BLOGMAS Day 20: Holiday Survival Essentials...

As we all know, Christmas time can be a bit overwhelming, what with the shopping, parties, cooking and decorating, aswell as doing your normal day to day things. It can all be very go, go, go and before you know it, you blink and it's Christmas Day. It's nice to have little things that 'keep you going' so to say, through the holiday season.

Man Crates have challenged me to come up with my 'holiday survival essentials'. I'm not being sponsored or rewarded for writing this, it's just something fun that came my way and I thought it'd be a nice idea for one of my Blogmas posts :). Just to put it out there, Man Crates is something I've never heard of before and I've never seen anything like what they offer. If you're struggling with what to buy a male in your life, for any occasion, your eyes might light up when you see what they have to offer. Amongst other items, they sell wooden crates full of treats, that have to be opened with...wait for it...an included, laser-engraved crowbar! I have an image in my head of men all over, with a big grin on their faces, getting to show their strength when opening their very own crate full of surprises! They currently only ship to the United States, Canada and APO/FPO addresses. This may change though, so keep your eye out :). You can read more about that here.

Right, onto my holiday survival essentials...

1 - Comfy bedding! One of the best things in the world is fresh, clean bedding. I always have the best nights sleep after I have a shower and get into fresh, clean bedding. With the hectic-ness of Christmas time, getting into a comfy bed and having a good nights sleep is essential and having Christmas bedding is even better :).

2 - Family! Christmas is all about family for me and spending 'quality' time with them. Christmas reminds you that family are the most important thing and that you should cherish every moment that you get to spend with them. Me, Si, my mom and my sister went to Birmingham recently and stayed over. We did a few exciting things, which you can read about here and here. We had such a lovely time just spending time together, laughing together and just 'being'.

3 - Sparkly nail polish! I love painting my nails and shades of red are probably my favourite colours to wear. At this time of year, red, sparkly nail polish makes me feel so festive. I love it and I always feel better when my nails are freshly painted :).

4 - Christmas movies! I love a good movie, but especially a Christmas movie! Another great thing to get me in the festive spirit. Nativity is one of my faves, I've already watched it twice this Christmas time, ha ha! You can see my other favourite Christmas films here. I love just cosying up and watching a Christmas movie or having one on in the background whilst I'm trying to get some wrapping done :).

5 - Bubbly baths! If you're stressed from work, partying too much, cooking, decorating, wrapping or shopping, a good bubble bath will sort you out! I'm normally a shower kind of girl, but if I'm feeling a bit achy or unwell or in need of relaxation, then I'll have a bath. I love using my Lush products and just chilling out with candles lit, reading a magazine/book or watching some YouTube videos.

6 - Mulled wine! This is my favourite kind of alcoholic drink at Christmas time. It smells amazing, tastes amazing and is sooo warming. I love having mulled wine at a Christmas market, mmm, sooo nice! I have some in the cupboard, so may have to have one or two tonight, he he!

7 - Hot chocolate! When I'm not feeling like an alcoholic drink, a hot chocolate is the perfect alternative. When I'm out Christmas shopping, I love stopping at Starbucks for a hot chocolate with cream on the top! It goes waaay too quickly, but it is delicious. I'm lucky enough to be able to have machine-made hot chocolate at home now as I treated myself to a little Nescafe Dolce Gusto machine this year, so I love having them when I'm settling down for the night and relaxing. I love them frothy, with cream on the top, mmm!

What are your holiday survival essentials?

Don't forget to like, comment and follow to keep up to date with the rest of my Blogmas posts :).

Thanks for reading lovelies!

Gem XxOo

Some of the images are courtesy of Amazon, Deborah Lippmann, Food Spotting and BBC.

BLOGMAS Day 19: Favourite Christmas Films...

Watching Christmas films really gets you in the Christmas spirit! I've been watching a few 'random' Christmas films (you know the ones you've never heard of) on Channel 5 during November and December, but regarding well-known Christmas films, I haven't really had the chance to watch many yet this year. I want to watch more though in the next few days. I thought I'd share with you some of my faves that we have on DVD...

Nativity

I watched this the other day and it reminded me why it's one of my favourite Christmas films. I've loved Martin Freeman since The Office, so I love that he's in this film, but it's the kids that really make this film what it is. There will be times when you'll be going 'aww' and times when you'll be laughing out loud at their humour. The teaching assistant Mr Poppy also provides a few laughs. The film is based around a primary school that competes with a local private school to put on the best Christmas nativity play. There are a few white lies involved and a few heart-felt moments but it's a feel good film, where everything works out in the end :).

Elf

This is a film that a lot of people seem to love and are always talking about. I haven't watched this yet this year, but I have it on DVD so will be doing so soon! It's such a funny movie. I love the fact that a human being is being brought up by Santa and his elves. I love the innocence and naivety that comes across from Buddy (Will Ferrell - Elf) when he is amongst Santa and the elves and gets to experience the magic of Christmas. He is soon brought back down to earth when he is out in the 'real world' and realises that things aren't all that he thought they were. It's such a hilarious movie, definitely not one to be missed.

Miracle On 34th Street

This is the one Christmas film that I remember from my childhood. I remember first seeing this and absolutely loving it. This is actually a remake of the 1947 classic. The young girl who plays Susan Walker (Mara Wilson - also the little girl in Matilda) is just adorable and at just 6 years old decides that she no longer believes in 'Father Christmas', but after meeting Kris Kringle, she changes her mind. This movie brings the magic back to Christmas and is centred around Kris Kringle who is Santa at a local department store. He believes that he is the real thing and this makes the store very popular. Local retailers aren't happy with this and try and frame him. A court case comes about where Kris Kringle and his lawyer try to prove that he is the real thing.

Arthur Christmas

Arthur Christmas is one of those films where you just wish it was really like that at Christmas time. The belief that Santa and his elves are in their workshop and everything is being organised in terms of which kids are getting what, where kids live and everything being to a time scale is just magical. The query of how Santa can deliver gifts to the whole world in just one night is answered, but unfortunately one child is missed! In this film, Santa's son Arthur doesn't want to end the 'magic' of Christmas and so sets out to make sure this one child doesn't miss out!

The Polar Express

I only came across this film a few years ago, when it was on TV. I can't believe I didn't know about it sooner. This is an animated film, but a very good one! The characters in the film are so life like. This film is about kids being picked up, in their pyjamas, on Christmas Eve by a steam train and going on a magical journey to the North Pole. There, children who still believe receive an extraordinary gift. This is one of those films where your child-like nature kicks in and you think to yourself, how cool it would be if that really happened. There is lots of fun along the way, with lost tickets and roller-coaster moments. I saw a review on Amazon (from A J Severyn) about this film and it said that although it's a movie primarily for kids, it reminds us grown-ups that being child-like is a quality, not a weakness. I love that!

What are your favourite Christmas movies?

Don't forget to like, comment and follow to keep up to date with the rest of my Blogmas posts :).

Thanks for reading lovelies!

Gem XxOo

Images courtesy of Amazon.