I am a DisneyLife Brand Ambassador and this post was created in partnership with DisneyLife, who have provided me with a free 12 month DisneyLife subscription. Read on for my five favourite Disney Christmas songs.

disney Christmas songs

It’s time for a quick Christmas quiz for you about me!

When it comes to Christmas songs, do I:

a) Prefer to wait until Christmas Eve to pop on a Bublé classics album at a moderate volume

b) Think it’s all a bit silly and prefer to sit quietly watching the Queen’s speech

c) Hum Jingle Bells to myself throughout the whole year and then insist on playing a Christmas playlist in the office from about mid-November.

If you didn’t answer ‘C’ then get out – you don’t know me at all. What are you even doing here? Have you not seen my hat? View Post

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If you had said to me, a couple of weeks ago, ‘Beano Christmas gifts‘, I’d have said annuals.

That’s it isn’t it?

You know that big display in WHSmiths where you can always buy one get one free on annuals of stuff you’re not sure you’ve ever even heard of? (Seriously, what actually are Shopkins please?!)

This week though I’ve made a discovery.

Beano now has so much more to offer than annuals!

In fact Beano has this whole online Beano shop full of really cool stuff, like Dennis the Menace t-shirts for men, spud guns, stationary, cards – all of the things. You can even buy comic subscriptions – they are currently offering 13 issues for just £17, with a free Beano beanie worth £13.99! That’s a pretty good deal.

Christmas gifts Beano View Post

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Have you seen the Sainsbury’s Christmas advert?

The theme is family, togetherness, that sort of thing. It’s been made using stop frame animation and it apparently took 420 hours to film the stop frame part, with another eight weeks post production time on top of this. You can watch it here if you’ve not seen it already:

As part of their Christmas activity this year, Sainsbury’s is also supporting Great Ormond Street Hospital through the sale of stop frame animation kits and gingerbread ‘Daves’. All the profits from the sale of these items will go to the Great Ormond Street Hospital Children’s Charity.

Sainsbury's Christmas advert Great Ormond Street

Sainsbury’s sent me and Belle one of their animation kits to have a look at, along with a couple of gingerbread Daves, which we sort of accidentally ate straight away. (Just in case you’re wondering why these don’t appear in the animation.) The kit is really well put together and comes in a sturdy box that folds out to create two different sets. You get a well-written film-maker’s guide, a few props and some cardboard characters. View Post

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These t-shirts from Son of a Tailor are genius.

If you’ve been wondering what to get for Christmas for your husband, dad, brother, awkward nephew, then your search is over. You’re welcome. (Plus read on and I have a discount code.)

Son of a Tailor make custom fitted t-shirts for men, totally bespoke, made to order, exactly as you want them. You simply buy a gift card, and it comes presented like this, making it an ace looking present.

Son of a Tailor discount code

Inside you get a tape measure and a gift card, with a code to create a free t-shirt. Free international shipping is included as standard. They have really gone the extra mile here to turn what could have just been an emailed discount code into something really special. (You don’t get the cotton reels – you’re not expected to make the t-shirt yourself – that’s just me being fancy with props.) View Post

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How early is too early to put up a Christmas tree?

I say ‘NEVER!’

Fiancé says that anything before the second week of December is common. I pointed out that I AM quite common, which he accepted was probably true.

I was prepared to compromise. Our tree at home – always a real one – would wait and instead I would decorate my office.

Hoorah!

An office Christmas tree is definitely allowed to go up earlier, because you don’t spend as much time at work over the actual Christmas period and so you need more time to appreciate the sparkles. Luckily I share an office with a friend, Paul, who is just as easily excited about Christmas as me, and another, Marcus, who is only young and so happily goes along with whatever I tell him.

Paul and I agreed that November 25th – one month exactly until Christmas – was an excellent time to head to Poundstretcher to fill a basket with all things sparkly.

I’ve never bought an artificial tree before and was a bit worried that it would look naff. It really doesn’t though. We went for a 6ft tree with snow tipped branches and fir cones, which was on special offer and just £24.99. It came in three parts and was very easy to erect – you just slot it together at the trunk and then bend the branches to bush it out a bit. Easy.
Poundstretcher Christmas decorations View Post

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I have a reputation in my family for being very hard indeed to buy presents for. Apparently I have this face when I open presents, that looks kind of disappointed, horrified, sad and indifferent, all at the same time. I’m very conscious of doing the face, and so in my efforts not to, I think I just make it worse.

I’ve tried to recreate what happens for you here:

Chirstmas wish list

You can see why people dread buying me presents.

The truth is though that I don’t ever hate any of the presents. (Okay, so maybe sometimes…) Mainly it’s just that I’m not especially bothered about things. I love buying other people presents and watching them open them, but that’s different. The downside of being a grown up is that if there is anything you desperately want during the year, you just buy it for yourself, so Christmas isn’t that whole thing of finally getting the toy you’ve waited all year for.

So, when it comes to Christmas presents, I find it really hard to think of things I really want.

But then the team at Vorwerk asked me to take part in their #AllIWantForChristmas campaign, designed to uncover what is on the ultimate Christmas wishlists of some of the UK’s top parenting and lifestyle bloggers, (that’s me by the way), so I had to think about it. I did say that a robot hoover probably wasn’t going to be on the list, even though they do look very cool, but they said that was okay, they were just interested to see what did make the list.

I decided that I’d come up with a proper fantasy list – all the things that I’d never be able to buy for myself: View Post

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As you know, the run up to Christmas is my very best bit. Come Christmas afternoon I am done, but the eight weeks or so beforehand are magical. I love the anticipation, buying presents, eating mince pies – all of it. I’ve drunk an entire bottle of sherry already. (Not in one go.) Advent calendars then are big for me. We have a candle too, although I do sometimes forget it for a couple of days and then have to frantically burn it for an entire day to catch up.

There has been a noticeable trend over the last few years away from the boring old cardboard advent calendars to more exciting, indulgent varieties. Playmobil and Lego versions are popular, but the trend has expanded into other areas too, noticeably alcohol (yay!) and make-up.

I thought I’d pick out three of my favourite advent calendars for you, on different themes, in case you fancied treating yourself this year.

Luxury chocolate advent calendar from Godiva

This one is more traditional in that it’s chocolate, but this is not one of your crappy Poundland chocolate advent calendars, where the chocolate tastes a little bit of plastic and despair – this is the daddy of chocolate advent calendars. 25 of your finest Godiva chocolates, including things like ‘the Eclat Feuilletine, which boasts the appreciation of crispy feuilletine pieces that contrast sublimely with smooth praline.’

You know it must be good if you don’t even know what the words mean.

Godiva advent calendar View Post

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This morning we took down the Christmas tree. 

Normally this is an exciting moment for me. I love the build up to Christmas – the shopping and the lights and the endless mince pies – but I tend to get to Christmas morning and have had enough. By Boxing Day I’m twitching nervously, nudging the tree on my way past, trying to encourage a shower of needles and thus justify an early dismantling of all things festive.

dead Christmas tree

This year though I haven’t had that.  View Post

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I know it’s a few days yet, but let’s be honest, this is me – it’s Friday afternoon at the end of a very long term and I’m about ready to chuck my laptop into a pond. I definitely won’t be doing any more work before the festivities begin.

Now, I’m sure you have far better things to do right now than read my blog, and quite frankly, I’ve got better things to do than write it, so I just wanted to say thank you for reading this year, and I hope you have a very lovely Christmas. I always love feedback, so if you have any comments, ideas or suggestions for 2016, or general festive thoughts, just leave a comment or drop me an email. I’d love to hear from you!

HAPPY CHRISTMAS!!

Christmas guinea pig in a hat

Image – Vasily Kovalev/shutterstock

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Today I have a guest post from Bee, about her favourite Christmas traditions.

Christmas presents

All of my 20 Christmases so far have comprised of the same basic elements that I rely on to officially make it Christmas every year. Things generally happen in about the same way every time and I like the way things are. This year, however, I am going for my first Christmas in Ireland. I’m going for four days, which I am currently trying to manage in my mind as I really don’t like being away from London, let alone being abroad. Hopefully Christmas will still be nice though, even if I have to get my head around not having the usual Christmas traditions to look forward to. View Post

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Christmas is nearly here. It’s basically only a few days away, right? With that in mind, I have a present for you! Well, the opportunity to win a present.

I’m giving away a little selection of goodies from Belle & Boo. Belle is an adorable little bob-haired girl and Boo is her small bunny companion. As you can imagine, all of the products are really cute. Cute coming out of their ears. 

As well as the lovely characters and the beautiful quality of the products, I particularly love the fact that the company is based in Bristol. One of my favourite things about Bristol when I lived there was all of the independent shops and brands that sold lots of pretty things that you can’t find anywhere else. Luckily though, Belle & Boo products are all available online, if you don’t fancy a trip to Bristol to find them.

I’ve really loved this company for a while now, especially because I have my very own Belle, and so they make ace presents for her. It’s not that I have deliberately given my children names that lend themselves to gifts, but it wouldn’t really be Christmas without Bee saying “Oh wow… a fridge magnet with a bee on it… yay… thanks…” 

I have a lovely little bundle of things for give away today, not least this cool snowman wall sticker, which you put together yourself as individual stickers:

build-a-snowman-wall-sticker- View Post

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We had dinner last night with my auntie and cousin. They are going to be hosting Christmas for the first time this year and last night’s roast chicken was a bit of a trial run; we tested out the elbow room on the dining table, ate some pigs in blankets and talked about the schedule for the day.

It got me thinking about the Christmas traditions that we have created for ourselves as a family over the years and made me wonder how many of them are shared by other people.

Here are 12 of my Christmas rules, but what are yours?

12 rules of Christmas

1. At some point in the week before Christmas we have a festive trip to Marks & Spencer, where I let the children put (pretty much) whatever they want in the trolley. (No spirits for Belle.) We spend at least £100, and come away with absolutely nothing that can be turned into a meal. It’s all about the cheese savouries and mini ovenable treats. View Post

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