What I’m buying for myself while Christmas shopping!

Christmas shopping, the magical time of year when you leave the house determined to be a generous, thoughtful human being and return home with bags of treats for yourself. It’s basically tradition at this point. If Santa can reward good behaviour so can I! So let’s talk about the things I definitely didn’t plan to buy for myself this December. hehehe.

December shopping does something to my brain. One minute I’m hunting for stocking fillers and the next I’m holding a fluffy cardigan thinking this will help me survive winter. It’s always pretty, it’s always soft and it always comes home with me. I try to imagine gifting it to someone else but then I picture myself wearing it and it's too precious to let go.

Nothing tests self control like a shiny skincare gift set. I go in for wrapping paper and come out convinced I need a three step routine that involves serums, massaging and misting. I buy them for myself every year and I always feel like I’m doing something responsible. Never mind that I’ll forget step two by mid January and end up using the fancy night cream as hand lotion. The thought was there.

I fully intended to grab a candle as a gift, something classy like Frosted Woodland something but then I spotted one that smelled like gingerbread and happiness and next thing I knew I was buying two. One for them and one for me because what am I supposed to do live in a house that doesn’t smell like Christmas! 

Socks are always marketed as a gift but who are we kidding, no one appreciates them the way we do. The second December hits my feet are suddenly freezing and if my feet are cold the rest of me is so when I see fluffy socks in festive colours my brain goes these are needed to live just like food and water. I try to justify it by thinking I’ll give them to someone but once they’re home I become attached to them, they’re mine now. Oops!

Every December I become a new person. I see a fresh notebook and think this will change my life. I will become organised, write plans. I will journal daily but jump to February and three pages filled, one of them containing a shopping list and the phrase remember bins but I still buy it because who doesn't like new stationery.

Every year I buy a fancy box of chocolates to either gift to someone or have out when guests come over, then two days later I’m eating them alone while watching TV and pretending the box ripped itself open but December calories don’t count in case you didn't know!

There is no marketing stronger than the words worth £80 but now £20. I don’t even care what’s in it. It could be eyebrow glitter or make up I don't know how to use, I’m still tempted. I tell myself it’s smart shopping, I’m saving money. Never mind that I wasn’t planning to spend the money in the first place.

There’s always something in the supermarket that jumps into the trolley. Mini mince pies, fancy crisps, hot chocolate with marshmallows shaped like snowmen. I tell myself it’s for Christmas week. Then it disappears during a random December afternoon when I need a break from real life.

December is stressful enough without pretending we don’t treat ourselves while we’re out shopping. We’re juggling lists, crowds, budgets, wrapping disasters and that one person who keeps saying they don’t need anything. (my dad). So if something brings a little happiness or warmth I say go for it!

Do you buy yourself treats while doing the Christmas shopping?

The Wednesday Hodgepodge #37

I hope you are all having a good week? It's Wednesday which means it's time to join in with the Wednesday Hodgepodge with Joyce who blogs at From This Side of the Pond! Each week there are 6 questions, we answer and then link up. Simple!

1. What's one thing on your to-do list that you want to get done, need to get done, or that must get done before the year ends?

This is nothing festive, boring I know but I need to book an appointment to get my contraceptive implant changed. I can't believe I have had this one for almost 3 years. I won't get an appointment this year, there's a waiting list because our local GP practice doesn't do them anymore. Which I suppose is a good thing as I haven't had a great experience with my last 2 being changed. The first time they couldn't get my old one out and last year they forgot to order a replacement implant so I had the old one removed one day and the new one put in a few days later which stressed me out, I panic about medical things and dragging the ordeal out wasn't helpful. I will have to go to the NHS health and wellbeing hub in town and If I get booked in now I should get it done in about 6 weeks.

2. December 17th is National Maple Syrup Day...are you a fan? Do you like maple flavor in other food items such as candy, cookies, donuts, oatmeal, hot toddies, coffee?

I do like Maple Syrup! I don't have it often but I do have it now and again on pancakes and waffles of course and it is a nice treat in porridge too. For Christmas we will be having Maple Pigs in Blankets, we had them last year and I think the year before and they're amazing!

3. Time magazine names a person of the year every year. The tradition started back in 1927 with a 'man of the year' but has since changed to recognize not only an individual, but also to consider the impact of a group, movement, or idea that most influenced the year. The selection is not always someone or something good (think Hitler in 1938 and Stalin twice). This year they've named The AI Architects as their 'person of the year'. What say you? Is this a good choice, an obvious choice, a logical choice? Who do you think should have been named person of the year?

The AI Architects feels like an obvious pick but also a logical one. AI has been everywhere this year: work, school, phones, creativity, in the news, everywhere! You can’t really avoid it. So from an impact on the year point of view it makes sense.

If I were choosing I think they should honour the normal every day people like teachers who deal with the youth of today. They shape lives every single day and never get a headline. There are also the caregivers who are quietly looking after parents, partners, kids, relatives, often while working, parenting and trying to keep their own heads above water. They’ve felt the pressure of rising costs, stretched services, long waits all while doing jobs they were never trained for.

4. What's a city, state, or country you've visited that you never care to visit again? Tell us why.

That’s a tricky one for me because I really can’t think of anywhere I’ve visited that I wouldn’t go back to. I guess it comes down to the fact that I’m not that well travelled. I haven’t spent enough time hopping from city to city or country to country to really have a never again spot.

5. Next Sunday (December 21st) marks the first day of winter (or the opposite if you're living down under). What's one thing you love about this new season?

This question confused me for second, I thought how can we not be in winter already as it's so cold. I am not a fan of the cold so winter for me is all about being cosy! It’s the season where blankets are my best friend, thick socks are a must and hot drinks are a necessity. I love lighting candles, wrapping up in layers and creating little warm corners to hide away from the cold. Winter gives me all the excuses to slow down, get snug and just enjoy the little things without guilt.

6. Insert your own random thought here.

This time of year seems so quiet compared to years ago when the girls were little. This week would have been filled with school nativity plays, Christmas meals, carol concerts, Christmas parties and of course visits to see Santa. I remember one year they had Santa visit the school. I am 99% sure that the Santa was the headteachers husband and the kids were so sure they recognised him but couldn't quite place him. hehehe

The Christmas traditions I miss now that my girls are adults!

You know when people warn you "enjoy it while they’re little, they grow up fast!" and you’re like yeah yeah, well it happened! My girls grew up fast!! Don’t get me wrong, I love having grown up daughters. They’re smart, funny and are tall enough to reach the top of the tree! So here’s a nostalgic ramble about the Christmas traditions I miss now that my girls are very much grown ups living their best lives.

Letters to Santa!

Remember those letters, the ones that where kids would confess everything! Dear Santa, I’ve been good this year except when I pushed my sister and when I drew on the wall but that wasn’t really my fault, there were the doodles, spelling mistakes, and the100% belief that the man in a red suit could deliver a pony even though we lived in a terraced house with a tiny back garden. One of my favourite parts was when they wrote their letters at school. My friend worked there and was the one in charge of writing Santa’s replies. Bless her, she’d give me the heads up on what my girls were dreaming of that year because the letters they wrote at home and the ones they wrote in school never matched. At home they wanted a teddy or a Barbie but at school they were asking Santa for an iPad, a mansion and a unicorn that pooped glitter. lol

The Advent Calendar!

Back in the day my December alarm clock wasn’t my phone, it was my girls bursting into my room at 7am practically shaking with excitement. It’s day three they’d shriek like it was the most urgent newsflash ever. Every morning in December, that tiny cardboard door became the most important thing in the world.

Over the years, the calendars evolved. Chocolate was the main treat then there was the Roblox calendar, the Friends TV show calendar, one with crystals, and even a rubber duck one. We still do advent calendars now but it’s different. There’s no urgent excitement and sometimes they even skip days and play catch up. It’s a small thing, but it’s one of those traditions that made the countdown to Christmas feel the run up to Christmas extra exciting.

Baking Together!

You haven’t lived until you’ve baked Christmas cookies with kids and spent the whole time saying things like: please don’t eat the raw dough, no flour is not snow, how did you get icing in your hair already! It was messy but so much fun! They still like to bake now but won't let me be involved. Hmmf!

Making gingerbread houses!

Our gingerbread houses never looked like the ones on Pinterest, not one single year! They were sticky, they collapsed, the icing drooped, the walls slid and they were held together by nothing but sugar and hope! Those were some of the best afternoons. The girls would be so proud of their creations even if the roof fell off five minutes later. The house would smell of ginger, there’d be icing in someone’s hair, sprinkles rolling under the fridge and a smear of sugary glue on the table that would still be there in February. hehehe

Christmas Eve chaos!

There was a routine and it was adorable. Christmas Eve boxes filled with crafts to keep the girls busy, special PJs, hot chocolate with enough marshmallows to suffocate a small elf. We’d watch The Snowman on TV, track Santa on the NORAD website, leave carrots and mince pies out and sprinkle reindeer dust like we were in a fairy tale. The girls would be itching to go to bed but not to sleep. One would peek downstairs, whispering is Santa here yet . I loved that chaos, that excitement and the next morning drinking strong coffee to keep me going because of course they were up at 5am after I had only gone to bed a few hours before. lol

Elf on the Shelf Shenanigans

Ahh! The elf, the tiny plastic troublemaker who stole both my sleep and my sanity for several years. Starting Elf on the Shelf was one of my greatest parenting mistakes and also one of my greatest parenting successes. The first week was magical but about halfway through December I would run out of ideas. I’d be lying in bed at 11pm just dozing off to sleep and remember I hadn't moved the elf. lol but I miss it. I miss hiding that tiny judgemental creature in ridiculous places, hearing the girls coming up with their own dramatic theories about how she travelled around the house.

Handmade Decorations!

Oh, the decorations they made. Wonky stars, pipe cleaner angels, baubles that looked like they’d been through a traumatic event. My tree basically had the look of a charity shop window but it was perfect!

Being sneaky after their bedtime!

I deserve an award for the stealth skills I developed as a parent. Wrapping presents quietly, tip-toeing around the house and don’t even get me started on arranging presents around the tree like I wanted it perfect! I wish I could do that all over again. Stu, probably not as he would always get the big presents to put together on Christmas eve! The dolls’ house incident comes to mind: power drill at the ready, trying to assemble it without waking the girls. They weren’t asleep and curious little heads would pop up at just the wrong moment.

Christmas morning magic!

There was the rush to the tree, the squeals, the paper flying everywhere, watching my girls tear open presents, see the things they wished for or didn’t even know they wished for and feeling the sheer magic of it all. It isn't the same now that they are older. I miss it but things change and there are still surprises under the tree for them.

Now our Christmases are quieter. The girls are older, more independent, they don’t burst into our bedroom early on Christmas morning, don’t leave flour trails through the kitchen, they don’t build gingerbread houses that collapse within an hour but instead we exchange gifts calmly and reminisce about the old days, laughing at the chaos we survived and the magic we made.

What do you miss about past Christmases?

Our weekly meal plan! 15th - 21st December! #MealPlanningMonday

Last weeks meal plan went well, we ate everything apart from the Pizza on Friday as my dad decided to give us it for lunch and the picky bits on Saturday as my family decided that they wanted burgers and fries. We were all home so I thought I would go with what my family wanted.

We had a good weekend. If you read my post yesterday you will have seen our internet was off all day Friday and most of Saturday, my dad did rescue us and leant us his router which can be used anywhere which was a lifesaver when it came to blogging. I haven't quite got the hang of writing blog posts using my phone so without the borrowed router there would have been no posts over the weekend.

I don't know what I have planned for this week, I feel in a bit of limbo. I am as ready as I can be for Christmas but it's not here yet so I am just waiting. I am wracking my brain thinking of things that I need to do and so far I can't come up with anything which I suppose is a good thing. We have 3 Gousto meals this week, all one's we've had before but not in a while.

On the menu this week we have:

Monday - Stu is cooking!

Stu is off work and will be doing the cooking so it could be anything from omelette to goodness knows what.

Tuesday - Gousto meal - Chicken & Stuffing Sarnie With Plum Chutney!

I think last time we had this I coated the chicken in gravy too which gave it that extra bit of flavour. This was actually the recipe that taught me that stuffing was so easy to make.

Wednesday - Gousto meal - Curried Veg Soup With Parsnip Crisps & Yoghurt!

You can't beat a big bowl of home made soup in the winter and this is a good one. It has that little kick from the curry powder but isn't too spicy.

Thursday - Gousto meal - Hoisin Glazed Meatloaf With Crispy Potatoes!

My family love anything with hoisin sauce so this was always going to be a favourite of theirs. I cheat a little with this and make the meatloaf in the air fryer, I think it cooks better in there than in the oven.

Friday - Fish fingers, chips and baked beans!

I always think of this as a kiddy meal but sometimes you need a bit of that and Friday is fun day so why not!

Saturday - Pizza!

We might make our own, well ready made dough but put our own toppings on. I will go with BBQ sauce, salami, ham, mushrooms and onions.

Sunday - Sausages, mashed potatoes and vegetables!

Nice and simple, we will probably have carrots and sweetcorn.

What are you eating this week?