How we’re celebrating Christmas at Kettell Windows

It’s been a tough year for everyone but we’re still looking forward to Christmas. We have lots of family traditions and we’re going to keep as many of them as we can. Here’s a look behind the scenes at how the family behind Kettell Windows spend Christmas.

 

The Christmas run up

We’re still at work for most of December so we bring a bit of Christmas spirit to the showroom. We normally decorate but that’s going to be difficult this year, mainly due to the cleaning regime. We’re still planning to do something, but we’ll see how things go.

In normal times we also collect items to donate to our local food bank. In previous years we’ve delivered to the Bridge in Loughborough and the Hub Café in Syston. This year our daughter’s school Rothley Academy  were collecting for Soar Valley Food Bank  so we decided to donate through this. 

 

One of our favourite family activities in the run up to Christmas is to visit Santa at the Great Central Railway. We love the nostalgia of going on a steam train and getting to support a local organisation that’s mostly run by volunteers. Our favourite bit is getting a sherry and a mince pie on the train! They’ve planned closed carriages for this year so we’re really hoping we get to keep up with this one.

 

 

Time with the family

We close the office from 18th December to 4th January so we can enjoy some uninterrupted family time. It’s the only time of year that we completely close down operations. It’s great having time to relax and just spend time with our loved ones. We spent last Christmas by the pool in Australia where it was 37c. We’re quite looking forward to a cold Christmas this time!

 

 

Whatever is happening when we get to Christmas we know we’ll be able to enjoy lots of walks with our dog Winnie. The children are just getting to grips with their bikes too, so we’ll get out and enjoy the great outdoors. John Senior and his wife Pat love cosying up in front of the fire enjoying a mince pie or four! We would normally attend the Christmas Eve family service before drinking a toast to the loved ones who are no longer with us. 

 

 

On the day

We spend Christmas Day like most families, watching the children open their presents, watching Christmas TV and the Queen’s speech. Of course, we also have a proper Christmas feast. Lisa and her Mum are both big fans of Delia Smith’s recipes, especially the ones with loads of butter. There will be plenty of booze too. We spend weeks planning Christmas dinner and what we’ll be having on Christmas Day and into Boxing Day. Nothing will change that. When we’re all stuffed everyone will gather around the TV. (Although Lisa has been known to go online to have a look at the sales while her dinner goes down!)

We might not be able to gather together in the same way this year, but we hope to see everyone at some point. That could be in smaller gatherings or just thanks to the wonders of modern technology. We’ve certainly adapted to that this year. Family is really important to us so we’ll make it work somehow. 

From all of us, have a wonderful Christmas, however you’re spending it. We have lots of exciting plans for the business so following the well-earned rest we will be raring to go!