Walking in a Summer Wonderland? I think not.

So I've been thinking.
Here I am sitting right smack dab in the middle of holiday season '09. Fairy lights are twinkling. Christmas carols resonate within every establishment I enter (not that I'm complaining-I'm one of those freaks who can listen to holiday tunes all day every day from November through Christmas). Strands of garland peak out of the shop windows, and little children can be heard gleefully listing off their santa list to whoever will listen-or is standing in close enough proximity. Time to curl up with a cup of cocoa in front of the fire and watch a good holiday flick-right? Not unless you're interested in sweating off all those holiday pounds before you even put them on. Yes my friends, a summertime Christmas is about as right as hot dogs dipped in caramel sauce.*

Any way you look at it, the southern hemisphere Christmas just doesn't add up. Where's my white christmas? How can the bells on my sleigh jingle if I have no snow to ride on? Not that I've ever ridden a horse drawn sleigh in the snow, but I'd like to have option to do so if I please. Won't Santa get hot in that velvet and fur trimmed ensemble? How can you eat all the yummy yet incredibly heavy Christmas food in 100 degree weather? What's christmasy about a barbeque on the beach? These are all vital questions that I want answered. Call me a traditionalist, but I want to wear my cute holiday frock for Christmas and not a bathing suit.

Believe it or not, Australia did not consult me on my ideal Christmas weather, so it looks like I'm going to have to put up with what mother nature is dealing me. It's almost a blessing in disguise perhaps- this will be the first Christmas I've ever spent away from home, and I was not looking forward to it at all. Thankfully with all this warm weather, it doesn't even feel like Christmas is upon us. I think the big day will just pass me by without too much hooplah which might be just the perfect thing for a homesick holiday girl. Don't worry, I'm not going to ignore the holiday all together (it's not Jesus' fault that I have weather hang ups on the date of his annual birthday party): Chris and I are going to spend a quiet day at home. The plan is wake up Christmas morning, eat a little salmon and cream cheese bagel combo (the traditional Christmas morning do for both our families), exchange our gifts for one another (we decided to get lots of little stocking stuffer items so we have more to unwrap), and then later make a meal of roast lamb, potatos, green beans, and cranberry relish. And there you have it...Christmas a'la' Australia.

*In case you're interested in where my analogy originated here's the backstory: imagine me-a precocious 10 year old girl having lunch at her grandma's house. Sitting beside me is my unruly younger brother dying to shock his sisters with his antics. When a cheeto sandwhich failed to impress (I mean, who are we kidding? Those things are tasty), he proceeds to dip his hot do in the caramel sauce we were eatting our apples with. The thought still haunts me to this day. Thanks for that Daniel.