Christmas Day

Christmas dinner does not get much better than this: smoked salmon rolls washed down with mulled wine on top of Chapel Carn Brea (198m): the first and last hill in Cornwall and Great Britain. We also 'climbed' Bartine castle (224m), the most westerly trig point on the mainland.  

For those of you stuck in snow drifts, Penwith is the green bit on the BBC weather map. In this picture you will see that there is no snow on the ground and the very blue things behind are the sky and sea.

More Christmas pictures here.

The Annual Review 2010

The year began with one of us clutching his bus pass and with snow on the garden where a new stone griffin had arrived to guard the house in celebration of the arrival of our first grandchild, Olly. Before long we would be welcoming another descendant and, to celebrate, an additional stone griffin.

Just when we thought we had got our house sorted out and were looking forward to an ordered existence, things suddenly changed. Wyl and Emma welcomed Alana in February. Between them, she and Olly have since managed to fill the house with high chairs, camping cots, buggies and toys. The two of them will rather dominate this report as they have our thoughts and activities throughout the year. 

Olly initially seemed impressed by his new cousin but was not sure that she was much fun as a playmate.

He was more interested in bonding with his look-alike uncle Peter with whom he seems to share a love of sports cars.

He was able to meet his great-grandparents when they visited in the spring, allowing us to take a photograph of four generations together. 

By now, he was growing up enough to keep Nick from his 17th century studies which had just yielded yet another MA.

The summer stretched out, long and hot, just as it ‘always does’ in Cornwall, and so we made the most of it: Kate’s tutor group enjoyed a barbecue in the garden, although we struggled to complete a risk assessment for 18 teenage girls; we enjoyed a sleepover in the Museum with thirty 11 year old girls; we built ourselves a small vegetable patch, revelling in the fiendishly expensive lettuces that resulted; we visited beaches where Olly discovered the joy of sand and (sea)water play; and we welcomed guests from far-off England.

Emma, Wyl and Alana enjoying the sun in the garden.

We took time out for a holiday of our own in July, visiting Krakow, walking in the Tatra mountains which are part of the Carpathians between Poland and Slovakia, and travelling in Slovakia. Naturally we took the tatras for Cornwall.

This was Kate’s first visit to the country and she had a chance to see why I so enjoy it so much. If you are passing the world heritage site of Spiš castle do not fail to look out the friendly spermophiles who entertained us during our picnic there.

The rest of the summer was taken up enjoying more visits from the junior branches, attending a performance of Don Giovanni, visiting Wales, watching the Red Arrows or, bizarrely, narrating a re-enactment of the Battle of the Little Bighorn performed on water. As always, there was not enough sailing.

We flew to Switzerland for a happy family wedding of my nephew Caspar to Karine in October; and to Edinburgh to celebrate the significant birthday of Kate’s brother Patrick in November. The latter was a chance to get the whole team together at a very sparkly ceilidh.

Work has been stretching for both of us this year, working full time as we do. We soldier on, however, and are showing few signs of retirement despite rumours circulating to the contrary.

Claire has returned to work after her maternity leave while Emma is still at home with Alana. Having finished his MBA, Peter spent much of the autumn commuting between Johannesburg, where he was passing on his new-found knowledge in training entrepreneurs, and his home with Rebeka in trendy Parsons Green.

We make no apologies for leaving you with smiles from the two people who have brought us such joy this year. Their baby life jackets await them.

Mylor Bridge has camping cots, high chairs, toys and a warm welcome whenever you feel the need for a break.

Kate and Jonathan