One week to Dec... WHAT??!?

We're deciding whether to introduce Mathew to the joys of advent calendars this year. We've tried to hold back as long as possible with most treaty stuff. We know that once sugar enters his life it will be a constant battle to limit his intake, so we've tried to leave it all as long as we can before introducing things like ice cream, chocolate buttons and licorice. But Christmas is Christmas, and Advent is Advent, and one of the joys of the Yuletide Season is a regular morning ritual of opening a window and indulging in whatever is found behind it, and I'm wondering whether 2022 is the year to introduce him to that particular annual pleasure...

I can't quite put my finger on why, but I ain't Feeling Festive yet. With only four weeks (and change) to go before The Big Day I would normally be as soaked in Christmas Cheer as my mother's liver used to be in alcohol, but that feeling hasn't materialised yet. The weather has been unseasonably warm, and we've had The New Arrival to distract us from Normal Life, so that may be part of it, but even so I am surprised at how little I am looking forward to the next month or so. I'm sure that will change at some point. I'm sure I will end up being more Christmassy than a drunk elf covered in tinsel. Or maybe I won't, and if I don't, that's fine too - every December can't be the same, or life would be repetitive and boring, would it not?

 

Speaking of 'repetitive' - you are welcome to your views on my children's names, but please feel free to stop mentioning those views to me, or my wife. YES - my eldest son has the middle name Ryan, and his younger brother has the first name Rian. So what? The former is an Americanised version of a European surname; the latter is the original Gaelic name meaning 'King'.  They are different names, and we have used them differently in each case. Deal with it. We're not the first parents to use names repetitively within families, and we won't be the last. I can't even promise you that, if we ever have another offspring (and I have to say, it's not something I'm considering right now), we won't use Rian AGAIN. There's a lovely female version, spelt Ryann, and I have to say I'm a big fan of the name RIANNE for a girl as well, so be warned. I might even do it just to annoy you....

RC 24-11-22