Lund Blog

CHRISTMAS LETTER 2015       

 

    Dear friends and family.

 

It is last week in November and time to write and hopefully receive Christmas letters from our dear friends all over the world. I have just read some of our old Christmas letters which made me realize what a strange year 2015 has been for us. For the first time in our 61 years together we had not been travelling but had spend the whole year in UK. Why you may ask?

During Christmas 2014 we finally decided it was time to downsize as the house and not least my big garden were getting too much for me to keep in the shape I wanted. The best solution seemed to change house with Claus & Stevie, so they and their three active children could have our big house in Windsor and we could move to their smaller terrace house in Bracknell.

 

In mid January we had the survey and evaluation of the houses, got all the official papers to the solicitor, and then it took many months before all the paperwork were completed, so we finally could move houses 18 July just in time for the children’s school holiday. The downsizing meant we had to get rid of a lot of our furniture’s and it turned out that Tima wanted some of the bigger ones, and I must admit they look much better in her house. Claus wanted some and the rest was sold.

Now the big living room was  empty to make room for all the boxes Claus brought over every weekend until the room was filled to the ceiling. Then I started the big clear out of our clothes, children’s toys, porcelain, glasses, kitchen things and it all went down to the charity shop. The next couple of months were spend going through all our papers, old letters, sentimental things etc., and John scanned  all our photos from 60 years- 27000 in all- into the computer, so we got rid of all our albums( a little sad).

 

It was a very emotional spring where we relived our life together through letters, pictures, travels ect. and we spend several hours every day talking about our wonderful live together and remembering all the interesting people we had spend time together with over the years. I had to admit it was hard to throughout all the letters, as I had kept letters from my school friends since I was 7 , but I can promise you, we read every single word all your lovely friends had  written to us over the years.

 

We still found time to go to the Theatre Royal in Windsor a couple of times and several cinema visits together with Jim & Anita to see all the newest films. I spend several hours in my lovely garden each day to say goodbye to my plants for the last time.

I do not miss the house but I do miss my garden after having spend 22 years to make it perfect. I have taken some few plants in pots with me to the new small garden.

 

 

 

In May Helena was christen nearly four years old, and it was really her day, she enjoyed the whole ceremony in the church and the boys were involved as well , so it was a wonderful day. Then all three children had their birthday parties in the new house in July & August in nice weather, so we could enjoy the parties in the garden. My birthday was a really  treat as John had arranged a two days trip to Stratford Upon Avon

in beautiful weather, so after some sightseeing in the town we had dinner in Shakespeare’s theatre top restaurant before going down  to the theatre to see Othello which was a fantastic performance.

Over the weekend we had a nice dinner with the whole family at Harvester near the river before going back for the birthday cake in my old garden for a last time.

 

We still had Helena one day a week and the boys during half term until the summer holiday. Mikkel got into a school in Windsor straight away, but Helena had to come to the school in Bracknell for the first 10 days of the new term, and then she could start at the same school as Mikkel in Windsor. Kristien who is nine has still not got  a place in Windsor, which means that Claus  has to drive him to us in Bracknell every morning at 7.20, so he can have breakfast with us and play the computer until time for school. Stevie pick him up twice a week, John the drive him back to Windsor twice a week and nana Linda take him once a week, .

 

 

 

Page 2.

 

The move was a big job as we were doing it ourselves, but after a long weekend everything were moved into the respective houses, and after two weeks all were unpacked and more or less in place.

We quite like our smaller house, and

John has  made his room into a submarine which he loves, he even got room for his piano ,all four computers and the dog.

Yes, Masai our big, black Alsatian is too big for the house- I think- but he has settled in very well. Claus had a big job installing our five computers, radio’s, TV’s and music ( the new Sonos system in the house), so all is working now.

 

The area is nice and green, lots of trees, small ponds and lots of places for working the dog. Bracknell town has got all the shops you can want, we have tree big supermarkets in five minutes drive from the house, and if you do not want to drive there are lots of busses going into town

 

I AM NOT INTERESTED IN THE PAST. I AM INTERESTED IN THE FUTURE, FOR THAT IS WHERE I EXPECT TO SPEND THE REST OF MY LIFE

 

As you all know moving house is not cheap but now it is done and the new house is function fine especially after we had a new big opening to the loft made. John was nearly stuck up their the first time he got up there and I was afraid I would have to starve him until he could fit into the small hole to get down, but in the end he managed after breaking the hatch. We had to buy some new purpose built furniture to the house, and John hate me for still buying IKEA stuff and the one wardrobe took us five hours to built, so never more i promise.

 

John’s birthday in September got celebrated over several days as always. First Tima invited us to a wonderful restaurant in the forest for an evening meal, then the rest of the family came for dinner and birthday cake over the weekend.

 

Now it is time for the Christmas celebration and we are having the Danish Christmas dinner in Tima’s big house in Reading this year as she has got space for all of us including the dog. I have ordered the Danish pork Loin ( Flaeskesteg) from Denmark, the ducks are in the freezer so are the lobster’s for New Years Eve and the Christmas cakes will be baked first in December, so we will have a traditional Christmas as always.

 

We hope you all are well and are enjoying life to the full and we look forward to hear all your news from 2015.

 

We wish you a very Merry Christmas and a good and prosperous New Year and we hope to see as many of you as possible in 2016.

 

Lots of love from ULLA & JOHN .