Christmas Day 2020 - Stills

 Christmas Day 2020 in photos.

A day full of love, presents, laughter, family time and delicious food...

Mum's 60th Birthday

Mum turned 60 yesterday and I wanted to give her a special day as we celebrated this milestone.

She didn't have a party this year as friends and family are scattered everywhere so I decided to put together a day that she would enjoy and know how much we love her.

The boys gave Nanna her gifts and enjoyed flicking through the photo books that we made her.

Then Simon, Finn and I took her out for lunch at Manly Wine.  

The sun was shining and we had a table right near the window looking out to the beach. 

Champagne + grapefruit margaritas added to the delish lunch!

Later in the afternoon I arranged for a few friends and family to pop in for afternoon tea.

I wanted to make the table set up look amazing and festive, so I added a fringed garland backdrop and a vine covered 60. 

(I shaped the 60 out of  wire coathangers and wrapped them in fake ivy from Spotlight.)

I put together a selection of sweet and savoury food and Simon made his famous pavlova.

We popped some champagne in a bucket with flower ice. An idea I had seen on Pinterest and was dying to try.  It all looked very pretty and perfect for mum's special day.

Friends and family arrived and we settled in for a lovely afternoon.

We had such a great day and felt we had well and truly celebrated mum turning 60.

Happy birthday mum, we love you xx

I was asked where I got a few items so I've put together a list  in case you're interested......

Tree stump chopping boards - Big W

Crepe paper for garland - Big W

Gold cutlery - Big W

Artificial ivy - Spotlight

Gold cake stand - Domayne

Good Times napkins - H&M Home

Silver ice bucket - Ikea

Have you had any birthdays in your house recently?

Now all our birthdays are over it's time to think about Christmas.  I must get organised!

How is your Christmas prep coming along?

Salads & Sides - Christmas Menu ideas

It's about now that I usually pull out my cookbooks and have a browse on Pinterest to find some new ideas for sides + salads to have at Christmas lunch.
It's nice to try something new along with the old favourites. Here are a few recipes that look pretty delicious-

Parmesan, garlic grilled corn

Kale salad with roasted butternut squash, almond and ricotta

Kale & brussel sprout salad with bacon & pecorino

Roasted cauliflower, chickpeas & quinoa salad with jalapeno lime dressing

Moroccan style roast potatoes with coriander yoghurt

I always like to have a few choices for everyone.

We host Christmas every 3 years so it gives me lots of time to think of ideas.

Here is a pic of our lunch buffet a couple of years ago.

I think we had about 20 people that year.

Simon's parents are hosting this year so I don't have to do too much. I'm bringing some dessert and think I'll go with the classic Pavlova & maybe a Champagne berry jelly. 

Here is our dessert buffet from the same year.

Lots of choice!

Are you hosting Christmas Day this year?