Despite Christmas being pretty much done and dusted for the next eleven months I wanted to share with you some of my most loved Christmas memories. For they are most certainly something I am super thankful for.
The fact that I heard Quilton had a bit of a #quiltonmostloved competition running regarding the topic may also have swayed me. Though with the closing date being tomorrow my chances are probably somewhere between none and not much. Nonetheless though, I am still thankful to have heard of it.
Choosing my most favourite Christmas memory however is not quite as easy as I first thought though. Which I take as being something to be incredibly thankful for - too many wonderful memories to choose from.
My first real Christmas memory is from the year 1984. I was all of six at the time.
In early November of that year my parents had bundled me up on a plane with some friends and sent me off to have the adventure of a life time with my English relatives. An adventure that would see me gone for around three months and experience the joys of a white Christmas. Which coming from a rather tropical little hick town was beyond exciting.
I loved how over there your stocking was left on your bed, rather than under the tree. The thought of Santa actually being in the same room as I was almost too much to bare. Of course I had grand delusions of this making it easier to catch him in the act.
It didn't.
Some nearly thirty years later though, I do still have a rather amazing doll that has a striking resemblance to a six month old baby and some rather amazing memories of a family that I would never have got to spend time with otherwise. I also look fondly upon tangerines. As Santa kindly left me one in my stocking. I had never heard of one before.
From there my next most loved memories around the festive season begin the year I was 12 and pretty much continue for the next three years. During this wonderfully blissful time our Christmas Days were spent with Mr Awesome and his family. (Yes in case you didn't already know the Mr and I are what some might call childhood sweethearts of sorts)
Every moment that we spent together was pure bliss in my little prepubescent mind but the ones spent together over the festive season were even more special. Even all the way back then, it felt as if that was the way it should be for the rest of forever. Our families together as one celebrating one of the most memorable milestones of the year.
There were backyard rugby games, where I may have made myself an easy tackle target when I had the ball and Mr A came hurtling towards me. Where the tackles may have turned into slightly extended embraces as two lovestruck teenagers overwhelmed with emotion tried to battle their way through the hormones of being young and in love but not knowing how to deal with it in any shape or form.
Things didn't quite pan out for us at that time though and the next few years saw us go separate ways. And while the Christmas' in that time weren't necessarily terrible there are not a lot of outstanding memories from then either.
Oh but the first one together, in our own house, with our own children. Surrounded by family. Our families. The love, the laughter and the joy felt that day. There are no words to describe it. My dream come true.
There was nothing particularly special, other than the fact we were together. As one. As I had always hoped for. That's what my #quiltonmostloved memories are of. Families coming together and dreams coming true. Things that I will always be eternally thankful for.
What about you? What are you thankful for this week?
In early November of that year my parents had bundled me up on a plane with some friends and sent me off to have the adventure of a life time with my English relatives. An adventure that would see me gone for around three months and experience the joys of a white Christmas. Which coming from a rather tropical little hick town was beyond exciting.
I loved how over there your stocking was left on your bed, rather than under the tree. The thought of Santa actually being in the same room as I was almost too much to bare. Of course I had grand delusions of this making it easier to catch him in the act.
It didn't.
Some nearly thirty years later though, I do still have a rather amazing doll that has a striking resemblance to a six month old baby and some rather amazing memories of a family that I would never have got to spend time with otherwise. I also look fondly upon tangerines. As Santa kindly left me one in my stocking. I had never heard of one before.
From there my next most loved memories around the festive season begin the year I was 12 and pretty much continue for the next three years. During this wonderfully blissful time our Christmas Days were spent with Mr Awesome and his family. (Yes in case you didn't already know the Mr and I are what some might call childhood sweethearts of sorts)
Every moment that we spent together was pure bliss in my little prepubescent mind but the ones spent together over the festive season were even more special. Even all the way back then, it felt as if that was the way it should be for the rest of forever. Our families together as one celebrating one of the most memorable milestones of the year.
There were backyard rugby games, where I may have made myself an easy tackle target when I had the ball and Mr A came hurtling towards me. Where the tackles may have turned into slightly extended embraces as two lovestruck teenagers overwhelmed with emotion tried to battle their way through the hormones of being young and in love but not knowing how to deal with it in any shape or form.
Things didn't quite pan out for us at that time though and the next few years saw us go separate ways. And while the Christmas' in that time weren't necessarily terrible there are not a lot of outstanding memories from then either.
Oh but the first one together, in our own house, with our own children. Surrounded by family. Our families. The love, the laughter and the joy felt that day. There are no words to describe it. My dream come true.
There was nothing particularly special, other than the fact we were together. As one. As I had always hoped for. That's what my #quiltonmostloved memories are of. Families coming together and dreams coming true. Things that I will always be eternally thankful for.
What about you? What are you thankful for this week?