Reflecting on 2007 (plus highlights of my Christmas)

Well, tis the final day of 2007, possibly the most exhausting and exciting year of my life, so far. Clearly, I can't let such an occasion pass without re-capping the events of the last 12 months and remarking, once more, upon my astonishment of how one family can fit so much in. But first, a pictorial review of the highlights of the past week of Christmas:

Crazy cats playing with their new toys...




...and each other



Possibly the smallest dog in the world...

Scott and Lucie's new puppy, Rocco

...and perhaps the largest

Brent's dog, Big Red (wonder how they came up with that name) with Lucie and Brent for a bit of a perspective on his size.

My first ever attempt at a Christmas cake

not bad either, if I do say so myself

Christmas at the beach in 25 knot winds

Toy aeroplane racing



New tablecloth from my Gran and Grandpa

which fits our giant patio table, and matches my beautiful Christmas centrepiece.

Cute cats

Lazy cats



Crazy weather and big surf



Riding bikes in the rain



And now for the year in review

This time last year Toby and I were spending the night at Catherine and John's house in Cramlington, Northumberland (UK). Catherine and I have known each other since we were four which makes her my oldest friend. That day, the final day of 2006, I became a godmother for the first time to Catherine and John's eight month old son, Joshua. Toby and I had been living together for almost four years and, after wondering if we'd ever wed, I'd decided that it didn't matter and that I didn't mind either way. We were planning to start looking for a house to buy when we returned to Australia in January. We'd just spent Christmas with my family, the first time for me since 2002 and the first time ever for Toby. My sister and her husband, Alan had just moved from their first flat into their first house and had been on an exciting holiday to America. A month or two earlier I had finally passed my driving test at the age of thirty.

The following day, the first day of 2007, whilst driving back to go for a brisk walk in Durham with my parents, Toby let it slip that he wanted to marry me but made it quite clear that this in no way constituted a proposal and that I was to wait until he'd mentioned it to my parents. And therein began the rollercoaster ride that was 2007. A week later we were engaged and beginning talks of the wedding. A few weeks into January we decided to get married that August. We had an engagement party on Australia Day, January 26th, which was the same day that my sister told us she was 6 weeks pregnant (and unfortunately wouldn't make the wedding).

To cut a long story short (because you can probably get the majority of the long story from previous posts) I now have a beautiful engagement ring which Toby and I designed together, we're married, I have my own car, two beautiful pussy-cats, a gorgeous 3 month old niece and finally, our own home. We're local celebrities and currently have a beautiful double-page spread in The Sunshine Coast Wedding Guide in the form of our photographer's 2008 advert. It seems I will soon become a godmother for the second time for my lovely niece, Lucy. And Toby is now working for a different local council (it's all a much of a muchness though as they are soon to amalgamate into a "super" council).

Wow! What can 2008 bring? Hopefully, it will bring more sleep, more stability, a honeymoon, and a trip home so I can become Lucy's godmother in person and finally get to give her a cuddle. And with that in mind, I'm off to end the crazy year of 2007 in the company of good friends, Scott and Lucie who have shared the craziness with us this year, having been heavily involved in the wedding, neighbours for a while, bought their first home together and recently got a cute King Charles spaniel puppy.