Festive Cheer

I hope everyone has a happy and safe festive season whereever you are- and if you don't celeberate Christmas I wish you a happy and safe time in any case. My children bought me these gifts- they chose well- a little wine to make merry, a spanish/moorish cookbook espousing a philosophy for food which I love plus some wonderful photos ( I could pack my bags right now and take us all over to some lovely spanish village in the Sierra Nevada) a piece of crystal encapsulating the beauty that nature offers us and a new art diary- I am a happy little vegemite ( ok not little but you know what I mean- for non-aussies calling people a vegemite is akin to a blissful state of happiness)

Now I am off to prepare the food for festivities- we have decided on a spanish theme- so I need to prepare some tapas, some tortilla ( and all this was decided before I got the cookbook), a big pan of paella ( unfortunately we could not find any mussels)- we have the music all ready- flamenco, Gypsy Kings, and Bueno Vista Social Club for after dinner mellow- I have to find my lace mantilla I made in the beginning of the lace making saga- we intend to celebrate in character!