The Bollard Christmas Message

Yes, it's that time of year again and Santa has been busily wrapping gifts till all hours of the morning - and is very tired.

To me, Christmas is, among other things, the beginning of the end of the year. It's a time to reflect on all the good things in our lives and all of the people who have made those good things possible.

We've had a lot of support throughout the year and we don't always acknowledge it. Thank you to all our friends and relatives who have been there for us, who have helped out, listened, chatted, empathised or even just given us that much needed LOL or :-). You've all helped us to feel appreciated and to carry on doing what we do.

Our kids had great teachers this year and great support teachers. Their tutor, as always, was excellent too. I think it shows in their confidence levels, their smiles and their willingness to attend school. Thank you for being there for our children and for taking the time to really get to know them.

We had some great help from our friends and relatives, particularly those who minded the boys when we needed time out. You can't underestimate how much it helped us to keep our sanity and our marriage together.

We had (some) great neighbours who helped us drown our sorrows when the Council wouldn't play fair, helped us when emergencies arose and generally waved to us from their front lawns to let us know that we were still in a friendly place. Thank you!

We had all kinds of help down at the scout hall too, leaders, parents and various members of the commmunity; the council landcare and community sections and surf lifesaving Australia. You all volunteered your time and services, often at very short notice, to help make a difference in our lives and the lives of other children in our area - Thank you!

Thank you to the online community. Our facebook, twitter, forum, chat and blogger friends. You have helped us find a sense of belonging, given us a place to vent our frustrations and listened, advised and empathised with our struggles.

As usual, we have a newsletter which we've surface mailed to people we have an address for. If you missed it, it's here. You can also browse our past years of newsletters and "funny" Christmas photos here.

Thank you everyone and have a great Christmas (or silly season, if you prefer) and I look forward to renewing our acquaintance in 2011!