11th December: A Busy Day

 1 - Orlando's annual vet visit is one of the hurdles to cross in Advent. Thankfully, he was given a clean bill of health. As you can see, he knows how to travel in style!

2 - The Snowman Cake Stand is a relatively new (to us) addition, but one of the first signs that Christmas is close!

3 - The Christmas RadioTimes! We don't actually have a TV, but this is such a great publication, and I remember arranging who could watch what as soon as it came out... There were only 4 channels in those days! Now, we love the crossword.

4 - A quick shop for extra essentials like Wrapping Paper!

5 - Airtight storage boxes make Christmas kitchen preparations so much easier. Plan ahead!

6 - A fabulous Madonna and Child painted by a local artist, Mab and the Moon.

7 - An alternative Christmas tree on Mum's calendar this month.

8 - This tin contains the gift tags which we make from previous years' Christmas cards. It's been with us for a long time now and has been used for this purpose as soon as the nougat had been eaten (which didn't take long!).

9 - We still have so much to learn from this story! Baboushka is a beautiful tale with a strong message. It was also one of my first Christmas plays, in which I was one of the kings, and wore a purple cloak which I think was made of a curtain! Today, is also our niece's Christmas concert, which was apparently a great success 💛

10 - And so we settled down to a group attempt to crack the RadioTimes crossword...

11 - And finally... The result of Mum's handiwork yesterday. Today, the Pork Pie and the Pork and Apple Pie went away. I just wish I could share the incredible smell with you too!

10th December: Christmas is Getting Closer!

It's been busy in our household today. Mum has been slaving away making the pork pie for Christmas breakfast - my favourite part! 

1 - Is there anything more Christmassy than the smell of candles?

2 - Some delicious soup (pre made by Judith). Mum has been working her socks off in the kitchen, and having soup to reheat is great for busy days!

3 - Our wonky Advent candle wreath! Alongside our Advent candle. Don't worry - the candles aren't as close to the curtain as they appear!

4 & 5 - With five people in the house, how do you know who's going to open the Advent calendars every day? We draw names from the proverbial hat... it's the 10th today, so only one name left before they all go back in again.

6 & 7 - There is something especially exciting about December calendars, but also poignant as it provides an opportunity to reflect on the past year... And if they are lovely landscapes or cute Sprockers, that's even better!

8 - The Pork Pie is in the process of being made (eeek! exciting!) so the puppies had to have their Advent Calendar in a different space so Mum could see from the kitchen. As you can see, this excitement was too much for little Jess, while Orlando just sat and waited.

9 & 10 - And the night was rounded off with a highly competitive Santa race... there were cries of "cheat!" and it went down to the best of three!

...Clemency's Santa won in the end!

9th December - A Premature Arrival

1.  No, it's not a baby, it's two Christmas Trees which were dropped off today! They will be going up on Friday and being decorated on Saturday. They smell amazing!
   
   
   
2. Christmas fruit is a big deal in this house, but unfortunately these ones were bad :( Solution: burn them and then the whole room smells of oranges!
   
   
   
3. The warmth of a real flame is so important at this time of year. Here in the Frozen North, the association of hearth and home is still very strongly felt... So we lit the other fire, too!

   

   
   
4. A blast from the past but with all the excitement of the future. This book has been with us for as long as I can remember.

   

   
   
5. And speaking of books...

   

   
   
6. I'm falling a little bit behind on previous years, but I'm finally writing my Christmas cards!

   

   
   
7. Munching on gingerbread biscuits!

   

   
   
8. Mummy has made a start on Christmas Breakfast - without doubt the best meal of the year! - Here we have the Cornish pasties.

   

   
   
9. And last for today is the airing of the Christmas pinny, which is resting on the pantry door between bakings. This was a gift for Mum from our German friends ♡

   

   
   

8th December: Last Family Birthday Before Christmas

 1: The Christmas Pudding hats were bought by Mum in 2018, when B&M opened in Wick. On their first day in business, almost every person in Wick descended on them to grab a bargain - these hats are very precious now. I wonder how many people still have theirs..?

2: The Yankee Candle Advent Calendar tradition started because one of Ginny's pupils used to buy her them. Then, when those pupils stopped having lessons, we had a lull without them, until last year. They smell fabulous!

3: The Christmas snowglobe. This was brought back from Vienna by Mum and Dad when they went in 2012. It is so beautiful and its chimes of Silent Night are very calming for giddy Orlandos!

4: The Red Christmas Carols Book! A beautiful collection of Carol's here! And lots of memories! 

5: This little Santa was on the table for Christmas Breakfast a couple of years ago!

6: Recently, Mum and Dad have given us our presents in beautiful bags. This one has reappeared from last year and is full of Ginny's presents to her pupils.

7: The Yule Tomte was serialised on Facebook a few years ago and Mum fell in love with it. She bought the book as a result - it is a lovely one!

8: A visiting Christmas tree! Or, to be more precise, a visited Christmas tree! Four of the Stempster Crows went down to Culbokie today to celebrate a very special little person's 2nd birthday. While there, they snapped a photo of a beautiful Christmas tree.

7th December: Biscuits, Pups and Tenors

 

1: A dog by the fire - is there a greater sign of seasonal contentment?!

2: Although, of course, it's not all sitting by the fire! It's essential to have beautiful and warm clothes when braving the elements!

3: Decorated ginger biscuits. Always such a joy to work together to create these.

4: A standard sight in the porch at this time of the year!

5: Essential viewing! Since we started watching this (about half-a-decade ago) we haven't missed a single year. And it's a journey of laughter and beauty amid the stunning music and larger-than-life characters.

6: Licking the spoon. I mean, everyone does this at Christmas, don't they?

7: A finished product! Treacle biscuits have been a part of our Christmas all my life. And there's some mincemeat there, which is full of promise!

6th December - A walk around the kitchen

There's been plenty happening over the last few days, as things are getting closer and closer to The Big Day!

All photos today were taken in the kitchen which, in an old farmhouse like this, has been the centre of the home for many, many years.

Although it's in the kitchen, this plate isn't for eating off! It sits on the worktop during the Christmas period, and is a little reminder of the First Christmas.

Happy Saint Nick's day! The 6th December seems a perfect day to share with you our special Christmas tea tray. It's always exciting when this fabulous piece of kitchen jolliness comes out!

There are many Christmas CDs to choose from in our house, but this is by far my favourite. The only problem is the discs keeping going missing, so I keep buying more. I think we must have 6 or 7 of these CDs in the house.

Several months ago, I spent a very fun couple of days in the kitchen, preserving some of our Stempster produce. I'm hoping that some of them make an appearance over the Christmas period. Onion marmalade at Christmas breakfast, or pickled beetroot? Jude made a special Stempster Chutney using only produce that was grown here.

Speaking of food prep, this is something Mum was doing today... prepping some deliciously-smelling creamed mushrooms. Oh my goodness - they smelled so good!! I had to rummage in the freezer to find them for the photo though.

We have our Christmas dinner on Boxing Day, not Christmas Day, so these will make an appearance on the 26th.

We had planned to make and decorate Christmas biscuits this week, but I have been quite poorly. Ginny gave us a lovely surprise when she made all these (and plenty more!) lovely biscuits. We'll decorate them tomorrow. Baking is not one of Ginny's favourite pastimes, so we were all so touched when she did this for us!

Well, we'll be back tomorrow for the Saturday 7th! There's still plenty more to photograph, even before our decorations go up on the 14th!