woke up happy this morning… a new year with much to anticipate and wonderful moments to savour…

I spent a lovely hour or so setting the table with all the fancy stuff – silver pheasant salt and pepper shakers that my mother brought to my grandmother when she returned from the war, chargers that Cyndi and Ron searched out just before they left Winnipeg, a flower plate that Ron gave me, beautiful salad dishes that George and I purchased many years ago… it was lovely to choose them and set the table in all its finery… I also added Christmas Crackers as that was a new tradition that Cyndi started, so it was a way to have both she and Ron at the table with us…

table all set…

I was thinking back to one of our family’s New Year traditions – first footing… for us, it meant that at midnight on New Year’s Eve my dad, who had dark hair, would jump in the car and drive around to all our aunts and uncles and grandparents’ houses and take them an offering – it always included coal, bread and sometimes oranges and a little drink of something…  I also remember how my dad would have to search out new coal every year because no one ever kept it from year to year…

for many years I was the first footer, as my hair was darker than George’s… and then our kids started to follow the tradition for us, but usually just when they would arrive for dinner on New Year’s Day…  this year Tavin and I made a plan that he would be the one to act as the first footer… we put together a bag with coal (which the girls, George and I gathered along the shore of PEI or the Bay of Fundy and have carefully saved), an orange, and a tiny bottle of Baileys…  he took the bag home with him on Sunday when they were here…  on Monday they stopped by and when we shopped we bought a few buns, which I recommended they add to the bag…

today, before they left home, he reminded his parents’ about the bag and was sure they added the buns to it…

first footing goodies…

when they arrived here, he was very proud to be the first one to cross the threshold and bring his grandma good luck for the new year…

when I Googled first footing, it mentioned that it usually happened right after midnight, so I was giggling thinking how we have made a slight variation on the tradition, but I am also thrilled with how special it made Tavin feel…  I also laughed because I didn’t take a picture, even though I had thought I would write about this…

we had a lovely time together and enjoyed a great dinner…

ready to gobble up the wonderful dinner…

we are now counting down the days until we leave for Mexico…