* I wish it could be Christmas every day * - It's the 2017 Christmas Chatter Thread

04624181

Good Morning all,
The school get up wasnt as bad as I thought. I really do love the dark mornings x
I nipped into b&M yesterday and they a speaker playing Christmas tunes. It really lifted my spirits.
I saw so many things I wanted to buy but Im holding off now until payday. Right off to finish my brew and get ready for work. Would much rather be Christmas planning but heyho

Stokiebecks- oooh what are your handmade gifts? Do you have piccies please?
Vintagehistorian-that must of been scary. They were letting fireworks off round here at about 10pm last night. Dog went mad.
missmoose- sorry, not up on Pandora charms but I hope you get sorted out.
alja-sparkly mulled wine conserve sounds lovely, I may have to purchase for my mum.
vulpix- 4am! wow that is early, hope you managed to catch up on some sleep. I too do the - what is the real time, before we mess with the clocks.
GIYD- Good grief GIYD that takes me back x Glad you found it
jakes-mum- glad you got taken out by hubby to make up for it. Hope you anage to find a fitbit
gtq- Do you not normally have a cake for yourself GTQ? Aw bless you to bake all those cakes and not have one for you xx
Peppa- Thanks for the heads up on Unicorn Glasses, my DD is unicorn mad! will pick one up on my travels x
nic2075- I too love having my nephews and I enjoy their company but Im glad to hand them over at the end of the babysitting lol. My youngest is 7 x
Vulpix- if you have room for one more on the weight loss bandwagon I would love to join. Im going to weigh myself at the gym tomorrow evening. You know how it goes with orthopeadics/spinal surgeons, they want to see you losing weight.

StokieBecks

The trees were cheap from eBay. I have painted them and stuck them to matching coloured backgrounds and popped them into box frames. The hearts now have been etched with names for each family so they need sticking on. Each one has cost me less than£10 to make up and think Iwould have paid far more if I bought them all ready done - and this way they are colour matched to whose home they are going to.

StokieBecks

And some of the cards I have done

vulpix

WOW Stokie B,very impressive,I love them.

0462 yep,come on in,we can do half a stone before Christmas.Sadly I have put 2 stone on since I had my op 2 years ago.I don't think the surgeon would have operated if I was this big.Certainly wouldnt have been able to have my gall bladder out.They wanted me as skinny as possible for that.Me n skinny have never been said in the same sentence!

Vx

murie

GYD- Im in the same boat I'm afraid but 1lb a week is a start that I desperately need to make. To say my jeans are feeling snug is an understatement, cutting off the blood supply to my legs would be nearer the mark!


Stokie- those are lovely, Im sure they will be well appreciated by the recipients.
046 .. the more the merrier x
Vulpix- hope you had a better nights sleep x
Nic- wow that was a houseful! I bet it seems quiet by comparison now?
GTQ- all that baking and none for the cook? You deserve a little slice of Christmas cake on Christmas day x
Vintage Historian- there were fireworks going off here last night, some of them were lighting up the bedroom through the curtains. Our Hound is scared stiff of the bangs the make.
Alja- that's sounds like my kind of preserve!! DS bought me a jar of Bucks Fizz lemon curd from TK Max lastw eek that Im saving for Christmas morning breakfast.
Missmouse- I second what Peppa says about Pandora charms. Good luck with the hunt.


Its bloomin cold (and Christmassy) today!

Peppapig

OMG I just spoke to Lewis! Kevin Whately lives in the same village as me and I've seen him before (he walked past my house once) but this morning we walked past each other and I said 'good morning' and so did he! I was so excited, I did a little dance when I'd passed him, I loved Morse and I love Lewis. I feel just like I did when I saw the Queen at Ascot lol. Sorry, not remotely festive but I just had to share. :j:j:j

rae123

Hi everyone! Sorry I missed the Christmas wrapping party, had my mum and step dad staying over!

I did manage to get quite a bit of Christmas shopping done on Sunday though, super happy with the things I brought! Maplin seem to have quite a few reduced bits which I was impressed with. Went into Card Factory to buy some wrapping paper and saw some lovely candles - including a gin and tonic one - for £2.99! Obviously had to pick one up for myself. The pyjamas gift sets in Primark are so good this year, they have lovely silky disney ones! Bought myself an elf pair!

Still got a few more people to buy for, including the hardest of all, my OH, but finally chipping away at the list!

mandco

sorry I missed the wrapping party we ended up going to a halloween party

storkiebecks some beautiful crafts there I'm sure they will be well received

ordered a few more xmas bits
dd loves the real technique make sponges and superdrug had some reduced plus 3 for 2 they had quite a few xmas bits reduced I also got her a flamingo keyring mirror £1

wilko are also doing a gingerbread candle this year haven't tried it but it smelt pretty good so might be worth a look if no luck in HB

theworks have some lovely xmas bits
elf/santa themed gift baskets ideal for hampers https://www.theworks.co.uk/c/christmas-shop/christmas-decorations
santa/elf pets beds https://www.theworks.co.uk/p/xmas-gift-guide/christmas-pet-bed/5052089218482 ordered the elf one for chewie

was a bit disapointed with the boots no7 calendar this year as its virtually the same contents as last year so didn't bother on the plus side it means I still have points to spend

Still need to find presents for 2/7/8 year old girls budget of £5 any suggestions appreciated as no idea at the moment

alja

StokieBecks ...they all look really great!
vulpix - I think I'm with you on the losing weight a little before Christmas. I've not been allowed to exercise recently due to hosp visits, but have walked where I can (but not as much as needed), so need to do something before I pile on any more!
murie - bucks fizz lemon curd sounds amazing! I'll look out for that when I next walk by one...


I really need to get burning and enjoying my gingerbread candle, not sure when to start burning it though...


I forgot to say that I found some of that £land gingerbread latte, so I picked up a few boxes as I'm sure I'm going to love it too


Me and OH have been talking holidays this weekend. We're thinking of a big holiday next year but it's looking like it may cost £2.5k each *gulp* ...so I really need to start thinking of ways to cut back on things to ensure I build up my savings a little more for that...

treeny_bash

Hi all


So jealous of everyone getting a head start on their present buying and stocking up! I've had a couple of ideas for a few people, but really need to get a move on - October has totally flown past, so I know that I'll blink and it'll be the end of November in a minute!


I did sit down with OH and agree a budget for presents, so that's a start at least. I had a list of about 20 things that I wanted to get sorted out last weekend, including rearranging the garage to make space for the new freezer, finishing everything for my stall at the craft fair and tidying up the garden.I did manage to get *some* stuff made for the stall, but I'm far from finished, which is frustrating and a little worrying since it's this Saturday :eek:, but the garage is still a mess. I've just been out and done half an hour in the garden so it looks slightly better now.


The other thing we did this weekend is make a Christmas cake! It's really hard because OH wants to be involved and starts sulking if I make decisions or buy things without him, but at the same time he's just not as excited as me so I have to catch him at the right time. He helped me make the cake and was really pleased that we'd done it together, so I just need to seize these kinds of opportunities to do stuff.


I had a chat with my mum last night about Christmas Day, and she dropped the bombshell that they're not intending to get to mine until 12 noon on the day. But it's fine, because they're not opening presents or anything at their house, that's all at mine. They're going to church at 10.45 and "couldn't possibly" come over before church. Never mind that church is about 5 minutes drive from my house and 20 minutes from theirs. Or the fact that I might want to go with them. I'm trying not to get upset about it, because she's bound to have changed her mind again in a couple of days, but I just don't understand why she thinks that's ok! Either my in-laws, OH and I have to hang around not doing anything until 12, or we all open our presents without them and just do their presents when they get here. And either I have to spend all morning making dinner by myself or don't get it started until 2pm and it'll be 6 before we eat. Either way it's really selfish of them - they know how excited I am to be hosting for the first time, so to suddenly tell me that they won't be there all morning makes me feel like telling them not to bother!


And to all the dieters, we're with you here too. Logging all our food in my fitness pal and trying to make good choices. Through a communication method of hints and winks I'm pretty sure OH has bought an engagement ring, so there'll be a pretty dress to be slimming into very soon....