Christmas at Christmas time

[Skelligsfeathers]

I was reading a James Herriot book and he was talking about his first Christmas in Yorkshire and how different it was to Christmas in his native Glasgow.

The line that really struck me was something like " children started singing carols a FULL 2 WEEKS BEFORE Christmas!"
He was incredulous that they started esrly, that twinkling lights started appearing on the hillsides etc and it all sounded wonderful.

I really really want Christmas to be like that now.
There are trees up in houses all over the place and my neighbours have an inflatable santa in their garden and it's not even advent yet.
It takes away all the sense of anticipation and magic and makes it all really stressful!
Plus all the new bits....December's 1st boxes, Christmas eve boxes, santa breakfasts etcetc
It is all too much!

If only we lived in a world where we had free will to choose if we participate or not.

I agree and disagree.

I don’t think most people do put trees up in November or do 1st December boxes (which I’ve just learnt about!). I’ve seen one or two in windows but no one I actually know has one up. No one I speak to at the school gates is really even mentioning Christmas yet apart from discussing when the Christmas play is.

I do listen to Christmas music from November but it’s all part of a long build up for me. We always went to buy a tree in the second week of December as a child and that’s still what we do now with my DC - so around 2 weeks maximum before Christmas.

Totally agree op but thought I was in a minority. Decorations don't go up til nid December

Also shops selling Christmas stuff and putting up Christmas displays in November doesn’t mean much I don’t think.
If I’m shopping for someone’s birthday or planning a party I will do a month or two beforehand but that doesn’t mean I consider that period part of their birthday or that I’m celebrating early.. I’m just getting ready. Same with Christmas. I’ve been acquiring gifts since the summer and am prepping food now but it’s definitely not Christmas time yet and won’t be until about 10 days before Christmas. Different things.

I know you can book Father Christmas / Santa “experience” type things generally from mid November but November dates are generally half the price of December dates precisely because it is really, really early for most people 🤷‍♀️and demand is lower.

PPs are right I think in that the season has shifted earlier a bit but I don’t honestly think most people start putting up decorations in November, it’s just a vocal minority .. and they’re not hurting anyone.

I know what you mean. My memories from growing up in the 80's were of everything really starting from about 15th. School carol concerts, wrapping, tree. It was, as the paragraph above says, two weeks before. It was magical and amazing but I found the intensity of it all a bit much.

These days my own family put our tree up at the start of December. Makes it seems less of a 'thing' and I can deal with the Christmas stress a lot better!

I put mine up end of November as I go away 20 December so I try to have my tree up for a bit before I go away and enjoy the sparkle - by the time I return I will be taking it down

I refuse to do anything Christmassy until at least 1st December- I find it a bit erm...tacky (sorry) putting decorations up before then. I wont buy presents or anything before then either. With online shopping and quick delivery nowadays I don't think there's any need.

Dont do anything like Christmas Eve boxes - that to me seems like something that's been invented in the last few years by the rise of Instagram etc. I really despise the consumerism of Christmas - I'd be happy to just buy for our dc's and not give/receive off other people - I don't see the point when we can all just afford to buy what we want when we want it - it's usually just an endless round of everyone asking "what does xyz want this year?" and no one ever knows bc no one needs anything!

And then il sigh a big sigh of relief when it's all over.

Why cant people just do whatever they want to do. If you want to put it up 1 week before fine of you want to do it 6 weeks before fine. We dont feel the need to comment on all the other things we do with our homes so why this. I get it if you dont want the commercial side ramming down your throat in shops ect but to have input on what people choose to do in their homes is just daft.

Back in my day we had no presents that we hadn't hand whittled out the back from the trunk of last years dead tree, we put decorations up at 11.30 pm on Christmas Eve and we all sang Christmas carols in our hand knitted long johns on the step

AND WE WERE HAPPY

why aren't you all doing the EXACT SAME

I'm knitting me long johns as we speak

I went to a friend's house one year whose mum insisted on this perfect Victorian inspired Christmas and New Year. Marching coal through the front door, much choral singing, just generally being uncomfortable and grateful. It was fucking awful. Full of Christmas card tradition though. There was competition to walk the dog.

Be careful how much tradition you wish for.

I love the run up to Christmas. I've bought most of the presents and chosen a theme and have a few Christmas magazines, but I don't decorate until the first weekend in December. Growing up (60s/70s) the tree went up mid December.
Now it's up earlier, but after New Year it feels done - I rarely wait until the 12 days. Once my kids are back at school it will come down.

Was it the Monty Python gang who used to have mashed potatoes on Christmas Day if they were lucky? I mean just mash, nothing else.

What's wrong with choral singing?
And coal through the front door is first footing and happens a lot in Scotland!
Everybody is entitled to celebrate Christmas as they wish, i just really wish it didn't happen until actual Christmas

If everyone is entitled to celebrate as they like it kind of defeats the object of the thread.

Please to those knitting their long johns - stop now you animals it's way too early

I think it's far from being a 'young people' thing. Social class has come up in relation to when people are more likely to put up decorations, etc, early.

Ii just think some people cannot wait, the instant gratification thing. They also don't understand Twelfth Night and when decorations traditionally come down, but if they've had them up for over a month already who can blame them for ripping them down on Boxing Day.

It's not even pagan influenced winter celebrations they're observing, but a build up to Father Christmas/Santa and presents.

We are still observing Advent here.

Tree is brought in on 23rd and decorated on Christmas Eve. Both DH and I are off work for the 12 days and we celebrate Christmas, Hogmanay, 12th night and Epiphany! DC are 10 and 8.

I would hate trying to celebrate Christmas whilst working in Dec.

It annoys me when people get all grinchy about what others do. Your house is it's own wee culture, do what you like there. We are not religious at all, I feel far closer to the Celtic idea of a celebration to brighten the winter than any notion of Jesus, or any faith kind of stuff. We celebrate loads of occasions that are not ours culturally, just because it is fun and I want to get maximum joy from life. Christmas is my favourite time of year and I will take my pleasure gleefully not giving a shite who agrees.

December 1st, mugs, bedding, cushion covers, advent calendars, elves, Christmas PJ's and jumpers all out. The first weekend in December, the decorations mostly going up, so I can enjoy seeing it all. Then it will take a few weeks to gather all the bits we go for walks and forage for, as I do my wreath, mantelpieces etc with holly, evergreens etc, we spray paint fir cones etc. I do not care about the 12th night stuff, it has no relevance to me. So I will take everything down the first weekend after the new year.

That is how we do it, because it suits us. The lovely thing about having choices, is that other people get to do it entirely differently, in whatever brings them joy.

It’s what makes December lovely, celebrating it during the month while working. I love putting my lights on after work.

But how do you even find the time to celebrate Christmas during Advent? DH and I are working all day, DC have their after school and weekend activities plus music practise, badge work for Scouts/Guides, reading homework, etc.

I'm baffled!

I don’t do decorations or anything else early, but it doesn’t bother me if other people do.
Same with the so often moaned about ‘commercialism’, excess food and food waste, etc.
Nobody has to do or buy into any of it. You can have a lovely Christmas without going mad or spending far too much.

@upinaballoon our post Christmas week is still like that - eating up leftovers, chilling as far as poss, definitely going nowhere near any shop! Unless for e.g. emergency milk or bread.

Why does it matter if people understand 12th night or not?

People generally out decorations during December because it's dark and miserable and it brings them a bit of cheer rather than being instant gratification savages as you would like to think.

There is no moral high ground here. Taking decorations down on Boxing Day isn't a crime even though oeronally I wouldn't.

I didn't say if it mattered or not, only factually stated that some people don't understand Twelfth Night.

I absolutely couldn't agree more. When I was a kid, and I'm in my 50's now, Christmas started about 2 weeks beforehand and it was so much better. More anticipation and excitement. Nowadays, I'm sick of it before it's even started