For the Life of us

It is hard to  believe that this week we have finished another memorable Christmas AND will be saying goodbye to 2017 - just mind blowing! I know I echo the ageing population in saying just how fast this year has gone, but seriously? How fast has this year gone?! Christmas in the de Wit home was probably one of our most memorable. I think the kids are at the most awesome age now. The Christmas Eve gift swapping tradition was just so cool. The looks on the kids faces when they opened their thoughtful gifts from one another, it was just priceless. I must admit I prepared myself for the worst in terms of the kids just buying what they liked. But I'm happy to report that I was gifted a lipstck from Jed (who chose all on his own) and gold bracelets from Abby. Noah's gift was so sweet, I got a sort of puzzle that he obviously thought I'd get great joy out of and out of the tool section and everything else in the store, Gav received toys from all three kids - go figure! ...

Right now it is exactly 1 week until Christmas Eve! In amidst gingerbread houses, a little too much sun and all the get-togethers that come with an end of year, I have been pondering the predicament that us first world parents face. This Christmas I had a desire to make Christmas different than our other Christmas', as I eluded to in my previous post. I realised that with only wonderful intentions of making Christmas a magical, unforgettable and memorable experience, I had to somehow bring it back to the core reason, to make sure that somehow in the business we allow to swamp our lives, that we kept the main thing, the main thing! I realised, with some deliberate thought, that it wasn't as hard as I initially thought it would be. Without being 'The Grinch' and robbing our kids of the traditions and memorable activities we've done in the past, I could add new traditions and create new meaning to bring context and an understanding of the 'why'. It's all ...

So it's no surprise that CHRISTMAS is well and truly on it's way. Ready or not! Just a reminder in case you've missed the Christmas carols and decor bombarding us since October. At least along with Christmas prep has come the sunshine! Like REAL sunshine. Bliss! I've been thinking about Christmas (surprise, surprise) and more so the build up to it. It really isn't the actual day that gets us all busy, it's the way everyone jam-packs all these lovely family activities and events into the 24 days leading up to it! I so wish that there were more family-friendly activities and days out spread out over Summer. I love the festive season, so am naturally inclined to want to do EVERYTHING! This means that we have dragged ourselves off to the Farmers Santa Parade (this has become quite the tradition since Gav started taking Abby when she was only 2 and I'd just had Noah. We have been to the Browns Bay Christmas Parade (ok, we caught the tail end of it a...