It’s a new year and I have massive plans for my blog and work as a media outreach consultant for 2017 yet somehow we’ve crept up to the 6th of January and I’ve not managed to do much work at all. Getting a big house ready for Christmas was a fun task but de-glitzing it afterwards seems to have taken an age and only today have I felt able to sit myself down at the computer, edit my photographs and think about writing a word. Or a thousand (you know me)!
The Christmas holidays are busy for everyone but for us they might be a touch more so than for most; we also have two birthdays in the house which fall on New Year’s Eve for Florence and the 2nd of January for Daddy. While everyone else pledges to start healthily eating on the 1st we have a couple more days to pack in meals out, cake and… Let’s face it, a bit more Prosecco and I feel like I’ve been running around like a headless chicken (a plump one at that) for a month making sure everything runs to plan.
It was out first Christmas in our new home and I had planned for everything to run to a just so time table. I had grand food plans and a massive schedule for this one big day which was destined to never run as smoothly as I had hoped but… Despite the fact that it absolutely didn’t pan out as per the laminated list, we did have fun! Lots of it and our first Christmas her in our new house was one to remember for all the right reasons.
If someone had said pre Christmas day that Jimmy would wake up covered in chicken pox on December the 25th and subsequently feel too poorly by the afternoon to be bothered opening presents then I might have had a massive panic attack but when that scenario panned out it was fine. So the lunch was a little late and my poorly boy ate absolutely nothing when it did arrive (thanks to my Mum for helping) but we were together, I didn’t get so tipsy that anything burned in the oven and the television wasn’t turned on once so we were happy just to be us. I went out to meet another mum who had some emergency calamine lotion for me to borrow and I realised that my friendly village really is the place to be. Children riding their new bikes (Florence was one of them), happy sounds coming from all the houses and friendly faces wishing me a happy Christmas. What could be better?
And as for the birthdays? Well… They did go just to plan and after Florence was taken to a beauty salon for a pop princess treat by her friend, we all went for lunch in Yo Sushi followed by bowling and then a night at the same friends to see in the New Year. It’s the first new year that we’ve been out since we had her and it was brilliant. The children had one big party running around and the grown ups toasted with bubbles (just up my street) all night long!
The next day saw friends from London come to stay and we did much and yet nothing all at the same time. A trip to the cinema (man that’s pricey), a jaunt out to the coast to see the seals and their baby pups and then another birthday tea for Jonny. It was all good times and I’m sad that it’s over.
But…
I am pleased to not be being forced (I totally was, don’t believe a word of it if anyone tells you otherwise) to drink any more Prosecco or eat any more cheese… And I’m glad to be on the diet band wagon. Well, for at least a fortnight!
Here are our best bits of the Christmas holidays and we wish you all a very Happy New Year (even if that does come a few days late)!
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