I'm So Loving...

1) Christmas lights in December
2) Hamming it up in my first amateur theatricals in 11 years
3) That rehearsals mean I do some decent walking again
4) That there has been some great TV on recently (The Bridge series 3, Catastrophe series 2, Detectorists series 2, You Me & The Apocalypse to name but a few)
5) That the prospect of 10 days off for the first time since August seems tantalisingly close
6) The return of winter boots
7) The joy of discovering a real gem of a gift for someone
8) The smell of cinnamon and gingerbread
9)That my children still find this time of year magical
10) Christmas lights in December

Things I am over.

1. Beards.
2. People who post nothing but Instagram links on Twitter.
3. Christmas in November
4. The state of my pigsty house
5. People who keep pulling out in front of me on roundabouts
6. Insurance companies
7. Women's clothing without decent pockets
8. Books with no obvious chapters
9. Books with ridiculously long chapters
10. Monday mornings
11. Dark days
12. People saying "off of"
13. Not having any time off work since August
14. Christmas adverts
15. Getting old
16. Car alarms
17. Fly tippers
18. Beards

The trouble with tween girls (the Christmas gift edition)

(Disclosure: this is a PR collaboration with those lovely folks at Brantano, so you'll see one or two of their items in this list - all ideas are my own though).

Eldest daughter is closer to 10 than 11. Youngest daughter is 8 and a half. I'm putting these facts out there mainly for my own benefit. You see, you'd think it would no longer surprise me after ALL THESE YEARS how different my children are to each other. So much for me priding myself on being relatively intelligent, but I'm still not quite sure how two children with (apparently) the same genetic base to choose from end up with such a different mixture. At no time is this more apparent than in the run up to Christmas every year.

Daughter no. 2 starts thinking about her list around October every year, puts pen to paper early November, and places it in front of the chimney no later than mid-November. Her list is detailed and long, containing a mix of the fanciful (does anyone know where I can get an "invisibility cloak" from?), the realistic (various DVDs), and thoughtful ("a hoverboard for daddy").

Daughter no. 1, however, is much more laissez-faire about the whole thing (last year's list; "Just surprise me"). This may of course be down to the fact that she appears to be at that age where I suspect she no longer really quite believes in the whole Father Christmas thing (mainly brought on by the fact Mr Sardinetin and I are such bad liars), but is worried that admitting this may be tempting fate too much. This year, at least we have something concrete to go on - namely a list containing 3 items; 

1) A phone

2) A phone case

3) Surprise me

(Ah, the dreaded mobile phone debate. I've resisted it for as long as possible - up to now, I've managed to bat it away fairly easily with a simple "you're too young". Yet with increased independence and peer pressure it isn't quite as easy an argument to have any more. Realistically, it will probably end up being an 11th birthday present, and it is likely to be a second-hand parental cast off. No good for Christmas, therefore.)

So what does a true tween get for Christmas?! Well, never mind the tween herself, here are my personal favourites....

(From the top, left to right:

1) World scratch off map - as she's turning into quite a well-travelled young lady, who is also off to Berlin (gulp) with school next year

2) Glitter owl bag- because GLITTER! and OWLS!

3) A personalised purse - to go in the bag, obvs.

4) Make your own lip balm kit - for a bit of fun, plus it comes in chocolate flavour for our resident chocoholic.

5) Monster High canvas shoes - because, despite hating pink, my particular tween has a thing for pink leopard print at the moment.(Although, as I've previously blogged, shoes are also a bit of a bone of contention around here, so I may be on a losing streak with this one...)

6) F is for Fabulous....an initial letter light  - for the bedroom makeover we're planning next year

7) Vintage style Cluedo - because, despite exhibiting increasingly teenage tendencies, she still loves playing family board games. Plus this edition does wonders for parental nostalgia.

8) Great British Bake Off hoody - one of her favourite TV shows. Plus nobody likes a soggy bottom.

9) A Motorola Moto G. OK, OK, I said no phones...but if she were to get one, it might be something like this. I have one and it's a great phone for not huge amounts of money. (Plus if I give her my old one, I can have a new one, right?)

Now if you'll pardon me, I'm off to pine for the days when I could buy Christmas pudding bibs and elf hats. Thank goodness I have a one year old nephew...

Alternatives to Operation Christmas Child

My daughters brought the following leaflet home from school recently that instantly made my heart sink:

On the face of it it's a lovely idea - you pack a shoe box full of small gifts that are sent to a deserving child in a third-world country.

However, there are many reasons not to support Samaritan's Purse who run the programme, not least because their main mission is evangelical, rather than charitable.

In fact, instead of me listing those reasons, I'd urge anyone interested in finding out more to please, please read the following; Reasons Not to Support Operation Christmas Child , which offers a far more eloquent and well-researched list than I could probably muster.

I'll be writing to my children's school with my objections, which obviously come too late for this year, but I hope that they will reconsider their support for future years.  I have also discussed it with my children as best I could, and together we have decided to make a commitment to sponsor a child via PlanUK instead - which I hope will give them a more lasting insight into life in the 3rd world, and instill in them the message that charity is not just about presents and is not just for Christmas.

However, if you do feel strongly about an alternative and can't afford to make a lasting commitment, you can still purchase more of a one-off gift from organisations like Save the Children, who have some great Christmas gifts that can make a real, practical difference without a hidden agenda.

The Has-Been

Believe it or not, I was young once. 

I used to go out, and I danced the night away. I partied with colleagues on a school night and was at my desk not-too-bright, but early the next morning. A specific pair of skin-tight red trousers was legendary in certain quarters and single-handedly kept me in gin and tonics. 

Sadly as is true for all of us, I grew up. My body grew weary. Then I had children and my weariness became a permanent state.

Nights out these days are few and far between. They involve clock-watching to ensure getting back in time for the babysitter. The luxury of the hangover lie-in does not exist with small children. Snuggling on the sofa with a glass of red and a DVD is just so much more appealing somehow.

This Saturday, however, I'm doing it again. I'm getting glammed up in a new frock, and I've purchased new shoes. I'm booked into the hairdresser's in the morning. The thing is, it's not dinner and dancing at a top London nightspot - it's the much more difficult social minefield of the office Christmas party (or Winter Celebration, as they are insisting on calling it - that's a whole different post right there - I mean, FFS!). Shoved into a soulless room with colleagues I barely know, let along like, eating a mass-catered Christmas dinner and trying not to drink too much so I don't fall over in the new heels. 

Sounds appealing, doesn't it? Yet somehow I am ridiculously excited at the prospect. 

Keep your fingers crossed for me. It can't possibly end well.

Bleat, Bleat

My lovely friend Notes has tagged me to share my bleats with you. If you don't know what bleats are - they are too short for a blog, but too long for a tweet. Here, then, are the things currently bleatable in the Sardinetin household:

#moneymoneymoney A lottery win would be very welcome about now. By that I mean more than the £74 our work syndicate won a couple of weeks ago. It's been an interesting old year on the cash front (maybe one day my lovely husband will lift the embargo he has imposed, and let me blog the specific story), and Christmas ain't getting any cheaper. (I know we are lucky and there are people out there significantly worse off, so maybe I should wish the whole country a lottery win?)

#bahhumbug Owing to relatively last-minute changes of plan, we are celebrating Christmas at home this year. To say I am woefully unprepared is an understatement. OK, I admit - when it comes to most things, I am a last-minute kind of gal. Christmas, however, is normally the one exception. I'm usually the one with presents bought in July and cards sent on 1st December. Not this year, and it is driving me crazy.

#FairyDust I wish... No, sadly just the common or garden variety, I'm afraid. I do of course only have myself to blame. After all, hoovering is just so... well... bourgeois, don't you think? I'm much too Bohemian and intellectual to do such mundane tasks.

#wheresmymojomofo? I am of course, referring to my blogging mojo. It can't have failed to escape your attention that posts have been a bit scarce around here recently. All the usual excuses apply - work, kids, illness, Christmas. However, I will admit there is also a certain whiff of "eau de can't be arsed" hanging around the place (available in all good department stores). New year's resolution; must try harder. (All extremely ironic, really, considering I have been shortlisted for a blogging award - yes, me! Go on, click on the link and vote - you know you want to)

Who else fancies a good bleat? How about some of my new twitter followers:

Penny at The Alexander Residence
This Mid 30s Life
Muddleduck