Celebrate – my word of the week

Happy New Year, everyone. I hope 2022 is a wonderful year for you all. I do love this time of year. So much to celebrate. I even squeeze my birthday in between all the other celebrations.

We had a lovely Christmas. I had plenty of willing help in the kitchen, preparing the Christmas meal. We even managed to eat slightly earlier than usual, thanks to the extra hands.

As the children grow older, Christmases change. Quite right too. No more little people creeping into our bedroom, before the sun makes an appearance on Christmas morning. No whispers in the corridor beforehand, as they decide if we are awake yet or not. Impatiently waiting for the festivities to start. No. Those years have gone. This year, I found myself bashing around loudly in the kitchen, in the hope someone would get up and we could start opening presents the day. How the tables turn!

I managed to make three homemade gifts this year. Socks. They are fun to knit, especially with self patterning yarn. All gifted now.

Visiting

We went to see grandparents and aunts. It was so good to catch up with them all. A contrast to last year, when we dropped presents off on the doorstep and munched mince pies in the cold, whilst briefly catching up with the family news. It was cold. Windy too, I seem to remember. These past two years, I’ve missed those casual chats. The ones that only really happen as you help make enough cups of tea, in the kitchen, for everyone. I think I miss those chats more than the hugs.

We visited my parents on my birthday. It felt like a hint of normality, despite the Covid tests and taking extra care when we were in the house. It was lovely to see them.

Cake

My mother usually organises my birthday cake. I used to ask for unusual flavoured cakes. What can I say? I’m the youngest of four. I have noticed, somewhere over the years, she’s stopped asking what I’d like and buys one in. This year, she muddled up her delivery day and my cake arrived the day after our visit. I hope my parents enjoyed my cake. Probably better than the cake was hearing my mother laugh in the same way I do when I’ve muddled something up and there is nothing that can put it right. We can both laugh at ourselves and that is definitely better than any cake .

Eldest Teen was determined that I should have a cake on my day, to celebrate. We stopped on the way home at a supermarket, she selected a cake and I skilfully paid for it without looking, to maintain the surprise. That evening, she searched through my box of half candles, from previous years, to find an interesting combination of letters. I love it. There is a code in there.

Celebrate

So that has been my week. Lots to celebrate. Easy meals thanks to all the leftovers. Plenty of cheese in the fridge and biscuits in the tins to bat off the inevitable queries from offspring about the current amount of food in the house available to eat. Jigsaw puzzles to complete, board game to play and films to watch as a family. Even enough time to declutter the house, ready for a new sofa to be delivered, next week.

Hope you are all well and have enjoying the festive mid winter days.

Happy New Year, everyone. Here’s to 2022.