Christmas Newsletter

Every year we try to come up with a slightly different take on the family newsletter we send out with Christmas cards. This year we went with a culinary theme. With names changed to bloggy ones, I thought I'd share it here:

BOOKWORM TOWERS - CHRISTMAS MENU

STARTER
- Goulash Soup -
Bookworm and Tevye spent a weekend in Budapest in October to celebrate Bookworm’s fiftieth birthday. An amazing city, well worth a visit. We can recommend a restaurant that does the best goulash ever. (Did you know goulash is a soup? We didn’t!)
 
MAIN COURSE
- Cornish Pasty -
We all enjoyed a summer holiday in Cornwall, staying in a converted seaman’s mission in Penzance. The big girls surfed, the little girl played on the beach, the parents ate pasties.

- Cumberland Sausage - 
Tevye and Bookworm have been very spoilt this year, with two weekends away on their own. The first was to our favourite hotel at Appleby in Cumbria. Many thanks to the kind friends, relatives and neighbours who were prepared to look after the girls for us.

- Vegetable Curry -
As made by Cherub at school, where she joined a very caring and creative Reception class in September. This term she has been going for afternoons only. Next term it will be mornings, then full time after Easter.

DESSERT
- College Pudding -
Lots of school visits this term, as both Angel and Star needed to decide on schools for next year - Star  is in her last year of middle school, and Angel will be starting sixth form. In the end both have decided to move to the upper school on the other side of town, which they preferred to Angel’s current school.

- Bread and Butter Pudding -
Tevye is still earning a crust writing exam questions, with Bookworm joining in to write some of her own when Tevye and company get overloaded.

- Dundee Cake -
Bookworm has decided to train for a new career as an archivist. In August she started working as a volunteer at the Buckinghamshire county archive for one day a week, which she is loving. In January she will be starting an M.Litt course in Archives and Record Management, by distance learning through the University of Dundee. As there are a couple of study schools to attend, she’ll be getting quite accustomed to the seven hour train journey to Scotland. Her first trip in November for an interview went like clockwork - hope the rail companies can keep it up!

- Brighton Rock -
In May we spent a weekend in Brighton at Angel and Star’s request - shopping, strolling along the sea front, enjoying the fun fair on the pier, and generally doing sea-sidey things.


DRINKS MENU
- Gatorade -
To fuel Angel and Star’s whirl of physical activity. Both girls have been spending three evenings a week at dance classes, and one evening at gym, though Angel has decided to stop dancing after Christmas - partly to give her more time to study for her GCSEs, and partly because she has gained her first gymnastics coaching qualification and now has a part time job at the gym. She is going out on a high with the dance school show just before Christmas. This will be Cherub’s first show, as a super cute snowflake ballerina and a tap-dancing mouse.

- Snowball -
Lots of those around this year. The coldest winter for many years meant plenty of snow days off school for the girls, and this winter looks to be heading the same way. Cherub loved the snow, but after watching The Snowman decided nobody was allowed to make one in case it came to life and got into the house.

- Champagne -
For the toast ... Here’s to a very happy Christmas to all our friends, and best wishes for a wonderful year in 2011.