We need your Christmas customs and family traditions

We ( both dh & I ) had really awful Christmas traditions.... so we are changing that.

The tree goes up 2 weeks before christmas with really kitch decorations ( a mixture of too many baubles, tinsel, family heirlooms and home made).

On the day we have a light breakfast, make phone calls, let the kids open their stockings. Then we all cuddle in bed for a bit. Get up put dinner(salmon to start . then duck, ham, sprouts, beans, spuds and puddding made the year before with brandy butter) on and set the table with holly, crackers, runners, glasses for red, white, water, champagne and brandy.

Then we call round at a few friends in the village and all go to the pub. If we find anyone who is on their own we invite them back. Get back eat loads of dinner and then let teh kids open their presents.

That gets us to about 6 ..... send kids to bed and crash out to watch rubbish on TV.

Tree comes down on 4th Jan.

[copies and pastes mars' xmas itinerary to show dp who doesnt 'do' families ]

our only tradition is that xmas day is here at home with dp and the kids (and poss the PILs this yr, and poss my GD too) but the really fun bit is when the kids and i trek up to Crackney and have a big family xmas/boxing day dinner and stay the night at my dads and all my family come over and we all revel in christamssy things like love and fun and family and booze

And your Christmas makes me smile too, Marsy! You'd not notice me and three chaps, would you? [turns up on doorstep clutching mistletoe and a bottle of red (or seven)]

Can we play Christmas tradition thread bingo, please?

New pyjamas.

Reindeer oaty glitter.

Opening presents first thing/before lunch/after lunch/Boxing Day/presents? WTF? Don't you just get goats from Oxfam for your sainted relatives?

MarsLady, I seriously cannot top that!!! Your Christmas sounds magical.

Wish I had sisters

but because I'm nice

Our Christmas is devoted to Delia and my sisters. I buy and prepare the turkey. My sisters do a ham and lamb. We throw together salad and veg (middle sister does brussels -yuk!). Brother in law brings a salmon. We divide the alcohol list between us. Our day goes as follows: the kids wake up - anything from 7.30am (they all sleep in one bedroom so as not to confuse the man in red). We listen as they "discover" that FC has left them stockings. We hear lots of laughter and then footsteps. When they go into the lounge they see the Christmas tree and all the presents (put there by us the night before). We go in and all open prezzies. Not as restrained or as good as some of you. We open as many as we want to. But then my three sisters arrive with even more prezzies later. I make smoked salmon and scrambled eggs and pop open a bottle of champers. The kids eat chocolate. The turkey goes in the oven and we phone everyone we can think of and sing badly down the telphone at them. We can't ring my mum until the kids have gone to bed because she lives in Jamaica. We go to Church and enjoy the family service. The family arrive about 1pm whereupon madness ensues. The kids and their cousins eat more chocolate and junk. We serve up lunch. Drink too much and then the bossy sister(because there has to be one and no it's not me) will clear away. The fellas will wash up and then we'll divide the remaining food into tubs so that we all have lots of lovely leftovers. They all leave about midnight and we fall into bed. We go to friends for leftovers lunch on Boxing Day and take the kids to run around the woods. We do the same thing every year. The kids love it, we love it and so it will remain. I posted this last year. Will continue to post it cos my Christmas always makes me smile.

Smoked salmon and scrambled eggs for brekkie washed down with bucks fizz.

BOARD GAME EVERY YEAR AFTE XMAS DINNER oops soz caps

Catherine my lovely. Have you all not trawled the archives? There are threads and threads and threads on this.

We start the day with Bucks Fizz and, generally speaking, it's downhill from there...