The top 20 things I love about this time of year...

The panic that tends to come at this time of year can sometimes obscure the little moments of pleasure that the season brings - not on Christmas Day itself, but the few days before and after...

Here are my top 20 that I love:

1. Hoping for snow (or at the very least, a really heavy frost!) - opening the curtains in the morning or glancing out of the window and seeing everything coated in white.
2. The smell of the decorations box - OK, I know that’s weird, but the box always has a certain type of smell (loft smell perhaps?!) that instantly takes me back to childhood Christmas’s and gives me a little flutter of excitement.
3. Putting the presents under the tree on Christmas Eve
4. Having a house full of food and family.
5. Trying to get the dog and cat to accept they’re going to get dressed up - albeit very briefly!
6. Cold turkey and chips for Boxing Day lunch!
7. Mulled Wine
8. Watching Christmas movies  - I can never decide which one’s my favourite, but I’d say my top 3 are “It’s a Wonderful Life”, “Elf”, “Muppets Christmas Carol”, and “Arthur Christmas”. Oh, sorry, that’s 4. Oh well!
9. The sparkle of the lights on the Christmas tree
10. Seeing Freddy dog in his winter coat - technically he doesn’t need it, but he looks so handsome in it…
11. Enjoying the small squeaks of excitement that my daughter emits every now and then during the couple of days before Christmas Day.
12. Going off the ‘Wish List’ and surprising someone with a really special present you know they’re going to love even though they didn’t know they wanted it until now!
13. Going for chilly walks with the dog (bonus if it snows of course!)
14. Playing ‘Spot the Lights’ to see who’s the first person to spot a house with their decorations up in the run up to Christmas. (I won this year, the neighbours put them up at the end of November.)
15. Not having to think twice about what to eat - and it being OK to have chocolate or marzipan before lunch (or breakfast).
16. Candles 
17. Playing board games over the holiday
18. Mulled Wine…. Did I say that already?
19. Taking time off work and knowing that people accept you’re away - it’s the time of year when pretty much everyone is taking a holiday.
20. That lovely relaxed feeling after Christmas Day when you can sit back and know that all the hoo-har is over and now it’s time to put your feet up.

What little festive pleasures do you have at this time of year? 

Sarah x