Plans for Xmas

[CustardTart]

Christmas starts on the 22nd for us as all 7 of us are going out that evening to celebrate DD's 24th birthday. Actually December 23rd is her birthdate but this year that's when we're going up to Birmingham to see the rellies and exchange gifts - all I know is, if there isn't cake, she'll be very unhappy!

Christmas Eve is one of our favourite days - a little last minute shopping followed by mince pies and a Christmas cocktail or three at DD's home. Hope to go to the midnight service at our local church - nothing feels more Christmassy than that for me.

Christmas Day starts when we open our gifts and by 11am we're enjoying yet more Christmas cocktails. This year I have an elaborate 5 course menu planned (tho' most of it is prepared before the big day) which everyone's looking forward to. After coffee, we'll play games and/or watch Christmas movies until everyone's ready to retire. Merry Christmas...

 

[jjk]

We normally Spend christmas day at home just the five of us,on christmas eve we normally go to the panto with sister in law and family and visit other relatives over the festive period this year will be very different, as we are off to WdW for a week .First time we will have christmas day away from home.

 

[Lizzybear]

Christmas day at my parent's goes something like:
* Mum wakes ME up at about 8am (oh how times have changed, used to be me knocking on their bedroom door at 1am! )
* Open stocking presents (i'm 22 and mum still insists on me having a stocking, not that i'm complaining
* Go downstairs, open 'big' presents (not so many but always appreciated =)
* Dad goes out for a run about 10am, to get some peace I guess
* Mum's stress begins: Putting last minute decorations up, preparing the meal (despite all the help I offer/give she still manages to work herself up over it), annual ritual of mum saying she doesn't want to visit my dad's sister on Christmas day as she has too much to do but she ends up going anyway etc.
* Dinner around 5-6ish, always lovely! Mum just about manages to sit down for 5 minutes to enjoy it.

I really really wish she'd chill for once, her excuse is she loves Christmas but I think she gets a bit caught up in 'impressing' when it's only us and we're happy with whatever she does. It feels as if all the help anyone gives doesn't do any good I know this post may sound ungrateful but I just worry for her, as she suffers with stress a lot and it's made her ill before now.

This year i'm hoping to do some volunteering over Christmas. I'm working 24 hours a week in TRU til Christmas (probably won't carry on afterwards) though as well as my nursery temping but I should be able to squeeze something in! I really want to do it to put things in perspective a bit.

 

[Strommie]

I am finishing work on 22nd Dec till 2nd Jan On Christmas Day it will just be me and DBF, my mum, and my brother and his wife. It will nice and quiet, we have a fry up in the morning, and then open our pressies. We eat early afternoon and then veg in front of the TV

 

[Ware Bears]

It's lovely reading about everyone's plans.

Last year we were at Disneyland Paris this year will seem very quiet. Christmas Day is always just the five of us at home and then we usually have a family party on Boxing Day. However my mum is going to stay with my sister up north and my in-laws can no longer visit as my father-in-law is now in a wheelchair and the access to our house it too difficult. So I expect we will visit them instead then just spend the rest of Boxing Day chilling at home.

 

[MrsJobba1]

Hi

This year will be totally different for us.

We have a motorhome and we are booked into a campsite in Yorkshire from 22nd Dec until 28th Dec. There will be just me, dh and our 3 dogs. The campsite has a little club house that does Christmas dinner, so I dont even have to worry about that.

It will be so quiet and peaceful compared to the normal festivities and all the family visiting we ususally do.

 

[Lisash]

We will be in WDW last year we flew out on Christmas Day so had a mini Christmas at home on Christmas Eve. This year we fly out on 14th December and are planning on spending Christmas Eve in MGM with dinner at Sci-Fi (DS's choice) then a nice stroll around the Osborne lights. Christmas Day will be Epcot with dinner at Le Cellier. I can't wait

 

[natalielongstaff]

we are having xmas at our home with my mum and brother...he is a chef so i buy the food and he cooks it

until last year we always ate at the restaurant my brother was working in but after a car accident he couldnt go back to being a chef and also the kids were wanting to stay at home with their toys so we now have a lovely day with our family

unfortunatly my in laws cant make it this year

 

[ely3857]

Everyones xmas plans sound great

Prior to living together Gavin & I would spend xmas day at his parents but last year we stayed at home and I cooked (not a regular occurance ) lunch then we went to his parents for tea

This year we are doing the same without me cooking lunch, it was alot of hard work and Gavin isnt massively keen on Turkey etc anyway so were having a fry up in the morning then tea at his mam and dads again

On every xmas eve since we met we have spent it at a local village pub crawling with all Gavin's friends and their partners which is always great as some of them live far away so it's nice to have one guaranteed evening to catch up but this year almost all of them have seperated so we are in limbo about xmas eve at the moment

I am working aswell, you'd be suprised how many peope have to visit their bank to cancel a direct debit over xmas



Jodie