Yesterday I finally managed to finish my Christmas shopping. Well, I say I have, but I’ll probably think of something that I’ve forgotten over the next couple of days and have to get that too.

My boyfriend was a huge help and we went and got most of the things while I was in my wheelchair so that I didn’t have to battle with the crowds or try to carry everything. I bought him lunch as a thank you so I didn’t feel as bad about him having to push everything back to my house in the rain.

All that I have left to do now is buy and write cards, do wrapping, and buy decorations for my walking frame Martha. The first and last things I’m looking forward to, but I really, really suck at the wrapping gifts part.

Because  I sometimes struggle to do certain things with my left hand and arm , this is not an easy task for me. I try and do most of it only using my right hand, but it’s still tough.

I find it really hard to cut the paper, fold it all up, and hold it in place while I put sticky tape all over it. When I try to do this for myself, the paper ends up so loose that whatever is inside ends up rattling about, and there’s always so much tape on them that no one can get into it…

There have been many occasions when I’ve actually managed to get the tape in my hair instead. Getting it out again isn’t as easy as I thought it might be. I don’t recommend it.

I always amaze myself at just how much I manage to make a mess of it, because sometimes I’ll have a go at doing one or two, just to see if I’ve improved any of the last time I tried it. You’d think that I’d have started to get a bit better at it, but I don’t. My efforts seem to just get worse each time, even with using a tape dispenser, or a paper-cutter thing instead of scissors. Sometimes, I end up ripping it halfway through and have to start again.

Usually, one of my friends will kindly help me to do my boyfriends things, and he or my mum will give me a hand with the rest so that all I have to do is hold bits down and write the gift tags. Last year my sister lent a hand too.

Do any of you have any hints or tips?