Christmas Tree Adventure

When you see all these amazing Christmas films where families are going out to cut down their own tree and its in your dreams to one day do it. Well this year I took the family to ‘Pick our own Christmas Tree’. As we will be visiting family we decided that we wanted to dig the tree up and have it for our patio outside.

After trawling the internet I came across South London Christmas Tree Farm and it looked perfect you can choose a tree from their plantation and either cut or dig it yourselves. Ok, so we did need to take our own tools but that’s not a problem, so my husband took to the shed and got us a spade, fork and a mattock ⚒.

As the 1st December was a Saturday this lent it self to the perfect day for our ‘Christmas Tree Expedition’. We had to take two cars so that we could fit the tree in, so we set off to find our tree. It was about a 40 minute drive from our house and as my son and I pulled up it looked perfect, we then sat and waited for my husband and other son to arrive. After 20 minutes and a snap chat later it transpired that my husband and son had arrived at a different ‘Christmas Tree Farm’ 16 minutes away! After providing them with the post code (I had showed him the website but miscommunication somehow left us at different locations)!

Once we were all together we went in to chat with the staff and enquire where we needed to go, they were super helpful and really nice. We set off for the field to find our tree.

There were numbered lots and we headed for lot three after the advice from the staff. Nearly immediately we all spotted a tree that we loved but thought it was too soon and we should walk a little further. Our youngest then decided that some of the beautiful 7ft + trees would be much nicer…..i don’t think so! We decided that the first tree we saw was the one for us and headed back to start the task of digging it out.

Tip – dig around the base a good couple of ft as this will make it easier to get the root out and should give you a good chance of the tree surviving.

We got caked in mud and had great fun digging the tree 🌲 and it came out perfectly. Again if you wish to cut take a wood saw, this should be less messy and quicker – I would still advise welly boots and clothes you don’t mind getting dirty.

The children carried our beautiful tree to the barn for them to tell us the ££ and nicely wrap the tree so we could get it in the car. So for £50 we got our tree, a wreath and some amazing memories.

We also took a trip to Homebase to get our tree a pot so we could plant and display on our patio.

The next day whilst I was food shopping (I get all the glamorous jobs) the boys planted the tree. We had ordered lights earlier that week from lights4fun that arrived on the Sunday – fab service and quick delivery, which I was then tasked with putting on the tree.

This was such an amazing experience and relatively cost effective compared to a lot of Christmas activities and we will definitely be doing it again next year. So if you looking for something a little different why not give this a go.

December 7, 2018 0

Time well spent

I don’t think people understand how stressful it is to explain what is going on in your head, when you don’t even understand it yourself.

Sometimes just listening and giving someone time to release all the random and tangled thoughts in their mind is the most valuable time you will ever give.

December 6, 2018 0

Tuesday Thoughts 💭

As Christmas Day is fast approaching remember to take a moment before you get dragged into the ‘gifting’ hype pushed at us all.

Know who you are buying for, do you need to buy for everyone? For me the people I spend Christmas Day with are those that I will share gifts with, with a few exceptions like my Mum and Dad. I give not to receive but to show them what they mean to me. Gifts do not have to be extravagant but they should be well thought through and individual to the person you are gifting.

There are so many material things that we would all ‘like’ but time with someone is more precious than anything else. Christmas for me is a time when we should share our time with the ones we love and that should always be the most important part.

December 4, 2018 0

Wednesday Wisdom

‘It takes something more than intelligence to act intelligently’. – Fyodor Dostoyevsky –

It’s not a given it’s something you learn, often taught by those close to you. Knowing that you conduct yourself how you expect to be treated by others.

November 28, 2018 0

Tuesday Thoughts

Sometimes you have to do things as others don’t understand.

Even when you have explained sometimes people still don’t get it.

And quite often it’s much better done by you anyway.

I use my escape of the beautiful outdoors to release the stress from inside.

November 27, 2018 0

Confidence

If you find the confidence in yourself you will progress so much further. 😊

As a person I am fairly confident in many things that I do. I believe I am this way because I like to make sure that I understand what I am talking about. I research what I want to know and I am not frightened to ask others questions; it’s about learning. You must find your inner confidence and believe in yourself as you get results from finding out from others and not sitting back doing nothing.

Sometimes it maybe scary to ask that question but I respect others for asking me questions so maybe think about that next time you are holding back. 💭 ✊

November 26, 2018 0

Tuesday Thoughts 💭

Don’t let other’s hold you back, many want the glory for themselves.

Most of my work week I am meeting people, but what really frustrates me is those who just play lip service.

I have a job, I would like to make a difference, I try to do my best and I don’t just want work to be something I just turn up to.

I get that we all have priorities but not looking further than the immediate future is so short sighted and you will constantly be fighting to keep the position.

Balance of longer term work and short term wins is how you make a successful career and one that you can enjoy.

There are people in the workplace that think the same as you, that are not jealous or wanting the glory and you will work together to achieve because it makes sense.

November 20, 2018 0

Monday Motivation

I do not fix my problems. I fix my thinking. Then problems fix themselves. – Louise Hay –

Whilst I love Autumn I am not a fan of the shorter days and after working all day, then getting home I have missed the day light to get outside and do something for myself. Therefore I need to rethink and work out how I get some daylight throughout the Autumn and Winter during my work week.

As with the culture these days when working we eat our lunch at our desk and continue to work – not healthy! Therefore I vow to allow myself time every day to leave the work space for a short walk in the fresh air. Why not make a vow to change something for yourself?

November 19, 2018 0

A Journey

Every day we achieve a little more in our life journey. And not every day is a day of adventure and fun, the every day life chores need to be completed.

My son is currently studying for his GCSEs and for him his homework is generally a chore. For one of his GCSE choices he chose photography and this gets his creative mind going. For his photography homework we plan to go out places to compete the tasks. I can say that this has truly wonderful health benefits (especially for a teenager) and produces wonderful work done by him.

Thank you to BMW for letting him use your lovely cars to inspire him, so tempted to purchase another one 😁

November 18, 2018 0

Words

Words are like a game of scrabble you need to be clever how you use them.

The way in which we say things can have a lasting effect on someone. Words are powerful. I am sure if you think for a few moments you could think of several famous quotes. And that If you are put in a certain place or with particular people there are words you will remember being spoken, these being happy or sad.

It’s in our nature to record these moments and then recall them when we are in a particular situation.

Unfortunately there are many words that we find hard to file away quickly so we can move on.

With social media in our world and a faceless culture of texting and emails I feel emotions are being removed from words. We created our amazing languages to communicate in an effective way, let’s not forget to use them wisely.