Christmas is coming

Hi my lovelies,

Well we are fast approaching that time of year again. The Christmas songs are creeping onto the radio breakfast shows and the Christmas adverts are in full swing. I felt a little disheartened at the prospect of Christmas this year. However the more I hear the jingle jangle of Christmas coming the more my spirits lift. It truly is a magical time and it does not matter what is in the way, joy can be found anywhere if you open up to it.

So we in the Chezzy household have thought, “what the heck! Let’s throw ourselves into it all”.  So that we did and we put up our Christmas decorations yesterday. That was the 29th November, the earliest the  Chezzy manor has ever saw a garland and tree. My sister is known within our family as Mrs Claus, she is obsessed with Christmas, always has been. She put her decorations up last week which at the time I thought was a little strange but now I get it! Why the hell not, we need cheering up after this year.

 We all know the way this year has gone, lots of downs and not a lot of ups and because of this she is a little upset about not being able to attend the Manchester Christmas markets. My son Dylan wanted to cheer her up and knowing how much she loves baking, he suggested a family bake off! So we are now taking part in a bake off with me and Dylan and my sister Natalie and her son Eric. I mean there will be no in person judging but I am sure we can come up with a prize for both of the boys. I just love that Dylan wanted to do this and get involved with spreading Christmas joy. 

Putting up the decorations this year was a lot more enjoyable than the last two years. The Christmas of 2018  was a total right off. I think I stayed in my bed the whole time as this was the first Christmas being blind. It was a tough one! The Christmas of 2019 was a little better I was started to adjust. I managed to take part in decorating the tree but that year we had a limited decoration out. This Christmas I am feeling a lot more like myself, if not more of who I want to be and with this in mind we went to town. I think the crap year we have all had has added to this surge in sparkle and joy. I mean why not? This year we have two trees, a staircase garland, garden lights, window lights, all the nick nacks are out. I am giving my sister a run for her money this year. We had such a lovely day too putting everything out, with Steve working hard to keep us going we haven’t had much family time so this was precious. We had a tree decorating competition. Me against the boys. My tree is very traditional and theirs is funky. I think it was a draw! Although the boys did insist they won and in the spirit of things I encouraged it because I think Dylan needs a little competition that is not on a screen and a little victory. Plus I am his mum he will always win in that situation! 

This year I have noticed a lot more audio described Christmas adverts, I mean there are only two so far but that was more than last year and the way they describe them is so magical. I have also noticed a lot more accessible Christmas cards, tactile and braille options. A wonderful sight I came across was  Arts Coaching training, you can view her site here. She makes tactile cards. There is also the RNIB you can find these here. These are a great gift for someone with a visual impairment. They help promote independence and show you have thought about their needs. There are some great gadget gifts too, one I have hinted at from my family is a photo album from the RNIB. It is a regular album that you slot pictures into but in the bottom right corner is a recordable button.. Much like the ones you have in the talking cards you can purchase these days. You can record descriptions of each photo in the order they are placed so you never forget those precious moments. 

Celebrating Christmas this year in the strange space we are in will be challenging and will test a lot of us. I think the main thing to do is to remain positive, embrace all traditions, celebrate with the family that you can see and zoom the rest. I have learnt over the last two years that life does change and those changes don’t always have to be bad. The human race is resilient and strong. We can get through anything, it is all about holding hope in your heart and living in the moment. 

Enjoy the festive journey, start it in November and carry into January if you wish. Do what brings you joy, try not to worry about what is and what isn’t the right way to celebrate. Do what is right for you and your loved ones. 

Stay safe and stay merry 

Lots of love 

Nina xx