This week my Word of the Week is: Presents!! #WotW

This week my Word of the Week is:

I love this time of year, I have hit that magic point where I’m almost Christmas ready, not quite done but so close that that the panic has stopped and the fun bit can finally begin. It’s crazy to think that in a couple of weeks it’ll all be over and we will be heading into a new year.

Earlier this week my Dad took me shopping like he does every December, it's our little yearly tradition of trekking around the supermarket and filling the trolley with all the freezer bits for over Christmas. We had such a nice morning. Nothing fancy, just chatting, wandering and my Dad stopping every few minutes to speak to people he knows, how does one person know so many people! Of course I ended up buying more presents. I’d fully planned on giving a couple of people money in a card and then I spotted some lovely gifts and thought that's perfect and so much nicer than money. I couldn't help buying more for the girls and to be fair Ellie actually did need the thing I bought her. Something for her bedroom that she’s wanted ages, the only reason I’ve not bought it before is because the idea of dragging it home on the bus made me want to cry. I could’ve ordered it online but the price difference was crazy! Hooray for my dad and his car.

Every time I sat down this week and got comfy, without fail someone has knocked on the door with yet another parcel for Becky. She’s done nearly all her Christmas shopping online and had everything delivered, which is very organised of her except she works nights, sleeps during the day and I have become her unofficial parcel secretary. I feel like I've spoken to more delivery drivers than actual people this week. I had my own little moment of chaos with parcels this week. I got a text saying I had a DPD parcel arriving between something like 11am and 1pm. So there I was waiting but then I get the your parcel has been delivered message, I open the photo and it is not my house. I had a little panic and then it hit me, it wasn’t my parcel, it was one of the presents I’d ordered for someone else which was delivered to their house. They messaged me, thanked me for the gift and then I realised they had got their Christmas gift, I had sent them a birthday gift which was supposed to arrive before the Christmas one. It was all so confusing but they have their gifts so all is good.

I dedicated 2 days to wrapping presents this week as I do every year, plonked myself on the floor, legs going numb within about five minutes and just got on with it. I got everything wrapped and I am now laughing that the girls still haven’t started and Stu still has mine to do too. This is Ellie’s first year buying Christmas gifts with her own money and bless her she’s already learned an important life lesson: do not buy awkwardly shaped presents unless you’re prepared to suffer. Not one single thing she bought is in a normal square box, everything is round, lumpy, strange shaped or comes in packaging designed by a complete lunatic.

Present wise I’m pretty much done now. Everything’s bought, wrapped, organised and waiting to be delivered to family. This is the easy part, the fun bit. dropping things off and having a little catch up. I will of course get a telling off from my dad, saying we shouldn't have bought him anything. it's practically a tradition now. It isn't that he's not grateful, he just thinks we should spend our money on ourselves. It's just a joke now between my brother and I as to who can wind him up the most. hehehe

I am expecting a present of Sky today! Our internet went off yesterday so Stu rang up and the guy on the phone said our router was not working so he'd send a new one out. It was only after when I went on Facebook saw Sky Broadband was down in our area. Eesh. So if there is no blog post tomorrow you know our internet is still off and I have limited access.

How has your week been? I hope you have had a good week. I am of course linking up with Anne who blogs at Raisie Bay to join in with her Word of the Week linky!

What I have loved this week! Week 50. #FridayFavourites

Hello there and happy Friday! I've been thinking, the first few months of the year drag and since October time has flown over! I’m torn between wanting Christmas to hurry up because I love it and wanting everything to just slow down a little so I can actually enjoy it without feeling like someone’s pressed fast forward on my life. Anyway, I’m linking up with Erika and Andrea again to share what I've been loving over the last week, week 50. We are so close to the end of the year!

Not catching the cold!

I'm classing this as a big win. I’ve dodged the cold, the one my eldest had. Bless her but the quarantining her to her bedroom worked. She’s better, she’s back at work and so far none of us have caught it. I feel like I should get a medal for avoiding germs.

A little treat!

You know when your kids do something small that just warms your heart more than any grand gesture could, Ellie did exactly that. She was out and about minding her own business and spending more money than she planned and she spotted a Maltesers Reindeer and bought me one! They only cost about a pound but she thought of me and I am never going to refuse chocolate! This is the kind of parenting win they don’t tell you about in all the books, it’s moments like this that make you think that they have been listening and I have raised a thoughtful child!

Half the Christmas food shop is done!

I went out with my dad during the week and bought all the freezer stuff for Christmas. We went with turkey and gammon for the meat, I got the sprouts with bacon bits and of course some extra stuffing because you can never have enough stuffing! I also bought a ton of party/picky bits. Mini quiches, sausage rolls, mini pizza, chicken on sticks and things like that! The freezer is full and I had a game of Tetris fitting everything in but it will keep up going well into the new year.

This weird sky!

Now this was a bit strange. I was sat here on Sunday, minding my own business and I glanced out the window. The sky was orange and not the usual sunset strip of colour either, the whole sky looked like someone had thrown a giant Instagram filter over it. There is no filter needed on the photo because nature was doing its own weird editing. It was eerie but also really pretty in an should I be worried kind of way.

Amazon Prime!

I need to take a moment to appreciate my eldest girls shopping skills! She absolutely smashed her Christmas shopping. She started Monday afternoon and was finished by Tuesday evening. She ordered just about everything with Amazon Prime and there have been deliveries all week. She wouldn't have managed without it. She picked up the last few bits in town and she's done, apart from the wrapping which she says she is doing tomorrow.

Spotify Wrapped!

I was late in seeing my Spotify Wrapped and last weeks post was already scheduled so it's making this week! Of course Taylor Swift was the top artist in our house but surprisingly Whiskey in the Jar by Metallica was our top song! I think we all listen to it, it's one of our families favourites.

Harry Potter!

I am having my annual watch of the Harry Potter movies. I only started watching because it said on Netflix they were leaving soon. My youngest has been watching them too and I cheated on her yesterday and watched the 5th one without her. I'm not even sorry, I'll happily watch it again.

What have you loved over the past week?

My December playlist: Festive cheer & Zero Buble!

Every December something strange happens to me. I go from being a perfectly reasonable human to someone with very strong feelings about Christmas music!! One minute I’m feeling all calm and twinkly and the next I’m acting like a security guard of my own playlist! It’s crazy how a song can flip your whole mood. One jingle and I’m ready to deck the halls and another and I’m contemplating a long walk into the snow. hehehe So welcome to my December playlist: the good, the bad, the absolutely not on my listen list!

Fairytale of New York - The Pogues

The second those opening notes start I don’t care what I’m doing, I could be wrestling with wrapping paper or trying to find the end of the Sellotape for the 400th time. I’m transported straight into a pub at Christmas where everyone’s singing loudly, no one knows all the lyrics and someone’s spilled their beer but no one cares because it’s festive.

Feliz Navidad - Jose Feliciano!

If joy had a soundtrack this would be it! I could be having the worst morning known to humankind but three seconds into this song and I’m smiling like I’ve just won the lottery! There’s no emotional backstory, no drama, just an instant good mood. 

I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday - Wizzard!

This song feels like sugar, glitter and someone who’s had too many Quality Streets. It’s loud, it’s joyful and it has the energy of a kid who’s been up since 4am asking if Santa came. 

Underneath the Tree - Kelly Clarkson!

This song turns me into a woman who thinks she can sing. I can't, not even a little but Kelly comes in with that festive power and suddenly I’m belting the chorus like I’m auditioning for a Christmas special. 

All I Want for Christmas Is You - Mariah Carey!

People pretend they’re too cool for it until that twinkly intro starts. Mariah owns December and I support her reign. If loving this song is basic then hand me my hot chocolate and leave me be!

Driving Home for Christmas - Chris Rea!

I don’t drive. I don’t even understand road signs but this song makes me feel like I’m gliding along a snowy motorway in a red car wearing a festive scarf, heading home to my family. It’s soothing, gentle and nobody is crying about heartbreak.

Merry Christmas Everyone - Shakin Stevens!

It’s the musical equivalent of a sparkly jumper your nan knitted you, slightly ridiculous but impossible not to love. It makes everything feel soft and snowy even when it’s just raining sideways like a typical December.

Step Into Christmas - Elton John!

It sounds like Elton bursts through your door shouting put your coat on, we’re going out and that’s the kind of energy I need in December!

Do They Know It’s Christmas? - Band Aid

Big and dramatic! It's not something you sing quietly while making tea it’s definitely a sing out loud song! 

Merry Xmas Everybody - Slade! 

It basically kicks the door in and shouts IT’S CHRIIIIIIISTMAS like someone who’s had three Snowballs before lunch. The second Noddy Holder starts yelling, every British person suddenly remembers it’s December. It’s crazy, loud and feels like being hugged by an overexcited relative!

What's not on my playlist and why! 

Anything Michael Bublé!

I know he is a lovely person, he seems like the kind of man who’d help you carry your shopping but the second he starts singing Christmas songs I can feel my soul leaving my body. There’s just something a bit too smooth, too perfect and slightly smug about him. It's like he knows he’s the soundtrack to half of December and he’s fine with it.

Anything overly repetitive or novelty!

Novelty Christmas songs are funny once maybe twice but Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer or I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas quickly crosses the line into chaos. After the second chorus, I start questioning my sanity! 

Last Christmas - Wham!

I loved George Michael, the man had charisma, style and a voice that made you feel things you didn’t even know you were supposed to feel but Last Christmas! Ugh. You can’t escape it. You hear it in every shop, every cafe, every random playlist and suddenly it’s less a festive classic and more a background noise that makes you question why you ever liked it in the first place!

Festive remixes!

Overly modern pop remixes of the classics! Don’t give me Silent Night the DJ Frostbite remix or O Holy Night featuring a random rapper! Nothing ruins my mood faster than a techno remix of a classic carol. No, thank you!

Long instrumental tracks!

They're lovely for about 40 seconds but after that, my brain starts itching. I don’t need a 10 minute jazzy piano version of Silent Night. I can’t wrap presents for 10 minutes straight to that sort of noise, it's just cruel! 

What are your favourite Christmas songs? Which don't you like?

Floor, tape and Marvel movies: My Christmas wrapping routine!

Every year without fail I tell myself the same thing: This year I’ll be ahead of the game, by the beginning of December all the presents will be wrapped, stacked neatly under the tree and I’ll even have time to sip a hot chocolate and watch Christmas movies! hahaha.

Here we are middle of December and somehow not much is wrapped, in fact nothing is! The rolls of paper are still rolled, the ribbons untouched and the scissors are already missing! I even got my eldest to buy some new one's yesterday and those are lost too. The pile of gifts is more of a mountain and as much as I say I hate doing the wrapping, I am sort of looking forward to it. There’s something about wrapping presents that is part of the magic of Christmas.

I’ve tried over the years to have a proper place to wrap presents like at the dining room table or even sitting on the sofa but I always end up on the floor. It’s just easier. I spread everything out, claim a corner of the living room as my own and just deal with the fact that I will have a numb bum and legs for the next couple of hours.

The floor is where it happens, there's a mix of scattered paper scraps, sticky tape stuck to everything it shouldn’t be and a pile of all the price tags if I remember to pull them off. There’s something nice about sitting there, it’s part of the wrapping routine even with the the mess, losing the end of the tape and the way the paper always seems to roll back on itself . Hmmf.

I begin every wrapping, scissors in my hand, ready to slice through paper like a pro but 10 minutes later the scissors are gone! I know I had them, I can see myself holding them but somehow they disappear! Then comes the tape. It sticks to everything except the gift it’s supposed to stick to. I spend half my wrapping time untangling the tape from itself, trying not to scream and the other half of my time trying to find the end of it! I even have one of those tape holders which should make my life easier but it doesn't!

After years of mix ups and lost gift tags I finally found a system that works for me: one wrapping paper design for my eldest and a completely different one for my youngest. There's no guessing and no panicked moments on Christmas morning. The paper itself is the tag!

No wrapping session is complete without some background entertainment. For the last 5 years or so I have watched Avengers: Infinity War while I wrap one of my girls presents and my dad's birthday and Christmas presents. My reason being that it is a decent length film and gives me plenty of time and then when I have my 2nd day of wrapping my other girls presents and everyone else's I watch Avengers: End Game! In total the movies are about 5 and a half hours long so that's plenty of time to wrap everything! The films make the process feel less like work and more like a tradition. I don’t wrap faster, but I wrap happier!

The presents are never wrapped perfectly and it takes time to tidy up but it's all part of the wrapping routine. Even if I tell myself next year everything will be wrapped by the beginning of December I know deep down it won’t happen but that’s OK.

When do you wrap the Christmas presents and where?