Christmas is a magical time of year, don’t you think?
Hi, I’m Aurelia B. Rowl, and I’m not only a writer but I’m also Mum to two gorgeous children. My son is 8 (nearly 9, dontchaknow) and my daughter is 6 (nearly 7) – their birthdays are in January so I’ll cut them some slack – so you can imagine the fun and general giddiness that comes with this time of year. Both are still ‘believers’ though I fear this could be our last year, which means I—ahem, I mean Father Christmas—needs to make sure this year is extra special.
For us, the real excitement begins on November 30th when we put up our Advent tree because this signals the impending arrival of ‘Elfie’ who moves in with us for most of December, ready to report back to the Big Man in Red. We’ve never actually seem him, but we know he’s here because he leaves the children a little treatsize chocolate in the pocket of the calendar each morning if they’ve been good the day before.
With the arrival of Yule, we dig out the artificial Christmas trees – did I mention that we also have a dog and three rabbits? – one for the main room, which we all help to decorate, and then one for the childrens’ playroom which they get to decorate without interference from the grown-ups. You can imagine how “beautiful” it looks, can’t you? I bet you can picture it now!
Before we know it, Christmas Eve arrives and it’s time to wish Elfie farewell. If you head outside when darkness falls, you may even catch sight of Santa’s sleigh as it whizzes over collecting all the elves ahead of ‘the big night’. This flypast may, or may not, take place at exactly the same time as the ISS satellite passing over, but I’m sure this is purely a coincidence.
And now the fun really begins!
You see, as Elfie departs, he also leaves us with a special gift – a Christmas Eve box – demanding that we stop whatever we’re doing to come together as a family. Inside the box are usually onesies for all four of us to change into, a movie to settle down in front of, as well as hot chocolate and snacks to enjoy. Once the movie is over, it’s time for the kids to leave set a plate for FC and his reindeers, then head up to bed.
Christmas morning generally arrives far too early, with much squealing and giggling as the children discover the filled stockings at the end of their beds. Rapid footsteps are fair warning as they burst into the master bedroom and and leap onto me and my husband, their eyes and hearts full of joy as they shred wrapping paper from the little gifts, scattering it across the duvet.
From there, we all descend the stairs together, the kids both cautious and giddy with anticipation to see if there are any presents under the tree. Fast forward a few hours and a home-cooked breakfast, and it’s time to head over to Liverpool to spend the rest of Christmas with the grandparents for Christmas part two, including a lovely meal with family and friends.
Not everybody is as fortunate as me though, and for some, the magic of Christmas doesn’t exist anymore. Even if it does there are times when, through no fault of their own, Christmas gets well and truly cancelled. It was with this in mind that I sat down and began Tilly and Dean’s story, piecing together their lives and trying to understand their pasts.
Tilly has had it tough; estranged from her parents and living far from her hometown, she has spent the previous ten years trying to deny her true nature, even going so far as to hide her fiery red hair. She’s become very good at being somebody, cocooning herself in the world she has created, but even that falls apart. When the train taking her to brother’s on Christmas Eve is cancelled, she is truly alone in the world. Until her brother’s once best friend Dean happens to pass by and come to her aid.
Dean’s past is even tougher, but instead of becoming bitter and resentful he strives to overcome the obstacles and setbacks that have hindered him his whole life. Christmas is his absolute worst time of year, and with very good reason, yet he welcomes a barely recognisable Tilly into his home anyway, unwittingly opening the door for the spirit of Christmas to weave its magic...
Wow that truly does sound like a magical Christmas. I love the idea of Elfie, and just wish we still had young children in our family to have something even similar to your Christmas. I'm very envious!
About Aurelia B. Rowl
Hi, I’m Aurelia B. Rowl, and I’m not only a writer but I’m also Mum to two gorgeous children. My son is 8 (nearly 9, dontchaknow) and my daughter is 6 (nearly 7) – their birthdays are in January so I’ll cut them some slack – so you can imagine the fun and general giddiness that comes with this time of year. Both are still ‘believers’ though I fear this could be our last year, which means I—ahem, I mean Father Christmas—needs to make sure this year is extra special.
For us, the real excitement begins on November 30th when we put up our Advent tree because this signals the impending arrival of ‘Elfie’ who moves in with us for most of December, ready to report back to the Big Man in Red. We’ve never actually seem him, but we know he’s here because he leaves the children a little treatsize chocolate in the pocket of the calendar each morning if they’ve been good the day before.
With the arrival of Yule, we dig out the artificial Christmas trees – did I mention that we also have a dog and three rabbits? – one for the main room, which we all help to decorate, and then one for the childrens’ playroom which they get to decorate without interference from the grown-ups. You can imagine how “beautiful” it looks, can’t you? I bet you can picture it now!
Before we know it, Christmas Eve arrives and it’s time to wish Elfie farewell. If you head outside when darkness falls, you may even catch sight of Santa’s sleigh as it whizzes over collecting all the elves ahead of ‘the big night’. This flypast may, or may not, take place at exactly the same time as the ISS satellite passing over, but I’m sure this is purely a coincidence.
And now the fun really begins!
You see, as Elfie departs, he also leaves us with a special gift – a Christmas Eve box – demanding that we stop whatever we’re doing to come together as a family. Inside the box are usually onesies for all four of us to change into, a movie to settle down in front of, as well as hot chocolate and snacks to enjoy. Once the movie is over, it’s time for the kids to leave set a plate for FC and his reindeers, then head up to bed.
Christmas morning generally arrives far too early, with much squealing and giggling as the children discover the filled stockings at the end of their beds. Rapid footsteps are fair warning as they burst into the master bedroom and and leap onto me and my husband, their eyes and hearts full of joy as they shred wrapping paper from the little gifts, scattering it across the duvet.
From there, we all descend the stairs together, the kids both cautious and giddy with anticipation to see if there are any presents under the tree. Fast forward a few hours and a home-cooked breakfast, and it’s time to head over to Liverpool to spend the rest of Christmas with the grandparents for Christmas part two, including a lovely meal with family and friends.
Not everybody is as fortunate as me though, and for some, the magic of Christmas doesn’t exist anymore. Even if it does there are times when, through no fault of their own, Christmas gets well and truly cancelled. It was with this in mind that I sat down and began Tilly and Dean’s story, piecing together their lives and trying to understand their pasts.
Tilly has had it tough; estranged from her parents and living far from her hometown, she has spent the previous ten years trying to deny her true nature, even going so far as to hide her fiery red hair. She’s become very good at being somebody, cocooning herself in the world she has created, but even that falls apart. When the train taking her to brother’s on Christmas Eve is cancelled, she is truly alone in the world. Until her brother’s once best friend Dean happens to pass by and come to her aid.
Dean’s past is even tougher, but instead of becoming bitter and resentful he strives to overcome the obstacles and setbacks that have hindered him his whole life. Christmas is his absolute worst time of year, and with very good reason, yet he welcomes a barely recognisable Tilly into his home anyway, unwittingly opening the door for the spirit of Christmas to weave its magic...
Wow that truly does sound like a magical Christmas. I love the idea of Elfie, and just wish we still had young children in our family to have something even similar to your Christmas. I'm very envious!
About Aurelia B. Rowl
Aurelia B. Rowl lives on the edge of the Peak
District in the UK with her very understanding husband, their two fantastic
children, and their mad rescue mutt who doesn’t mind being used as a sounding
post and source of inspiration. She regularly wows them all with her curious,
hastily thrown together meals when she gets too caught up with her latest
writing project...or five!...and she has developed the fine art of ignoring the
housework.
Aurelia
writes young adult, new adult, and contemporary romance. To find out more about
Aurelia, or check out her latest news, you can visit her website: www.aureliabrowl.com
Christmas is Cancelled
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| Amazon UK |
It's impossible to forget...
Matilda 'Tilly' Carter has had the week from hell - and now, with all trains cancelled, it looks like Christmas will be too! With a mascara-streaked face, a broken heel and nowhere to go, there's never been a worse time to run into the man who once broke her heart. Especially when he looks better than ever.
The one that got away...
For Dean, Christmas has always been hard. The Tilly standing before him is no longer the firecracker of his memories--even if the way she makes his heart race hasn't changed at all. He is determined to uphold the promise that kept them apart nine years ago. But spending a cosy Christmas with Tilly would break a better man and each accidental touch, heated look and stolen kiss is taking its toll on Dean.
After all this time, can the magic of Christmas bring Tilly and Dean together at last?
Buy
links:
Amazon ¦Amazon UK
¦ iBookstore
¦ Nook UK ¦ Barnes
& Noble ¦ Kobo ¦ Google Books ¦ eBooks.com
¦ WHSmith
Come back tomorrow to see my review of Christmas is Cancelled, as well as my final day of posts for Carina Christmas.
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| For more #CarinaChristmas click here |
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