It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas

'Twas the night before Christmas and I've just sat down with a nice glass of chilled bubbly, after a lovely afternoon with the family. Now they've all either gone home to get ready for Santa or gone off to work, (my son's a firefighter and on a night shift tonight) keeping Santa safe on his travels.

Earlier my granddaughters opened their Christmas Eve boxes, (well Ruby is only 11 weeks old so Mummy opened hers) my favourite gift to them, a Christmas story book. Isabelle's book is a 'pop up' story book about going to get your Christmas tree and taking it home to decorate, and Ruby's book is a 'can you find' Christmas all sorts book. And it reminded me of how excited I was when I got the idea for my Christmas story book, which I will be getting started on sometime in the new year. How wonderful to think that next Christmas, maybe, I will wrap my own book for my granddaughters Christmas Eve boxes. How special that would be.

It's one of the reasons I am enjoying writing children's literature and picture books. To see the enjoyment on my granddaughter's face when she reads her favourite books is so heartwarming — the wonder, and truly priceless, precious moments shared with her just before bedtime. Then I'm reminded of why I love the escapism of reading a good book, back from my earliest memories as a child. There is nothing else quite like it.

And as much as the digital age is re-shaping they way many people read, I still believe there is nothing to compare with the feeling of opening a book, especially an old book, the smell of those weathered pages.

Anyhoo, it's time to watch a good ole movie classic with my husband, Christmas Eve is usually 'It's A Wonderful Life', a classic. Then we shall hang up our stockings, put milk and cookies out for Santa with some reindeer food and tootle off to Bedfordshire.

Merry Christmas to all, and to all, a good night.