Feel the heat... Summer is nearly here...Here comes Santa Claus

All of a sudden the air has a different feel to it. It has become slightly humid of late, and even if it is cloudy it is very warm.

When the sun is out it is  now burning hot, and the burn time is now 5 - 8 minutes. That means that if you are out in the sun you should only be out for 5 - 8 minutes without protection.

With the shift in the weather my thoughts always turn to Christmas, and by the end of this week it is only four weeks away.  My Christmas shopping has started, and at the beginning of December we will put the lights up around the house and put up the Christmas Tree.

This year our Christmas is going to be very different. We will celebrate with our family on the day after Boxing Day, the 27th December. We have Evette and our grandchildren arriving on Boxing Day and my mother and aunty arrive from Sydney Australia so we will be having a large family gathering full of laughter, fun and lots of noise not on Christmas Day but two days later.

How are your Christmas plans going?  Will you fall into the "Christmas Abyss" and leave everything to the last minute, or are you one of those truly organised people who has everything planned well in advance?

Here is a video clip of how most of us celebrate Christmas here  "Downunder".

Scavenger Hunt Sunday..

1.  The View Above..This was taken looking up into the light of the lighthouse at the Manukau Heads about 25minute drive from our house.

 

2. Something Hot...Herbal Tea in my favourtie mug

3. Something cold.. Tip Top Goody Gumdrops Ice Cream. World Famous in New Zealand..

4. Electronic..

 

5. Sparkle.. Christmas is here, front window of local retail store.

 

Thanks Ashley for keeping the challenge going.

Flowers on Saturday..

I have been wanting to take part in this meme for weeks, Summer is on it's way and the roses are in full bloom..

Thanks to Ewa at-   http://blueberrycraftandhobbytime.blogspot.com/   for hosting

Shadow Shot Sunday..

Thanks to Tracy over at Hey Harriet for hosting us, you can visit her over at Shadow Shot Sunday: http://heyharriet.blogspot.com/


I have missed a whole week with no blogging, and sadly missed out on SSS last week.  Catching up on wedding plans with daughter no.2 and the realisation that there are only 4 weeks until Daughter no 1 arrives from the USA with my grandchildren has meant an awful lot of de-cluttering going on around here. I can't believe how much we have kept over Winter. Still havn't finished, but the "grandies" now have a room filled with toys and books, and we are ready for them to arrive. Very exciting..

My Shadow Shots this week were taken inside one of my favourite buildings to photograph, I was very lucky that the Vicar was around and she kindly unlocked the front door and let me spend some time inside. Hope you enjoy these, the stained glass windows were taken from the original church that was built in 1896, and transported by bullock cart to the new location in the mid-1900's. The church is the St. Andrews Anglican Church in Pukekohe.