Christmas with Devilishly Destructive Delights

Hard to believe it is almost a week since Christmas Day. After so much hype, so much shopping and preparation it's over for another year. 

We spent Christmas Day at our new home. Just me, Richard and Murphy and it was perfect. Last year we had our first Christmas together as a family and spent Christmas Eve talking about all the traditions we had as kids and how we wanted our first Christmas to be and from that we have made our own traditional Christmas Day. 

This year we woke up at around 9am and chilled out in bed for a while before I went downstairs, made tea and of course got mine and Richards stockings that had been hanging on the stairs. We then took it in turns to each open a present which really did make the magic last. Murphy helped too by shredding the paper into hundreds of pieces all over the bed. 

We both got changed into our tacky Christmas jumpers and decided against the fry up we had planned- my thoughts were that it was a little too late to be having a filling fry up bare in mind we had a big Christmas lunch planner. Richards thoughts? Presents, presents, presents! So we sat down and decided to let Murphy open his presents first from his stocking so that he could play with his news toys and leave us to open ours. Murphy was particularly lucky this year as he not only received presents from us but Richards Mum and my parents who have rather taken a liking to him. He was immediately taken by my parents gift of a great bug rawhide bone, so much so that he refused to open any of his other presents and we were well and truly left in peace for the morning. 

Again we took it in turns to open our presents, something my family have always done and it's something I feel strongly about. The number of people I know that open the presents separate to their family is in my mind, madness! I love seeing people's reactions and getting a chance to see what they have and from who. I also think it makes the gift giving experience last an awful lot longer, in fact we didn't finish opening our presents for a good two hours after we first came downstairs.

We did a quick tidy up so that Murphy didn't slip over anymore wrapping paper and so that the table was clear for Richard to make his lego models and then for me to make it pretty for our Christmas lunch, another tradition we have.

I had spent a lot of Christmas Eve making and preparing the food for the day including a huge dish of tiramisu. Our Christmas dinner consisted of a turkey crown, Brussels, carrots, roast parsnips, herby roast potatoes, stuffing and of course pigs in blankets. I made the mistake last year of making far too much food for the two of us (three if you include Murphy's mini dinner) so I tried desperately hard not to make the same mistake. I failed. Although there wasn't as much left over there was enough to feed at least two more people which really does show how hard it is to cook a meal for two when it involves so many essential items. 

Full of food and drink we made our way over to the sofa and spent the rest of our day watching some of the many Christmas recordings we had as well as starting some of the Christmas DVDs we had received along with some munchy Christmas food. There really is nothing like cuddling up on the sofa with my two favourite boys on what is the best day of the year.

We were overwhelmed by just how many gifts we received this year and feel truly blessed, if not a little spoilt. Roll on next years festivities...

Devilishly Destructive Delights Talks: A Cheap and Cheerful Christmas

I love everything about Christmas! Particularly the decorations. So you can imagine my excitement last year when it was my very first Christmas away from home and my opportunity to kit out our new house, make our own traditions and cook lots and lots of delicious food. However moving out does mean being short of cash so for us last Christmas was all about doing it on a budget. 

We managed to do the decorating- the tree, the lights, the tinsel, the lot for about £30 with not a bit of tack in sight! So with that in mind I thought I would share with you the best deals around and how to keep Christmas not only cheap but cheerful too! 

One

Now the tree can often be one of the most important and expensive parts of Christmas when decorating the home. Fortunately we found a bargain at our newly opened The Range store last year and picked up a 5ft tree for a tenner! We pulled it out again this year and it's still in great shape. As much as I would have loved to have had a real tree just as my parents have always had it is slightly on the pricey side and we also have the concern of Murphy eating it! This was my first ever artificial tree and I'm thrilled with it. None of the needles have fallen off unlike many of my friends trees, it is easy to put together (not to mention hide away) and is really adaptable in terms of its shape. I have found a similar tree (if not identical) for less than £18 which will certainly last for years to come and is a worthwhile investment in my eyes.

One | Two | Three

Once you have the tree it's time to decide on a theme. Last year we chose the classic red and gold theme to fit in with our front room colours and it is something we have stuck with this year. We found this great chunky tinsel in The Range last year but it is available in B&M as well at the bargain price of 99p or 4 for £3! It is great quality for money and so far none of it has decided to shred all over the carpet. We chose five bits in total and they wrap around our tree perfectly and show no signs of wearing out any time soon. 

Next it's time to think of the lights! Now if I'm honest this was the part I was looking forward to the least simply because I had it in my head that they would be very expensive and confusing. There are so many different styles, colours and speeds available it can be slightly overwhelming and I was convinced these would be more expensive than the tree! So we were so pleased to find some budget lights in The Range last year for £4.99. We purchased two sets and they fit around our tree perfectly! They are available again this year too so go grab yourself a bargain. Fancy something more fancy? Why not get these chaser lights from B&M for less than £8? I also treated myself (and my kitchen) to some more lights this year for the bargain price of £2.50! These are currently around my tiny kitchen window filling the room with colourful light and reassuring our neighbours we aren't Scrooges after all!

One | Two | Three | Four | Five

There are a massive selection of baubles on offer now and as much as I love inididual pieces you can't beat a bulk buy. Last year we bought a whole tube of gold, red and green baubles for less than £3 which covered our whole tree. Once again B&M and The Range offer some great deals with bauble sets for as little as £1.99 for as many as 49! Fancy more unique pieces? Why not make your own out of salt dough? I made two last year with mine and Richards initials on them and this year I may even make a paw print decoration for Murphy. I also love the reindeer and snowman decorations from B&M and will certainly have be adding them to the collection of individual items on our tree such as the crowns and signs.

One | Two | Three | Four

When it comes to decorating the home you can't just stop at the tree. It's so much more than that now. I love these little reindeer and will certainly be getting this one from B&M for the front room. If you fancy something a little bit more robust why not get this reindeer from The Range for £14.99 which would look lovely in a porch to welcome your guests. Christmas sacks are really big this year and are much nicer than the tacky old gift bags and at £1 you can't deny this Santa sack is fantastic quality for money! Christmas wouldn't be Christmas without a stocking which is a tradition I have introduced to Richard and Murphy. We now all have one and fill it with lots of goodies to open in bed on Christmas morning. B&M have a selection of lovely stocking for £1.99 including this lovely Father Christmas design. 

So there are some of the great deals out there for a cheap and cheerful Christmas. If you still don't believe it can be done here are some pictures of how my house is kitted out for Christmas, with not a bit of tack in sight!