Hello! So should I ask how the Christmas shopping is going and organising the food, presents and decor. My husband and my mum have taken care of the decor and the food.
It is good to delegate and I can take care of buying gifts and ordering bits and I am looking forward to the celebrations.
Then there is the new year. Twenty Twenty Five has not been a bad year for me and share the things I feel were good and worth remembering. Please check out my December Newsletter:
Hello! It is early I know but that what heartburn does. I am good nevertheless and had to get up.
So Christmas is upon us and so wanted to do a Cheat Sheet of tips of what to do after Christmas having leftover food, sales on Christmas products that are on sale and tidying up.
These are free to download and print. I post each Monday and to be kept and help you with tips and advice and we can have so much food, drink and it is good to be prepared for the following year.
I do have a Vlog channel, sharing parts of my life check it out here:
Hello! I hope you had a good weekend. It is Monday once again and this weeks Cheat Sheet is all about What To Do On a Rainy day. Inspired by getting wet on Friday when the Radio Station I work on, hosted an event and was cold too.
In the year the Two Thousand for the first time I dreaded Christmas. My family life had changed, my Nan passed away and I was in a job I hated. It was a fail. I had to re-address my life and where it was going.
Our Elf on A shelf
For some, there are people, like that year who dread Christmas. When a change happens, all those good times feel like they have stopped and can make you feel like you want the world to swallow you up, to never be seen again. It took me a while to adjust and I made the decision to leave my life in Richmond behind to move to work in the South Coast.
When I moved Christmases were a work day. I moved to work at a holiday camp and where I met my husband and so I had the Christmas my boyfriend, then at one of our friends house and it was fun working at Christmas. Within in one year, I stayed with then my boyfriend and worked with a hangover but I do not regret as it, it was so much fun.
I lost my spark for the festive cheer. I was sad. My nan was the center of my universe and my Grandad and my Nan, made the Festive season the best ones and it struck me that those times were gone and I asked, “Would Christmas be good again?”
I see the Christmas as a day a of rest and recuperation now. I love that my son loves it and he has helped bring back my Christmas spirit, to feeling happy again, we hosted Christmas once with my in-laws. Now though it is just the three of us and celebrate for him now and he has helped me bring back my joy for #Christmas.
I am not a fan of the busyness of the Christmas so tend to buy online but do like to have a traditional drinks, decor an like a Mulled Wine or a Winter Cider and may have a glass of wine. I love a festive coffee. This year 2025 its the nutcracker latte, iced or hot. What is your festive drink this year? For a while it was the Blackforest Gateaux Hot Chocolate.
If you’ve not had a good year then it can be hard to enjoy Christmas but do something different and if you want to eat out as many restaurants or pubs can be open. The year before Henry was born we, my husband I went to Florida which was good fun and next year I plan to go to Scotland and today we are off to Kingston if the weather is okay and see the lights and see if we can get any decor or my sons bedroom.
The other thing is family break ups. Alternate visits. One year let your kids be with their dad and the next with you. It was hard when my parent divorced but my dad would go to my brothers and so it can work out and just say “Your not gonna choose” but will see them what day works for you and if they are persistent then say “No this is what is going to work with me” and if they make it hard for you then you have to be honest with them and be stern with the decision you have made.
It is not the time for arguments. It is the time to end family feuds and just enjoy it.
So going to pop out as I need something for my teeth they’ve been hurting me a lot and have a Christmas coffee and a pastry of some kind. Sometimes you just need that lift and it helps me think and feel lucky to have experience Christmases with those gone and that Christmas is now worth celebrating.
Hello it is the start of a new week and is the beginning of December and so got literally 25 days until Christmas. Yikes! It can be the best time to declutter and so this weeks Cheat Sheet is tips on Decluttering Your Life.
This idea came from watching a Youtube Video by Kate Kaden and each month I give to the local foodbanks in London and work for a Charity. I present a show for my local hospital and it gives me such a buzz. The Winter can be tough and so if you can cook a hot meal for someone that you know is on their own, can do a world of good. Or even buying them a coffee and give them your time to chat.
In the winter I find it hard to see those doing all they can to earn money from selling the Big Issue and people walking passed, knowing that they can really make a difference. We do have families who are struggling to put food on the table. Why in this day in age have people needing to go to a foodbank?
I’ve watched Call the Midwife and feel from the times that the programme is based on learnt nothing.
The high street is suffering, the prices on utilities are going up and I have been to a supermarket and had to cancel items having absolutely nothing and it is the worst feeling in the world.
This is not to make you feel guilty in anyway. It doesn’t have to be materialistic but just your time. One of my sons schools friends parent who’s child was in his class would use her to listen to children read and I love volunteering. So rewarding. At many of the staff at the local garden centres are volunteers.
When I do my shopping and I am asked if I’d like to give a donation and I say yes. It can be lending books to your neighbours if they are alone or if they’d like to go for a walk. Have a joint Christmas with neighbours. I remember when I was kid and we moved from one block of flats to another the lady opposite us looked after me and we often go to other’s homes when living on a housing estate.
There’d be Christmas parties on the Estate and I loved them or Christmas Bingo nights.
Such a massive community and wonder if that still happens now on Housing Estates. I see many in the library where my son gets tutored until he gets a place in a school, are people who visit it and are alone.
There are often events in libraries and run my volunteers. If you are struggling joining the library can be a good way to save money on books or visit charity shops. I buy most of my books from Charity shops and our library does free coffee and drinks, like juice and so can be a good way to meet people.
So if you can make a difference and have some time spare, it can be good for you and the reciprocate. M
At the weekend. (I have filmed a Vlog. It will be up on my Vlog Youtube Channel). It won’t be available this Wednesday but next Wednesday: https://www.youtube.com/@typicallondongal
My son at Sixes Club London Bridge. A birthday gift and a place I’d recommend.
It was such good fun. We went to a place called Sixes in London Bridge. It is a Club with Virtue Cricket. They have a bar with screens to watch sports. The food looked good, and the drinks were really nice.
I was worried in case it wasn’t the right place, we struggled to find it at first but it is right by London Bridge Train Station and played cricket. In the end we all thoroughly enjoyed it and just because it gets dark early in the winter, doesn’t mean you can’t have fun.
It was perfect for all seasons. We are planning to go before Christmas too and have something to eat there and if your kids likes sport, I would recommend to check it out. I booked it for my sons birthday and was recommended by one of my husband’s work colleagues.
We went out for breakfast and had picky bits for dinner. Something we do at any time and then chilled for the rest of evening. It is good to get out still. It is good to, in the winter to have family time, going for a festive coffee somewhere. Then returning home and chill in front of the TV and Watch a good wintery film. My favourite since a kid was, Christmas Carole by Charles Dickens and my son it is Polar Express or The Grinch. On my own it is You Got Mail and Christmas specials like, Call the Midwife.
We had on the Sunday toad in the hole and my husband cooks on Sundays as usually Henry as normally my son has rugby club in the morning and I go to work, as I work for local hospital and do a radio show for the local hospital: https://www.epsomhospitalradio.org.uk/on-air/listen-live but to celebrate my sons birthday we are had a family weekend, so he didn’t go rugby and I didn’t do my radio show. It is good to do less in the Winter and still have a great time, at home and out.
This is where in my printable for this years Winter Wellness comes into play Winter Wellness Programme 2025 and write down your old traditions and things you want to change to feel good in the Winter instead of causing stress and anxiety but can relax, slow down and do something fun that you all like.
Hello it is the morning in November 2025! What Things are Worth Buying or Subscribing to?
I have chosen mine for this weeks Cheat Sheet, as an example and it helps me see that things are growing and good to have a good resource to plan my life, organise my life and be the best person I can be. I love using Canva, Notion and my notebooks and Journals.
Audible is great for books. I read books aswell as listening and love that I have choice in listening or reading.
Please check out my Resource Library on this site: Resource Library
I post my Cheat Sheet each week and are free to download and print and on different topics to live more and do less.
It all about building and growing.
Do what you enjoy and use what you enjoy.
If you’d like to read more content then check out my Vlog Channel, my Pinterest and my Social Media Platforms. If you subscribe you will be alerted when I post on these site. See the links below:
The Winter can be a great way to create a Bag Full of Memories. They can go to the park. Retake a photo from when you were a kid to when you became an adult. Celebrate milestones, like for example, someone turning 40 or 18 and take photos in the park on each milestone.
One of my Sons and I favourite places and yes we even have Ice Cream in the Winter
I love a photo and seeing pictures of the different Christmases I have had since a kid. I remember those that are no longer with us. I include their traditions and new ones. Check out this post below, of my printable where I have created: Winter Wellness Programme 2025 | Everyone can build a castle
In the winter I like to try a festive coffee and document it. It just a little guilty pleasure along with having a Mulled Wine or a Winter Cider.
Yes I have a Christmas mug and want to get a new one. I like to take picture of my son and his cousins. We do set dates of when we can get together. It is great to have family time. I loved spending time with family, as a kid. I cherish those times and want my son to feel the same.
I have had a hard time during the winter. Because of this, I created the Programme Winter Wellness. Then, I started to realize that change is good. You have to move on.
People come and go. Memories will last a lifetime. If you allow it, you can create more memories. Life is full of surprises. Change can mean new experiences that makes you look back and smile. I loved my childhood and now I love my adulthood. It has not always been like that. Life is full of challenges. As you live, you will learn that they are a test to see how resilient you are. You have more strength than before. You can speak for yourself and create memories that others will cherish. Laughing and having fun is contagious. Winter time can have a bag full of memories just as much as the others, throughout the year.
Let out your feelings on my Printable, please see link in the blog above and is free to download.
If you’d like to see more content I have a Youtube Vlog where I share parts of my life and have created a Pinterest board for this years Winter Wellness and so check these out in the links below:
There isn’t a day in my life where I have not played music. It was my first love. I would dream about living a different life. I would imagine that I am in concert singing songs like the Greatest Love of All. I wished I had written songs I have loved and still love today.
Music is great for building relationships. This happens if you share similar tastes and have a song that makes you smile whenever you hear it. The song by Eurythmics, There must be an Angel playing in my heart, reminds me of our trips to Menorca. We used to go there for our Summer holiday and were such good fun. We traveled with other families. These trips gave me so much joy. I was allowed to stay up all night and would watch the sun go down and love watching the sunset.
In the Winter I normally listen to Enya, of course Christmas songs and mainly soft music.
If you find that Winter is gloomy, put on some music to lift your mood. Create a playlist of songs that make you feel good.
I have created a Printable and I talk about Habits. One of them is listening to a playlist of songs in the mornings. For me, I always play music around 3:50 pm until dinner time. This includes nice, slow, easy music, and joyful tunes too.
I work for my local hospital radio on Sundays from 4 to 6 Sunday afternoon. If you are in the UK, you can go to the Epsom Hospital website. Listen to it if you have internet. I back doing my show on Sunday the 30th November 2025: https://www.epsomhospitalradio.org.uk/on-air/presenters/carrie-challoner
I like to have a bath and listen to music some times and especially when cooking.
My husband does the same. I love to listen to music when it’s cold and wet outside. It helps me write and work on a book. I have created a playlist on Youtube to go with the book I am writing. I enjoy it with an Earl Grey tea and a nice sweet treat.
I hate the worry of people not being happy. It can affect my mood. I hope that this Winter Wellness Programme helps you. If you want to join, just subscribe. You will be alerted when I post a blog. I also do other programmes throughout the year.
Everyone can build a castle 