Christmas Preparations:
Decluttering and deep cleaning:
Declutter hall
Deep clean hall
Declutter stairs (there shouldn’t be anything on there apart from the bowl with toys for Matilda!)
Deep clean stairs
Declutter sitting room
Deep clean sitting room
Declutter landing book case
Deep clean landing bookcase
Declutter bathroom
Deep clean bathroom
Declutter bedroom
Deep clean bedroom
Declutter spare room/ office
Deep clean spare room/ office
Declutter kitchen
Deep clean kitchen
Prune roses ?? done ?? Left
Christmas List!
( I’m going to need to make amendments and additions, but it’s a start.)
Christmas prep:
Find my Christmas book!
Gifts:
DH birthday (and card) and Christmas(and card)
DH stocking
DF E
Birthday gift and card for DF E (her birthday is the beginning of January)
Dnextdoorneighbour C
DH’s family: DH will sort: R, S, L&G, B, L2, R2 & D, J
Give tubs of chocolates to: vet, hairdresser, anyone else who has been really good to us this year to say “thank you” –Last year I have bought the Big Mix tins of chocolates from M&S for everyone
List gifts I still need to buy
DH is supposed to be buying for his family
Wrap gifts
Cards:
Do I need to buy more?
Update card list
Check addresses and get DH to print out address labels
Write cards - am I going to design our own card again? They were a big hit last year (Snapfish!). All DH will have to do is stuff it in the envelope along with the newsletter (no writing required!!!) And worst comes to worst, I'll be able to quickly.do them for him (I'm not telling him this, as I really do think he should send cards to his relatives, but I don't want the elderly ones especially to miss out. So...)
Are we doing a newsletter this year?
Food:
Decide on Christmas meat. Am I going to try a replacement butcher, or try Waitrose? (If I start looking now, I may be able to get the lamb and ham on offer?)
Veg and fruit - are we having a veg box?
Christmas “goodies” – cheeses, biscuits for cheese,(Jacobs crackers from Waitrose )sweet biscuits,(M&S for tins of shortbread, tins of chocolates , Waitrose for chocolate biscuits) chocolate...
Baking:
Mince pies
Gingerbread men
Christmas cake
Glaze Christmas cake
Fudge?
Truffles?
Christmas grocery order – Waitrose (KEEP CHECKING FOR CHRISTMAS DELIVERY SLOTS FROM MID SEPTEMBER and put the basics in my trolley.) Just need to add any seasonal items, and be careful not to get carried away! Remember fruit for fruit salad, also parsnips, carrots and sprouts (unless I decide on a veg box)
Am I having a Christmas veg box?
Decorations:
Tree
Wreath for front door
Lights round porch - maybe not as we had this house painted this year - extra lights on wreath instead?
Lights on kitchen windowsill
Wooden Nativity scene (this depends on whether Matilda tries to chew it!) Not this year, Matilda has started jumping up onto the china display cabinet where I usually put the Nativity set!!!!
Church organ musical box, gingerbread house tin and Christmas tree tin (on top shelf of sitting room bookcase?)
Christmas card holders over kitchen door
Hang Christmas count down ornament? (Or will this make my life too stressful?
)
Events:
Christmas shoebox for Moldova - check what suitable gifts I have already (I'm assuming our church is doing this again this year)
Women’s group meditation
3/12 Parish Christmas lunch. I'm organising this again . Booked for 03/12 at the back of the church. Need to book caterers soon? Or are we going to have a bring and share lunch this time?
Find phone number for caterers (in the end I used their "Contact us" form, which was so much simpler)
Write everything down in a logical order :
Full address of the church, name and email address for the treasurer, Date: 2rd December
Time, 11 am-12 pm (they have hourly slots)
Which menu I want to order with all the add-ons . This year, go for more elaborate menu and buy /make cakes?
Order for 20 guests (Remember at least a couple need to be GF) Ended up with 26 Remember to liaise with caterers again a week before
Two Sundays before the lunch, close the list, as the caterers need to know updated numbers
Explain that the treasurer has the "chequebook" for the church (she actually does everything online) and ask them to send the invoice there.
MD has suggested we make it a ticketed event, so liaise with D (parish administrator over design of tickets )
Ask D to print tickets and posters
Number tickets and keep a list of names!
Work out costs per head:
Also need tablecloths, crackers (DF PM has lots of Xmas napkins she will provide) fairy lights on font, paper chains? Chocolates on bowls on tables? Ask MD if she would make simple centre pieces for table again
Email MD with final details a week beforehand
MD has also offered members of the social.committee to help set up /clear away
Remember we need a separate table for GF food
Tea and coffee from the urns, soft drinks? (No alcohol as we would need an Events Licence, and I'm not going down that route ) Jugs of water on tables and tea/ coffee from the urns
Bite sized mince pies? - from Sainsbury's
How / when do we publicise it? Ask D to print poster advertising the event
Tickets and poster now printed!
Started selling tickets after church
Carol service at church? Am I reading? ( does the catering committee want me to do the mulled wine?) Probably no to all of this!
Christmas services: are we having a Bethlehem Mass at 9 pm on Christmas Eve again? (It was a lot more popular that midnight mass, especially now people are getting older!!!), will I be asked to read?
Date to visit DBIL and family?
To be continued...
[L
