Christmas is going to be different this year. A different home. A different shaped family. But even with all the changes that have gone on over the last year some things will also remain the same – for the children's sake more than anything else.
After a difficult year though (that shows no signs of getting calmer any time soon) I feel ready to pause the day-to-day madness and spend time with my family and celebrate the festive season. With December up on us and decorations up wherever you go I'm even starting to look forward to hearing Christmas music in the coffee shops I work in most days. Well, almost!
One thing that has been helping me get into the Christmas mood though is a wonderful Christmas family hamper sent to me by the lovely folk at Jet2.com and Jet2holidays. In one box they've given me everything I need to get into the holiday spirit. I can curl up with a mug of Christmas tea or hot chocolate, hugging my new hot water bottle, eating either mince pies of shortbread Christmas trees. The children will be sat at the kitchen table making a Christmas scene whilst the pieces for their gingerbread house cook in the oven. On the stove will be a pan of mulled wine. The aroma filling the house. Later on, we can all sit down together as a family and play a game of Articulate. It sounds like exactly the kind of relaxing scene that I could really do with right now.
If that wasn't enough I can also look forward to a chocolate treat each morning as I open my Jet2holidays advent calendar – after all, who buys an advent calendar for the person who buys them for everyone else in the family?
The chocolate advent calendar won't be the only thing that I'll be doing on a daily basis in December though. If you head over to the Jet2holidays website they're running a competition from the 1st to the 26th December where you get a daily chance to answer a holiday themed question and be entered into a free prize draw for a Jet2holiday. What's even better is that if you pre-register on their website (which I've just done – it only takes 60 seconds) you get an extra chance each day.
What are you waiting for? Who doesn't want to start 2018 knowing that you've already got a holiday in the bag.
Disclaimer: We were sent this Christmas family hamper by Jet2.com and Jet2holidays. All opinions remain my own.