December is here. Despite the unprecedented challenges of the year the seasons have changed regardless. The skies of California are still cornflower blue, especially in the Tahoe mountains where we’re living for a few months, but winter has arrived. There’s …
The Christmas story continues: The little girl turned away from the Christmas tree, leaving her sister to introduce herself to the much wanted dolly and bumped into her father as he finally made it down the stairs. Noticing her serious, …
A little girl rolled over in bed, gingerly glancing at her bedroom window to see whether daylight was peeking through. It was still dark and the house was wrapped in silence. Disappointed and with no idea of the time she …
Travel France Online has just published Shutters and Sunflowers’ article about Christmas Puddings as part of a wonderful collection of Christmas wishes from all over France put together by Diane de la Guillermie, this fabulous website’s founder. For me, as a child, just as it …
Boxing day is an English tradition, dating back to the Middle Ages. It is also St Stephen’s Day and has been a public holiday in England since 1871. There is much debate as to where it gets its name. Some …
Christmas day would always begin in our parents’ bedroom, just as it has for our children. Three excited little people, (and as the years slipped by, not so little people!) would drag their bulging stockings to our parent’s bed, it was …
The time next week it will be Christmas Eve, the night before Christmas, probably the most magical night of the year. One when children everywhere (big ‘children’ too) really want to ‘believe’. Excited, eager, little faces press their noses to …
As a child, just as it is now and probably has been for several generations, the days before Christmas were always busy, collecting greenery to decorate the house, finding the tree, buying and wrapping presents, writing cards, standing in endless lines …
Strolling around York, one of England’s finest cities, steeped in a rich history, 2 days before Christmas, one is transported back into the past. Originally founded by pre-Roman Britons, York owes its legacy to the Romans who named it “Eboracum” and …
A winter’s day at Blenheim Palace, under a clear and crisp December sky. The palace, dressed for the season showing off all its magnificence and its Christmas splendor. Grand Christmas trees at both the entry and in the main hallway. Follow …
