Countdown to 2016 - a whole extra day to wait.

[AbbyCadabby]

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[santa]

I'm back to work tomorrow.

Saying that, am eating cheese and crackers, pretending that it isn't really happening.

I've also decided to keep the tree up until 12th night, which I never usually do, but fancy the lights to cheer me up tomorrow as it is inevitable I will feel miserable. It's gone so fast this year.

I hope so!

Well done on getting going.

It has gone so fast this year. Partly why I start early, to make the most of it and enjoy more build up.

Drinking Bailey's and reading amid twinkling fairy lights here. The decs will reluctantly come down on Tuesday afternoon. DH is back at work after two weeks off tomorrow and DD is back to school on Tuesday, the weather is foul so we all need the extra glow for a few days. Tonight we're having our last festive meal before we ease ourselves back into normality - that said we have out twelfth night party on Saturday (always held the Saturday after the day itself) which will include bubbly and crackers, then that's it.

Bought some gorgeous red and gold chasing LED fairy lights today - exactly the type I searched high and low for for the tree this (last!) year! - reduced from £35 to £3.49! Is it too early to be excited for next year's tree?!

Oh Ophelia where did you get the lights from may I ask? Can't find any good ones. Are they indoor or outdoor ones?

Local garden centre Oh2. They have fab bargains at this time of year. I've also seen some good offers on lights in Poundstretcher (they're all half price) and Wilkinsons.

OMG, bargain!!!

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Hi all, I'm back in the land of work, and getting myself back to normal after the strangest Christmas ever. Not the worst, there were no mad rows (despite the potential in both households - grief stricken in 1 and much underlying tension in the other - I have no idea what about and I was NOT going to ask and draw the fire on myself!). But definitely not the best either - spent only 5 nights under my own roof, 2 of those with DSis and her DH visiting, 1 short 1 before travelling again, 2 having only just arrived home late evening (1 of those was when DSis arrived) and the last was at the end of a full day of child protection training (for Scouts). And we've had to buy a second car as MIL is still demanding DH's presence every weekend.

So I am going to take it a bit easy for January. I have stopped the Christmas music but am playing meditation music instead, and slowly making small steps in decluttering some areas of the house. I've a lot of paperwork to do, and a load of meetings outside of work.

But I am determined to pace myself. I need to.

And planning a quiet Christmas AT HOME next year.

And planning a quiet Christmas AT HOME next year

I'll come back in November and remoind you of this >

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70s sigh I fear you may get that snigger....

However, early in the New year, a girl is allowed to fantasize!!

Tree came down last night. DH only brought home 4 boxes from storage unit - the 2 "tree decoration" storage ones (individual slots), but only 2 of the plastic crates. So quite a few boxes for specific decorations and all the tiny baubles are still in another crate there, and all the towels/cups/books etc are loose too. And DD's sheets are still on her bed until the weekend - DH's choice. But he will bring the boxes back to storage today (he can't abide clutter, and the tree counts as clutter).

He did admit though that it was a strange Christmas this year, so there is hope for him.

What a fantastic thread! I always feel really blue when Christmas is over even though I found it a bit hard this year with it being the first Christmas I had to share DS with his dad but we still loved it like we always do and all the build up to it. EXP is old Bah Humbug/Scrooge incarnated so DS was reluctant to go but tried to encourage him.

So hard getting up for work on a morning and getting back into a routine of school and homework (sigh). Tonight I'm taking down all the decorations (another sigh). Another house near me still had their real tree up until at last March last year (admired it from afar!).

But... I always book the pantomime for January as something else to look forward to (Yeah!). We go next week!

Tree comes down tonight.

Diet has started.

Bah, January.

It is depressing isn't it. Decorations down, and now I'm desperate for a chocolate and I've banned myself from them as I commence on the diet. Even the sales are bad..............it's going to be a long slog to next Christmas!!

I was looking at some of the houses with their decorations up, wondering if they were smugly lighting them knowing that it was 12th Night so they still should be up, or panicing looking outside thinking "Are we the only eejits with their lights up"?

Then I found an empty bag of Cadburys Mini Eggs on DS bed
"DS, we haven't officially left Christmas yet and you're troughing down Easter Eggs"

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They had mini eggs and creme eggs in our local post office two weeks before Christmas .

Tree/decs came down last night - was so depressing waking up to a dark, wet morning with no sparkly tree to make things better I've left lots of fairy lights up though, we have a few up all year round but I've left a few more too which I'll take down as the evenings get lighter. Although that seems like a long way off atm. Also changed my username back to its unfestive form. Gah.

Still have a mountain if leftovers to get through - I do every year, and it's by design. January is crap enough already, comfort food helps you get through it! Diets begin in February here Looking forward to our twelfth night party on Saturday (seeing as the day itself is midweek). Have bought some very fancy crackers at 75% off for that!

Boxes were gone when I got home last night. But sheets still on DD's bed, found a bundle of towels under kitchen sink, I know there's a handtowel in the wash, and found a couple of small decorations as well. And 2 more Mr Men books (we have almost all the Christmas ones, against about 4 "regular" ones!).

I am not putting the CDs in storage this year. I have decided.

I actually opened my Stollen last night as well. We weren't around to eat it over Christmas, and had some chocolate cake donated by MIL to get through first. (I actually had bought 2 in Lidl - DH wants me to bring 1 to work but I will get through both, he's away a lot over the next few weeks so I will comfort eat a little). It's full of fruit - so a bit good for me!

For some reason we have a jingly bauble in the cutlery drawer. DS (5) no doubt put it there. And there it can stay all year. It jingles when I pull open the drawer and makes me smile.

Abby I found one of the little golden birds from the tree under the sofa earlier. I've put him on one of the bookcases, where I intend to let him nest all year. He'll be a little reminder of Christmas even in the summer heat

Today I bought one of DD's main presents for next Christmas! She loves a certain type of shoe which are usually quite expensive, and the only time i can really justify buying them is as a Christmas present - she's had a pair for two out of the last three Christmases and was so happy with them. They're beautiful and last really well, too. Anyway, today I passed the shop that sells them and saw they had a massive sale on (they don't usually do sales). I ended up paying £29 instead of the usual £130! She'll never know they were so cheap but even if she did she'd congratulate me on my bargain hunting It feels lovely having a 'good' present put away in the Christmas cupboard again, one of the things I hate about post-Christmas is how empty it looks. There's a few toiletry/makeup bits in there too, which will be bumped up next week on Boots' 70% day.

Room for a little one?

This year brings my 40th (never written that down before...it looks very alien) and my ds starts school in September. I feel it will be an emotional year.

Just remembered there are still baubles in the tree in the garden...they can come down but the pinecone hearts scattered around the place are staying!

Am fat and still full of cheese. Still, it'll soon be Christmas [santa]

Ah Ray you're still in your 30s at the moment (that sounds better doesn't it? )

I'm FIFTY this year. 50 . Half a century.
I will be able to get Saga Life Insurance, Car Ins and Holidays.

Oh, life begins at .............

Aw, little bird sounds cute, nesting all summer.
I need to know what shoes cost £130!

Ray, you are still a youngun'!
Pinecone hearts?

Half a century sounds cool. It is better than the alternative!

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Abby they're handmade brogues made by a small local company. They're absolutely beautiful and last forever, so worth the expense really. Even more worth £29! She's lucky we don't have the same size feet or I'd be tempted to steal them!

Ray I loved turning 40, I felt like a proper grown up 35 was horrible though, I cried all day I turned 35. Daft moo that I am! This year will bring huge changes for me, too - DD off to uni, new jobs for me and DH (hopefully), lots of other stuff too. I keep telling myself that change is exciting and good but I'm still apprehensive!

Now the first week back at work is over, I feel I can join in again. I have my half century as well this year 70. I will try to lose a bit of weight for it once I have finished the Christmas cakes and choc (I haven't got stollen, choc log and Christmas cake to eat - no, not me and the mince pies in the freezer just materialised)

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Oooh we're getting near a LandMark Number Day..........

Two weeks ago now we were watching DD unwrap her presents...