Christmas Day in just over two weeks time and I really should be doing something useful like putting the marzipan on the cakes. At least the cards are all in the post and the majority of presents wrapped. I'm vaguely organised this year.
At some time I expect most people will have bought a magazine with one of those count down to Christmas charts in, you know what I mean:- 28 days to go = stock up on toilet rolls, 24 days to go = put the sprouts on! |That sort of thing.
I wonder if anyone actually follows them?
I can remember 2 years when I should have been more organised.
The first was 1981. I had a H. a toddler of 19 months and M. a 2 month old baby and hadn't done much planning at all for Christmas and then we had snow in mid December, quite a lot of snow in fact, so that instead of Him Outside being home at 4.30 each afternoon to look after things while I went shopping he was out working on the gritting lorry early and late. I think we managed on what we could get from the village shop that year.
The second was maybe about 18 years ago. For some reason I had got rather behind and not many preparations had been done with only a couple of weeks left. Then me and the children all went down with an awful flu type colds and I spent a fortnight in a muddle headed fug trying to look after them and sort everything out including making the Christmas crackers. Since then I've always tried to have things done by early December, just in case!
Christmas was great fun when we had 3 little ones looking forward to the arrival of Father Christmas. When they were a bit older I did after school and holiday child minding so often had 7 under 12s in the house on the days after term ended. Happy Days! Then there was the Cub Scout Christmas Games evening to plan and enjoy and the day itself meant Mum-in-Law, Dad-in-Law and Him Outsides brother round at our house for the day.
Now our children are grown and have plans of their own, which is how it should be, Mum-in-Law passed away on a November day more than 10 years ago and Christmases are quiet. I can no longer cope with a big crowd of people or several days of family staying ( poor old woman!) so it's just a small celebration, 6 on the day and the other two children plus partners for a weekend get together in January.
