On the 8th day leading up to Christmas life gave me a dead car battery!!!
The irony of this dilemma, I had just said to my son before we began walking into his breakfast club, that I’d “definitely be early for work today.” I had dropped my daughter to the train station and my son to his breakfast club. I got back into the car to start on my journey towards the place that makes my eyes twitch and increases my level of patience and my ability to be long-suffering everyday; when my car said no, no no. The kindness of a few strangers, some tears, breakfast, a little wait for my husband to get off work, a clutch start, a Christmas miracle and a £116.25 later my car lived to drive another day.
Hey my wonderful readers, I kept my promise and I’m back to give you one final blog for 2025! How was your Christmas? Mine has certainly been eventful.
On the 7th day leading up to Christmas, life gave me the ‘dinero’ I needed to make the first set of Christmas gift purchases, a headache, lots of tangerines and orange juice to fight off an impending flu.
Oops almost forgot…a trip back to Brum for the kiddos dental appointments.
On the 4th day leading up to Christmas, the Christmas tree has entered the building, we’ve got lights and window decorations too. Thankful for my husband who encouraged me to follow through because If I went according to my feelings the gifts would’ve been left in their amazon boxes or if I did manage to muster up the strength to wrap them, my peace lily’s would’ve had a duplicate role of house plant and Christmas tree.
On the 2nd day leading up to Christmas, history records the shortest Christmas shopping expedition ever. The kids and I went to have a nosey in our new town. In one hour we had driven to the mall, visited a few stores, bought a few items we needed and were in the car heading back home. The taste of consumerism and overratedness was bitter in our mouths and we decided not to be part of it. We realised that we had more than what we needed.
Christmas day, made easy because of preparations the day before. Breakfast, followed by gift exchange, a quick video to send to our loved ones, no matching PJ’s, or Christmas cards to deliver to our neighbours; just us, adapting, being true to who we are, laughter and a few tears and musical renditions from the upcoming Willis’ band 😀 kids testing out their gifts outside, a tired body yielded back to the kitchen to prepare dinner. Tummies filled and time to relax to the movie Grinch and our family tradition Home Alone.
Post Christmas and the mind is confused. Do I exercise, start my new years goals, just lay around being a bum all day, call family and friends, answer messages I didn’t from Christmas Day. One thing was for sure breakfast was dinner and dinner was more dinner from the previous day’s celebrations.
The day after Christmas Hubby and I journey 20+ miles in the wrong direction to have a night at the theatres. Parking on a dodgy road, a ten minute walk, two coffees and a bathroom break later, we got to see a friend of ours perform in Cinderella. Too early to go back home to be mommied and daddied to death we chose to dine at The Riftswood, the food was sizzling alright but very petite in size.
Wow! I didn’t even remember that happened. An hour of going through wedding photos. 2 months now feeling like two decades ago.
Five days post Christmas and a few texts to say…I’m thinking about you…snapping me back to reality that it’s been 3 years since you said good-bye to us (wow that surely flew by). There were no tears from me, just a feeble ‘I’m ok!”
Clock display: 8:29! Sigh! Realising that unless I can teleport I was gonna be very late for my 08:30 appointment. Favour found me and the appointment rescheduled for 11:30. Doing the maths… £396.10 car now thumbs up for another year of flashing up and down the highways and byways. I truly have to give God thanks for HIS provision because mama!!
Twas the day before the new year and I should be giddy with excitement and spewing with philosophical wonder, but I’m in a state of blah! Too much scrolling on IG where everyone is reminding you to do vision boards, prayer boards, your yearly recap in photos, travel blogs, save more, get out of debt!! Goals set weeks ago, books on my coffee table that I will somehow make the time to read, an application sitting 90% finished, a book waiting to be published, a child insisting on talking off my ears, a calendar already filling up…I’ve plateaued!
Tonight I break tradition, I’ll worship at home in my own little way and just sit in what was and what is potentially to come. I know we all get caught up in the hype of the expectations of a new year. Maybe this time we can approach it differently. Doing a postmortem of your year that has passed. No, really sit with it! Do you even remember what happened January 2nd, do you remember where you were 3 Fridays ago? This life demands so much and if we’re not careful we’re so busy doing , that we miss the purpose of it all. What if you didn’t have a new years resolution? What if you waited a week to plan your goals? What if you really took the time to grieve the year that has just passed and all the failures and loss that you experienced. What if you gave space for gratitude truly acknowledging all your wins and achievements? What if you decided to breathe and gave yourself space to be human and not a machine?
What if 2026 means to do less?
What if 2026 means to heal?
What if it means to push past that fear or feeling of discouragement?
What if 2026 means to let go?
What if 2026 means…….
Thank you for following along on my journey this year. It has surely been a wild one. I appreciate every reader and the time you spend acknowledging my little rambles. If God gives me breath…see you on the other side..
Besos😘
Chronicles of an Inspired Single Mom 
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