Five of us headed to Aldermoor Farm yesterday evening for a leafy challenge. The job was to clear up the leaves from the grassy area, load them into the wheelbarrow, and take them down to the chicken coops. We tipped the piles onto the muddy floor so they could soak up some of the mess and give the chickens something fun to scratch around in. We didn’t see the chickens—they were tucked up for the night—but we hope they woke up to a nice surprise this morning! There were a few laughs along the way, especially when Sarah got her hand stuck in the leaf grabbers (all good now!). Once the work was done, we admired the farm glowing with Christmas lights—a festive finish to a muddy but satisfying task.

After all the festivities at the Rose Road Association Christmas Fair it was time for a big tidy up! We set to work sorting out the bottle tombola, locating parts of elf costumes, tidying refreshments away and sorting through donations. We even started sorting things out that Santa might like to use for next year’s grotto presents. We had just enough time left over for a group shot with scary Santa. We won’t look forward to seeing him again next year!

Despite the relentless rain, our team brought festive cheer to the Solent Mind Elf Run, supporting a fantastic cause for mental health. Helen and Wilson kept runners on track as route marshals, while Steph greeted and assisted participants at the start. We jingled bells, wore elf hats, and cheered runners around the course— soaked but smiling. The Grinch led the way and we managed to get a photo with him before he set off. Wilson helped pack down at the end. A wet and wonderful morning for a great charity!

We were very excited today to be invited to help the big man himself spreading cheer and giving out gifts to children and young people visiting the Rose Road Christmas Fair. We welcomed Barbara for their first task. Great to meet you Barbara - we can't promise we'll have such great outfits next time we see you! Derek was our lead money maker manning the grotto entrance while the rest of us were on greeting and present passing duties. It was lovely to see everyone having such a great time. Lucy was also tasked with keeping Santa jolly with cake and coffee. Next year we know we've got to get him the cake quicker! We all managed to have a wander round the stalls too and got quite lucky on the bottle tombola, but no luck on the raffle!

I had a great time helping out at the local infant school Christmas Fete - I got to run the cake stall! But really i wanted to join in as so many great games and prizes to be won. I wanted to guess the name and win the mahoosive CapyBara. I helped to pack away after too - shifting boxes and packing away.