Christmas Eve Box – Our Family Tradition

Posted on December 23, 2016 by mommabeartrax

(pictured above:Christmas 2015, in all our matchy-matchy cheeseball glory)

Whilst a Christmas Eve box was not part of my childhood, I desperately used to wish it was. Much like my brother and I, as kids, used to spend hours paging through our neighbour’s Mattel’s US toy catalogue, fantasizing about the awesome toys that our SA shores had never ever even seen. (This would also slightly explain why he and I spent hours in the toy section in a London store as young adults, oogling and testing ALL the toys to see which ones to bring back for our nieces and nephews – that toy catalogue fascination never left us!) Roll on to where I am now a parent, and fortunate enough to indulge in all my Klismassy fantasies which also never left me, I made sure that a Christmas eve box was a tradition for our little ones.

Our fourth year in now, and I’m feeling Continue reading →

How to recreate the magic of North Pole Party

Posted on December 20, 2015 by mommabeartrax

The magic scroll from Father Christmas

If you haven’t yet read about our new Christmas family tradition, the North Pole Party, then may I suggest you check it out over here. (Warning: it’s magical!)

If you want to recreate some of that magic, I’ve put together a list of all the different facets we used here below: (For all pictures, please see the North Pole Party pix here.)

You certainly won’t need Continue reading →

One Night in the North Pole Party

Posted on December 17, 2015 by mommabeartrax

Fanning the flames of childhood wonder

The excitement was palpable that night. In fact, it had been building up through the whole week leading up to it. The air was thick with it! And I’m not even referring to the kids there – that’s just my sister-in-law and myself alone! We’re total and complete saps for such stuff- Team Sappy, that’s us. But oh, what night of magic and Continue reading →

Drunk on Christmas Spirit

Posted on December 10, 2015 by mommabeartrax

Oh me gosh!Can you feel it? I sure can! And if you walk into our home right now, you’d even be able to smell it too! What am I blubbering about? Christmas feels, of course!!! T’is the season indeed, and the Porter abode is alight with it! Actually, come to think of it, it’s literally alight with it.

That’s right, we got our shizz together this year, and actually had our lights up first weekend of December. Hot damn- that’s happened pretty much never before. We’re usually your 11th hour decorators, and compact all the magic of christmas into the week and a half leading up to Christmas, and then let it linger all the way till after the new year. (Because its far too much trouble to set it all up without getting your money’s worth out of it right?!) But this year? This year, just call us Mr. and Mrs. Claus, baby, ’cause we are totally ontop of it! (Although, I’m hoping the elves are going to work Continue reading →