Mimi's Jingle Belles

Well ladies, it is time to pour a cup of tea in your favourite cup, and to savour one of those expensive but delicious biscuits, or whatever other treat you save for best. It is halfway to Christmas, and dare I say it, I do believe that we are at least halfway to being ready!

By now you know just what your Christmas is going to look like this year, have all your lists ready, some projects started, some gifts bought and a little nest egg of money nestled away. Doesn't it feel good?

I love that come December, of course there will be things to do, but the main thing on our list is going to be to enjoy the season, ourselves and our families. Just think, none of those awful Saturday-before-Christmas trips to crowded shops before collapsing exhausted into Starbucks, getting back home and then remembering the one thing you were meant to get...

No, no, this year, we will be having a lovely walk and then enjoying a lingering coffee in Starbucks, before going home to watch a lovely black and white festive film on tv!

And to help us get a bit closer, here is the to-do list for this month!

Firstly, tuck away a little more money in your savings jar. Doesn't it feel nice to have that money stashed away? You can start to think about what you might use it for in December, if you haven't already. At least one thing should be something that you have always wanted to buy but put off as 'too expensive' or 'too frivolous' or the like.

Next, some more work on the Christmas cards please, if you are crafting your own. Otherwise, make sure you managed to finish off the craft projects you started last month.

Next, you need to decide on the recipe you are going to use to make your Christmas cake. I like to try different recipes each year, in my quest to find the perfect one. I usually take it from Good Housekeeping or Good Food magazine's November issue (although not necessarily November of the current year!). Make a list of ingrediants and count them up. Now work out how many 'big' supermarket shops you have left till the point you need to bake your cake. Hopefully the number of weeks will be equal to or smaller than the number of things you need to buy! From now on, each time you do a shop, buy one of the things on your list. Making a rich fruit cake can be quite expensive, especially if you need brandy or rum or similar to soak the fruit in and feed the cake with, so by getting ahead now, you won't be denting your budget later.

Last thing for this month, spend a happy hour planning some Christmas fun. It wouldn't be Christmas for me without a visit to the Bury St Edmund's Christmas Fayre, so I will be looking up the dates and pencilling them into my diary. Do you want to go to a Christmas market? Have a day in London? Go to a carol concert? Try to do a little scheduling now, as it is truly terrifying how soon it wil be before you are putting other appointments for November and December in your diary!

Now have a flick through that book from last month. Smile and pour yourself another cup of tea, you deserve it! Well done!

Love
Mimi
xxx