Tropical Christmas (with Kitten)

The heat and too many late nights (damn, Father Christmas has late hours) has sapped my words, but here are some photos from Christmas. The kids spent most of the time in the paddling pool, or playing with super-soakers. (Otherwise known as ' water guns' but I'm trying to remove the word before school starts back, Adventure Boy being somewhat obsessed with guns, battles, battlefields and war in general at present. I have found his teachers less that impressed with his intricate drawings of well armed battleships.) 

Adventure Boy received a kitten from Father Christmas, (lessons in gentleness and responsibility) and the little mite has been cuddled and held and carried about ever since. We have hopes that Wolfie and Tiger-kit will form a truce. Soon. Wolfie is willing but Tiger-kit on seeing the great, white looming monster, curiously sniffing, immediately hisses and spits, and Wolfie does not think this is appropriate behaviour, from one who is, until proven otherwise, a guest. 

Australian Christmas Tree

When we came to our coast house so close to Christmas, I knew we'd need a Christmas tree. Nothing big, nothing fancy, but something festive. We found a branch of a gum tree and an old coffee container and used some paint to spray them golden. It worked like a charm and the kids were amazed, thinking it magic.
While I've tried to paint coffee containers before to disastrous, lumpy, splurgy, effect, I now know the secret is a can of spray paint. It was done in seconds, and dried within the day.
We filled the coffee container with sand from the shore, (you might be able to see we spilt some on the table) to keep our little tree upright, and voila. One very Australian Christmas Tree!
I thought about decorating it, but its golden gum nuts seem like decoration enough.
While I'll admit it's a little makeshift, I love our little trees simplicity and gleam, especially in the evening light. And I do like it when I actually get around to trying out an idea found on pinterest!