Are you feeling Christmassy yet?

With all this unseasonal weather its been hard to start even really thinking about Christmas - plus all the chaos caused by my poorly car! This weekend however I think things might change. Last year on this date I had headed off to Derbyshire for the Single With Kids Christmas weekend at Hargate Hall. We woke on the Saturday to snow which really put us all in the right mood for a Christmas themed weekend!

A year ago

This year I've not been able to afford to go but instead I'm able to take part at my church's (St Thomas' Kendal) Advent Fair selling Usborne books. I've spent a chunk of this evening getting the Christmas bits together for my stall and my daughter is running a nail bar next to me (very enterprising at aged 8!). With Sunday being the official start of Advent this is a Christmas themed event with lots going on and things to buy.


Next Friday is the inaugural Staveley Winter Festival and from 16:00-21:30 there are things happening all over the village:

I am running an Usborne stall in the Winter Festival Market based at World of Stone (No 3 on the map). I wish I was going to be able to see all the other things going on but guess I'll just have to send my family out to enjoy themselves with the grandparents instead! If you are in the area on the 2nd December it will be well worth a visit.

On the 3rd its my family's traditional "first Saturday in December" Christmas decorating day. The kids have a fairly free rein to cover the house in our Christmas decorations. We only have room for a 3ft fake tree but it will really gets us all feeling really Christmassy!

Reasons to be Cheerful XII (#R2BC)

I've got plenty of reasons to be cheerful this week!
1) My Holiday
As you may have seen I spent a chunk of last week on my prize holiday in Mallorca with my mum and my kids. It was great taking my kids abroad for the first time ever and even though it rained every day it was a real treat and experience for the grown ups too.
2) My Future
Whilst I was away my decree absolute came through so I'm now free to really start my life over and no longer live in a weird limbo of separated. It doesn't make that much of a difference to my day to day life but its taken so long to get this far I'm happy its finally at an end.
3) Work
The kids and I had a lovely day at the Station Inn in Oxenholme during the Companion Dog Show and Family Fun day last weekend. We may not have sold a lot of books, but I got the tan I didn't get on holiday and the kids had lots of fun. Next to us were the lovely Sean and Gill from Treasure Trails Cumbria so it was a very sociable day.
4) Party in the Park

This Sunday I'll be helping out at my first ever Party in the Park in Kendal. Its a completely free event for the residents of Kendal organised by my church St Thomas' Kendal. There will be bouncy castles, face painting, brass bands, ice creams, cakes and tea (and more!) and its all completely free. Lots of us are busy baking cakes for the tea tent and we're all praying for a sunny day from 1-5 in Maude's Meadow in Kendal.