Christmas at Hicksville

It's been a long time (2007 maybe) since we have had a giant family Christmas. A falling out between mum and her brother, and growing cousins moving away means that it's harder to get everyone together.  This year though, it was decided that differences would be put aside and a family Christmas would be attempted. It had the potential to being a giant fight fest, or a raging success. Thankfully it was the latter!
 

After wanting to just stay home this Christmas, we changed our plans and traveled 600kms to spend it with my family.  I am so glad that Devil Spawn is a good traveler, it certainly makes the trip a lot more smooth.  Although in his boredom he did come out with some doozies...including exclaiming that we needed to be quiet and listen as his toes were screaming. 

 Our accommodation was a little on the rough side.  The owners had put something in the bins, and the rotten smell wafted over to our cabin and infested the toilet that we had to use.  It was hard to sit on the toilet and hold your breath but it was a skill I had just about perfected by the end of our stay.  Boxing day saw us witness a good old fashioned outback storm. That is lots of noise, wind and not much else.  The wind knocked over a tree that came scarily close to our car.

   Christmas Eve was started with our once upon a time every year tradition. Dinner at my aunt and uncles pub.  The only difference being this year I could indulge in the vodka too! It seemed like a good idea at the time...until we realised that we would have to walk back to the caravan park, with a very tired Devil Spawn in tow.  The upside to it all meant that our Christmas Day didn't start until 930am, when he woke up!
 

When my Mum's family gets together there is always the potential for a water fight, a food fight or both.  This Christmas was no exception.  Thankfully there wasn't much dip in sight so there was no food fights.  Have you ever had french onion dip smeared across your face and up your nose? The smell seems to linger for days on end.  Especially if you get a chunky bit of onion stuck right up your nostril and you can't get it out!

  So because there was no dips, that means only one thing...there was a water fight.  There is no wearing your sunday best to our Christmas and it's best if you put your smart phones away. I lost my phone in 2002 after being picked up and thrown in the wading pool.  This year, by some strange turn of events, all of us had bough my uncles kids water guns.  So there was about 8 water guns in use.  Add to that the 3 packets of water bombs and no one stood a chance. 
 

It was stinking hot on Christmas Day, so the water fight was definitely welcome.  Even better was that us adults just had to sit and the kids would soak us.  Not even Granny escaped being hit with water bombs.  My dad was prepared though and came in his swimming shirt.  We all laughed at him turning up in it...not when we were all saturated still and he was dry though.
 

It was a great day and we all fell exhausted into bed at 830pm.  From someone who struggles to get to sleep before midnight, it was definitely a good thing.  The airconditioned cabin certainly helped things.  Although on the third day it froze over and we had to turn it off...cue us sweating our arses off. 
 

Yesterday saw us heading off home again. It was 31 degrees when we left and when we got into town it was 36. I felt the suffocating humidity hit me almost immediately.  I'm still pooped but I am so glad that our Christmas went off without a hitch.

  How was your Christmas?