Boxing Day

Plan ahead for joy this Christmas

It's been a long year - I've moved from Scotland's capital down to England's capital.
I'm now living in London's busy Chelsea region. I also had my second child this year: my son Brad is now 9 weeks old. It can be hard sometimes, managing two young babies by myself during the day. Majela is now 18 months and is a handful in her own right, but trying to keep her under control and look after Brad is very difficult at times.

There are three joys that I need to help me enjoy a relaxing day in the face of the madness which is Christmas; caffeine, quiet children and a mobile with a good battery.

Now that Christmas is getting so near I need to get out doing some shopping! I have managed to convince my sister-in-law to watch Brad for a couple of hours and this will let me out to the shops. On the way back from the shops, my plan is to pop in to Starbucks and try one of their new Christmas coffees. I've already had a peak at their new line of coffees online at Starbucks Christmas drinks. The gingerbread latte sounds good, but I'm looking forward more to trying their new toffee nut latte.

I can enjoy my coffee, and my day, if I can keep Majela quiet for a while. I can bribe her with a little toy from the Early Learning Centre, and she'll be happily tired out after having fun in the shop.

I'm going to get Majela something small on the day, which I can carry around, and then I can give it to her in the Starbucks to keep her calm while I have my coffee. The big present that I'm going to get her for Christmas I'll get on their website ( ELC ) and they can carry it home for me.

While I'm out I know I don't have to worry about Brad because my sister-in-law can phone me at any time. My last phone's battery didn't even last half a day and I'd always be worrying about leaving the kids at home. I'm not really a geek, but I got my new Sony phone ( Sony Ericcson ) because the battery's so strong. This is also handy when I have to go out at night.

Planning ahead to put some little joys into your day isn't selfish - it's just the best way to enjoy your Christmas in peace.

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