Dear mummy, I’ve thought long and hard about my Christmas Wish List this year. Scouring Pinterest and ‘Not On The High Street for perfect ideas. I shouldn’t really be so materialistic, you don’t really need an embroidered pillow to say how great you are, daddy doesn’t need more beard balm for his already EPIC beard and I don’t need another bloody wooden toy from Melissa & Doug (they are my favourite though!)
Grandma doesn’t really need the personalised Emma Bridgewater mug and extended family don’t really need everything off their AMAZON wish list.
So this year I present (pre-sent) haha excuse the pun, my Alternative Christmas Wish List, the things that matter most to us as a family.
1) A roof over our heads
Many homeless people at Christmas have nowhere to go, seeking out shelters in the UK or sleeping in doorways on cardboard boxes. We are very fortunate to have a lovely house to live in. As another year passes we will be thankful for what we have and try to help others in need.
2) Warm clothes on our backs
Many refugees have travelled hundreds of miles to escape war-torn countries. Sometimes travelling and living in the same clothes for weeks, often cold and freezing at night. We take for granted the blessing of clean clothes, hot showers and warmth.
3) Hot food in our bellies
Soup kitchens and food banks up and down the country struggle with demand over the Christmas period. We are so lucky that we can sit down as a family and enjoy a hot meal together. This year I encourage people to help donate food to food banks, volunteer some of their time to help others less fortunate.
We’ll be bonding over a hot meal and giving thanks, I’ll be telling my mummy to put down her phone and join in the conversation too!
4) The love of a family
Every family unit goes through tough times, deep down everyone loves each other. Christmas time is a time to reinforce bonds with friends and family and cherish the special moments. I’ll be looking forward to lots of cuddles and kisses from my relatives.
It’s also a time to be a bit more thoughtful and charitable to others. The John Lewis Advert really struck a chord with us this year.
5) Christmas cheer
Christmas time can be a time of dread for many. Whether it be spending time with the black sheep of the family, seeing someone after a long-standing dispute, Christmas is the time to forgive and forget and be cheerful. If you can’t be cheerful, be respectful of others feelings.
6) The magic and mystery of Father Christmas
I wish to always be young at heart and keep a fresh outlook on life. Imagination and innocence are such a precious things. A recent trip to LaplandUK was a great introduction into the magic of Christmas!
7) Health
Above all we wish for health and happiness for our nearest and dearest. If we could bottle up happiness and good health it would sell for millions. As a family we need to put things into perspective, sometimes things aren’t as bad as they seem.
8) Hope
Yeah it sounds like a cliché saying that we wish for world peace and an end to starvation and poverty. But we do hope things start to get better in the world….they surely can’t get much worse for certain people. We hope over the Christmas season that people caught up in the Syrian conflict get some respite. It’s just a shame that there aren’t more Samaritans in the world.
Who knows in the New Year we might be some of the select few that hope to make a different in the world. It starts at home…
We hope you like our Christmas Wish List this year! What would you have on yours?
Love Bella x
dearmummyblog.com 
What a beautiful sentiment for this Christmas, Bella. It’s true. The chaos and gift-giving during the holidays can make us overlook the truly important things we should be grateful for, but your post serves us a great reminder of them. Thank you for sharing! I’m so glad I found you on #Sharewithme this week 🙂
Ahh thanks! It’s lovely when people stumble across our little blog x thanks for commenting x
I love this alternative Christmas wishlist Bella – you’ve definitely covered all the important things here x
I love this! It’s such a a great list and reflects some great priorities. It’s so easy to get caught up in the shopping and the doing and forget what it’s all really about. 🙂
Such a beautiful post – we take so much for granted I think and there has been so much tragedy this year around the world. This post has reminded me how very lucky I am and that I really don’t need lots of material things.
Such a beautiful post and it has reminded me of how very lucky I am. There has been so much tragedy in the world this year and I really want to appreciate all the good things I have instead of looking for material things.
You’ve got it spot on here. Exactly how I’ve been feeling lately, to be so grateful to have a safe home, health, my family all around me, somewhere safe and warm to sleep at night. You’re so right that we should help others where we can this Christmas. xx
Ahh thanks Sabrina x
Beautifully written post! It’s nice to be show selflessness especially this Christmas season… a perfect time to be thankful for even for the very little things we’ve got. Definitely a lovely Christmas list! #justanotherlinky
Oh I really like this and what an amazing thing to concentrate on in the festive season rather than the normal wishlist. Thank you so much for linking up to Share With Me. I hope to see you again tomorrow for another great round. Please note it’s the very last SWM for 2015 and a special edition, year in review so you can link up your favorite four post from this year if you would like and I will return in the New Year ready to read all your amazing blog posts again. Happy Holidays #sharewithme
This is a great list! I am definite going to do a shoe box Christmas present next year for Christmas
Thanks for linking up to #justanotherlinky
Such a beautiful post. I think we all need to remember to be thankful for things we already have and presents aren’t everything. Thanks for linking up to #justanotherlinky xx
What a perfect Christmas Wish List. I love the advert too!
There are so many things that we should already be thankful for sometimes in the hectic way of life its easy to forget this. So thank you for reminding us and sharing this great post.
Amanda. #KCACOLS
What a beautiful post, and a reminder to think about the little things, it isn’t about hundreds of gifts under a tree. Christmas is so much more than that! You’ve reminded me to stop stressing over whether the boys have enough presents! The fact daddy is off and can spend the day with them will be more than enough, and more than what many others have #KCACOLS xx
A beautiful list. I love it. I love Christmas but I get really annoyed at the focus on presents. Why must we buy a gift for everyone we know? It drains the bank balance and my christmas cheer (I get really stressed over gift buying). Why can’t we forget about gifts and concentrate on your list… the things that really matter. #KCACOLS
How true! it is nice to be reminded of some of the things we will take for granted this year, fab post! #KCACOLS xx
Thanks x
this is what Christmas giving is all about, thank you for the reminder in a week of festive family fun #KCACOLS
I love this post, very thoughtful. It is very important to remind ourselves of the things that really matter!! Christmas is not about the presents. This year we are buying less presents to the girls because we really want them to focus in the important meaning of Xmas. I like you Bella a lot and now even more that you and my daughter share that amazing name!!! 😉 Thanks so much for sharing this at #KCACOLS. I’m very happy to have you for the first time. I hope that you like it!! Merry Christmas to you and your family and Happy New Year 2016. I hope to see you in the New Year! 🙂 xx