Christmas things not worth doing

I am saying people who live around me.

We don't do:
Christmas Eve boxes
1st December boxes
Panto
Christmas cake
Elf on the shelf
Matching pyjamas
Christmas jumpers

We do pretty much everything else though. And we have some family traditions that we all love, even though my sons are adults (or very nearly so).

I use a mobility scooter and don't own a wolf fleece. Thank you .

People who wear wolves fleeces around here, are either have many teeth missing or in mobility scooters. Think the latter as they are thick and cosy.

After Christmas you can buy packs of gift tags for 20p. My mum made gift tags from Christmas cards. She cut around the image (sometimes she could get two from the same card) using pinking shears. Holepunch a hole and loop some ribbon or sparkly string.

Actually one year I got a gift bag where it had 6 leaves of paper - tear the one for you and write on the gift tag. Why don’t they do this?

I see them all the time on different people! They do look warm to be honest 😂

I like Christmas cards, presents, mince pies, Christmas cake, Christmas pudding, carols. I no longer have young children and so Elf on the Shelf and Christmas boxes passed me by. But I truly loathe mulled wine and crackers.

@TheKeatingFive looking at how often it's mentioned on this thread you are definitely one of the very few! I actually do recall one mum who was still doing it as her kids entered their teens, but it had morphed into doing good works, like 'bake cookies to gift to the care home on our street'. I did tell her the two times her dog 'killed' the elf by chewing it up was a good excuse to stop but she enjoyed it too much. Her kids on the other hand...

Advent calendars for adults - especially the beauty ones, expensive and full of sample sized crap no one ever uses.
Family pyjamas
Christmas Eve boxes
secret Santas
Christmas work ‘do’s with organised fake fun
Christmas markets in UK

Christmas music. There’s so much you can take.
Fresh Xmas food in the shops past ten days or so it’s not freezable!

Those light up inflatable Santas etc. My parents live opposite to a family who have three of these in their garden. Hardly went up last year, as storm after storm.

Christmas bedding, cushions. I use the same 4 duvet covers all year round.

People that still ignore the a pet is for life, not just for Christmas. As RSPCA, Cats Protection etc get an influx of pets coming in January.

I just cut off the written-on tag and add a new one.

Matching pjs - what a waste if you can only wear them a few times a year

Would you not just wear them to bed for the rest of the winter though?

I have 2DC aged nearly 8 and 11
.

Stuff not worth doing:

• Elf on the shelf. Too much effort and there’s always some other parent in the playground who did something akin to a large scale west end theatre company production every night
• Christmas eve boxes. I get getting them PJs and watching a movie but the whole box thing is just another strand of an entitled overly commercial Christmas.
• Family matching PJ photos. I’m not gonna lie I always laugh at these - it looks like the family are part of a cult and you just know the bloke was absolutely strong armed into it, and that he’s hating every second. More social media “We are happier than the next people” fodder and I’m not here for it.

thatsawhopperthatlemon

V true. I've seen those wolf fleece things on sale in many a place over the years, but I have never, ever seen anybody actually wearing one.

Actually apparently there's "designer" ones. Someone posted on.X saying "£400?! You can get them 2 for a fiver down the market!"

a lot of them must be in Great Yarmouth 🤣

We had a themed party once when we stayed at a caravan there for a big birthday (I can take the piss, I am from Norfolk myself) and my dad wore one. I dressed as a snail with a top hat (IYKYK)

The things I really like and for me are non negotiable are:

• A christmas party in December
• An amazing christmas dinner
• Baking mince pies and mulling wine
• Choosing a real christmas tree and turning on the lights

Everything else I can do without.

Oh gosh! You've just reminded me of the time when my friend hosted at Christmas and tried to pass off the Yule Log as her own when it so obviously came from the village bakery. She slipped up by forgetting that she'd left it on the back seat of her car, causing an awkward moment when she disappeared for several minutes into the street to retrieve it.

None of us cared that she hadn't made it herself but the subtefuge was so elaborate that somebody had to say something along the lines of, "But why was it in your car?"

Never mind that we'd all seen identical Yule logs in the bakery for weeks and the style was pretty distinctive...

She was utterly unfazed and replied quite snappily, "I put in the car for it to chill properly and the chocolate icing to set."

She had chutzpah, that girl.

I have!!! A family in Grimsby! A grey one a blue on and a lilac/pinky one
It's now a core memory :)
Just remembered the lady in Huddersfield had a cat one because " the wolf ones are well common" * her words not mine

There is a FB page where people post pics when they spot a wolf fleece “in the wild” 😊

V true. I've seen those wolf fleece things on sale in many a place over the years, but I have never, ever seen anybody actually wearing one.

It’s me, hi, I’m the grinch

My suggestion for this thread is “giving in to expectation and obligation”. You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to. No one will die if you say no.

The first year I lived in Birmingham and me and then BF just had a curry.
Bliss.

I love Christmas! There are lots of things that other people do that I have never bothered with and were never really on my radar, even when the dc were younger. Elf on the shelf
Santa's grotto visits
Christmas Eve boxes
Family pyjamas
Christmas outings in general
Tubs of cheap chocolates and other Christmas snacks for weeks before Christmas

I've never been to a Christmas market in the UK, but have been to ones in Germany a few times. They're lovely!

DC are at uni so we don’t have to do the hideous panto/Christmas market/Christmas lights at gardens etc stuff any more thank god

DD usually goes ice skating with her mates and DD goes to the darts

Also have cut down massively on Christmas cards

Don’t bother with a turkey any more - 6 of us so we have a big chicken which is plenty as there are so many sides, and it’s much juicier and tastier.

Not bothered with a Christmas cake this year as DH and I are cutting back and are the only ones that eat it.

Never done Christmas Eve boxes - but do have seafood and sausage rolls when we get back from the pub.

Cards - don’t bother any more - a huge relief given how many I used to ‘have to’ send. Cooking - we get take away or M&S and just relax - less pressure, less stress! In fact going out or doing anything that detracts from relaxing with my dogs and my nearest and dearest humans has been jettisoned and it’s fuckin awesome.