England

We try to make it back to England twice a year.  We alternate Christmas between England and Germany but go back at some point during that break and then Summer.  It's always hectic trying to see everyone and we don't always manage to see everyone we'd like to on every visit but this year was special for several reasons.

 

First of all, the way the holidays fell this year meant that we could be home for my nephew's first birthday.  Last Summer, he arrived late and as the holidays fell differently I didn't get to meet him until Christmas!  I think it was quite exciting to be there for his first birthday as he is into everything now.  He was walking before he turned one and I don't think it will be long until he is talking too.  He is so cute and funny and we had a great time with him.

Secondly, my best friend gave birth to a beautiful baby girl at the start of the month so it was great that this time I could have tiny little baby cuddles!  How cute!

Of course it's always great to catch up with family.  I speak to most of them pretty regularly by phone or skype but it's nice when we all get together.  We were also there for my cousin's fantastic GCSE results which was nice to celebrate.

On the topic of family, it was a big week for my Gran as she moved into sheltered accommodation.  I feel very lucky that it was the week we were back as it gave me a chance to see both the old place one last time and the new place and also meant that we could help out.  We spent two days helping her pack and were also there for the big move day on our last day in England.  Being at the meeting where she filled out all the paperwork and also spending some time in the new place has really put my mind at ease.  She has the same independence as before (it's not a home that she's in) but she has a lot more support and social contact.  She is also very positive about it and I'm sure will feel the benefits once she settles in.

As I've mentioned before, I'm not allowed to give blood in Germany.  Nobody who was living in the UK during the BSE / CJD outbreak is allowed to.  As I still want to do my bit and Nico does it too, we try to coincide our visits to England with a donor session.  This year was a little different as the town hall was being renovated and the session was moved to Elland Road.  It was Nico's second visit and after his surprise during the first one last year, he asked if he could take photos to show Germans how different it was.  As you can see, they said yes.