Posted on by wherethejourneytakesme

creating a simpler Christmas * days 18-24

My cold was short lived – in fact barely a cold – I think it just came out in sympathy with those around me who have been stricken quite badly…..but many thanks for the messages and best wishes you sent – a few blog hugs always makes you feel better.

It is hard to believe Christmas Eve is here already – how did that happen so quickly. Now everything has to stop ready or not and the busyness of the last few weeks suddenly ceases and at last we can sit back and just enjoy the time with our family and friends, but also thinking about all those lonely people who will not have anyone to celebrate with.

The good side of having a simpler Christmas means I have had more time to go out and about seeing friends, past colleagues and neighbours and I have been busy too filling my new pantry – only the shelving on the wall remains to be done, but that will be after Christmas now. It has been a challenge trying to organise it and no doubt I will be continuing to move things around and get them into a permanent place as I go along but I can say it is one of the best things I have ever had done in the house, after the airing cupboard refit and my linen cupboard. I will post photos post Christmas.

But….so many things have not been done for Christmas this year, but you know what…… I really don’t mind – it is different to usual, but not awful. The bulk of the decorations are still in the loft – I am not really missing them – I have a few, almost discreet, decorated spots around the house and I am loving the minimalist look.

In the end I didn’t buy a tree and I didn’t make a twig tree either; instead I have filled the house with vases of holly and cream roses, snow sprayed pine cones, lots of candles and twinkly lights.

I quite like it.

My two favourite decorations this year are this little round wooden plaque that lights up from B&M for £2.99 and the shiny red Volkswagon Beetle I found in a lovely flower shop in Baslow for £1.

The cake happened and the mince pies. The lemon curd willl be a job for the day after boxing day. I made more chocolate; some as a small token gift for friends and some for our family gathering – it is eaten quicker than I can make it.

So yesterday was the last of the cooking – a quiche for Christmas tea and a few more mince pies; I can hang up my apron now and begin the packing. We will be heading up to North Yorkshire to attend the local carol service in my daughter’s new village – it will be quite special to be with all the family singing carols together on Christmas Eve and then sitting down afterwards to share a simple meal of baked potatoes and salad and have a good old chat and just relax. Christmas is all about being together so I am hoping my sister and mum can join us too, then it will be perfect for me with all my family and the grandchildren – Little L, Sweetie and little Freddie around me.

This year’s wrapping has been minimal too – brown craft paper and tags, stamped simply in white and a little foliage added here and there.

My friend’s twin daughters are 30 today so I hand stamped two craft bags to put their presents into.

Then set off around the village delivering a basket full of homemade gifts and cards to my friends – so now all is done and all there is left to do is enjoy Christmas.

Have a wonderful and happy Christmas everyone – I will be taking a few days break now to enjoy the festivities.

Happy Christmas

xxx

21 Replies to “creating a simpler Christmas * days 18-24”

  1. I’m so glad your cold was short lived! Your presents look absolutely lovely wrapped in craft paper and your edible presents look delicious! I was intending to stamp brown paper this year, but realised I have quite a lot of Christmas wrapping paper left in my ‘stores’, so once that has been used up, I’m looking forward to doing this. I hope you have a wonderful Christmas with all your family. I’m making the short trip down to Plymouth later to pick Mum up. Looking forward to seeing your pantry photos after the festive period. Happy Christmas! x

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  3. Thank you dear lady for such a lovely post to finish up before Christmas. Your words and photos are so sweet and such a pleasure to receive. Please have a most wonderful holiday season with your family and friends and thank you for sharing so much of your life. Cheers from Southern Ontario, Canada.

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    1. Thank you so much for leaving this comment. I try to add photos to my posts when I can as I think it helps to visualise someone’s life that you are reading about. I often wish some of my commenters had a blog themselves as I know I would enjoy reading of their daily life too from the snippets I get in the comments.

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  4. I am so glad to hear that your cold was short lived.

    I love your decorations, simple is the key isn’t it otherwise the house can feel very cluttered. I love the brown paper wrapping too, I use that for some birthday presents. Like Ann I still have quite a bit of Christmas wrapping paper in the cupboard so I will be using that up first.

    I do hope you have a safe journey to be with your family and have a wonderful Christmas all together.

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  5. I’m so glad you’re feeling much better now.
    Your Christmas sounds perfect. Understated and simple is how I like things to be and it has the advantage of being far less stressful. I intend to use brown paper for my wrapping next Christmas, this year I used up the paper I had left over from last year. Your gifts look beautiful with the added greenery.
    Wishing you and your family a very Merry Christmas. Xx

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  10. Viv, have a wonderful time with your family. That’s the best part of Christmas IMHO. Thank you for visiting my blog over the past few months. It means a lot to me to read your thoughtful comments.

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  12. You were the perfect Father Christmas for your family, friends and village. I love your photos and how you made little Christmas vignettes around your home. Cheers to the new pantry! I look forward to an update on your family Christmas Eve and Day.

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