris decorated it - and I think it is wonderful! I can do "building and fixing" - but Chris is the arty creative one.

And finally - A new addition to the house is this Chile plant (F1 superchile). If belonged to a lady at work, but she gave it to mo (hurrah for me!!!). I recently harvested it and got a 1/2 litre glass full of chiles from it in one go - It is a big bush!

For a size reference, the package with SOFT on it (Bottom right) is a double stack of toilet rolls....

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Too much, originally uploaded by L.B.

The clatter of trolleys and the symphony of checkouts, screaming kids, screaming adults, breaking jars, the whole general rumble and "music" of a very busy, last minute shopper filled Hypermarket.

Little Al takes it all in his stride...then falls asleep with all that going on!

I have to hand it to him - When it comes to his sleep, he is very dedicated to the cause.

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Bath Boy (6), originally uploaded by L.B.

It started with a bath....He loves his baths! Today we went to see Chris's family down in Portsmouth.

We arrived at Grans house where Auntie Sarah and cousin Ben visited...

Then Alex got dressed up in his Christmas Santa clothes ready to go and visit Grans sister and her family.

First though cousin Ben had to play with Alex's Tigger Feet!

And then onwards to Great Auntie Sandy, Great Uncle Taff and First Cousin (once removed) Roz...or something...it's that "what relationship is so and so to thingy time again!" Ho Ho Ho!!!

A quick cuddle and play with Mummy...

...and it was back off home...

...and we'll quietly brush over the bit where a tired out Alex threw up on the way home, causing the car to stink out and a new Santa suit to get a wash sooner than expected...

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Paddy O'Dores (3), originally uploaded by L.B.

Yes! at last the final external door is replaced in the new house. The old patio doors were ripped out by the ever willing Matt, and the new ones put in...well.....almost.

A few cock ups during the fitment (no-ones fault but the houses, due to its not quite perfect trueness...) meant that by 6pm we were pulling the frame back out of the house and starting again. It was silly things that held us up - like the house being in the way of the doors when we tried to hang them....and the frame being too small for the doors to shut into once it was squashed into place.

It was measured up, and everything was taken into consideration....but sometimes things just don't go together in the real world as they do on paper....but never mind...It couldn't be helped.

Anyway...after putting our heads together we came up with a plan...and at just after 6pm we started again....

By 11pm we were starting on the internal brick work (because the new doors re narrower than the old doors). Matt had done all the loud stuff by 10.30pm so as not to cause too much agro to the neighbours. So Matt started wall building and I started mixing pug - which I'd never done before, but under Matts guidance I did pretty well. As he used one bucket up I had another ready for him.

Finally Matt started on the brick face work and I set about setting the doors up....and by about 1.30am everything was ship shape-ish.

After all the problems that had hit us, we had finished. I say "we", but it was really down to Matt, because once more, without him the old door would still be fitted. I just "helped" or stayed out of the way - until things got close to desperate at the end of the day when we went "all hands to the pumps" - and even then it was only through Matts instructions that I knew how to mix pug.

Yup...give me an aircraft or jet engine to pull apart and I'll get stuck in - engineering things like that....but brickwork and building work...my best action is to call in Matt!

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