Yule feast....a bit late, but still great fun

Due to my kids now being bona fide "grown ups"....with jobs!  Yule feast was late this year.
I can't remember if I've posted about this before.....so a brief explanation.
As my three got older and left for university...I decided that I didn't want to put pressure on them "having" to be with Mum for Xmas.  It was a joint decision that every year we would pick a day where we were all free, and get together. I make a buffet type meal, and when we are all here, we have food, as much, or as little as we want, when we want it. Now they are older, I do say to "bring your own booze".
We usually listen to music, catch up with each other, and play board games. The tv is not usually on, unless we are playing a multi player Wii game.
Also,  a few years back, I bought a large package of assorted dice, and gave everyone a set, and challenged them to create their own game, that we would play at the next Yule feast.  (There's just me left, I know what I want to create, just need time in which to do it.)

Oh boy! That's not brief!

However, in the past we've held Yule feast before Xmas, as that was most convenient.  This year, the most convenient was between Xmas and New Year, yesterday to be precise.

I made sweet chilli sausage rolls, quiche, pork pie, and heated through some jalapeno things.  Pickles, crisps were also available, plus plenty of cheese and crackers.

By three o'clock everyone who could be here was....Becky couldn't this year, as she'd not spent any time with her Mum over Xmas.
We opened gifts from any of us who hadn't seen each other before this Xmas, then we started games.
New game...Liar, liar....fun once you "get" it.
Then Samantha's game,  a start/finish game, with "guards" throughout the course who you had to challenge in "top trumps" manner.
Then onto WobBally.....I bought this some years ago, it's a bit like Jenga, only you have around seven layers of marbles, each layer has around 15 marbles.  You have to knock out one marble, without knocking the stack down.
We play it as a knockout. Things are usually a bit "giddy" to say the least by this stage. I never win this, but it's fun.
Lastly, we played Oliver's game from last year....another one which is simple on the surface, but a lot of fun. You roll two dice to get the category,(99 in all,) then you roll another, (20 sided,) for how many you have to name.  Now comes the fun bit. After being allowed a minute or two to think, you have to name the number of things, before the sand timer runs out, about a minute......but.....the other players can decide whether to accept what you say, or not.....for example......an elk tree......just doesn't exist......don't ask, "is that allowed?".....you don't have time....and the other players can also heckle with incorrect answers, suggested. We found out that Samantha's bf gets the giggles very easily......so whenever it was his turn....we did our best to get him giggling....so that he couldn't possibly win.
Obviously all in good faith.........after all....you can't win everything.....I never win anything, except the Oxford dictionary game....which might be why we don't play it.

So......if you have kids, and they're getting older, rather than hope they can be with you on Xmas day.....and you want them all there at once....be flexible, adopt the Yule feast idea....choose a day when you can all be there, and have a great day.....and, if you've more leisure time than your children....let them sort the day out....just be there.

What the heck? Rickets?

SO according to research around 40% of under fives in the UK are in danger of developing rickets!  I find this a terribly high figure. The government are proposing giving free vitamin supplements to all under fives. 
Hey! I know this might be reactionary, but instead of giving out vitamin tablets, why not make sure the Mothers know how to cook a nutritious meal.  After all, there is no excuse for this vitamin deficiency.  In this day and age there really is no excuse for children to develop this condition.  As for the excuse the Mum's interviewed were giving, what right thinking parent allows their child to be using game systems and watching TV for prolonged periods of time, so that they don't have time to "play out" or spend time outside?  For pity's sake.....it's UNDER FIVES that are being said to be in danger, do these parents allow their under fives to set the rules? 
I used to love taking my three out for walks along the canal, down to the village, to the library, to the playground, as they got older we used to go on longer walks to "explore".  Don't get me wrong, they did watch TV, and on a miserable rainy day we liked nothing better than spending the day baking, making things, or even just curling up and watching a good Disney film....but we would do lots of other stuff, even invented silly games that we'd just thought up on the spur of the moment.
So..instead of throwing sticking plaster answers, the government should look at the cause and not the consequences, after all things don't happen without a cause.
Right...I'll get off my soapbox and shut up.