Christmas for me has always been about spending time with family – turning off the phone and the TV and just focusing on being together and having fun. The period from Christmas until New Year is the one time of the year when hubby gets to properly switch off (the joys of running a business!) and we get to enjoy family time without any distractions. For me, it’s also a whole week where there’s a second pair of hands around to help out with the girls. The opportunity to hand over the reins to Daddy for a while and enjoy a little bit of time out every now and then.
December is always a busy month. The run-up to Christmas passes in a whirlwind of parties and events, cards and wrapping paper, shopping lists and to-do lists – with the inevitable pre-Christmas meltdown moment as the big day draws ever closer, followed by the realisation that most of the to-do list isn’t that urgent after all. There’s a mixture of magical moments, joyous moments, crazy moments, stressful moments and moments when it all just feels overwhelming. It’s an emotional rollercoaster of a month in many ways.
Jessica’s heart day in the middle of the month is a reminder of how far we’ve come since our first family Christmas. It’s a reminder of how precious those family moments are – and perhaps sometimes I put a little too much pressure on myself to try and make them magical as a result. It’s often only when I find myself getting overwhelmed by the desire to make Christmas memorable and magical, that I take the step back and realise that just being together is what really matters.
We’ve had magical moments this month but we’ve also enjoyed the mundane moments too. The moments of sitting together as a family playing a board game, or going out for a walk in the fresh air. Sometimes it’s the ordinary moments that make for magical memories.
We’ve had another year of joining in with the Me and Mine project. Our family photos for the year are a mixture of those ordinary moments combined with memorable ones. Photos of the four of us out in the garden alongside photos from holidays, and adventures, and wonderful days out. Seeing our two little girls growing up a little more as the year progresses, and capturing the four of us as a family month-by-month throughout the year.
Lovely photos of you all. I can totally relate about putting too much pressure on yourself to make Christmas magical. The time I’ve most enjoyed has actually been the quiet family time after all the Christmas hubbub has calmed down a bit, so I think that says it all really. Lovely looking back at your family shots from over the year too 🙂
Thank you Caroline – the quiet family time between Christmas and New Year is lovely isn’t it? It’s nice to be able to relax and not have that pressure any more 🙂
Oh wow to Lego Father Christmas!!! I think we might need to go to Legoland next year because that is awesome!
Thank you Carie – can definitely recommend Legoland at Christmas, it was fab 🙂
I love this time of year too. A chance to all be together without the craziness of a holiday or an adventure. Because as much as I love those, it’s also nice to just be together in the comfort of your own home. Lovely photos of you and it’s so nice to see the year round up x #meandmine
Thanks Laura, it is lovely just to be home together – hope you had a lovely first Christmas in your new house x
Lovely photos of the year. I agree I sometimes have to take a step back on trying so hard to find the magic to realise it is right in front of me x
Thanks Laura – it is easy to forget that the magic is right there without us necessarily having to try hard to find it x
It’s a great time of year for families isn’t it? I love the holidays but they are busy too. It’s nice to unwind now and get back to a routine come January. So beautiful to see a whole year of family captures. That’s why I love this project. Happy New Year lovely! #meandmineproject
Thank you Jenny – happy new year to you too 🙂