What special things do you do around Christmas time that don’t cost a penny?

[LaChienneDesFromages]

I have always loved Christmas but increasingly hate the commercialised side of Christmas and a rare visit to The Big Sainsbury’s yesterday with shelves piled high with goodies (i.e tat) left me feeling a bit deflated and cynical. I don’t want Christmas to feel like just another way of making someone richer (and someone else poorer.)

Please cheer me up with reminders of the lovely things people do around Christmas time that are free and don’t necessarily fill the pockets of big stores.

Here are some of ours’:

Attending the Nine Lessons and Carols at our local church this Sunday (double win- free mince pie and mulled wine!)

A winter solstice celebration with friends. Complete with Yule log, bonfire and very tongue in cheek talent show (everyone brings a dish)

Carols around the tree in our local town and a torchlight procession- my community choir are leading the singing.

DD is a Young Quaker- so attending Meeting with her on Christmas Eve. I don’t go with her often enough but an hour of silent contemplation is a rare treat.

I’m sorting through the board games and have done a jigsaw puzzle swap with a friend. And I’m hoping the kids will agree to It’s A Wonderful Life as our Christmas Eve film in front of the fire (Although Nightmare Before Christmas has been mentioned)

I love getting the kids all wrapped up, fish and chips and a walk through the illuminations ( we live in Blackpool) they are on until New year since covid so it has become our new thing to do once the tourist season dies down

My (nearly 15 year old) DD checked the other day that we would still be doing one of our Christmas traditions - she said it was one of the best bits of her year.
One evening we get in the car and drive around looking at house lights. We take hot chocolate for us all and snacks and it's just nice sitting in the car together chatting about the lights. We try to make a route that takes in some of the houses that make a big effort but a lot of houses do a little bit so lots to look at.
She is autistic and very anxious and i sometimes wonder what truly makes her happy and the fact this does makes me so happy!
Ps - thanks to everyone who makes the error to decorate their houses, it brings our family so much joy

We live close to a greyhound shelter and in Boxing Day they arrange a walk with all the dogs. It's such a lovely morning walking, chatting to people and walking the dogs

At this time of year we take DD to the woods to pick some greenery such as holly, ivy, pine leaves etc and then make our own festive wreath for the front door.

A winter activity rather than just Christmas for us is to walk round our local woods with a flask of hot chocolate.

We love the carols and christingle service our church do, and when the kids are older I'll do the Christmas eve carols in town (when it doesn't clash with bedtime).

We have a lovely traditional Santa experience based in a museum that has a Victorian indoor street. You get fake snow outside the post office, they weigh 4 Oz of sweets into a bag for £1, free roasted chestnuts and mulled wine. So lovely. Yes not free but good value for what you get.

Watch the local 'Santa Dash' family fun race. Nothing like hundreds of Santa's running by to confuse a toddler 😂

Walk around our local area in the evening with a flask of.hot chocolate and choosing our favourite decorated and lit up house. DC1 is 3, their favourite this year has a blow up dinosaur holding presents in the front garden 😂

Crib service

Touring the local libraries

Make gingerbread people

That's so lovely. I may do that with my kids this year!

We always go for a walk to feed the ducks on Christmas day

Carol/christingle service at church. Plus our local church always has a brilliant service in the weeks before led by the kids groups which can be absolutely hysterical and is always good fun.
Local pub has a carol service too (technically not free but we'd be going for a beer anyway so..).
Making decorations from things from the garden or found out on a walk.
New Year's Day big hike with picnic/Thermos of soup.

When I was a kid we drove round looking at the lights/outdoor decorations but there's not much of that round here really (quite rural). Also the Lions club or maybe Rotary had Father Christmas come round on a float and I remember watching that and being excited.

The best thing you can do is drop the pressure of having to do anything.
You can do most of the above things anytime of the year. Look for the little simple things every single day that bring you joy, not just xmas.

Walking around looking at xmas lights. Obviously paper costs money, but making paper snowflakes.

We do this too. There's a couple of houses not far from us that decorate their houses to raise money for charity and they are amazing.

Last year we ended up in the countryside. It was a clear night so we stopped the car and got out. We could see the stars and constellations so clearly. I've never seen so many before.

Ah, I’m all for finding joy in the simple things in life, but the absence of feasting and celebrating at Christmas time would make me terribly sad (which is why my daughter is a much better Quaker than I could ever be.)

I just want it to be the sort of celebrating and feasting that leaves me, joyful and fulfilled, rather than cynical and poor.

Thanks for all of these ideas. It’s so nice to hear of people enjoying time together and their local area at Christmas time.

I love the idea of a Christmas lights drive around with a flask of hot chocolate and maybe some sausage rolls. I’ve just found out we have our elderly mother-in-law for Christmas this year too and will be looking for things to do with her that don’t involve too much walking or getting cold.

We usually go to the Christingle service at our local church on Christmas Eve.

I make our wreath for the front door, with a padded metal ring we have, and wire greenery from the garden to it.

DD adult now and moved out, but we always had a tradition of setting up a little nativity scene in the fireplace, complete with camel, angel, and home-made star, and we also have a little wooden tree that slots together with lots of miniature decorations, which was always DD's job.

Making pigs in blankets ahead of time and freezing them. So much more fun than buying ready-made. You do have to buy the sausages & bacon obviously, but you'd be paying for ready-made ones anyway.

Cutting up last year's cards and making gift tags out of them.

Some of my favourite things...

Carols by Starlight - local church has an outdoor service with fire pit, mulled wine and Christmas burgers

Midnight mass - the only time our teenagers like church!

Long walk in the woods after breakfast on Christmas morning

No tech on Christmas Day (including TV). Lots of games, cards, charades, name game etc

Christmas music all day on Christmas Eve - anything from the Handel's Messiah to Fairytale of New York

There is a house near my mothers (she lives very rurually so near is about 2 miles) which always goes all out on the lights, trying to basically outdo themselves every year… we always early evening on Christmas Day walk the dogs to go and look at it. It’s absolutely essential!

We do this minus the hot chocolate. It started as something to do with a grouchy toddler during witching hour and my daughter is now 9 and says it's one of her favourite things about Christmas. The excitement when we see a house that's made a big effort is absolutely magical.

Watching all our Christmas favourites, from all the Snoopy Christmas episodes to Home Alone to Muppet Christmas Carol. We usually binge on them once we've finished work/school.

Decorating the Christmas cake - although I was too disorganised to make one this year but I might just buy a plain one to decorate.

Our local area has a festive tractor and truck run. Every tractor and truck in the area (and we're in a town surrounded by rural areas so there are loads) gets decked out in tinsel and lights and is driven in convoy through about four or five towns and villages while the drivers beep and wave at all the kids. It's absolutely wonderful.

Walk/ drive round the local Christmas lights with hot chocolate and snacks

Seaside trip for walk and a picnic with a few pennies for the amusements

Christmas film at home and snacks

Decorating the Christmas tree together

One of our local towns does a nativity and torchlight procession up the high street which is lovely

Our local church does Carol concerts, children's service and a nativity throughout the Christmas period

Some Christmas baking - east one is peppermint creams dipped in chocolate or we do a Christmas Day dessert, Christmas cookies or similar

Make a Christmas quiz for Christmas Day

Light candles, dim the lights and watch the snowman. I always did this with my parents and have done it with my DC since they were little. They are 12 and 17 now and still watch it with me.

Carols by starlight sounds great. Too late for me to organise this year but will definitely suggest for next. Thanks for sharing

We watched the festive tractor run - 90+ tractors all decorated for Christmas, rolling through our village in the dark, lit up

Making mince pies- a small cost on pastry from the shop but mincemeat my mum made for us

DH made Christmas trees out of cardboard for the kids' bedrooms & DS2 & 3 spent ages painting them

Going to look round a local farm which is all decorated

Going for a walk in the local big park, which has a light trail. If you get there as they are setting up, you see most of it for free 😁

Scout/Guide carol service in church with mince pies & an appearance from Father Christmas

Watching Christmas films at home with a hot chocolate

It’s low cost rather than free, but we make a gingerbread house every year and it’s become a proper tradition. We make the gingerbread and the house, and some shapes, on day 1, and then put it together and ice it the next day. We do buy quite a few sweets to decorate it but it doesn’t feel commercial and we just enjoy making it and eating it!

So far we've

-baked gingerbread men and mince pies

-driven round in the evening (in pjs😂) looking at the decorated houses

• decorated some home made Christmas cards

• watched a few Christmas movies

We
Do this too!