Christmas Memories As A Single Mum

I was a single mum for 8 years and my Christmas shopping began right after the previous one ended, grabbing markdowns in the sales after New Year and hiding them away. That was great for dresses for my girls, and trousers for my son, I'd just buy them the next size (or two sizes) up, so's they'd fit that next year.

I was a knitter back then, so I'd buy knitted jumpers at jumble sales, unravel them to get the yarn, and then use that to knit baby doll layettes for a new baby doll for each of the girls. I'd spend most of the year knitting.

I'd get their "big toy" out of a catalogue and pay weekly, it was the only way I could afford it. My son had a Budgie bike, I think he was 6 that year, and I had to put guiders on it so's he could learn to ride. He whizzed all over the paths around our house on it.

My girls always wanted to be twins, they liked me to dress them alike and most times, wanted the same toys. They proudly played at being mums the year they got their doll's prams.

It was neat watching them pushing their red and white prams around, often wearing pretty red and white floral dresses (their favourite, at the time) with their white knee high socks and black dolly shoes.

One year, when they were a bit older, I got them all cute 8" portable tvs with radios in them, they were sixty quid each (a lot of money in those days) and I gave them a choice, all the usual goodies or just the telly and they all chose the telly.

I was TERRIBLE on Christmas Eve. 

After the kids were asleep and I'd got all their presents laid out, around their beds, I'd deliberately make a noise ... just enough for one of them to wake up groggily and then scream at the others "he's been! Father Christmas has been!" and then I'd just lie abed and smile, quite content, and glad that my kids were happy and excited about what they'd got.

The turkey would be in the oven, on low, all night, filling our home with the smell of it (and the stuffing) cooking, and warmth as well. I always made a very rich stuffing, starting with a package of sage and onion, and adding MORE dried sage and chopped onion, then pork sausagemeat, and minced turkey liver. The aroma was amazing.

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