Make this Christmas extra special…
Christmas is all about being indulgent. Sharing special moments with people who you love and care about and delighting in scrumptious treats.
Here are a few ideas to make Christmas even more special and put a smile on the faces of everyone in your family….
Make your own Christmas bon-bons. Various craft shops stock kits for this purpose, or you can be extra creative and store up toilet roll inserts to use for this! Making your own bon-bons means that you have full control over what is in them. None of the cheap and nasty gadgets that normally come with the bought-variety and that get thrown out with the Christmas day lunch scraps. You can tailor your own bon-bons to suit the age-group and interests of your family and friends. Some ideas for inserts include:
o Sample size perfumes and after-shave (These can be collected throughout the year from Department stores)
o Foil-wrapped individual liqueur chocolates
o Rolled up lottery tickets
o Finger puppets
o Stationery items
o Lipsticks/Lip glosses or small bottles of nail polish
o Keyrings
o Costume jewellery
You may also want to wrap the bon-bons in different coloured wrapping paper to identify who the contents are most suited for – males, females, young children, etc. Or – you can personalise each one so that they get to keep their own special gift.
- Have a “Make a Decoration for the Tree” competition and hang all entries on the tree to culminate in a vote for first prize.
- If you are having Christmas lunch outdoors – decorate caps for wearing over Christmas lunch. Much more useful (and probably more flattering than those awful paper crowns!). Tinsel, Christmas decorations and pictures cut from last year’s Christmas cards can all be glued on to make your own unique creations.
- Get everyone to contribute ideas for inclusion in a special family Christmas playlist that you can have on rotation during Christmas day.
And a special treat for the Adults…why not try this delicious Traditional Christmas punch on the eve before Christmas to get into the Christmassy mood? And if it’s too hot – crank up the air conditioning!
- 750 ml bottle dark rum
- 750 ml bottle dry red wine
- 3 cups strong brewed black tea
- 2 cups sugar
- 1/2 cup orange juice
- 1/2 cup lemon juice
- 2 cups seasonal fruits (for garnish)
Heat all the ingredients in a saucepan (but do not allow to boil).
Stir well until all the sugar is dissolved, pour into punch bowl and serve garnished with fruit.
