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I love the thought of having a wonderful, festive Christmas, but with a tiny house with almost no room for a Christmas tree and Christmas being in the sweltering heat of summer, it always becomes too much of an effort.

However, with a new bub, when she does get older, I'm sure we will be putting much more effort into Christmas.

So I was thinking of some ideas of what I could do once Katie is old enough to appreciate the beauty of Christmas -without being overly commercial about it:

• Definitely put the Christmas tree up
• Give the grandparents Christmas drawings/paintings handmade by Katie
• Handmake Christmas gifts and treats for close friends (especially little shortbread stars and gingerbread men!)
• Get some Christmas carols on CD so that we have some festive music in the house
• Definitely get out and about to see the Christmas lights, carols in the park and a sitting with Santa
• Buying a present for the wishing tree (which is a present that you buy for a disadvantaged child)

As much as I can, I would like to water down the commerciality of Christmas and make it all about family, helping others and appreciating what we have.

How are you celebrating Christmas with your family and what are your ideas for making Christmas special?

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I don't know about you, but Christmas keeps coming around faster and faster every year! It didn't seem so long ago that I was pregnant and dreading attending the yearly family Christmas dinner due to all the foods that I wasn't able to eat!

But this Christmas is special as it is our baby's first Christmas  Unfortunately, we have had to decide between putting up a Christmas tree and our baby not having any room to crawl! (If you see our house, you will understand!). But we can make the place fairly festive enough – not that she will notice!

As with all Christmases, I feel completely unprepared for the festive season. Though I have to say I have done most of my Christmas shopping and sent out 99% of my Christmas cards and there is still 2weeks of Christmas to go! Usually I'll be at the shops on Christmas Eve, but I had a slight panic attack at the beginning of December and motored my way through most of the Christmas shopping in about 2 days.

We have a fairly extensive family here in Australia which I feel very fortunate about. Because the festive season is all about family. And whether there are disagreements or conflicts within the family unit, it is a time where these things can be put aside in order to celebrate life, relationships, humanity, peace, hope and sacrifice.

How are you celebrating Christmas in your family? With a big family gathering? Or a small informal, intimate affair?

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