Can you remember celebrating Christmas as a child; the excitement and anticipation as you build up to the day? I can still remember the tingle of magic on Christmas day after discovering Santa had been! After the strange year we have all had and the restrictions that will still be in place in the run up to the big day, parents are desperate to give their children an extra special Christmas. Whilst this might sound like an expensive thing to do, there are ways to create a magical Christmas wonderland in your home for a minimal cost.
Christmas Lights
When I think back to the Christmases of my childhood I can always remember the magic of Christmas lights, simply turning the tree lights on was completely enchanting. Christmas lights can be purchased cheaply in pound shops and a few extra packs draped over the mirrors and around frames for example, will add a sparkle of magic. You could also purchase light up characters like penguins and snowmen for example which can also be purchased in pound shops.
Scents
Another thing I remember from Christmases from my past is the wonderful scents of this time of year; from the beautiful pine smell of our Christmas tree to the delicious smells of cinnamon, gingerbread and Christmas pudding!
You might not have a real tree this year but you can still recreate that Christmassy scent. Try spraying some pine-cones with cinnamon scented oil which creates a beautiful warm aroma. You can also buy or make your own potpourri using cinnamon sticks, cloves, dried oranges and star anise. This is also a fun activity for you to do with your little ones.
Do you remember making clove oranges at school? Your little ones will love helping with these!
Baking
Baking with children will also provide beautiful Christmas scents and a delicious treat for after. Why not try baking some gingerbread Christmas shapes?
Music
Another way to really add some excitement to the Christmas countdown is to play Christmas songs in the house. We have a cd that plays lots of fun Christmassy songs and we love having it on as we are pottering about during the day. If you have an Alexa, just ask her to play Christmas music.
Christmas eve magic
You can almost touch the excitement and magic in the air on Christmas eve can’t you? Start some little traditions like creating your own magical reindeer dust to sprinkle in the garden. This can be done easily and cheaply using oats, edible glitter or cake sprinkles. Don’t forget to leave Father Christmas a mince pie and a whisky or milk and leave Rudolph a carrot- you might just find he’s had a bite out of it in the morning! You could also create some magical Santa footprints by making a simple stencil and sprinkling some icing sugar over it. Your children will be enchanted to discover some magical North Pole snow!
Merry Christmas!
![[AD] This year has been full of changes, we’ve homeschooled, we’ve worked from home (and still do) and as a result, we have spent more time in the house than we have out. It’s been no surprise that our monthly utility bills have increased over that period.
With our rising bills we wanted to see how easy it would be to reduce our bills and be more in control of our energy usage by switching to a smart home with one of the UKs leading smart home providers @HiveHomeUK. Combined with our Amazon Echo devices we have fully automated the lights in our home with Hive Dimmable Lights. They can be dimmed, set on timer, switched on/off via the app and respond to voice commands through Alexa.
You can find out more ways a smart home with Hive can benefit you in my blog post (link in bio)
#SwitchingToSmart #ad](https://mumsthenerd.co.uk/wp-content/plugins/instagram-feed-pro/img/placeholder.png)
Last Minute Christmas Gifts To Save The Day
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