Kiwi Christmas Songs

J and I are having a very relaxing, peaceful Christmas, just the two of us. We've been so busy for ages, getting ready for the trip to the States, and then the whirlwind trip itself, and then getting organized and back into work afterwards. So it is nice to have some time to just relax together.

To wish you all a Merry Christmas, I thought I'd share a couple Kiwi Christmas songs I really enjoy.

The first is Pohutukawa Tree, which I just learned this year. We actually learned and sang it with the children at our End of Year Celebration, which was wonderful. To watch a video of it being sung, click here. I find the lady singing it a bit strange, but she does the actions well.

I know I post every year about Pohutukawa trees, but that is because I can't get over how awesome they are!

I took this picture of one that I walk by on the way into town from work. 

And here's a bit closer, so you can see how much they look like fireworks. They even have the tiny touches of gold at the ends. They're just so bright and happy, and I love them.

I didn't take this picture, but I thought you should see a picture of a whole tree. Their colours range from this deep red to almost orange.

I also thought you'd enjoy A Kiwi Jingle Bells. This is another one that we sing often with our children, using the book in the video, which you can watch here. It's lots of fun - you'll notice many Kiwi trademarks and traditions. I think it might be more fun for me than it is for the children, because all of this is just ordinary for them, whereas I'm delighted to recognize each unique bit of Kiwi culture. I feel I should mention, on the food page, that when it says "cheerios in bread" it means those little pink sausages next to the kid with dark brown hair. I still find this hard to remember when people talk about cheerios, but I'm getting there.

If you're wondering about any other lovely Kiwi words or traditions, feel free to comment and I'll explain further.

Merry Christmas everyone!!!