A Paisley grandmother has transformed her garden shed into a Christmas grotto to surprise her grandchildren.
With the big day just around the corner, Alison Cutherbertson wanted to make the festive season as enjoyable as possible for her two special granddaughters.
The 59-year-old had the idea over the summer when she got a new garden shed and thought it would make the ideal Christmas grotto with plenty of decorations.
Alison is a huge lover of the festive season and aims for Christmas to be a magical time for her family. She said: “I’ve always tried to make Christmas as special as I can for my children and grandchildren, and last year I wanted to do something extra festive for them.
“Over the summer, I got a new garden shed and, when winter came, I thought it would make the perfect grotto. I secretly decorated it to surprise the grandchildren and it was absolutely amazing!
“This year, we did the same thing again, and my granddaughters loved it just as much. It’s become a yearly tradition now and I can’t wait to see it grow bigger and better each year.”
Alison’s daughter, April Hamilton, was stunned to see the project her mum had undertaken. She says that, growing up, she always had fond memories around Christmas time with movies on in the background while both she and her mum decorated the tree together.
The impressive grotto display was completed on a budget, according to April, with her mum making good use of old decorations that she still had in the house.
And the final touch came when Santa made an appearance. April added: “I honestly don’t know what inspired my mum to turn her garden shed into a Christmas grotto but I think she just wanted to do something nice for her grandkids.
“She’s always taken great pride in her Christmas tree, and I have fond memories of decorating it together with a Christmas movie in the background. She put the same effort into decorating the shed, which she wanted to feel like Santa’s grotto – magical yet cosy.
“One meaningful touch is that she included my late grandpa’s old train set which he would always have out at Christmas.
“We’ve even had Santa come to visit although the kids knew it was just grandpa pretending as Santa is very busy this time of year! We also had cakes and sweeties making it a proper celebration.
“My daughter and niece, who were both three last year, were absolutely thrilled when they saw it.
“There was plenty of squealing and excitement. It was exactly the kind of reaction my mum was hoping for and it made all her work worthwhile. As our children loved it so much, we’ve done it again this year!”
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