Does anyone else *yearn* for a "quiet" Christmas?

[TimeforMe]

I mean....don't get me wrong. I LOVE all the hustle and bustle, the shopping and cooking, etc.....to a certain extent. Our family is really getting to be too big to have everyone together in one house. We do the big italian fish thing on Christmas eve and have it at my house. This has turned into a huge expense for us and a huge JOB for me. When I finally went to bed Christmas Eve (2 a.m.) my legs were literally throbbing from standing on them all day.

I have to laugh when I ask friends how their Christmas was and they say "very nice....quiet". Ahhh, how I yearn for QUIET!

 

[Disneyland1084]

I know what you mean. As much as I love being around family on Christmas, I prefer the gathering to be small. Two years ago my DH and I combined both families. It's too much. Besides, it's more intimate when there's less people.

 

[WDW Poly Princess]

YES!

Some years, our whole family ends up at my house- around 20 people. It's fun, but exhausting!

This year I spent Christmas with just my mom (and my cats!) and it was great! We got to sit around and be lazy- all we did all day was watch TV and eat! Fantastic!

 

[MichelleVW]

yep....I really just want to go to the islands and have a margarita. Lying on the beach in the sun, that's my idea of the perfect Christmas!!

In the words of Kenny Chesney, "All I want for Christmas is a real good tan!!"

 

[JunieJay]

Sometimes I think I do, but I think I would be rather lost without my big family on Christmas.

Now Thanksgiving, yes, I could and would and have dumped them all for vacation before. Look forward to doing it again.

 

[powellrj]

we had our first quiet christmas this year. I had total knee replacement on Dec. 4, so I knew if I were going to do anything, it had to be done before the 4th. I had my shopping and wrapping finished.

We went to my DM on Dec. 23 and had soup and sandwiches and opened gifts, we went to DMiL on Dec. 24 and they ordered pizza.

The plan was to eat out on Christmas at the chinese buffet. On christmas morning all the kids plus DSs fiance where here and I fixed breakfast for everyone. I was so worn out that I was too tired to go out. THe kids never got dressed and we just had snacks to eat all day. ( I had filled the freezer with things like meatballs and chicken wings and had lots of cheese and other snack type foods)

It was really a nice change. I am not sure I would like to do it every year, but it was nice this once.

 

[daisyduck123]

Yes!!! I am sick of having the ENTIRE family at my house for Christmas every year. We had my parents, DH's parents, our sisters & their significant others, my brother & his girlfriend. DH & I are the only ones with kids, so everyone has always gathered at our house.

At Christmas breakfast this year, we announced that this would be the last family Christmas at our house because starting next year....we are Christmasing in WDW. I said, "Anyone who wants to see us the week of Christmas can book a room there. We'll be at SSR Dec. 20-28."

And we meant it.

 

[hucifer]

I totally hear ya on this one. We had 18 people over for Christmas, which are mostly the in-laws. It was so loud in the house that I had a headache by the end of the night. It's a lot of work with little payoff to me.

I long for a more intimate Christmas. I think it would be much more special then.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

I just had one.... It didn't suck.

 

[mickeyboat]

Ours was nice and quiet, as was Thanksgiving. It was the best holiday season ever!

Denae

 

[Hercules10]

Best Christmas I EVER had was when we went on the 10-day Christmas cruise. No family-tug-o-war. Got to kick back and enjoy the holidays to a tropical theme.

I wanna do it again!!!!

 

[Planogirl]

QUIET Christmas? Do those really exist? Sounds nice.

 

[PlutoLuvr]

Boy, do I yearn for a quiet Christmas!

Being the WDW fans we all obviously are, I think most here will appreciate this.

When I was in court reporting school 15 years ago, my theory teacher was in her mid-50s, married, and her kids had left "the nest." She always shared how she and her DH spent their Christmas ... ten days at WDW. She just felt she'd gotten to a point in life where the holidays were just too stressful for her. She bought her kids and grandkids plenty of gifts and had them shipped to their houses. She loved going away, especially to WDW, for the holidays. No cooking, no cleanup, no stress. Just her, her DH and Mickey

 

[Lionqueen2]

I don't like a quiet holiday. I love Christmas and I like people. I think it is a great time for family and friends to spend time together so my motto is 'the more, the merrier'.

I do like a few quiet moments to exchange gifts with DH in the morning, then let the fun begin. I don't mind plopping into bed exhausted at the end of the day as long as everyone had a good time.

 

[EthansMom]

It seems like the holidays always mean triple the amount of work for me!

I had all of the ILs over on Christmas Eve for a big dinner. On Christmas Day, I felt like I'd been run over by a train.

 

[JunieJay]

Those of you hosting these huge Christmas dinners at your homes, have you considered changing it to a pot luck? We do this on Christmas Eve -- everyone brings a dish, and everyone pitches in with serving and cleaning up. If you don't help serve, you clean up. Its an either/or situation.

On Christmas Day, we spend it with just my immediate family, but after dinner I host a dessert party. There isn't much to it - I just buy a few cheesecakes and maybe bake a few batch of cookies and serve coffee/tea/soda. Its an easy way to get together with my family without having to break my back to do so!

 

[grinningghost]

Ours is semi-quiet - but I'd like it even quieter. Just us would be nice - I like peace and solitude on holidays - and on most any day really. Must be the only-child in me.

 

[apirateslifeforme]

I'm yearning for a Christmas when no friends or relatives end up in the hospital or die.

 

[lillygator]

I don't yearn for quiet so much but I do wish my mom would really quit going so overboard with gifts upon gifts....it's too much.

 

[TimeforMe]

Those of you hosting these huge Christmas dinners at your homes, have you considered changing it to a pot luck? We do this on Christmas Eve -- everyone brings a dish, and everyone pitches in with serving and cleaning up. If you don't help serve, you clean up. Its an either/or situation.

On Christmas Day, we spend it with just my immediate family, but after dinner I host a dessert party. There isn't much to it - I just buy a few cheesecakes and maybe bake a few batch of cookies and serve coffee/tea/soda. Its an easy way to get together with my family without having to break my back to do so!

I really like both of these ideas. Christmas Day is fine because we go to my niece's house. Because she hosts Christmas Day, however, I don't like to ask her or my sister-in-law (and brother) who also help her to bring anything on Christmas Eve. I don't know.....I just feel kind of funny having guests (albeit family) do the work at my house. But ya know.....now that I think of it, that's how my aunts have always done it--everyone just pitched in. Trouble is, no one pitches in. I guess I'll have to literally delegate the work. I think I ended up with over 25 at my house and me, dh, and my kids did everything. I was too exhausted to really help DN the next day.

Don't get me wrong, though. It's really fun and I love seeing everyone, but it's just way more work than it should be. I'll have to come up with other ideas next year; figure out a way to keep the traditions but make it a bit easier on the hostess. (moi!)