Festive Hankies

I think Darrell has been watching too much Gok Wan.  Auntie Jan bought us a festive Yuletide hankie each, naturally, I have used mine to blow my nose, in a festive manner.

But Darrell has turned his into a fashion statement!

What is he like?

He really fancies himself  as a Christmas fashionista!

A Card from Tallulah

We’ve had a card from Tallulah ……

We’ve hidden the mistletoe just in case  …… we find Tallulah a little “full on”. 

Secret Santa – The Reprographic Sack of Festive Joy

It was our job to go round to all the ladies offices to collect all the Secret Santa parcels. There was an air of expectant expectation as we proffered our sack for filling and all the ladies were, we noticed, quite twittery in a Yuletide fashion.

We all gathered in the biggest office at 11 o’clock and the Ladies from Finance bought a cheese board, mini doughnuts and other dainties for a mid morning Yuletide festive feast, which in our excitement, we forgot to photograph, but it was an 8 nom occasion.

There was a little discussion as to how the parcels should be drawn, but in the end The Ladies decided to go in backwards, alphabetical, surname order, so we started at W. As neither of us has a surname, we were last to delve into the sack of festive joy, but that only added to our excited tension.

I received a lovely mini Marks and Spencer shopping bag, which is just perfect for when I nip to the shops to purchase items of a Christmasy nature

And Darrell received an Avon coconut and lemon grass room and linen spray which was wrapped up to look like a lovely cracker.  Once he'd opened his parcel, he couldn’t get home fast enough to spray all our linen. He also thought it would come in very useful in case there was another sprout burning episode like there was last year! We are so very lucky.

Our First Secret Santa - Obeying The Rules

The ladies in the Reprographic Office are having a Secret Santa tomorrow, and asked if we would like to join in with their festive merriment.  The only rule is that the gift must only cost £1.

Our contribution naturally reflects the Yuletide Season, because at this time of year we like to embrace the theme wholeheartedly. We’re giving festive towels, but shhhhhhhhhhh, we need to keep it secret!

It was most fortuitous that we found them in the summer sales for 99p each …. but we will put a penny in an envelope with our parcels, so that the recipient doesn't feel that we have fiddled them and also to make sure we haven't infringed the rules of "The Secret Santa", should there be an appointed adjudicator there, like on Lottery Live. Any festive faux pas in the etiquette of Secret Santa would be so embarrassing.

Darrell has become quite accomplished in the art of  festive gift wrapping, he says he has Kirsty Alsop and that Phil fella to thank for that!

It’s all very exciting …… we will take our gifts in the morning and put them in the the Reprographic Sack of Festive Joy.

Snowman Soup? – A Festive Misunderstanding

 

The hostelry across the road from us has a big sign outside saying “festive drinks now being served”.  I thought this would be a lovely mid morning seasonal treat for me and Darrell to warm our cockles and get us in the joyful spirit of Christmas.

However, when I popped in to ask if they were serving snowman soup, our festive hot drink of celebratory Yuletide choice, the young lady looked at me a little askance, pointed to the menu board and said “The Soupe du Jour is cream of chicken with herby croutons today, Darling, we ain’t got nothing with snowmen in it.” Perhaps I misunderstood the sign.

A Very Special Card from Jane

Look what one of our lovely followers has sent us…..

It’s a card that looks like a proper magazine cover with us on the front ….. how BRILLIANT is that?

And it has little headlines about us too!  We are so overwhelmed! Look, it’s even got that we won X Factor!

And Darrell blushed to almost the same colour as his Santa suit when he saw this!

We’ve read it hundreds of times, and it makes us smile every time we do.

Thank you Jane ……. we are so blessed in a UK! Magazine type way!!!!

Shopping of a Festive and Marmite Nature

Monkey is quite easy to buy Christmas presents for and with so many Marmite gift items in the shops this year, it’s just a matter of whittling it down.

Penguins

Forget turtle doves and french hens, aren’t penguins the most BRILLIANT festive birds?

Festive Nom Nom Nom of Posh Chocolatey Nature.

Look at the size of this chocolate truffle Christmas Tree!  It would make a change from the usual tin of Quality Street we pass round while watching the Queen’s Speech (no wrappers to tuck between the sofa cushions for a start)   - but how would you serve it …… in layers, or break it up into its individual balls? ….. On reflection a tin of Quality Street/Roses/Cadbury Heroes etc  presents far fewer problems, ……where would you put such a tower of confectionary?  How long would it keep? How many layers could Monkey and I eat before feeling sick ………? It's quite a quandary

Nigel’s Making Friends

Ah!

Hmmmmmmm

Fashioning a snowman is a lot harder than first appears.

Ours seems to have taken on the appearance of a strange alien baby …..

…….. even with the addition of eyes it has a curious haunting quality …….. we are not sure ……! We are a bit disturbed by what we have created …..

This Time, Next Year …… We Could Be Famous!

This is our official Christmas 2010 picture – perhaps next year, when we have won X Factor and Darrell is engaged to Stacey Solomon, we’ll be posing like this on the cover of OK or Hello magazine!

Getting Nigel Sorted.

The cold snowy weather and Nigel’s arrival have taken us a little by surprise.  Nigel has been a worry to us, as his clothing was not really suited to the current climate. His having no pants was our first major concern, but we have sorted that out temporarily with a knotted hankie.

But, his feet and head were getting cold too, so we have improvised and have fashioned him a snood and pair of socks by cutting two fingers and the cuff off an old glove.

We think we have done quite a good job!

It’s so lovely to have someone little to look after, especially at Christmas.

We are “truly blessed”!

I’m Gonna Sit Right Down and Write Stacey a Letter………

There are some lovely people who read our blog and I am very, very touched that Marc, realising how much I love Stacey Solomon, has gone out of his way to find out where I can write to her. 

I didn’t have a clue where to start and now look, I have all the information I need, plus some sage advice.
  

I have looked through all my pictures and I think this is the one that I will send her. I hope that the microwave in the background doesn’t detract from my limpet eyes!

It might take me a little while to compose my letter but I hope to get it in the post box by tonight. ………..

Stacey Won!

I have to admit I am quite emotional!

Bewitched, Bebothered and Bewildered by My Queen of the Jungle.

 

She is so beautiful and smiley and happy and likes her food, just like me!!!!!!!  Three little words ……. I love Stacey ……. HUGE SIGH ……..and if it takes me all my pocket money in voting,  I will try my best to get her crowned Queen of the Jungle …….. (lovesick sigh!)

Snow Angels

Snow has got to be the best thing God ever invented …..

…….. because it turned us into snow angels!!!  How BRILLIANT is that?

Our Village Festive Illuminations, Blackpool Has No Need to Fear!

How exciting! I got up really early a couple of days ago (before the snow came) to get some milk for my sugar puffs and Monkey’s muesli, when I saw the men from the council  putting the Christmas lights on the tree in the middle of the village.

What an exciting job…….  bringing the joy of festive lights to the community and helping to light the way for Father Christmas on Christmas Eve.

I had high expectations of a goose bump moment when I went to revisit the tree later on, when it had gone dark …..

Hmmmmmmm , I think they have missed the mark a little, in the “Awe and Wonder” stakes, as the reality didn’t quite live up to the twinkling vision of festive magic and loveliness that I had imagined.

Confectionary Review – Our Cadbury’s Advent Calendar

Cadbury’s  Advent Calendars are 2 for £3 in our SPAR, so we got one for us to share and one for Lucy.

It took us ages for find the window with No. 1 on and when we did it was quite fiddly to open with our stumpy hands.

As we are sharing, we have decided that Darrell will open the odd numbered windows and I will open the even ones.
 

Today was a chocolate cracker and the picture behind it was of Father Christmas, very apt, considering the clothes we are wearing.

“Smooth and creamy, as one would expect from our leading chocolate manufacturer” said Darrell as he popped the chocolate in his festive bouche .(French for mouth)

There is a game of bingo on the back to cut out and play, “That’s sorted out what we can do after The Queens Speech” said Darrell …. “a rousing family game of Bingo”  Cadbury’s have thought of everything!  We are also wondering if we can take the plastic out of the packaging when it is finished with and use it to mould our own Christmas chocolates for next year …….    We award our calendar 3 Noms.

It’s 1st December!

And we will dress accordingly for the rest of the month in "Yuletide gay apparel"