So long, 2021...

So, how was the end to your year?

After not spending Christmas with my family for the last two years - once through choice as Rosie and I spent our first Christmas together and the other because either Leicester or Wales or both were in some form of lockdown - we decided that, provided restrictions allowed it, we would head to Wales for Christmas.

And so, with the car packed full of bags and presents and shoeboxes (my mum fills them with bits and bobs and sends them off to be distributed by various charities), we headed west and then south and then west again before arriving in Swansea.

Not being at home it would have been easy to be lacking in Christmas spirit but, armed with a 3ft tree, we set up in our hotel room and placed our presents under the tree ready for Christmas morning.

We spent Christmas Day at my brother's with my parents, filling ourselves with Celebrations, Christmas dinner and Top Gear on Dave. Boxing Day we headed back to my folks for a couple of days before the Thomas Family Together - a Christmas tradition going back longer than I can remember where anyone on my mother's side who can make it descend on my aunt and uncle's house in Cirencester.

A day at home to relax before we headed off for lunch with Rosie's parents for Christmas 2 and then back for an apparently small buffet tea which would easily have fed 8, let alone the 4 of us in attendance, and that's not including the food that wasn't put out!

Another day at home sorting presents and washing before we were off again, this time to Oxford with Rosie's folks for a New Year's Eve with a difference! A perfectly normal start to the evening with a great walk around Woodstock village and Blenheim Palace grounds for their Christmas light trail before heading back to our near-deserted hotel (think 'The Shining' and you're close to how it felt) for dinner and some games and some celebratory bubbles before watching the lights and fireworks show on the telly.

We've often said we'd love to go and see the New Year's fireworks in London but in truth I wonder how good the atmosphere really is when the best view is always going to be from my sofa at home. Still, it's on the bucket list!

I was up early on New Year's Day and left Rosie to her cuppa and kindle while I headed out for some Park Run tourism and added "O" to my Park Run A to Z list with Oxford Park Run before the last drive home of the festive period.

And so, after over 600 miles, lots of food, drink and family, we find ourselves on the 2nd of January 2022 sorting through our chocolates, still sorting through our gifts, and now taking all the lights and decorations down for another year. Back to work on Tuesday :(

Oh, and Rosie bought a shiny new car too!

How did your year end?