Our Christmas Eve Essentials

Christmas Eve to us is just as important as Christmas day is with all the prepping and last minute wrapping once Blake is in bed. There is also making the day fun for Blake which is why we do the Christmas Eve box tradition every year. I thought I'd share with you how we prepare for Christmas and what are must haves for us.

Setting the table

 We don't have a dining table as our flat is too small however I do like to set up our coffee table. I like to make sure we have a great centre piece which at the moment is a christmas tree ornament that we got last year. Crackers at Christmas are a must and we tend to usually buy cheap ones in poundland. However this year we have these stunning eco friendly reusable crackers from Keep this cracker.  These crackers are great for the  eco conscious and are flatpacked ready to pop into shape and fill with your own fun treats. They do bang when pulled but don't tear. To reuse them, simply replace the snap which is shown in a video on the website. 

The personalised wreath plate from The personalised gift shop makes the perfect Christmas table decor for displaying them yummy treats on. Whether serving starters, crackers or cheese the plate makes a perfect accessory to your festive table. 

Food and drink

Every year for dinner on Christmas eve we have a buffett it's become a tradition. We tend to opt for both hot and cold buffet food and a mixture of both savoury and sweet treats. We mainly get our food from Iceland as they do such a wonderful selection. As for drinks I usually go for J20 and hot chocolate or if I fancy some alcohol I opt for a glass of rose. 

Peter's yard have some yummy looking cripbreads I'm looking forward to trying this year. They look ideal for dipping and I'm hoping to make my own dip this year too. I'm also going to be trying the crisp breads with my favourite cheese and maybe some pickle too. When it comes to sweet treats london bakery  Konditor & Cook have a delicious looking range of mince pies and cookie selection boxes to dig into which will also make a lovely gift for a foodie this Christmas. Last of all I'm looking forward to indulging in the mixed vegan treat box from Yumbles. The treat box contains 2 giant Oreo brownies, 8 mini donuts and 2 chocolate chip cookies. I'll be certainly tucking into the treat box whilst doing some last minute wrapping. Yumbles sell a wide selection of vegan gifts ideal for the festive season

Last minute wrapping

There always seems to be something I end up forgetting to wrap up and end up having to do last minute. So I always make sure that I've got some wrapping paper left over just incase. This cartoon Rudolph and Santa wrapping paper from Dom and Geri is not only super cute but can be personalised too with a name of choice. The wrapping paper is going to add a beautiful personalised touch to Blake's Christmas presents this year! 

Games 

Christmas is all about having fun with the whole family! There are two new brand new hilarious games out that are sure to be popular this festive season.

The first is by Wowwee called What's that Smell? What's That Smell? is the new scratch & sniff party game that totally stinks! Guess the scent on the card correctly to win or you could be suffering the reeking ramifications of one of the deadly Stank Cards. With over 50 smells from nice to downright nasty, What's That Smell? is a breath of fresh (and not-so-fresh) air in the party game category!What's That Smell? includes 48 Mystery Whiff Cards, four Stank Cards and scent-barrier bags, six cardholders, a sheet of Whiff Strips, scorepad and instructions for 2-6 players ages 14+.

The next game is by Megablu and is the Guinness world records Do try this at home game. Put your knowledge of the world’s most famous Records to the test and challenge your opponents to demonstrate some nifty record- breaking skills using everyday household items! Players compete to answer some of the 600 Guinness World Record question cards, but the real fun comes with completing the challenges… breaking your opponents’ records. Skills involve spoon balancing, wearing the most pairs of socks, flipping a bottle of water and many more! Cross the finish line with 3 challenge cards in your possession to be the winner!

Christmas Eve Box

The Christmas Eve Box has to be my favourite Christmas tradition to do for Blake. This year we have a new box a personalised one from Babyblooms. This beautifully personalised wooden Christmas Eve box comes complete with a luxury, cloth bound version of ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas’ and a personalised Christmas Eve plate for Santa’s snacks and Ruldolph’s carrot. Both the wooden box and bone China plate can be personalised with up to 25 characters and the set is a fab way of make christmas even more magical.

I can't mention the Christmas Eve Box without mentioning some of the must have items I like to include in ours each year. First up as well as the plate and book a new Christmas DVD is a must to add to our growing collection!  The littlest reindeer is a cute animated film featuring the voices of Josh Hutcherson (The Hunger Games) and John Cleese plus other known names. When Blitzen suddenly announces his retirement from the reindeer team, Santa needs to find a replacement, and fast! Against all odds, Elliot and his best friend Hazel set out to prove that he is the little horse for the job. Busy with the North Pole reindeer try-outs, Hazel and Elliot don’t realise that a sinister lady has turned up at the ranch and their friends are in serious danger. 

The Personalised gift shop sell some cute Christmas Eve essentials which I like to add to our Christmas Eve Box  such as a personalised Santa's glass milk bottle which comes with 2 red and white stripe straws and can be personalised with your child/rens names (up to 15 charcters). Hot chocolate is my favourite Christmas eve treat before I go to bed and the personalised gift shop sell a range of adorable designed Christmas mugs. My favourite has to be the Santa Claus is coming to town design which you can get your name personalised inside the lip of the mug. 

I like to also add a pair of pjs into the box along with chocolate, crafts and things to get up during the day on Christmas eve to keep us all entertained. Cookie crumbles sell a range of baking mixes and this year we will be making some delicous gingerbread men the set makes 18 to 20 biscuits and all you have to do is add butter and golden syrup.  The posibilties are endless when it comes to adding to your Christmas eve box for example you could add a Christmas CD, festive cuddly toys, socks, more books and I've even added a bath bomb one year. 

What are your essentails for Christmas eve? 

Magic Santa Letter

Can you to tell I'm excited for Christmas? I hope you have been enjoying my Christmas posts so far this year.  With it being under a month to go to the big day, it's flying by.  I'm all the more excited about getting up the decorations, listening to Christmas songs and getting really into the festive spirit! 

Blake is almost four and I'm hoping that even with additional needs, he will understand a bit more about what is going on this year. This year is our first year where we have decided to do elf on the shelf and so this morning our little elf Buddy has arrived along with a letter for Blake from Santa.

Santa and his elves are currently very busy in the north pole and there is something magical about getting a letter from Santa. I hope this is a tradition that Blake will look forward to each year.





Magic Santa Letter provides some of the highest quality letters for children around the world.  They don't just sell letters from Santa either but other special items such as personalised Christmas wrapping paper, personalised Christmas eve boxes and personalised Santa sacks.


We got to choose a Santa sack for Blake from 10 festive designs and I went for the Ranua one which is personalised with Blake's name and in a cute Scandinavian design. The sack is large enough to hold even the most generous stash of Christmas presents and is excellent quality which is bound to last Blake years!

The magical personalised letter from Santa arrives in the post in an authentic looking envelope addressed to your child. The stamps on the bottom are enough to get children excited! As we have the start of the Christmas fair in town today I chose to have Buddy arrive a day early with Blake's letter which I put aside ready.

When choosing what letter to go for I went for the Magical package which costs £5.99 per letter. The package includes a letter from Santa on high quality A4 straight cut paper along with an authentic looking good child certificate. The letter itself is a great keepsake and so authentic looking along with the good child certificate especially as both are signed by Santa and feature the official north pole seal. 

You can choose from 3 different templates and the one I chose was the I love mince pies which can be personalised in 5 places within the letter for example with  your child's name, hometown and present wanted.

Other letter options are available such as the Truly Magical Santa letters which retail at £7.99 and include: 
- Your pesonal letter Printed on Luxury Thick Cut Scroll Paper.
- Good Child Certificate.
- Santa ‘Stop Here’ Door Hanger.
- Christmass Colouring Sheets.
- Magic Reindeer Food.

All sent in an authentic North Pole envelope and are also single parent enabled along with giving you the choice of one of six templates or write your own for a fully personalised letter.

Don't forget if its your baby's first Christmas this year you could opt for the baby's first Christmas letter for £6.99 which also comes with a good child certificate and magical reindeer food. There are a choice of 2 templates or to write your own letter with this option.

Delivery of the letters is really quick and arrived within a few days of ordering. I feel the letters are reasonably priced considering the contents provided with each one and postage by royal mail is included within the price. 

* Please note if ordering other items you will need to pay postage costs only letters have free postage included unless you spend over £40

** All orders of letters placed after 4pm on 19th December 2018 will NOT be guaranteed for Xmas Eve delivery. 

*** We were sent  a santa sack and personalised santa letter in exchange for an honest review, all views and opinions are 100% my own.

The Christmas Tag – All I Want For Christmas Is…

I love joining in with tags and so when i spotted the Christmas tag for 2018 I had to join in. The Christmas tag features 16 questions on the topic of the most wonderful time of the year.  

What’s your favourite Christmas movie?

It use to be Miracle on 34th Street but to be honest I love most Christmas films and it would be easier to answer what my least favourite are.

Have you ever had a White Christmas?

Yes I remember as a child building a snowman in my grandparents garden. It's always magical when it happens but its very rare and its been a long time since it snowed on Christmas day.

Where do you usually spend your holiday?

At home on Christmas day and on boxing day usually we spend time with Stuart's family. This year we are actually spending boxing day over at my mum's with my side of the family.

What’s your favourite Christmas song?

Last Christmas by Wham 

Do you open any presents on Christmas Eve?

I use to but as I've got older its not something I do anymore 

Can you name all of Santa’s Reindeers?

Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixon, Comet, Cupid, Donna, Blitzen and of course Rudolph 

What holiday traditions are you looking forward to this year?

I love doing the Christmas eve basket each year for Blake and we also visit Santa each year and I'm excited to do Christmas crafts together including hopefully some baking.

Is your Christmas Tree real or fake?

It's a fake fiberoptic tree that we get out each year, I'd love to get a real one though.

What’s your favourite holiday treat/food/sweet

Such a hard question as there are so many tasty Christmas treats.

I love pigs in blankets, mince pies, hot chocolate...

Be honest, do you prefer the giving or receiving of gifts?

Both I enjoy seeing others open there gifts and choosing something that they will love. It's lovely though to receive gifts as the person has obviously gone to all the effort to get you something.

What’s the best Christmas present you ever received?

One year Stuart surprised me with a bracelet from Blake it was such a surprise and unexpected. Last year he surprised me with a beauty and the beast charm for one of my bracelets too. 

What’s your dream place to visit for the holiday season?

A bit cliche but I'd love to visit New York or Lapland 

Are you a pro present wrapper or do you fail miserably?

Fail miserably! I hate wrapping presents I get frustrated with selotape and presents never look perfectly wrapped. 

Most memorable Christmas memory?

Waking up very early on Christmas day as a child seeing the mince pie and whisky had gone so rushing into my parents room to wake them up. We use to have my nan and grandad over for Christmas Day and loved spending time with them and playing with my new toys.

What made you realise the truth about Santa?

One year I was naughty and went downstairs in the middle of the night and saw my parents putting the presents in our sacks. My parents did try though with using the excuse that they were the elves helping Santa but I failed to believe them.

What makes the holidays special for you?

Spending time with family, enjoying good food and just being able to relax and enjoy playing with Blake with his new toys.


I'm tagging anyone who wants to join in! I'd love to see your anwser so if you do the tag please comment below with the link so i can have a nosy at your anwsers.

Christmas gift guide: For the kids

Today we have my last christmas gift guide for this year and its for the kids! I have 2 nephews and Blake to buy Christmas gifts for and on top of that both Blake and my eldest nephews birthdays are in December so I'm always on the look out for ideas. This guide mainly features gifts for children 3 years and over and a few ideas for children a little older and babies too. 

Don't forget you can read my other two guides I've done this year for him and for her if you are in need of ideas for teenagers and adults.

Snowglobe by Amy Wilson | Amazon | RRP: £6.99

Snowglobe tells the story of daydreamer Clementine who has been trying to avoid her magic for a while but it has been getting stronger, and harder to ignore.  Whilst at school, she loses control of it and realises she can escape it no longer. When she is drawn to a mysterious house in the middle of town that was never there before, she is pulled in by the powerful sense of a mother she never knew.  Once inside, she finds the place is full of hanging snowglobes, each one shaken, churned up and containing a trapped magician, each one lost in time. So Clem ventures into the snowglobes in an attempt to release all the magicians from their glassy domes.  In the process, she discovers her own powerful connection to the magic of these miniature worlds and, unknowingly, she unleashes a struggle for power that will put, not only her own family, but the future of magic itself in grave danger.  For ages 9 years and over.

Scoop Magazine subscription | Scoop | Single issue £6.50 or 6 issues (over 12 months) currently £36 

A Scoop magazine subscription is an ideal gift for children who will be inundated with toys and you want to find something a little different. The magazine is aimed at children 7-12 years of age that publishes all forms of original stories created by the most fantastic authors and illustrators just for Scoop. Contributors include Raymond Briggs, Joanna Lumley, Tom Stoppard, Catherine Johnson, Tom Whipple, Jacqueline Wilson, Chris Priestley, Laura Dockrill, Chris Riddell and many more. 

Geometric heart print | Mama designs | £8

Need an idea for a little one this Christmas?  It can be hard to know what to buy babies we certainly remember as Blake was 9 days old on his first Christmas. Everyone seems to buy toys and if you want to be a bit different why not treat them to an art print from Mama designs. There are four different designs to choose from the geometric heart, hummingbird, cloud and pineapple. Prints are unframed

Crazy Soap foam/colour change bubblebath | Crazy Soap | prices vary

Make bath time for children with Crazy Soap! Crazy Soap foam is a fun sensory experience for kids to get messy whilst also getting clean. Available in blue, pink and white foam you can have fun in and outside the bath. The Crazy Soap colour changing bubble bath is our favourite pour the liquid into warm water and swish to see the liquid change colour as its mixed with the water. Crazy Soap are great products to add to your child's Christmas stocking.

Say hello activity spiral | Baby sensory | £15.99

How adorable is this activity spiral for babies? Attaching easily to a stroller, cot, or car seat, the Activity Spiral encourages baby to look, touch and explore. The spiral features the characters from the Baby Sensory ‘Say Hello to the Sun’ song, with bright colours, fascinating patterns and textured fabrics. The Activity Spiral is a multi-sensory toy, that baby will love to take wherever they go. Find friendly faces, crinkles, peek-a-boo flaps, a squeaker, a jingly bell, a mirror, pull-and-stick activities, and a textured teether to soothe sore gums.

Personalised colour in and activity book | In the book|  A4 £12.99 or A3 £14.99

Colour in and activity books tend to be popular with children so why not get your hands on a personalised one to make the gift a bit more special. This activity book comes in a large A3 & A4 format and is spiral bound, making it easy for your child to play with it, and giving them nice big pictures to have fun colouring in. Your child’s name will appear on the cover, as well as within the hand drawn artwork throughout the book, making the book unique to them and also helping them learn the letters in their name.

I am not a... book series x4 | Carlton books | £6.99 each

The I Am Not A… series (x4 books - Toilet Roll, Egg Box, Cereal Box, Old Sock) feature fun and creative ways to reuse items we usually Chuck away. The books feature easy step by step guides so your child/ren can make fun crafts such as: robots, penguine, unicorn and a bunny. 

Teen Titans Go! To the movies | Amazon | £10

  

Teen Titans GO! To the movies is all about how robin from Teen Titans vowed to get them their own movie deal like the rest of the superheroes around.Nothing is ever that simple though and Supervillan Slade messes with their plans.

Playbrush | Playbrush | £29.99

Making cleaning teeth fun with Playbrush an interactive way to make brushing teeth fun with games they actively control by brushing their teeth. During each 2-minute adventure, the gaming apps encourage children to brush at the correct speed and equally within all quadrants of the mouth. The Result? A unique brushing experience with lots of fun.

Fartist Club Collectables | Fartist Club | £9.99 each

Introducing Fartist Club from Eolo Toys, the newest gross-out collectable concept to hit stores across the UK this August.  A gassy gang of farting friends, each Fartist Club has mastered the art of fart! Fighting for their right to Farty! Each character is 12cm tall and comes with 10 unique fart sounds that activates when their finger is pulled. Each character also comes with a fart delay function so you can set it up and let it rip when people least expect, perfect for pranks! There four characters to choose from:  Farty Flip, Windy Wendy, Ripping Randy and Munchy Max. I was sent the Munchy Max who is a dirty dog, yet very loyal to his filthy friends. Always on the lookout for mouldy much; fungus, maggots, flees or flies never held him back. No garbage bin is safe from Max, if there is not a foul smell on his findings, he won’t trust it! Due to his dirty diet there is a constant flow of terrible gas eruptions from down under, but Munchy Max doesn’t mind. He loves a good smeller and just makes his mark!

Power Dough Magic Pets Large Kit | Argos | £20

Get ready to design your own Magic Pet that comes to life before your eyes. The Power Dough Magic Pets kit is simple to use. Choose from one of four brightly coloured dough pots and mould your pet using your hands and the modelling tool provided. Decide whether you want your new creations to talk, light up or move. Take your pick from the 15 interchangeable accessories and connect them to the 4 Power Parts. When you’re ready to activate your Magic Pet push it in and Bring your dough to life!

So Slime DY  Slime Case | Smyths | £14.99

Make your own Slime in minutes with So Slime DIY. Getting started couldn’t be easier; add glitter, decorations and colourful slime powder to the shaker and create neon slime that’s entirely your own design. Bring your So Slime DIY Case whenever you feel like being creative with friends. Decorate your shaker with our fun stickers and even hide a cutie surprise inside that will delight your friends

Minions Aquabeads Playset | Argos | £19.99

Everything you need to create your favourite Minion characters- Bob, Kevin, Stuart and teddy bear Tim! Make, Spray, and they stay! Peel after 10 mins and make even more designs! With colourful Aquabeads, beautiful creations are simply a spray of water away!

Corals Mermaid Lagoon | Interplay | £16.99

Create a magical mermaid world where Mermaid Coral and her seahorse friend love to live! Mould, sculpt and play with the glittery magic sand and use corals, shells and other accessories to create an enchanting ‘under-the-sea’ scene in a beautiful bottle with a pretty shell-shaped stopper.Take Coral anywhere, carried safe and snug in her clamshell home that fits perfectly into a pocket.

Fuzzkins Cottontail Cottage | Interplay | £19.99

Fuzzikins are adorable flocked creatures to colour and play. The Cottontail Cottage craft & play set offer hours of fun customising the rabbits and their house and creating accessories for them. The Cottontail Cottage comes with two bunnies and a pop-up cottage play house which folds away neatly to save space when not being used.The set includes plenty of accessories to decorate the cottage with. Open the hard covers and reveal the two storey house with a kitchen, living room, bathroom, bedroom and a garden.

* We were sent the items featured in this gift guide for the purpose of this post . All views and opinions are 100% my own.

Christmas gift guide : For Her

Today I am sharing with you my gift ideas for her. You can check out my gift guide for him here. I can find it hard to know what to get for my nan and mum as gifts so I know how handy it is to have some ideas for the ladies who are tricky to buy for.

Hopefully you will find some of these ideas below 

Chocolate Treat Box | Cocoa & Heart | Small- £9.50, Medium- £14.50, Large £19.50

Kicking off my Christmas gift guide for her  I have this amazing Chocolate treat box from Cocoa & Heart. It's a great gift for chocolate lovers to try out some of Cocoa & Heart's delicious chocolate selection. With 3 different size boxes to choose from you can choose to treat yourself or your nearest and dearest this Christmas.The chocolate treat box  contains a current selection of Cocoa & Heart chocolates. Including  new chocolate bar flavours, samples of new chocolates they are working on and other treats that they currently have in stock. As you probably guessed it, the chocolate treat box is a bit of mystery chocolate box. If you fancy treating yourself or a loved one this season than you can get 10% off on any of their chocolate shop by using code 

XMAS18 at the checkout. 

Colour changing unicorn mug | Iwantoneofthouse | £9.99

Unicorns are popular at the moment and I've seen quite a lot of unicorn themed items around. With that said, I knew I had to include at least one unicorn themed item in my gift guide. The unicorns mane on this beautiful mug changes colour from black to a gorgeous multicolour when you have a hot drink. The mug is made from ceramic and features a 3d head and horn. It's not dishwasher or microwave safe, however has a 300ml capacity so is the perfect size  for your favourite hot beverage. 



Korres little star shower collection | Tesco | £10

The perfect gift for those that love receiving body products as gifts or as a present for your secret santa/ round robin.  The Korres shower collection is a lovely set of four favourites. The set includes Bergamot Pear Shower Gel 40ml, Fig Shower Gel 40ml, Lavender Blossom Shower Gel 40ml and Bergamot Jasmine Shower Gel 40ml.

Missguided Boss Babe Eau De Parfum gift set | The Fragrence Shop |£28

Perfumes can be a very personal choice, however if you know someone that loves a fruity and floral scent than this Missguided Boss Babe perfume  will leave you ready to face anything the day throws at you. The fruity floral scent leads with notes of bergamot and pear with accents of pistachio. The heart marries rose accords with almond milk, orange blossom and magnolia. Base notes cushion with patchouli, amber, sweet tonka, vanilla, musk and creamy sandalwood. 

Derwent Bullet Journal Set | Derwent | £29.99

Derwent are known for there British made art materials that are expertly crafted. If you in know someone who is artistic than the bullet journal set is a great way for them to be organised and creative all at once. Complete with subtle dots on each page to help frame lists, graphs and doodles. The set contians: The A5 bullet journal with elastic closure and 3 ribbon page marker, 4 water based fine liner pens in  rich tones of Black 0.3, Sepia 0.5, Graphite 0.5, Black 0.8 and an elasticated pen wrap that holds 6 pens.

Joules Huddle Gloves in French Navy | Amara | £20

Stylishly update her Autumn accessories with these Huddle gloves from Joules. These gloves are ribbed to ensure a neat fit around wrists, keeping out any draughts and feature tapered fingers for ultimate comfort. Extra-long, these gloves are perfect for keeping your arms warm when wearing three quarter length sleeves. Pair them with complementing accessories available separately from Joules to complete the look. 

Flower Subscription | Appleyard | From £22 a bouquet for classic and from £26 a bouquet for the lux 

Flowers are always appreciated especially if a bit more special than the usual super market ones. Take these gorgoues festive punch ones from Appleyards Christmas collection. With Appleyard offering a flower subscription service where you can choose to opt to receive bouquet's from either classic or lux ranges you can treat your recipient to monthly bouquets for a subscription period that fits in with your budget. 

Personalised mermaid blanket | I just love it| £34.99

I love nothing more than snuggling up in a cosy blanket in front of the fire during the cold evenings. If you know someone who is the same, this cosy mermaid blanket in a gorgeous shade of purple would make a fab gift. The blanket itself mirrors mermaid scales crotched with charm from the top of the throw to the two tail fins. Featuring any Name printed in silver glitter on to the blanket, the gift is a dream come true for fans of merpeople, not to mention how cosy and warm the individual will feel with every use.

Finishing touch flawless folding mirror | JML| £19.99

Never having the right light for your makeup application can be a pain. The Finishing touch flawless folding mirror is the perfect companion for makeup on-the-go!

This magic mirror combines a compact, take-anywhere design and high-definition, crystal-clear illuminated mirror to keep you looking great, anywhere! Finishing Touch Flawless Folding Mirror also has an inbuilt storage tray for tweezers, wipes, makeup or jewellery, making it the perfect companion for on-the-go glam!

A heavenly treat collection | Green People | £50

Treat a loved one to the Green People's a heavenly treat collection. A trio with naturally scented calming damask rose and top notes of soft jasmine and lemon. The gift pack contains: 50ml each of damask rose cleanser, moisturiser and handcream. 

Personalised slate cake stand | personally presented | £27.49

Have your cake and eat it with this personalised two tier cake stand. This gorgeous slate  cake stand is an ideal gift for someone who loves to bake and they can show case their delicous creations. 


* We were sent the items featured in this gift guide for the purpose of this post . All views and opinions are 100% my own.