Sun, snow and squirrels...

This time last year we were "snowed in" as Christmas snowfalls stopped my parents and their neighbours from taking their cars out and driving down the hill to the main road. With hospital trips twice a day, we are very thankful this year that it's not going to be a white Christmas. In fact, the weather forecast says that this may be one of the warmest Christmas days in recent years - with rain instead of snow. Not as warm as it is back home in southern Spain, where they've had sunny days and temperatures as high as 20 degrees over the past week (That would qualify as a Scottish summer heatwave!) but a welcome respite from ice and snow, which will make our daily trips to the hospital a lot easier.

We spent Christmas day 2008 in the hospital in Edinburgh, as my Dad had just been rushed back in for a repeat op when he got an infection after his brain surgery. At that time, they kept him in two months on intravenous antibiotics, but he actually felt pretty well for most of that time. Yesterday, looking back on that time, Dad said to us, "The brain operation was nothing compared to this." This time, Dad's troubles were also due to infection - an infection that poisoned his entire body and led to weeks of struggles and setbacks. It's been a very difficult time, and he still doesn't feel strong and well. But this week has been free of further setbacks, and we're preparing, for the second time, to spend Christmas day in a hospital.

Meanwhile, in our back garden, the squirrels also seem to be enjoying the lack of snow. We have four squirrels - two large ones and two small ones - and they're a source of entertainment that's better than the Christmas TV on offer. My Mum hangs out fat balls and peanuts for the wild birds... but our four squirrel friends have perfected a system of jumping from the garage roof, scurrying along the washing line and hanging upside down to steal all the peanuts. The snow-free Christmas this year will no doubt make it easier for them to enjoy their Christmas dinner.