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Christmas is just around the corner and it has many of us in the throes of getting ready. Chances are you will have a lot of people coming round to visit both in the days leading up to and after Christmas itself.
Christmas is just around the corner and it has many of us in the throes of getting ready. Chances are you will have a lot of people coming round to visit both in the days leading up to and after Christmas itself.
I’ve not yet met a tiny human – or adult – who doesn’t love playing with play dough. There’s something about the soft and squishy texture that draws you in. It’s a great way to inspire creative play by adding scents, providing different cutter shapes, or even glitter.
When it comes to celebrating the holidays, we all do things a little bit differently. Every family, region, country and culture has a unique way of celebrating the time of year that to many means family, love and coming together as a community.
When thinking about Christmas, the husband and I knew one thing for sure – where possible we wanted to limit the amount of plastic decorations.
I have a strong rule when it comes to craft supplies: only buy for specific projects. No, “oh, that’s pretty”, or, “oh, that could be useful”. Every supply must have a purpose/reason, and I clear through my stash fairly regularly to make sure what I have is in good condition and usable! These wooden peg people broke that rule.
Filed Under: Christmas, ENTERTAINMENT, HOME //
We were intrigued to go see and review Elf – A Christmas Arena Spectacular in the OVO Hydro. Not knowing quite what to expect, we arrived a little early, got our chips & cheese, irn bru & sprite, and settled in for a show that felt like an old friend.
Filed Under: Christmas, GUEST POST, HOME, LIFESTYLE //
Whether you want to wow friends with Christmas cards featuring your family’s faces, or you’re just doing it for the ‘gram, follow our top tips to level up your festive photos this Yuletide.
Read moreIf this is your first year celebrating Christmas with your little one, congratulations! It’s one way you’ll want to build as many memories as possible, and while there are many things to love about Christmas, there are also many things to love about Christmas when children are involved. Having babies means getting that Christmas magic back that you may have lost in the mess since you were a child.
Filed Under: Christmas, FAMILY RECIPES, FOOD //
Nothing screams Christmas quite like the smell of a freshly baked mince pie. Why not wow your guests this Christmas and out this super simple shortcrust mince pie recipe!
This time last year, I think all of us hoped that we wouldn’t still be worried about the pandemic during Christmas 2021. By all means, things aren’t anywhere near as bad as they were a year ago, but there’s still a lot of talk on the news about more restrictions and the possibility of Christmas being cancelled yet again. Let’s be honest, it’s not the best way to get excited for the holiday season, especially as much of your life is still being affected by what’s going on around us. Some families are worried about what to do regarding seeing friends or family this year, and there are other common issues – like how you’ll afford Christmas – that are made even worse after another topsy-turvy year. So, I thought I’d put together a short article to help you cope with another Christmas in a pandemic!
Whatever the rules are where you live – and yes, this can be super confusing knowing what they are – you should do your best to follow them as strictly as you can. Regardless of whether you agree with them, the rules do exist to try and make everyone safe. It’s a good idea to stay updated with alerts on your phone so you never miss one of the many press conferences. Remember, if you live in Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland, most of what BoJo says won’t refer to you – we need to check our own local government guidelines.
Christmas is usually a time to splash the cash and treat those you love. You can still do the second part of this, but it’s a good idea to save money wherever possible. Some of you might already be struggling to pay for Christmas after being laid off or taking a lot of time off work with the virus during the year. While things like payday loans or credit cards could help you, the best approach is to reduce your spending. Find ways to save money this Christmas – like this very cheap Christmas dinner idea from BBC Good Food.
If you are worried about seeing other people, or having friends and family over your house this Christmas, one way to ease those fears is by taking regular tests. You can order lateral flows or PCRs online and it’s a good idea to take a few in the days leading up to your Christmas gettogether. Get your guests to test as well and you can hold a little party or gathering feeling safe as everyone is negative.
It is sad to think of yet another Christmas in a pandemic, but at least things are more relaxed than they were last year. We currently can still see other people, but it’s still strange to think that 2019 was the last year where we had a proper Christmas. Hopefully, you find these tips helpful and can cope with the festive fun in 2021. Be sure to stay safe and keep your family protected, and you can still have a good one this year.
Filed Under: Christmas, ENTERTAINMENT, HOME, LIFESTYLE //
Christmas is the most magical time of year and capturing those special moments is something we at TMC love to do. Sharing our memories to social media is something of the norm these days, to we wanted to make a checklist of photos you have to take this Christmas. Whether it be creative images, memory shots or just festive fine details, they’ll all be perfect for the grid.
With this list, you’ll be ready to take advantage of festive props and backgrounds, as well as capturing your loved ones’ excitement and preserve precious moments of family togetherness.
You could even consider referring back to this blog post for our TMC Christmas hashtag challenge!
Picking out a Christmas tree is so much fun and something your kids will look forward to every year, as well as something they’ll look back on and remember when they’re older. Your tree is usually the focal point of your decorations, so why not document it! Whether you’re at a Christmas tree farm or a local garden centre, grab your phone or camera and capture the joy of finding the perfect tree!
We all get a little nostalgic when pulling out the Christmas ornaments, why not take a detailed shot of your favourite decoration? You could be creative with angles, lighting and that pretty Christmas light bokeh in the background.
Get the whole household involved and capture the laughs. It’s such an easy way to capture your family doing something festive together. Those natural, candid shots of the kids stringing the lights and carefully placing each ornament are sure to bring back happy memories for years to come. Top tip: get in close to capture each person’s expression!
Whether you capture the family harvesting of fresh mistletoe or a sweet little kiss beneath it, it’s got to be worth getting that shot!
If you take the time and effort to wrap your family presents, you should definitely document that! Again, experiment with angles and lighting to make a more interesting picture. You could even take the photos of the present about to be wrapped
It goes without saying; a festive flat lay always gets some love on the gram. You can use anything and everything to fit the vibe (or prompt) for your shot. Herse a little list of things to include:
Christmas is all about spending time with those you love most. So capture those excited faces whenever and wherever you can. Whether it’s unwrapping presents, seeing Santa for the first time, those thank you hugs, taking part in Christmas bakes and crafts, the world is your oyster. Be creative, play around with your angles and editing and just have fun!
Below we’ve done a festive photo checklist of more wonderful ideas; you could print it off or save it to your phone so you always have to hand. Also don’t forget, a lot of these ideas can be used not only for your memory making or Instagram feed, but also to take part in our Christmas hashtag challenge.
Here at TMC, we love a good theme and what better theme could you ask for, than Christmas? We’ve been going crazy over all of the Christmas crafts, treats and play ideas so we wanted to share some with you.
Well December is finally here, what better way to get into the festive spirit than with a good, old Christmas bucket list? Christmas can be an overwhelming time of year, and with so many things to do to make it special it can be hard to know where to start. That’s why we’ve created this fun and easy list of ideas for you!
Make sure to let us know if you take part in any of these ideas and make sure to tag us on Instagram @thatmamaclub or use the #tmcchristmaschallenge if you decide to take part in our Christmas photo challenge!
Filed Under: Christmas, FAMILY RECIPES, FOOD, HOME, KIDS CLUB //
We at TMC love a recipe to do with the kids, why not make some gingerbread men to decorate together or gingerbread stars to hand from the Christmas tree? This easy gingerbread recipe is unbelievably easy and so forgiving if it’s overworked, so perfect for getting the kids involved in.
– 100g salted butter
– 3 tablespoons golden syrup
– 100g of dark muscovado sugar
– 1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
– 1 tablespoon ground ginger
– 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
– 225g plain flour
Step one:
On a low heat, melt together the butter, sugar and golden syrup. Stir occasionally and leave to one side to cook slightly.
Step two:
Mix together the flour, bicarb, cinnamon and ginger in a separate bowl before adding in your buttery mixture. Stir to combine, then use your hands to bring it all together into a dough. The dough will be really soft and mouldable at this point, but it will firm up in the fridge.
Step 3:
Put the dough on a sheet of baking paper and shape with your hands into a rectangle. Lay another sheet of baking paper over the top and roll it out to about 1/2 cm thickness. Transfer the lot onto a baking tray to keep it nice and flat, then pop it in the fridge to chill for 1 hour.
Step 4:
Heat the oven to 190C/ 170C fan/ gas 5. Remove the dough from the fridge and start cutting your shapes! We made stars and men of different sizes and used a leaf cutter for the remaining bits of dough. If you want to hang them up, don’t forget to poke out a little hole for your ribbon to go through!
Step 5:
Place the biscuit shapes together on a baking paper lined tray, giving each one a little room, and bake for 9-12 minutes depending on the size of your biscuits. Once done, leave them to cool completely on the baking tray.
Step 6:
Time to decorate! Once cooled, you can use icing sugar in a piping bag (or store brought tubes) and any other edible decorations to make your gingerbread extra fancy. of course, you can always skip this step and devour them right away!
As much as we love a lovely refreshing cocktail in the summer months, Christmas is the perfect time to get creative and make some delicious festive cocktails. We are sharing our top 10 Christmas cocktail recipes that you need to try, and there is something for everyone! Whether you prefer something more subtle or full on Christmas in a glass.
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You’ll also need a large preserving jar or bottle; sterilised bottle(s)
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Stir all the ingredients together in a medium-size container. Pop a lid on the container or wrap it in plastic wrap and leave in the freezer overnight to set.
Use an ice cream scoop to scrape out enough cranberry vodka slush to fill the glass ¾ of the way full. Pour Sprite/7UP over the slush until it fills the glass.
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Filed Under: Christmas //
With December 1st fast approaching, what better time to start putting together a Christmas Eve box! Some people do one each for their children, One for their children to share and even one big family one! Whichever way you decide to put together your Christmas Eve Boxes this year, here are a few of our favourite things to fill them up! to
Everyone loves a hot chocolate this time of year! These are so fun to watch melt – and some even have a surprise inside!
Perfect for those Hot Chocolate Ball’s 😉 They can also be used year after year.
Pair it with a festive colouring book or some of our Christmas Printables and our good to go!
There is something about festive jammies that make them super special. No Christmas eve box is complete without a pair!
Each year we put a new festive book in the girls Christmas eve Boxes. This year we have “The Christmas Pine” which is also our book of December! You can also check out our favourite Christmas books here
These things have become incredibly POP-ular ( haha get it? ) so these festive ones would go down a treat!
Before you go to bed, sprinkle some of this so that the reindeer will be guided to your house. Completly natural ( no glitter please ) and eco friendly, these are a fab things to put in the boxes!
For those of you who don’t have a chimney and get asked the classic question of how the big guy delivers the gifts, these cute keys for Santa are the perfect thing. Place them on the door handle before you go to bed, and then Santa can make his way into your home to deliver the goods – not slightly disturbing at all right?
If you have seen The Polar Express, This will make sense. If you haven’t, go watch it and come back! You won’t regret it – fantastic film! This is the cutest thing to get for the children who believe!
We hope this post has given you ideas for your own Christmas Boxes, we’d love to see if you make one – don’t forget to tag us @thatmamaclub
We are a sucker for Christmas jumpers and can never resist adding a new one to our wardrobe every year. Some of us are fans of the OTT Christmas prints, where as some of prefer more subtle sweatshirt style jumpers. We have put together a selection of our favourites that you NEED to add to your wardrobe, from a range of high street stores.
We also highly recommend shopping second hand when it comes to Christmas jumpers. You can get some amazing jumpers from Ebay or Vinted, they’re almost always like new and for a fraction of the cost.
We hope you’ve found a jumper here that you like and it’s helped give you some inspiration! I am definitely in the subtle sweatshirt camp so I have my eye on the “Fight For The Claus” jumper. I absolutely love it!
The spirit of Christmas comes in many forms. The presents, the lights, the snow, as well as the music and getting together with family; just to name a few. At TMC we’re all about books and we’re all about our kids, so we love discovering the spirit of Christmas between the pages of a book at story-time. If you’re after some gift-worthy, festive books to tuck into with the little ones this season, here are a few that must make your list.
By Sam Taplin and Allison Friend
Age 0-5
The gift of an Usborne book is a treat with in itself but their collection of Twinkly, Twinkly books really takes the cake for being the ultimate Christmas books. There are three titles in the series, Twinkly, Twinkly Fairies, Twinkly Twinkly Christmas Tree and Twinkly Twinkly Nativity. Not only do the pages of these books don beautifully drawn images, they tell the perfect stories. What’s more, each page has magical lights built into each page which really bring the story to life. These will be a hit with the kids at Christmas season storytimes and you’ll love them, too.
By Julia Donaldson and Victoria Sandoy
Age 3-7
Julia Donaldson is a household favourite and it’s clear to see why. Between the amazing images and her quirky, rhyming style her books are popular with children of all ages. So it’s no surprise her Christmas title, The Christmas Pine, is becoming a seasonal favourite. This hearfelt story follows a little tree with a special destiny to be the Christmas tree in Trafalgar Square and is actually based on the true story of the Mayor of Oslo and Norway’s tradition of presenting Britain with a spectacular Christmas tree as a symbol of peace and friendship. And if you’re a stickler for packaging, it comes presented in a gold-foiled dust jacket.
Sold?
Because we are.
Tom Fletcher and Shane Devries
Age 3-7
This best-selling story by Tom Fletcher has been adapted into a picture- book and it does not disappoint. The Christmasaurus is a rhyming picture book about a dinosaur who wants nothing more than to be able to fly to help pull Santa’s sleigh across the sky on Christmas Eve. With a pitch-perfect, rhyming style this is a truly fabulous story and lesson in believing anything is possible.
And isn’t that what Christmas is all about?
Roald Dahl and Quentin Blake
Age 0-5
The legend that is Roald Dahl has done it again with this Christmas picture book. This twist on the classic Christmas song “12 Days Of Christmas” combines all the Roald Dahl characters with nostalgic illustrations. From golden tickets to fabulous friends, this is a great book to introduce young readers to first numbers. We don’t know about you but this book makes us want to be kids again.
Tom Fletcher and Greg Abbott
Age 3-6
Also another Tom Fletcher favourite, this Christmas book is part of a popular series “Who’s In Your Book?” The story introduces a little elf who is trying to find out if the reader has been naughty or nice by asking some questions. We’re all for interactive reading! Adding this fun, festive book to your bookcase will give a whole new meaning to “Elf on the Shelf”.
Anna Wilbourne and Emma Allen
Age 0-5
This brilliant series from Usborne Books has sparked the imagination of young readers all over. Lift flaps and peep-through holes reveal a magical winter wonderland. Kids can explore the pages to find reindeer, Mrs. Clause working on the sleight and even see Santa flying through the sky. The interactive pages have a magical scene laid out on every one and every time you read it you may discover something new. This book is the perfect way to celebrate the excitement of Christmas.
Karma Wilson and Jane Chapman
Age 2-5
If you’re looking for a book that will be a treat to read all year long, then this one is for you. A refreshing diversion from Santa Claus and Elves, this book also tells the story of a bear who wishes to hibernate over the winter, missing Christmas but is encouraged by his woodland friends to stay up and take part in Christmas festivities. It is a beautifully written story about friendship as well as not being alone around Christmas time. All while highlighting the true spirit of Christmas- giving!
Michael Bond and R.W. Alley
Age 2-5
The U.K.’s most beloved teddy bear in a Christmas book? We approve! This story follows Paddington and his family as they go to a Christmas grotto and explore the beautiful sights of the winter wonderland. Paddington goes on a festive adventure and discovers why Santa Claus makes Christmas so special. We’d happily swap out mince pies for marmalade sandwiches if it means getting to spend Christmas with Paddington.
Enid Blyton
Age 5-7
Yet another beloved author, Enid Blyton wondrously presents 30 Christmas stories in this delightful book. From a dog who discovers the joy of Christmas to Santa Claus and friends getting out of a muddle, you can embrace the spirit of Christmas every time you turn the page. With 30 stories, each at just the perfect length for a bedtime read, the children will be nestled all snug in their bed in no time.
Matt Haig
Age 7-9 years
You are about to read the TRUE STORY of FATHER CHRISTMAS. If you are one of those people who believe that some things are impossible, you should put this book down right away.
(Because this book is FULL of impossible things.)
Are you still reading? Good. Then let us begin…
So whether you’re giving this season or looking to indulge in some of your own Christmas cheer, the pages of these books are sure to keep you feeling merry and bright. What’s your favourite Christmas Book?