If you don't yet know what you are doing at Christmas, why not?

[Nextphonewontbesamsung]

If you haven't planned everyone's presents (never mind buying them).
The menu.
Who goes where and when.
What you are wearing.
What you are going to be doing on Christmas Eve.
And everything else ...

Why not? what is the reason for this?

I haven't given Christmas even a passing thought. It's only Mumsnet and the giant stacks of chocolate tubs blocking my way at the entrance to the supermarket that makes the word Christmas come into my head at this time of year.

I might pay attention to it in the last week of November when I buy my kids an advent calendar. Then first 3 weeks of December is fair game to get Christmassy.

Things is, to me this is normal. It isn't being disorganised or stressed or leaving it to the last minute. 3 weeks seems to be about the right amount of time to devote to doing Christmas. And I speak as the one who has mainly been the host for the past 20 years.

But am I unusual? Where are you my fellow people who are a bit more relaxed about Christmas?

Pre children I used to leave Christmas shopping until December. After the first child, I started in November. Now I have two children, I start present buying even earlier in October! Reason being, I need to spread out the costs.

In a ‘normal’ year I’ll start shopping on the mid November payday, or even in October, as I can’t afford to get them all from December pay packet. I have a big family and buy for all the children plus a few others so it’s a long list. I also make edible/drinkable gifts for the adult family which needs a bit of planning/thinking about usually in November. And I start my Christmas cake end October/beginning December. We alternate between travelling down to my sister’s for Christmas Day or staying home and hosting the in laws, then we do the other one for New Year. So I would know by now which of those two option’s ‘turn’ it was.

This year isn’t ‘normal’ as we’re getting married just before Christmas, so I know that’s happening and there’s been a fair bit of planning for that obviously. Because of this we won’t be travelling anywhere not hosting anyone on Christmas Day but I’ve no idea what we’ll actually do. We’re driving down to a little holiday cottage for New Year for our honeymoon, so that takes care of that. And I’m not doing present shopping - the kids will just get a voucher for one year and the adults will hopefully understand.

I know where I am celebrating Christmas and with whom. There is this thing called Advent for other preparations.

We're moving house in the next couple of weeks, my stress levels are at an unhealthy level so Christmas is not even on my radar yet!
We usually have my parents and my sister and family but this year..I just don't know if we'll be prepared for hosting.

I start my Christmas shopping early, mainly the gifts for neices and nephews so i know they are done, DS also has an advent calendar that i put little chocolates, mini toys such as little dinosaurs and cars, or i put homemade voucher for a xmas film to watch or book to read, so i like to make sure ive got those already for the first December.

It is also DS birthday on xmas day, so i like to make sure ive got all my presents by the beginning of December, so i can concentrate on festivities and birthday celebrations.

We have no idea which country we’ll be in over Christmas. Not much point planning anything because we don’t know where we will be, who we will be with, what season we will be in, how much room we will have etc etc.

We’ve booked to go to Brighton for 2 nights two days after Christmas but that’s all the planning I’ve done.
However, as of the end of October I add something extra to my online shop, bottle of sherry, bottle of gin, etc etc.
Disclaimer : I do buy other items not just grog.

I've bought my advent calendar because of FOMO as I'm sure it's going to sell out, and I've started planning Christmas presents (I'm making up a box of British goodies for one of my friends who's American) and what I'm going to buy for my family. Apart from that, who knows? I'm single and live in a house share. I'm sure everyone else will be going to visit friends/family and I'll be here by myself. I'll get in some nice food and relax. Work is always really busy in the lead up to Xmas (retail) so it's nice to take it easy. (I'm a happy loner.) Last year my friend and her boyfriend popped round in the evening for tea and mince pies which was nice.

Yanbu however I have bought some gifts for ds3 as smyths had their deal on and then Very sent me an £50 cash back deal.

I’ll park it all now until mid November

I am away in the sun until 18 of December so will think about it from the 19 onwards.

It's October. It's two months away. I refuse to think about Christmas until after half term at the very earliest.

I don't have the money to be able to leave it all until December. I start in September to spread the cost about.
I also like to put lots of thought in to the gifts. I like to try and get things for the best price too.
I also work, and am very busy. Leaving it til December would mean doing it all in just 2 or 3 days at best. Not for me when there are 4 kids to buy for plus all the family.

September is the month that we have to put annual leave requests in at work for Christmas so that's done and we have a vague idea of who is going where and when across the two sides of the family.

It's our turn to host for the first time in ages so I have started to give it a bit more thought as I can't afford to do it all in December. Just chucking the odd thing in the trolley etc.

We have got panto tickets and meal bookings done but mainly because we are a big party and don't want to leave it too late.

I like Christmas, lovely family time but I find it too stressful if I leave it too late. I like to enjoy December and do Christmassy trips / baking / activities...I really don't want to be shopping. But I think that's just my personality really!

We know where we are going on xmas day, and have booked to see santa. Also xmas shopping done apart from some little stocking fillers. Ds has a xmas day birthday so i need to be organised.

Because its ages away and I refuse to bow down to the gods of consumerism and consumption by starting to think, let alone shop for something that is over 2 months away.

We've started buying ds presents online and I've put all my xmas food in my online ocado basket for xmas eve.

Can’t bear to think about it this year. My parents have moved into a home and are very unhappy there, but my mum is so physically disabled that there’s no way I can manage to bring her home.

I’m just pushing it to the back of my mind.

I've started with presents etc but I've avoided mentioning christmas day plans as I don't want to be invited to the PILs! I don't want them to come here either, I just want to have our own dinner and then see them in the evening but that's not acceptable.

The only plans I have made are for the decorations at church and some carol singing.

Christmas planning is for people who know where they will be living on 25 Dec! I've got to find a new place to live, and then move before that. So I'm focusing on that! Luckily my family don't really do Christmas so don't have to worry about buying presents or hosting relatives in my new house.

I've purchased most of Dd's gifts, mainly to spread the cost but also because we are moving house in December.

The only year I was organised and ready for Christmas in advance, ie by mid December, was the year my baby was due days before Christmas. I prefer to keep Christmas confined to December and even when my kids were little would never start buying presents until late November. The Christmas threads here panic me unnecessarily. That said, I arranged where I will he spending Christmas this year today.

I have 4 family members coming over. I haven't done all that because I'm not a lunatic and don't need to plan a mani and napkins for what is essentially a Sunday roast, until a day or 2 before, max

We thought we might be able to go away but a work contract hasn’t eventuated so we can’t. So will probably be spending the 2’weeks staring at each other or watching télé. No family here at all. It’ll be a quiet, sad little Xmas

I envy people who can leave it till December and be so chilled about it. But alas I have 4 dc (all who have birthdays between xmas and Feb 28th!), and a low paid job so budgeting and planning starts in august. I like to have everything bought and wrapped before november so then I can focus on the birthdays (we have one on boxing day so i can't even wait until after Christmas to think about it). I joke that I look forward to them being adults and just requiring a box of chocolates and cheque.