I Wish You a Merry Christmas! 🎄🎅

There’s only two more sleeps left until Christmas! Part of me is more excited this year as I’ve enjoyed buying and wrapping my presents and I can’t wait to see the reaction on people’s faces when they open my gifts. I like to buy to suit each person and try and make gifts personal in some way. For example, my mum and I love cryptic crosswords so I plan to hide her gifts and give her clues to help her find them. It’s fun and shows thought.

I’m so excited to be able to have someone special to celebrate with this year; my boyfriend! Relationships are still kind of new to me and at times I feel like there’s things I don’t know but that’s part of it and so far everything has been positive. All I can do is be myself and as long as we’re happy that’s what counts. It’s been almost four months since we first met and that time has gone so quickly.

Working in retail, I know I will make the most of my time off because the day after Christmas Day sends shoppers crazy! I have a short break before Christmas so I’ll be preparing myself for the madness haha. My brother is also coming down to spend Christmas with us and we’re off to my aunt’s on the actual day itself.

I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas and enjoy celebrating and spending time with your family and loved ones! I also want to thank you for the support for my blog this year! In June, we reached the two year mark and it’s weird to think this little space on the internet will turn three in 2017. Your support and kind words never fail to make me smile and I’m so proud of how much I’ve been able to grow as a blogger and a person as a result.

I will be back next week with a few end of the year posts but until then, Merry Christmas!

Hey, It’s Okay… If Christmas Isn’t Your Favourite Holiday

Hey everyone and welcome to the twelfth and final Hey, It’s Okay… post for 2016! Before I get into the post, let me just clarify I’m not going to get all bah humbug and Scrooge on you.

Twinkling lights, snow falling down, fireplace roaring, stuffing your face with food, sounds like Christmas right?! Movies always paint a picture of how Christmas looks and how it should be when in reality it’s not always like that. Take Christmas in New Zealand for example, Christmas is in summer so it’s always warm – you won’t see snow and there won’t be a fireplace roaring. I’ve had 20 summer Christmases (coming up 21) and I still find it weird. I’d love to experience a cold Christmas one day and curl up on the couch with a cosy jumper opening presents.

Personally, Christmas isn’t my favourite holiday but it’s not my least favourite either. I have reasons why I like it and reasons I don’t.

I love the idea that Christmas brings family and friends together and you get to swap presents and celebrate and spend time with each other. Christmas is also a great excuse to indulge in lots of yummy food and overeat. Roast pork with crackling is what my family normally has for our big meal at lunch and it is delicious! Pavlova (a meringue based dessert) is my absolute favourite and a Christmas treat I always look forward to! Let’s face it, we all love receiving presents and the fact someone has gone to the trouble of thinking what to buy you is really what counts but I thoroughly enjoy gift shopping for others and I boast that I’m a pretty decent gift giver. I like to get my shopping out of the way early to avoid the last minute rush. Christmas lights and decorations automatically make things feel more like Christmas and I never tire of looking at fairy lights.

On the flipside, like many other holidays Christmas seems to be becoming more about children. I know children are fascinated with the idea of Santa but I think if we focused more on family traditions as we grow up we wouldn’t feel as stressed and overwhelmed by all the shopping/cooking/preparing that needs to be done. Christmas to me has always seemed like the type of holiday that is for the family (compared to something like Halloween where it’s normally only kids that go trick or treating). Christmas should be a time of togetherness and celebration, not worrying about trying to top last year’s presents. This brings me to next point, I don’t want this to sound rude but a lot of children these days are spoilt. When I was a child (and still now to an extent) I would never ask or suggest what I wanted as presents. It’s the thought that counts and you get what you are given. Love and thoughtfulness should not be compared to a monetary value! For many families, they can’t afford extravagant gifts or the latest technology and I know from personal experience and growing up that way that what you do receive is appreciated more.

I’m not saying we shouldn’t give presents or exchange gifts but instead of the price we should be focusing on the meaning behind the gifts and how special the people giving them to us are. Often it’s personal, handmade gifts that are far more meaningful.

Maybe I am being overly critical and assuming everyone sees Christmas the way I do but things have changed since I was younger and the magic of Christmas seems to have gotten lost among commercialisation. There are elements of Christmas I enjoy but it’s almost like the excitement of Christmas is lacking. We should spend time trying to bring that back rather than who can get the best bargain in the sales after the big day!

Is Christmas your favourite holiday? Does it still feel magical for you?

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I really hope you enjoyed the Hey, It’s Okay… series! Let me know if you would be interested in more posts next year and if you have any suggestions or topics you’d like me to discuss.

Merry Christmas!

“Chestnuts roasting on an open fire, Jack Frost nipping at your nose.” I’m writing this post ahead of time and by the time it goes up, Christmas morning will be well underway in New Zealand.

I want to thank all of my lovely readers again for making 2015 a great blogging year and I hope you have a wonderful Christmas and enjoy the rest of the holiday season. I’ve got exciting posts planned for next week and I’m pleased to announce I will be blogging everyday! I’ve also got some really exciting plans for the blog for next year and I can’t wait to reveal more about those in 2016.

Merry Christmas everyone! All my love,

Holly Jolly Holiday Tag

Happy Monday lovelies! Today’s the day things start getting festive on Chanelle Hayley. I’ve seen a few bloggers attempt this tag over the past week and after reading Katie from Plus+ Beauty‘s answers I knew I wanted in on the action! Katie has recently returned to the blogging scene after some time away so make sure you pop over to her blog and give her some love and spread the Christmas cheer!

1. Do you start your Christmas shopping on Black Friday or wait until last minute?

Black Friday is quite a recent thing in New Zealand. I hate leaving things until the last minute so I always try to make sure I finish Christmas shopping as early as I can. If I’m out in August or September and see something I think someone will like then, I’ll probably pick it up.

2. If you could be in any Christmas movie what would it be?

Love Actually. Being set in London and the story line with all the different couples would be a dream!

3. Which do you like better: Christmas Eve or Christmas Day?

I think Christmas Eve is more exciting as there’s more hype knowing the next day it’s Christmas. Once you open presents and eat, the excitement is pretty much over for another year.

4. When does your family put up their Christmas tree and who decorates it?

It changes every year, I only put my Christmas tree up yesterday 😛 The past few years I’ve made it a regular thing to put it up and I’ve really enjoyed decorating it and making it look pretty.

5. White lights or coloured lights?

Both – it all depends on your tree decor. If you want a classic look with silver and gold baubles, white lights or if you like your tree to be sparkly and full of colour, go for coloured lights.

6. Are you guilty of peeking at your presents or do you like to be surprised?

No, never! I like to be surprised. Sometimes I will get asked if there’s anything in particular I’d like so I may know what I’m getting before Christmas day.

7. Would you rather live in a gingerbread house or Santa’s workshop?

Santa’s workshop. The gingerbread house would be tempting to eat and make you feel constantly hungry. In Santa’s workshop you’d get to play with all the toys and help the elves, maybe even wear those adorable elf shoes with bells on the toes.

8. Tell us your Christmas Eve traditions.

When my brother and I were kids we’d write our names on pieces of paper and stick them at opposite ends of the couch so Santa knew where to put our presents. We’d also leave a drink and some biscuits out for Santa.

9. If you could be under the mistletoe with anyone, who would it be?

I could say my celebrity crush but the age gap would be a little weird. I’ll say my Mr. Right who I’ve yet to meet ❤

10. What tops your tree?

Currently nothing. We used to have a sparkly, golden star but it’s either lost or packed away.

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I had SO much fun answering these questions and doing this tag, I’m sure you will too! Leave a link to your post if you’ve done this tag already or if you decide to do this tag, I’d love to read your answers!