Wednesday 3 December 2014

Jan Ruth's Itty Bitty Christmas....


Wishing you a Merry Christmas

from






Whats your earliest Christmas Memory?

Dad, creeping about on the landing with a pillowcase. Merry the pony wearing a Christmas hat and bells in his mane (under sufferance, but even so). My brother hiding vegetables.



Do you have any special Christmas Traditions?

Buck’s Fizz for breakfast, made with freshly squeezed juice and a good quality Cava. A long walk in the hills in the afternoon. These two seem to have survived through the years!



Whats your favourite festive carol or song?


The Pogues: Fairytale of New York (You WILL sing, you will…)




Do you have a favourite festive film?


National Lampoons Christmas Vacation.




Whats your favourite festive read ?


A Child’s Christmas in Wales, by Dylan Thomas. Honest.




Are you organised or do you leave everything until the last minute ?

I’m quite organised. Preparations have reduced considerably since the family have grown. I can pare it down to Scrooge-like proportions if needs be. When we were busy working and the family was young, we always used to want to ‘go away’ somewhere for Christmas but now that we can, we invariably don’t want to. 




Christmas Tree – real or artificial?


Real. Can’t beat the smell or the mess, can you? It’s not really Christmas until you’ve pulled stray needles out of your new top. 


Tinsel or Glitter?

I’m not fond of tinsel… but I don’t know why. Maybe I was strangled by it in a past life. It always looks sparkly and innocent until you drape it on the tree and then it usually looks naff, so I’m going for glitter. I like the idea of sprinkling it on cut logs.




Gingerbread Latte or Orange spiced Hot Chocolate?


I don’t think I could cope with either. I don’t have a very sweet tooth so it would have to be straight hot chocolate for me, with maybe a dash of Christmas brandy?



Mince Pie or Yule Log?


I’m always disappointed with Yule Log, so mince pie it is. Warm, with a dollop of cream.



Christmas Dinner – Traditional Turkey or something Different?


Slightly different. We prefer the taste of chicken but I go overboard on the preparation as per Jamie Oliver’s buttery lemon chicken covered in prosciutto and stuffed with fresh herbs. It’s a firm favourite.



Christmas Tipple – Bucks Fizz/Mulled Wine or something stronger?

Bucks Fizz is lovely for breakfast, can’t bear mulled wine so I’m afraid it has to be something stronger! I’m a cold crisp wine drinker but I do like Jack Daniels or a tall gin and tonic too.



A fun game of after dinner charades or more chocolates and the television?

I’m not a lover of games, are you surprised by that? So, I guess that leaves me chocolates and TV. Actually, the more simple the evening, the better.


I’m reading these questions back and I sound very much like the eccentric hermit woman who lives in the hills with a well-stocked cellar. Oh, hold on…






Huge thanks to Jan  for sharing her Christmas with us.

Jaffa and I wish you a very Merry Christmas.






If you comment at the end of this post and tell us what your favourite Christmas film is, I'll enter you into Jaffa's mystery draw to win an a few bookish treats.

*

Only Jaffa knows what they are......

****Don't forget to leave me a contact email so I can get in touch should you win!****



UK only


Winners will be selected and notified by email in early January
Good Luck


*~*~*














6 comments:

  1. It's interesting that we all set up our own little Christmas traditions. Buttery chicken sounds great! For me it's champagne on Christmas morning. Just wouldn't be Christmas without it. Favourite Christmas film is Scrooged - it makes me laugh and cry no matter how many times I see it.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Kathy - Thanks for visiting. I agree Buttery Chicken sounds yummy and I enjoy watching Scrooged too - I love Bill Murray :)

      Delete
  2. Loved hearing about your traditions, Jan. I'm with you on the hot chocolate - but with Bailey's! And my favourite Christmas film has to be It's a Wonderful Life. Happy Christmas!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Helena - A Wonderful Life get me every time, no Christmas is complete without it . I'm not a fan of Baileys but I love hot chocolate with marshmallows..
      ...note to self...add marshmallows to shopping list :)

      Delete
  3. This blog entry's got me thinking, we often spend Christmas away with family so have to go along with their traditions but I do like a good walk, either before or after lunch, weather permitting. It was great to hear about Jan's favourites.

    And as for my favourite film I know it's a children's film but mine is Polar Express, I just love the sentiments and I guess it brings back fond memories of watching it with my children when they were young.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Eightlegs - thanks for visiting. Yes, I agree that weather permitting, a good walk helps to blow away the Christmas cobwebs !

      I remember being fond of Polar Express too :)

      Delete

Thanks for taking the time to comment - Jaffareadstoo appreciates your interest.