DON'T TELL ME I CAN'T…...go booze free this party season

A festive tipple used to be a highlight for Julie Waddell – but not any more

- EMMA ROSSITER

Curling up on the sofa, I sigh happily as I realise yet another Christmas Day has come and gone. But while in previous years I’d be struggling to keep my eyes open by 8pm thanks to the stream of food and booze I’d consumed, this year, I still feel fresh and don’t have the slightest urge to pour a nightcap. And, honestly, going sober for the festive season has made it all the more special.

Our first Christmas as a family of four, in 2007, was anything but fun. James was just five months old and he grizzled throughout Christmas lunch. Anna, then two, was toddling around but just wouldn’t stay settled, and I remember saying to my husband, Phil, 34, ‘This is hard work.’ The only thing that got me through was knowing next year things would be easier, and there might be time to once again have my prosecco with breakfast.