Christmas Day 2014

25th December

This year our house was blessed by many of the family members and friends willing to share this special day with us.  As the children are becoming older so are our Christmas morning wake up calls becoming later and later.  I must confess to preferring an 8am wake up call to the 6am of a few years back.  In our household the children wake each other up with whispered excitement and bring their stockings in to our room and onto our bed and share their surprises from Father Christmas with us.  This is such a magical time of the day and season and I love the fact that the children seem to cherish these traditions too.  This year the children were sharing a bedroom  to allow other family members visiting to have their own room whilst staying with us.  Our daughter told us that her brother had actually suggested from about 6 am they should sneak into to us and begin opening the stocking, but her adolescent age obviously wanted and needed more sleep, so she would not accompany him in and he would not come without her!  There are some advantages to having teenagers!

 

Stockings made when the children were small, look
how tiny their handprints were.  Somehow I never finished
them off, and now cannot quite bring myself to do it. 
Strange, I know!







Stockings opened and many ooohing and aahings later we bundled downstairs in PJ's ready for a lightish breakfast accompanied with lots of fizz and cups of tea.  Some years previously we used to go all out for breakfast as well but our stomachs found that a rich breakfast followed by a huge Christmas dinner was not the way to go and so we are much more restrained these days.  Much of our entertaining philosophy is to share the burden, thus reducing stress a little on us, but the main reason, to include everyone and give everybody a sense of purpose and pulling together.  It generally works well and people like to have something to do.  Thanks Ninda for breakfast this year.



Traditional hats hanging in the hall ready to grab for the pub walk

After present exchanges round the Christmas tree and more fizz drunk, the Christmas table was laid, the turkey was stuffed and placed in the oven and the last guests arrived, it was time for another British tradition .  The pub on Christmas day.  I was not brought up with this tradition and is only one that I have been introduced to since I have been married, but one which I have adopted whole heartily and LOVE.  We all insist on wearing silly Christmas hats, there is no forced cheer as suddenly everyone is in the mood as we trudge to the local hostelry.  If you have never partaken of visiting a local pub on December 25th then I recommend it.  Everyone in the pub on Christmas day is in such a good and cheery mood.  A quick couple of drinks and we are soon back in the warmth of the house with the roast cooking smell permeating throughout the house.  Wonderful.♥

I am sure our house is no different to anyone elses, we go the whole hog to make it perfect and often something is forgotten or omitted, but it does not really matter or make a difference to the day.  Crackers are pulled, jokes are shared and the competition begins to see who can keep their cracker hat on the longest and so the game playing commences.  This year Mr H introduced us all to a new game he made up, of having to chase each other around the garden (wearing one of the above hats) and trying to grab an others hat without loosing your own.  It was hysterical and despite many of us sliding and falling over on the lawn a good time was had.

Compulsory charades were played and moved into a new phase by having a few rounds via skype with aunts and uncles on the south coast.  It brought us all together and made us laugh all the more.  Try it, it works a treat!

Many presents and drinks later

we all fell into bed happy and exhausted

and Christmas day was done for another year.♥