Christmas 2017

 

I took some time considering whether to write this blog or whether not to bother. I mean Christmas and new year celebrations are pretty similar in everyone’s house right? We all eat and drink 300 times more than normal, gain stupid amounts of weight and get socks. I actually really enjoy getting socks for Christmas, albeit quite particular about the ones I receive – if they’re not black and from M&S I won’t wear them. If they are themed, for example Gracie bought me a buzz light year pair, they go in my Dad Stuff draw. Anyway, I decided to write and I’m writing about socks…knob head! As much as this blog is for you it’s for me too, to reflect on in years to come and for Gracie/Baby Hew No2 to see what utter rubbish I wrote.

We had a pretty hectic Christmas. We had my Mar-in-law (Mar as in Nick Cotton calling Dot Mar…..I’m not sure if she knows that’s where it originated from though), Brother-in-law and his fiancé staying with us from the 23rd to 27th December as well as my sister and Gracie’s God Mother with us for Boxing Day.

On Christmas Eve we all went out for a walk. There was a Christmas pudding walk at a woods local to is. We stared well but missed the third Christmas pudding so just wandered around for a bit until Gracie got bored. Gracie mainly sat on my shoulders because she was scared of the Troll under the bridge. I tried to convince her that it wasn’t going to get us but she was happy pulling my hair and ears.

We also went to our local crib service. We’re not regular Church goers, we did have Gracie Christened and always say we will try and go but this is the first service we have been to this year. It was good to see Gracie with the other kids, she got to be Mary which she quite enjoyed. They sang a few carols and few nursery rhymes. I didn’t burst into flames so was quite a success.

Gracie set out her plate for Father Christmas with a mince pie, carrot and glass of milk. She had to test the milk before leaving it out! We left some food out for Rudolf, we left it in a bowl in the garden….definitely easier to empty the bowl than to pick all the bits out of the garden. Tradition in our house is to test the Beef on Christmas Eve so before the presents were delivered from Father Christmas we stuffed our faces.

Putting the presents under the tree is bullshit. The bottom of our tree practically touches the floor so the presents go around the tree rather than under. And it’s in the corner of the room so they actually sit under the window. We bought Gracie a bike….the hardest fucking thing to wrap in the world! We decided to stick a bow on the front and put it under the window with the other presents.

Gracie’s reaction was priceless when she walked through the living room on Christmas morning. I set the GoPro up in the tree and caught her walking straight to her bike ‘oh it’s perfect’ ‘look it’s beautiful’. We put her favourite Dolly, Margret, in the seat and she was so excited to see her there. Epic Dad fail, Gracie didn’t want to open any other presents and just wanted to sit on her bike. I had to take it out of the room before she would open anything else.

It was good to watch her this year. This is the first year she properly understood what was going on. This was also the first year she was able to tell people what she thought of her presents. In the main she was really grateful for her presents. There were a few things she was less pleased about opening, a pair of PJs she didn’t like because they would make her sweaty, Hungry Hippos because it wasn’t on her list and a toy dog because it was on Daddy’s list not hers so Father Christmas must have got it wrong.

I cook Christmas dinner in our house so once Gracie got bored of opening presents (she opened them in three sittings) I made my way to the kitchen. I make the most epic Christmas dinner and I really enjoyed cooking it. I really dislike people in the kitchen though, just getting a drink, just testing the turkey, just seeing what your up to…..fuck off and let me cook! To be fair I was a little bit more sociable this year and was less bothered about people in the kitchen, especially as the Mar-in-law did most of the washing up!

Gracie wanted to open everyone’s crackers and was really disappointed with the shit inside them. She also made up her own jokes, ‘what’s the smelliest animal on the farm?……..Goats’ which to be fair was funny and accurate!

On Boxing Day the older females went shopping, clearly Mummy Hew didn’t get enough for Christmas….hint taken for next year! Gracie and I went and played out on the front green with her new bike. The classic Christmas scene, small child gleefully riding bike, except this one hasn’t learnt peddles yet so I was pushing her round. I wouldn’t have minded but I was struggling to digest half a Yule Log I snuck in for breakfast and could barely walk!

Also to note I got fuck all in the sales this year, other than a new phone case, aftershave, smartwatch, polo shirt, shoes and a nutri-bullet…but other than than I got sweet FA! I always moan at Mummy Hew for sale shopping but apparently it was me shopping this year 🙈

We had a switch over of family for New year. My Farther-in-law and his wife came to visit as the others left and stayed until New Year’s Day. To be totally honest, it wasn’t the new year we would normally have, very civilised sat round the dining table playing board games. I’m normally shit faced and up until stupid o’clock in the morning, but not this year. We took them to an antiques shop in the village up the road. I was eye rolling and muttering expletives under my breath….I couldn’t think of anything more boring (except maybe reading this blog 🤪). We wander round this antique shop, I’m touching everything I shouldn’t and keep getting told off, but then I spot something. I couldn’t believe there was something in an antique shop that I would be interested in, furthermore I bloody bought it! A silver carving knife, fork and sharpening set. 30 fucking quid, couldn’t walk past it!

I cooked New Years dinner…which was the best dinner I’ve had all year! I had my first nap of the festive period, a full hour, I shit you not! I went for a run, yes an actual run on New Years Day….seamed a good idea at the time. Mummy Hew ran me a bubble
bath….I’m not normally fond of a bath but was nice to just sit and chill, only feedback was that there was no smelly candles and I had to scrub my own back 😒

The festive period has been a bit of a blur. I’m not going back to work until Thursday because the Nursery is closed😝, we have a consultant appointment for Baby Hew No2 on Wednesday and I need to find something to do with Gracie after, our house is the biggest shithole ever although we are slowing getting though all the boxes and packaging everything comes in – Gracie’s Room is the only Room that’s been fully sorted.

I’ve been thinking about this blog and the direction to take it in 2018, I feel I just ramble a lot. Once I’ve decided I’ll blog about it. I’ve had a play around with the page and have a new look for 2018….we’ll see how long it lasts before I get bored.

I’ll blog again later in the week to let you know how the consultant appointment goes but for now, Happy 2018!