Well, the lights have been taken down, the mistletoe is in the bin and the tree is gone for another year. The party is over folks, and it's back to work time. Why does it always take so long for Christmas and New Year to come, and then it's over in a flash?
Children always make me laugh at Christmas. Their little faces lighting up as they rip the carefully wrapped paper off their gifts and then the joy as they zoom off on their new bike or whatever.
There is one lovely line that is heard the country over. It's the one where you've spent an equal amount of money on two children but stupidly got one an item more than the other. "How come she got more than me?" is the usual response with a wobbly smile. I often want to say the same thing as an adult, but you can't, whereas kids just come out with the truth.
Where I come from, New Year is a really big deal. Whole families get together and traipse round each other's houses, "first footing" and having a whale of a time. So much so in fact, that we need an extra bank holiday to get over the excesses.
Children are an essential part of the festivities. Put to bed early on in the evening, they are roused from their slumbers again at around 11.45pm in order to help see in the new year. It feels like such a grown up thing to do, the only night of the year that you are allowed up so late. The excitement of the fireworks, of hearing Big Ben strike the first chord of the new year, the bagpipes - all part of the ritual.
Now, it's all over and there's work to think about. There's so much to do and so many targets to meet but I want to hang on to the festive spirit.
So why not set it to music: "On the fifth day of Christmas, Margaret gave to me, Five Outcomes for Children, being healthy, staying safe, enjoying and achieving, making a positive contribution (almost fits if you sing it fast) and achieving economic wellbeing."
Let the real celebrations commence - the ones that won't be over in a flash but will make a real difference to the lives of many children in a way that Santa never will.
