Happy 2017 one and all, and  in a somewhat belated round up, welcome to Happy Little Buttons December!

I hope you’ve all had fabulous Christmases and saw in the New Year in style. Can you believe we’re in 2017 already?!

I’m not sure about you, but I always find this time of year a bit bleak. Yes it’s a New Year, and there’s so much hope ahead, but when the Christmas lights have been packed away and you’ve eaten your own body weight in chocolate and mince pies, there doesn’t seem much to look forward to. When I thought about my December round up, therefore, I fully expected this month’s #HappyLittleButtons post to be full of Christmassy pics, but actually the ones that I’ve been drawn towards have all been outdoorsy, so perhaps it’s my subconscious calling for Spring already?!

Which is why I’ve chosen these two as my favourites from my Happy Little Buttons co-hosts, Annette from 3 Little Buttons and Dawn from Rhyming with Wine.

We loved the #magical walk through to Santa, and the Elfs we met were splendid. @willowsactivityfarm #happylittlebuttons

A post shared by Annette, 3 Little Buttons (@3littlebuttonsblog) on Dec 24, 2016 at 2:43am PST

I love the Christmas lights in Annette’s post here. I wish they could stay up all year round (and actually, in my conservatory, they do!).

It's frosty and crisp on this 21st day, But Santa is packing his sleigh now, Hurray! ???? #christmas #advent #hazelwoodcastle #rhymingwithwine #rhymingwithwineblog #happylittlebuttons #pinklinker #worldoflittles #toddler #letthembelittle #heartfluttermoments #mumswithcameras #cameramama #rememberingthesedays #myhappycapture #timestotreasure #littlefierceones #coolmumclub #bloggingclubuk #capturingtheday

A post shared by Rhyming with Wine (@rhymingwithwine) on Dec 20, 2016 at 10:33pm PST

From Dawn, I’ve picked this fun post from Hazelwood Castle. I love the sense of adventure and excitement in Dawn’s two Tots here as they wait for Christmas day!

Happy New Year all!! Apologies for being a little bit off the radar of late, but we've been enjoying some family time at the excellent @landalnl's Hof Van Saksen resort in The Netherlands. It was incredibly beautiful, as this sunset photo shows. We all know how much Mrs Lighty loves a pretty sky, but I think this one's going to take some beating!! #hofvansaksen #landalgreenparks #nofilter #sunset #lake #reflection #prettysky #skyporn #shadows #landscape #landscape_capture #travel #thenetherlands #holland #happylittlebuttons #ohprettycity #moretoexploreoutdoors #capturingtheday #mblogger #pblogger #ukparentbloggers #pinklinker #coolmumclub #allthingsspliced

A post shared by Nicola – All Things Spliced (@mrslighty1504) on Jan 2, 2017 at 1:08pm PST

My own #HappyLittleButtons post is not one that features Baby Lighty, or anyone for that matter, and although it was posted on Instagram on 2nd January, I’m including it because it was actually taken on 29th December, so *technically* still falls within the December round up. It’s this sunset post from our wonderful stay in Holland at the Hof Van Saksen resort. I do love a pretty sky, and I think this is one of the most beautiful I’ve ever managed to capture.

From within our wonderful community, I’ve picked four which have made me feel raring to get outdoors and explore, even if the weather’s cool and crisp.

 

 These four are:

I'll be taller than her one day.. #countrykidsfun #chasingnature #kidsoutdoorsinsussex #curiouslittleexplorers #familynatureclub #whatevertheweatherkids #happylittlebuttons #mydarlingmemory #saturdaysiblings #ukexplore #snaphappybritmums #leedscastle

A post shared by Zoe Holland (@jugglingskates) on Dec 26, 2016 at 11:18am PST

This one from Juggling Skates. The grass is always greener – or the moat bluer! – on the other side, especially if you’re dreaming of being the tallest one day!

Singing #Christmascarols on the green. Someone managed to stuff a #mincepie and a biscuit in their face whilst we were there. Hint: it wasn't me!

A post shared by Hattie – A Mother's Blog (@coffeeandbubbles) on Dec 17, 2016 at 9:57am PST

This one from Coffee and Bubbles. I love the sense of community here, singing carols on the green, lantern in hand. I have to admit though that it was a close call between this and one of Hattie’s other photos, purely because her little one’s expressions when he was less than a Happy Little Button made me laugh so much!!

A silly #earth #geocache moment ? The Robot is fast asleep and oblivious of our antics

A post shared by Karen (@twotinyhands) on Dec 31, 2016 at 9:13am PST

This one from Two Tiny Hands, just because I love a spot of sleepy babywearing!!

These two ❤. 364 days of being super cute together. Baby becomes toddler as of tomorrow! We're off to the zoo for birthday celebrations ???? #newcastlewithkids

A post shared by Sprog On The Tyne (@sprogonthetyne) on Dec 27, 2016 at 11:51am PST

And finally this one by Sprog on the Tyne. How wonderful to be playing on the beach, wrapped up against the elements! It’d definitely something I’d love to do with Baby Lighty one day!

And that’s it for another month. I’d like to thank everyone that’s joined in the #HappyLittleButtons community so far. as we start 2017, we have over 3000 wonderful images linked from a whole range of bloggers. Annette from 3 Little Buttons, Dawn from Rhyming with Wine and I really do love all of your images and are so grateful for the support you’ve shown us. You’ve also given me a new lease of Instagram life, and I like to hope that I’m getting better at both the photography aspect of blogging and the promotional side of it! Hopefully I’ll learn more still in 2017, so here’s to many more Happy Little Buttons!

*By taking part and tagging your photos with the #happylittlebuttons hashtag, you agree to allow us to use your photos in the featured images round ups and share your social media usernames.

•••
For All Things Spliced, follow The Lightys on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram!

Proud to be linking up with: