The Christmas Blog 2025

The 12 months of Christmas

Hello, good evening and welcome (well it seems I was overcome by the Frost).
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I apologise for this very age-related introduction, but hey if you didn’t get the reference then be happy that you still have a modicum of youth on your side. If you did get the reference and even had a little chuckle, then I am afraid that your youthfulness may have put on it’s running shorts a long time ago, went for a jog and never returned. Such is the merry meanderings through life’s tangled webs.

What do Elves like to listen to? Wrap Music.

Well, there is a beginning I bet you never saw coming. If I am honest, neither did I but there it is, it’s done, can’t change it now as you have already read it. Anyway, why change the habit of the lifetime and work to any kind of planned, considered and sensible format.

Whoa, I hear you shout, surely you mean the 12 days of Christmas (and what kind of mad man are you)?  Firstly, there is no need to shout, I am quite sensitive you know. Secondly, nope I did mean the 12 Months of Christmas and thirdly, as I just stated I am a quite sensitive kind of mad man.

You probably have already guessed the reason for the 12 months of Christmas, is due totally to the fact that once again I failed with my attempts to bring you a selection of entertaining blogs throughout the year. I only managed a pathetic 2 blogs after last year’s Christmas Blog. Not that the Blogs were pathetic, far from it. I would like to think that they were witty, informative, entertaining and full of decent images. It was just that there were only two of them and that was the pathetic part. I am hopeless, I take full responsibility for my utter hopelessness and only wish that I could take all of my good ideas and intentions and make them a reality. Sadly, alas and alack the knack I lack. So once again you will have to put up with a whirlwind trip through 2025. Not everything and everywhere we visited are represented here but there are images from every month of the year and a broad spectrum of the things we have done. Although I still hope that at some point in time, I will be able to do more comprehensive and individual blogs for each event, walk or trip we have taken. However, don’t hold your breath just yet. But we can all aspire to be something better, can’t we? Oh yes, by popular demand the Christmas Jokes are back.

Why are Christmas trees bad at knitting? They always drop their needles.

How have you all been? What a year hey? Where did it go? Oh, lovely shoes.

It does seem that every year I seem to get less and less done, I wonder if the answer is because the older I get the slower I get, ………could be. This year went so fast, but looking back the itinerary was once again chock full of things done.
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January saw us feeding ducks in the park, and yes, we were dreaming we were far away (a Jam reference. I have used it before but hey a good line is worth using twice, right? The question is can you remember what blog I have used it on before? Answers on our Facebook page please, not a post card as the old kids shows used to say. Mainly because where would you send it?). Watching the light dance through grasses and messing about on the river. 

Different places on different days, making images from things in our gaze, and because it was cold hot drinks in a café’s (Now I am not posh by any means so I would say it like caths but for this purpose please read it as cath hays or it doesn’t work ta). Ok it’s not Wordsworth I grant you but come on.

What do you call Father Christmas when he takes a break? Santa pause.

February once again we battled the cold, to London we ventured to see what would unfold. We had a great time and saw many sights, culminating in Battersea where we looked at (Have you guessed it yet? Have ya? Wait for it. Yep.) the lights.

We also saw two cats wearing polar neck jumpers, sitting on their owners back.
Well, when I say that I mean his rucksack. 

February seemed longer than it oughta, we saw pretty birds and fallen trees reflecting in water. Where we were was muddy and messy and we even saw a distant cousin of Nessy.

(You could say it was waterlogged, get it, there’s a log in the water oh please yourself.  This is hurting me more than it is hurting you, you know).
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Feb finished off with a trip to Little Venice, maybe because of the time of year we weren’t that impressed. Even so we still carried on, determined to do our best.

March we visited the Photography Show, a full-on day it ended up being quite a slog. Here are a few pictures you may not have seen, but of course as you know it was the subject of our May blog.
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(What you didn’t, you haven’t read it. Surely you mean yet don’t you, yes you, you’re going to read it straight after this, well that’s ok then). 

Back at the park for some artistic fun, then quick as a flash that was March over and done.

What do elderly gingerbread men use to help them walk? Candy canes.
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April on a mini break, we went to Kent and visited the coast. It really is one of the places we like to go to most. Lots to see a variety of scenes, a lot of pictures for us to take, as well as the odd ice cream and lots of tea and cake.

May we had a trip planned this time, to Egypt, well sort of, we were bound. But much before our arrival an opportunity we found. Lots of people in costume were walking on the street so a few more pictures we took, what an unexpected treat. Several images taken, we had to move on soon, to get to our planned trip, an immersive journey in London, featuring Tutankhamun. After, we walked around the city, taking pictures of the things that we decided were odd, architectural or pretty.

To be honest and transparent these four were taken on another day in London, however it was still in May. So, all is fine and dandy, I hope you agree it’s ok. 

The signs on this one could almost have a dual role, as the couple look like they are flirting, which means they could be describing them. Or is it just me projecting, you decide.

June we started this year’s holiday, we went to a place that we hadn’t been with hopes of seeing things we hadn’t seen. But the weather had other ideas, the rain it just didn’t stop, so sadly our holiday was cut short, all in all, a bit of a flop. We still got some pictures for our memory box to remember the time we had spent, but due to being soggy and cold a few days later we packed up and went.

How did the reindeer learn to play piano? He was elf-taught.
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July back in London for the Paradox Museum, this certainly opened our eyes. It’s amazing what can be done with mirrors, lights and some hardware supplies.

We walked round Fishers Green the day was bright and sunny. It was nice to see people enjoying the sun. Some boys were trying to keep cool by jumping off a bridge, these pictures were kind of funny.

Walton-on-the-Naze was another day out. We went to watch the Kite Festival and see what it was about. The weather once again wasn’t playing ball the kites would rise then fall because the wind kept dying. However, this didn’t stop the East Anglian Kite Flyers from trying and trying. The day was great, and a lot of kites soared up into the air. We both agreed at the end of the day that we were glad to be there.

What do you call a snowman with a six-pack? An abdominal snowman.
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August was such a busy month with family visiting and so much we wanted to do. We crammed in as much as we could and here are some of the results for you. We started at the Toot Hill Country Show we decided to go on that day. We were very glad we went and we really enjoyed our stay. There were plenty of stalls offering so many things and lots of entertainment going on in the ring. The features we thought were really the stars, were the rows and rows of classic cars.

Next our hearts went on as it says in the song. We pretended to be Jack and Rose as the Titanic Experience was the next day out we chose.

The Gun Powder Mills provided some vintage style stills. Situated in Waltham Abbey this day out was not too shabby.

​Off to the seaside, fish and chips for two, ice creams and doughnuts and lots of piccys too. Some people watching and a smiley face for you, the amusements at night and a car with Pikachu.

September a day out to Richmond Park. A return visit as we had been last year. 1000 fabulous hectares to walk and if you’re lucky you can also see deer.

What is green, covered in Christmas lights and Christmas bulbs, and goes ribbit? A mistle-toad.
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October and autumn colour was in full bloom. So, time for some landscapes oh and some mushrooms.

November the days were getting colder, and the nights were getting shorter, but still we braved the weather and found ourselves at the seaside, once again by the water. 

Keeping with the seaside theme, but bearing in mind it was November, a different day on Southend Pier, now it was time to remember.

At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.

“For the Fallen” By Laurence Binyon

Which finally brings us to December.
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With Christmas lurking just around the corner, what festive thing could we do? Well, yes that most festive of festive things, a day at Colchester Zoo. 

Now it really was quite festive even though there was no snow and we stayed well into the evening when the whole place was a glow. For what we hadn’t told you was that on this very night, the Zoo became a magical place bathed in enchanted light.

What do they sing at a snowman’s birthday party? Freeze a jolly good fellow!

That brings us to the end of the whistlestop tour through our year of photography and creating.  We really only just scratched the surface. We literally could have done this several times over. Which is why I really should produce more blogs throughout the year.

Oh well, no guessing as to what my New Year’s resolution should be then. I also hope you have appreciated my attempts at making it all rhyme. It wasn’t easy or planned and I will not be doing it again anytime soon (no thank you very much, my head will hurt for a month now).
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So, just time to decorate the tree, post your letters to Santa and hope he gets them in time to add your wishes to his sleigh.

What do you get when you cross a snowman with a vampire? Frostbite.

(Have you also noticed this joke is the closet I have come to making any sci-fi/horror references in this whole blog? Do not fear though for “I’ll be back” and I will build a better Foundation, Boldly going where no one has been before, as a good Virgo, no I am not an Ares. I will be the Man Running ideas through my head and taking them from Pluribus. I know I’m clutching at straws, no I am not referring to Worzel Gummidge, or am I? But it does mean Many, honest look it up for yourselves. Ok I am stopping, this is getting silly and I don’t want you Supergirls and men begging for Mercy – this one is not even out yet, so that is so current. Oh, and I have just seen a Spider Man!)

Ooh er, a sudden outburst of Scifiitus I do apologise, but Stranger Things have happened.

What would Santa suffer from if he got stuck in a chimney? Claus-trophobia!

Finally, all that is left, is to end the Christmas 2025 blog as we do all our Christmas blogs.

Here’s looking to a very bright and prosperous future for everybody.
​Happy Holidays to all. Be careful, be safe, enjoy what you have, eat, drink
be merry and stay warm.
 
We hope that 2026 brings you many adventures both big and small.

In our best Dickensian voices, we say (imagine in your head the voice of Brian Blessed, you know, he said Gordon’s Alive in Flash. I did it in past years and I've done it again).

May we wish you a Merry Christmas and to one and all a Happy New Year.

Psst.

One final, thing did you count how many images there are in this blog? Does it follow some Fibonacci Sequence worthy of a Dan Brown mystery (one for the more mature readers) or answer a puzzle/mystery worthy of a Swifty (this one is for the youthful among us). Or none of the above. Answers on our Facebook page.

“Come Watson the game is afoot”.

One final, final thing, this time I promise, if you liked the blog please comment on our Facebook page, like and above all tell everybody to take a look (share).

​That’s it, now go sit with a sherry and a mince pie, go on you deserve it.