Tags
Academic term, alien for christmas, baking, Christmas, Christmas cake, Consumerism, Darkness, decorations, its a wonderful life, love actually, Mike Oldfield, October, tradition, Twelve Days of Christmas
A Six tradition
Hi again. How have you been? The Six household has been very busy; I shall endeavour to tell you why……to enjoy this post to the maximum please play this whilst reading !or any other 
of the tracks highlighted in the text!
It’s the October half term, and the Sixes have a now long standing tradition. We have a day of Christmas. Now, before you all close the page with a bah humbug and rants about Consumerism, let me explain.
INSERT YOUR OWN TIME WARP NOISE HERE…. Its 2001, it’s the October half term and we take a day trip out to a local arts and crafts centre ( where in fact we got engaged two years earlier)They had their Christmas decorations up, and Mr6 and I share a big love for the festive season and couldn’t resist buying a decoration each for the three of us. Then on the way home, we decided that that day would be a great day to bake the Christmas cake, as they need time to mature and be fed with brandy!
So there you go, there started the Tradition. The next October came around again, and this time we allowed ourselves to have Christmas music on at home whilst we made the cake again after buying decorations. It kinda puts the magic into the atmosphere and thus into the cake! We then snuggled down that evening to a Christmas movie; I do believe it was it’s a wonderful life.
I don’t think there is a better feel good Christmas movie ever made.
The Years move on, we get married and have another baby, but every October the cake was baked, decorations brought, music and dvds enjoyed. We now even have a newer car with a cd player which enabled us to take the Christmas music with us!! Oh the looks we get as we pull into the garden centre car park with Christmas tunes blaring out the car with added bad singing thrown into the mix. But you know what, who cares! We are not doing anything wrong, were not cashing in to Christmas, we are taking all its values and holding onto them for one more day. We unite as a family; get excited together; enjoy everybody’s decoration purchases. I love the eclectic look of my tree knowing that each decoration holds something special to each person, reflects their personalities and although a heady mix it represents unity, family, love and togetherness.
The decorations we have all brought today will stay wrapped up in their paper until the first of December when they are unwrapped again and the children delight again in their purchases. We of course have other decorations we have brought on our travels, and each one holds a special memory for its owner.
So today it’s that day again, we’ve all chosen new decs, mine are mostly owls as I collect them. I always enjoy watching the children’s taste’s change over the years and they are never predictable! They don’t care about colour schemes and trends they just go with their hearts and what delights them. This year the lad made a bee line for a little china train which made us all laugh as he’s obsessed with trains! We have a budget each so no over spending is allowed unless it’s completely divine and I can’t possibly live without in my life!
We’ve sang our hearts out to The Darkness played air guitar to
Mike Oldfield in dulci jubilo and the kids sang every word to I want an alien for Christmas!
The cake is made, each taking a turn to stir and make a wish, whilst I play Christmas music to put the magic in the cake. My favourite is Prokofievs Troika can’t beat it ! The Aroma has been spicy and warm and made us cosy whilst we all snuggle down to watch family six favourite, Elf. Which might just be accompanied with a mince pie or two? And the family six are just a bit excited about the upcoming season, embracing the change in temperature and the kids are allowed, 
just for tonight, a Christmas story, just to fire up their imagination and build the excitement just a little more.
Now I can guess what you are thinking, how do we bring the kids back down from the ceiling? Well to be honest, they do it themselves, they know tomorrow is just a normal day and Christmas is a way away yet, they are just a little more excited about it but now they have that Christmas feeling floating in their bellies and makes their lives a little more special.
You see that’s what’s it’s all about, not the decs or the cake; it’s the good feeling it produces, its togetherness and knowing that they can take that feeling with them for the next few months and keep them warm inside when maybe things aren’t all that easy to get through.
I wish you all an early Merry Christmas and I hope that maybe you will start a little family tradition of your own 
that brings you all together and gives you a warm and fuzzy feeling inside.
Until next time my loves… Jo xxx
Ps I’m off to watch Love Actually – it’s one of my favourites! x heres my favourite bit
