... eyes are the windows to the soul ...

Creativity as far as the eye can see...

http://www.alanmaudieweddings.com/

Dreams of a White Christmas...

... may only be in our heads for those of us living in Calgary, but we will always remember at least a white Christmas somewhere.

André and I would like to wish all our blog/livejournal readers, friends, and family a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

A man walks by a corner, dressed smartly in a long dark jacket. The snow is falling and it is a cold night on Christmas eve. He is carrying a child's jacket, a Christmas present for his daughter. A small urchin darts by his feet, begs for a quarter, and is refused. The man walks for a few more steps, stops, and turns around. The urchin, regarding him from a dark corner is confused but comes out, hoping that the second try will merit him the quarter to add to the treasure trove he hoards. Christmas is a time of giving, a time of cherishing what we have and what others do not. A warm spot by the fire with a roof over your head; clothes on your back far from threadbare; food to eat that has not been scrounged out of dustbins on a questionable corner of town. Family to love and cherish you for the person you are; instead of spending Christmas walking on eggshells, hoping you won't get beaten again for accidentally saying something wrong that wasn't wrong in the first place. It's a time to open our hearts to those less fortunate, and to strengthen family connections by finding time for those you love outside of your busy lives. This time, he refuses the request of a quarter again, but wraps the jacket around the slight, cold frame of the urchin and continues onwards. Surprised, the little urchin makes his way home in a warm jacket he thought he would never have.

Sometimes the smallest gesture makes all the difference in the world. For the spirit of giving - embodies the spirit of Christmas.

Christmas tree

Nissers are all over the place!

Rosendahl bowls work equally well as table pieces.

Table centrepiece.

Old Town San Diego...

... which was the last attraction we did see before we had to get a plane back to Calgary. My parents on the other hand, was enroute to more sunny destinations in the US.

This is where San Diego started, as a settlement of Indians. We found a nice taxi driver who was not only willing to drive us around the area of Old Town, but also to give us a very informative tour.

The taxi that gave us a personal tour of Old Town San Diego.

Bed and Breakfast in Old Town San Diego

First theatre of San Diego

Trams which take tourists around Old Town San Diego... where it all started.

Vendor selling mexican items.

Resturaunt in Old Town San Diego

University of San Diego

Early church turned into museum for settlers.

Palm trees... wish we had them in Calgary.

San Diego Zoo...

... was the one major attraction we made it to while visiting sunny San Diego.

There were a lot of interesting animals to take pictures of, from all over the world from Australia to South Africa. Some we had a deja vu when taking the photos (ie. wallabies and koalas), and some we will see in their natural habitat a month or so later.

It was a beautiful day spent with my parents, aunt, and uncle. Not to mention, there were a few odd creatures that I don't normally see in my lifetime.

Kids, don't try this at home.

This gives new meaning to "bobcats in a barrel".

Panda demonstrating yet another favorite activity of mine... eating.

The littlest one hitches a ride on his mom.

"Three french hens, two turtledoves..."

It's a bonding moment between orangutan and monkey.

Elephant gets help in scratching her head.

Black bear demonstrating the world's best activity ... sleeping.

Lepoard pacing in it's cage for exercise.

Zebras having a family moment.

Komodo dragon taking a mid-afternoon nap.

Polar bear enjoying a snack.

Congratulations Simon & Sally...

... on your wedding!

The San Diego trip was both a nice break from Calgary's cold winter weather and a good chance to catch up with a few cousins which I hadn't seen in a few years.

Unfortunately due to bad lighting, slow shutter speed, and a lens that didn't want to cooperate we didn't have a lot of photos of the ceremony.

There were a lot of interesting twists to the day, including the groom serenading his wife, candle waving, dancing, beautifully created table numbers. Not to mention that I think David is luckier than his dad when it comes to random street guessing to get to where we need to go.

Shu-Ming, Peter, Estella, Shu-Fun, Mom, Shu-Wing

David with a camera in front of his face. Nice eye!

Andre, Sandi, Celia, Shu-Fun

Boutinnere

As typical of a Chinese wedding... the paparazzi come out to play.

Celia welcomes the bride with a beautiful bracelet (and her and Shu Fun welcome their new daughter-in-law into the family).

Teacups used for the tea ceremony.

Simon and Sally paying their respects to some unseen members of the Pang family.

Dad's grinning.... he'll be doing this soon for his baby girl.

Mom's practicing for her turn in 2008

Sally and her bridesmaid in a quiet moment.

Simon, Sally, myself, Andre, Mom, Dad. Aren't we all sweet couples?

The flowergirl is busy preparing the walk with rose petals.

Sally walking down the aisle. Isn't she gorgeous?

Maid of Honor holding both bouquets of flowers.

"And I proclaim you husband and wife."

Celia grinning as she records her son's big day.

Flowers on the pews at Grace Lutheran Church

Simon and Sally demonstrate their rumba knowledge.

Mom and Dad look happy.... guess what, in a year and a half it's my turn!

David and Lauren smile for the camera ... it was lovely to catch up with them.

Uncle Shu-Wing and Aunt Sau-King smile for the camera.

Glaedelig Jul!

... every Christmas sees different traditions that vary from family to family.

This year, we have started a more Danish tradition of creating our very own nisser village. Originally we had a little General Store and a few trees, but that changed one day I was walking around in Costco with a friend.

And now we have a complete town. If you look closely enough, you can pick out the figurines that came with the houses apart from the nissers that we were given.

Also, the little nisser I was given many Christmases back has made another foray back out into the living room. He usually hides in the bookcase during the year and tries to read all my books, but he can't figure out how to open the covers.

Chir calls him the freaky little Christmas gnome, so he is now named Freaky.