Christmas Past

This is probably the first post I have ever done that is so personal and with so many photos of me!! But I figured with blogs not being quite so popular my posts are now more a way of keeping memories for me.

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Christmas is a magical time.
Hubby and I spent some time with my family yesterday. We had gone to visit and to celebrate my mum's birthday. My mum and dad always made Christmas magical. They didn't have tons of money but none the less we were lucky enough to wake up on Christmas morning to lots of gifts.
My brother still complains to this day that his presents were set up on an arm chair while mine took up the whole sofa!
Yesterday we spent a good hour looking at some of my mum's old photo albums and I managed to scan a few photos to make this post for you today.

The earliest photo I could find was this one (me on the right) a present from Father Christmas at my dad's works Christmas Party. I remember what that gift was, it was a Spyrograph!

Google image

This above was the early 1970's. A tradition was started where we would all go to my Nan and granddad's house on Christmas day......look at that wallpaper! I am in the middle (not looking very happy), holding my new Barbie doll. (which came with a whole new wardrobe of clothes made by my mum.

I was obsessed with cuddly toys. This was a leopard I got in 1976 for Christmas....I still have him, he is in my loft, I also have the brown horse I am also holding, I called him Paddington after a horse I use to ride on my riding lessons on a Saturday morning.

A cuddly toy horse I named Paddington

1977 and Nan and Grandad had moved to a much smaller house. The table was brought in from the kitchen and put in front of the sofa. Various chairs and stools were placed around it and some had to sit on the sofa, sat on lots of cushions to get high enough to eat! My cousin and I always had matching knitted clothes from my Nan every year...this year it was tank tops.

1978

1979

the 70's were not a good time for dressing gowns!

Party hats and streamers at Nan's that year! Grandad looks grumpy but he was the most kind and lovely man and always had a smile for his grandchildren.

The family pets always received presents....our cats do even now.
This was Honey, I don't think she was impressed!

1981

 The 80's and we still had that brown carpet!

 We had a real Christmas tree that year!

1982

If you look closely in the above photo you will see this tree decoration...

It was from my early childhood, 60's or early 70's and now hangs on my own tree every year.

the 80's were my collage years, lots of student bars and getting tipsy with good friends.

1990

A big jump now as I didn't have time to scan many photos from 1990-2005 but in 2004 we moved house just before Christmas. Our house sold within weeks of it going on the market so we rented this cottage for 6 months....It was the first white Christmas I remember and the most magical. We were stuck in the middle of no where and we had had no time to buy Christmas food. Luckily the local pub said they could squeeze us in on Christmas day so we walked through the snow to the pub had a fabulous Christmas lunch and walked back after in the moonlight, watched hares scurry across the road in front of us and then as we arrived back to the cottage the snow started falling again. I will always remember this as the most magical of Christmas'

Our cats at that time were Bob and Lucy, they had been confined to the cottage while we lived there but didn't seem to mind much.

Then we moved into this house in 2005

2007

We have had lots of lovely Christmas' here.

2009

In 2010 we built an extension which meant the dining room moved and during the building mess we didn't have a Christmas tree or any decorations so...

we used the Grandmother clock!

 We have had lots of lovely white Christmas' up here which makes up for the lack of snow I had while I was growing up.

I feel blessed that we have had lots of lovely festive celebrations over the years.

2016

So all that remains for me to say is...

Merry Christmas xxxxxxxx