Don’t they look yummy, if a little ‘rustic’!?I found this photo from four years ago. Which means it’s been a very long time since I’ve made mince pies.
Why? It’s that horrible cliche that we all use – time. I seem to run out of time. More and more. It’s the story of our lives, isn’t it? We want to do nice things, but we just don’t get around to it. (I’m eating a shop-bought mince pie as I type this too, just to add insult to injury!!)
So what can we do about this? Here are a few ideas I will be trying myself this week to fit in the festive fun, and ideally turn out another batch of hot, mincemeat-filled pastry pockets of loveliness!
1. Be clear what you want to do – Sounds obvious, but often we have only the vaguest notion that we want to ‘do something Christmassy’ with no real idea what that might be! So get specific with your yuletide yearnings! Do you want to create wrapping paper from dried holly leaves and potato stamps? Or write a Christmas ballad about the delights of late night shopping with three small children? Or perhaps try your hand at fashioning a life-sized reindeer for the front garden from only willow twigs and blu-tack? All noble pursuits. Pick one and let me know how it turns out!!
2. Put it in the diary – If you want to do something, put it in your diary! Make it a real ‘appointment’ with yourself and anyone else involved, and you are far less likely to cancel it. Pick a suitable time and day. Practicing one’s saucy striptease to ‘Santa Baby’ might be best kept for a time when the children are otherwise occupied. And lovingly creating a self-portrait from pasta and glitter for your wife’s office might be a task Monday evening when she goes out to her salsa class. (Or never, if I’m being really honest.)
3. Don’t bail on yourself – Treat yourself as a priority in your life, and try not to see your plans as less important than other plans. No, the festive wreath-making from scraps of old shopping bags absolutely cannot be cancelled, even if Auntie Joan is demanding a seventh trip to the garden centre because one can never have too many poinsettia, can one?
4. Get organised – If I want to make mince pies, I’m going to need some things. And I’m going to need to buy them in advance. Doing your prep allows you to show up at the appointed time and place and enjoy the activity without the disappointment of realising you were actually going to try to make mince pies with literally NONE of the required ingredients! (True story. Embarrassing.)
5. Show yourself a good time – If you really, really enjoy yourself, this will become a non-negotiable for you next year (or next week, if you’re super-keen!) So macrame the heck out of that tree angel. Paper-mache that xmas objet d’art like you’ve never paper-mached before! And with a bit of luck, you’ll feel pretty pleased with yourself for taking some time for you! (And Auntie Joan will be beyond delighted when you present her with her very own hand-crafted Rudolph-themed resin Christmas toilet seat this year.)
Above all, have fun and get creative! I would love to hear about what you’ve been getting up to this Christmas!
Jo x
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