Monday, December 24, 2012

no use crying over spilled river banks!

It's Christmas Eve and all the kids are napping following a raw cookie dough binge.

Momma just pulled Santa's gingerbread cookies out of the oven. They're all set - at least the half remaining - for icing when the kiddos wake up.

Naughty Mommy and Daddy.

I can't wait until Santa gets here. I think I might be more excited than the boys are...

Even though our house just got flooded (I think.)

Not our home. I'm talking about the house we used to live in, in Scotland.

It's a three story town house in a quaint seaside village, just a stones throw away from the beach. It even has a seaview - if you stick your head out of the top floor bathroom window and look right.

The shared back garden is a river bank.

When we bought it back in 2006, my work's insurance company (clever bastards) wouldn't touch us with a barge pole, despite the river not having flooded in over a century.

We moved to Texas in 2008 and since then there have been two major floods.

Go figure.

My sister-in-law just asked me (over the phone) if my house got flooded (WTF?), so I checked my email. My best friend who lives in the same village, just asked me (on Facebook) if my house is okay. She'd seen sandbags outside the (brand new and well over-priced) front door.

Hmmmmm.

Truth is; I haven't got a clue! Let's see what my good old pal Google has to say about it.........

BBC internet news is reporting that there are no injuries (phew) and about 100 houses have been evacuated!!

My rental agents are closed (probably for all Chrimbo) so that's about all I have a hope of finding out before New Year, other than this picture, which was posted on Facebook (a day after the flood) by another pal who resides in the same village:

He captioned it 'Josie's street'

But you know what? It doesn't matter. This is the only bit of information that really matters:

ZERO casualties. NO injuries. EVERYBODY safe.

It sucks (really sucks) that some homes have been ruined. And that a few families will have to spend Christmas in a hotel, or at a friend's home.

But we know from recent experience, things could be worse. A lot worse.

Me. I've got nothing (real) to worry about.

Our tenants (and their new baby) are somewhere safe. I won't worry about the condition of our seaside home. I won't waste any more time trawling through the internet trying to find out how our bricks and mortar fared.

Instead I'm going to be thankful that we've (a) got our kids, and (b) got our home here in Texas - a wonderful home, fit for a family.

And tonight (assuming we've all made it onto the 'nice' list) Santa Clause and all his reindeer are going to land on the roof of our home.

He will come down the spiral staircase (S-boy was a little concerned about Santa's point of entry with us not having a chimney) with a sackful of goodies for our three bairns. He will laugh and banter and wrestle with Mrs Clause by the light of the Christmas tree. He will eat a gingerbread boy (or six), which have been toddler splodged with festive icing. Then, He will be on his merry way.

The boys are rousing.

Time to get Polar Express on the box and start mixing some red and green icing!

For those of you that manage to squeeze a check-in before Christmas hope you have a good one. Stealing this bloggy moment on Christmas Eve was more than a miracle on 34th street, so I might be on a bloggy break until the magical mayhem is over!

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

2 comments:

  1. Heh - Jo!

    Firstly Merry Christmas (or maybe Feliz Navidad is more appropriate in your part of the world!)

    I did see the issues down in Stonehaven as I was waiting for my chopper to come out here to the rig. I'm here until the 14th of Jan but if there is anything I can do down there for you guys when I get back just let me know.

    Take care and give the darling little gal and those two boys a big squeeze from me........go on it's Christmas give Dan one as well - wouldn't want him to feel left out

    Paul.

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    1. Cheers Paul! And Feliz Navidad to you too! Dan really appreciated the squeeze, apparently I aint been squeezing him enough lately;) Hope Santa made it out to the rig! xxx

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