Urgh. It’s been a rough couple of months :(. Well, you guys know, I’ve not been having that great a time of it recently. And I’ll admit, I’ve been feeling pretty sorry for myself as a result. But Christmas is here – yay! – and I have a long break from work for the first time in years – double yay! – so things are looking up, at least for the next few weeks :).

So, out with my Grinchy mood, and time to get into the spirit of the festive season; gift giving, over indulging and relaxing until almost comatose. Yup, that all seemed fairly achievable :). And if I could get in my last ‘somethings’ of the year, all the better! Well, thanks to my awesome coordination and organisational skills, I got it all wrapped up in one lovely pre-Christmas mini break :).

As a reward to myself for getting through the past few months in (almost) one piece, I decided to book a short trip away. It would serve as reward too for my husband, for burdening the stress and putting up with my terrible mood – I really have no idea how he does it! A change of scenery was needed, and lots of pampering, so I headed to the most logical destination – Bath. Ah Bath, I’ve been wanting to visit you for years. Friends who have stayed have always told me nice things about the city, and the lure of the famous natural thermal waters was just too great to resist! I found a lovely Georgian apartment in the centre of the city, arranged some treatments at the gorgeous Thermea Spa and we headed down for a long weekend of rest and relaxation. And it was bliss! Sightseeing – check. Shopping – check. Eating way too much – check. Invigorating salt scrub – check. Relaxing massage – check. Floating in the über cool rooftop pool and playing in the bubble jets like a big kid… at night – CHECK!

A Spa day! That’s one of the ‘somethings’ from my list, now successfully ticked off… and how! What a great day of complete indulgence and pampering. Whether you’re feeling run down, stressed out, or just want to treat yourself – and lets face it, we all deserve a treat now and then! – book yourself some time at a spa. Any spa. I guarantee, you’ll absolutely love it! And if you’re ever in Bath and get the opportunity, go to Thermae Bath Spa, and head straight up to the roof. The pool is, quite simply, delicious. And the views of the city are breathtaking.

So, with spa day and sightseeing done (a trip to Bath wouldn’t be complete without visiting the stunning Roman Baths and trying the hot spa water at The Pump Rooms), there was little more than eating and shopping left on our getaway’s to-do list. Heavenly. It wasn’t great that it had rained from the moment we arrived, and continued to do so for the next 12 hours, but that wasn’t going to dampen our spirits. Hell no! Probably because we were still a bit blissed-out from our massages, or giddy from all the rich food we’d eaten :). But there was still one last thing to do before we headed home (besides load the car with lots of tasty goodies that is!). My last ‘something’ of the year. And one of the first to go on the list when I started thinking about it over a year ago. No pressure for it to be good then…

I have no idea where it came from. Or why I felt so strongly that I wanted to do this particular ‘something’. But hey, who ever has any real clue what goes on in their head, huh? Let’s just call it a quirky anomaly :). There was a clue for this last ‘something’ in the title of this post. But in case you missed it (or you can’t be bothered to scroll up) I think this photo says it all really. And yes, it was good :).

A huge thanks to the lovely folk at Wellow Trekking Centre for taking me – a complete novice! – out for a fun ride through the beautiful Avon countryside. And thanks too to Katie, my 15 hands high transport for the morning, for not throwing me off, or doing anything too scary! Although the trotting did unnerve me a little :).

So, that’s it. My final ‘something’ of 2012. And what a nice way to finish up :). I’m sure I’ll be doing a full round-up of the year in a post next week but right now my feet are up, a festive film is just kicking off on the telly box, and I’m thinking of delving into the secret food stash a day early. Well, it is Christmas after all… :D.