It's Me, Sara Louise

For today’s Behind the Photos (it’s been ages since I’ve done one of these) I thought we’d travel back in time for a special Christmas edition. We’re going all the way back to 2008, a time when I had blondish hair and bangs. The setting Dublin, all of twenty-seven days after I met Gregory, when Le Petit Village wasn’t even a speck of a notion of a thought in my brain. 

Twenty-seven days is kind of fast to be introducing your boyfriend to your family, and at Christmas it’s double-trouble. But I wasn’t bringing Gregory for Christmas dinner with the family because I luuurved him, I did it because he didn’t have any family in Ireland to spend the holiday with and sitting in a dingy apartment with festivities swirling all about outside that apartment was a no-no in my book. So I invited and he accepted. 

Not only was this the first time Gregory met some of my extended family, but it was the first time he met my mother as well. She was bringing the turkey and in typical Eilo fashion (Eilo is my mom btw), had spilled turkey juice all over herself in the car . As she walked into the house, she tried to wipe it off her sweater and then Gregory got a turkey juice handshake. It wasn’t the first impression I had envisioned but at least he knew what he was getting himself into.  

Only a few minutes after my brother and Gregory met, they got down on the carpet and played Craps (WHO DOES THAT?!) and then invited Nephew to join them. (He was like eight at the time. Nice one guys, way to be role models.)

And then Niece walked up and wanted to join in on the fun… 

Lovely. Then all of the kids were playing craps on Christmas. I’m pretty sure if you asked, W.W.J.D. on his birthday, it wouldn’t be play craps. But then again, one never knows. 

That’s my uncle with Gregory, they were instant buddies. What’s funny though is that Gregory had only about a beginner-intermediate level of English at this time and my uncle talked his ear off THE WHOLE night. Not only does my uncle have a bit of a strong Dublin accent, but he talks a mile a minute as well. Gregory told me the next day that he had no idea what he had been saying all night, he had just smiled and nodded along. In fairness, at this point Gregory only understood about every other word I said as well, he was really good at smiling and nodding. 

The kids fell in love with Gregory pretty quickly and immediately turned him into their own personal jungle gym.  

Oh and FYI… Gregory no longer puts this must gel in his hair. I put a stop to that as soon as my girlfriend privileges kicked in. 

Christmas with my family goes like this… presents, drinks and nibbles, dinner, drinks, card game, drinks, dance party, night cap, bed. It’s a pretty good recipe for festive holiday fun and I’m hoping to bring a little of it to Mr. & Mrs. London’s house this year. Because this year, instead of being with my family in Dublin for Christmas, I’ll be with my family in the South of France. Thank heavens I have such a large one that has managed to find its way from Ireland, to France (via England and the US of course)… we’re a bit like an octopus with lots of long arms that reach out and stretch all over the world… eventually we’ll probably swallow it whole. MUAHAHAHA.