To utterly hate those self appreciating, smug Christmas Round robbins

[pigletmania]

You know the ones that begin with "As another year draws to an end, I find myself sitting trying to find a few mins, to tell you how many wonderful holidays I have been on, and what gifted little children Jonny and Jane are blah blah blah, bahhhh humbug

I got one filled with news about their PFB. As I don't have kids, I found this exceptionally dull, especially considering said child is not even 2 yet so her achievements are somewhat minimal.

* has had a little horse * brilliant!

bemybebe, was an attempt at humour!
Bragging about a really expensive holiday summed up all that is bad about round robins to me & I was humourously trying to point that out! I clearly need to get back to the humour classes.

I think they're great purely because they're so naff. We regularly used to get one that described the entire family in the third person, as if they had an official biographer. And yes, they were the only people in history who had grandchildren or who ever lost elderly relatives.

The family that sent us these letters assumed everyone shared their middle class socialist beliefs so it was always amusing to read about their delight or despair in the various political events of the year. They must assume that noone else keeps up to date or is capable of forming their own opinion. My father (politically to the right of Gengis Khan) often has to be restrained from writing a, shall we say, strongly worded critique of their assessments.

Is a postcard to the family (from a nice place) = "bragging about a really expensive holiday" also?

I will stop dsc sending any cards to their family and friends next time we travel somewhere really exciting.

Relax bemybebe & enjoy Christmas! I'm glad you get to go travelling to exciting places & your kids send postcards to share that with your friends & family. Have fun with all of it. Life is short.

I seem to have struck a raw nerve with you & for that I apologise. Happy Christmas.

I had one this morning. It is from a distant relative of DH. Lots of holidays, marvellous achievements from various DC and DGC.

My favourite part was

"We had our annual visit to ..... in July. DH choked on a brussels sprout and spent a night in the local hospital. He was a little fragile for a couple of weeks."

WTF?

I think you need to chill a little bemybebe. Perhaps a holiday in Aspen would help.

I was not directing it at you post, i am just amazed how many people put this sentiment in their earlier posts... As I said I am obviously not on trend as I am in such a minority.

Happy Christmas to you also.

marks place

not that I was ever considering doing one of these. Oooooh no.

actually glad I'm a lazy git now as I never got around to it!

pande your attitude is exactly what I am talking about here. obviously aspen is a new banker swearword

theincredibequeenofwands so did we. Wonder if it was from the same people.

A friend of mine got one about their grown up children.. How they all rocketed through University, one is a banker with his own house in Bondi, another has just got funding for her PhD (well done her, but bloody hell.. stop boasting so much!... so unbearably fucking SMUG.

We've got six so far

Oh, I don't know. My parents lets loads of these. They (the round robins, not my parents!) veer between unbearably smug and deadly dull... but, c'mon guys. Mostly they're done in good heart. Just parents being proud of their children and their achievements. I can understand that, I practically cry every time DD says a new word and text about 10 people to tell them .... isn't it kind of sweet that people want to boast about their families? This is their one chance!

I see it like facebook. If you are bothered by other people's photos of expensive holidays or fun nights out (or, more sadly I admit, pregnancy announcements), then surely its a bit more of an issue for you than for them.

Live and let live! It's christmas - and they are comedy value!

We used to get one every year from a friend of DHs, who we did see reasonably often - written by his very self obsessed & opinionated wife - got to be honest none of us had taken to her very well & the RR spelt out in large capitals just WHY - very little about her DH - very little about the DCs - bar what SHE had done for them - predominantly ME ME ME & very pious born again christian shite(apologies to any Christians, I'm not anti christian, just anti ram it down your throat pious in any form) & plenty of foot in mouth, I haven't given a thought to what I'm saying, because I'm so special & so right I don't need too - things like "Well I have told DH, if he doesn't improve himself in his work & our home, we will be moving back to London as lets face it - Sussex is where all of London's failures move to - - generally used to wind us up no end

Thankfully we are now off their RR list - not sure if its because she has mellowed after second DC, or because on receiving another - look what I've made DH do in the name of the Lord to raise money for this Christian Mission Charity RR - I replied by wishing him luck, but not to expect us to donate to a cause I didn't believe in

I'm enjoying this thread!

I received a slightly smug round robin from an old friend which twittered on about her marvellous children and all their various 'achievements'. Unfortunately, she sent it to me and my ex-h, so I sent a card back with a brief note reminding her that I'm married to DH not my ex and have been for the past 8 years. I wonder if I'll hear from her again.

My DP's used to send one, written by my dad mainly about their house in Italy. As he is an enormous snob it was always unintentionally funny! They stopped a couple of years ago and donate to charity instead.

The funny ones come from my uncle!

My sister who lives abroad sends one and they are not smug at all but newsy, funny and well-written.

However sometimes I could do without them, when I know a lot of the news already (as I am her SISTER and I talk to her on the phone, unllike some of her friends whom she only communicates with via Christmas card). I had to stop myself from phoning her and giving her an earful the Christmas after our Dad died when the RR said something like "they said I shouldn't go back for the funeral but I couldn't stay away!" implying that "we" in the UK had tried to discourage her from coming back and she had boldly put her daughterly duty first and defied us all. Personally I was delighted she came back. Bloody cheek - my Mum probably tried to discourage her but my Mum tries to discourage everyone from doing everything! I swallowed that one though.

DSis's dog died just before Christmas and she is understandably heartbroken. I'd already heard all the details via email and thought that the TMI side of it was just her venting her grief, so I was to read it all in the FIRST paragraph of the RR - all the grim details of the poor dying dog's diarrhoea and so on . . . oh and a Happy Christmas to you too DSis, thanks for spreading that Christmas Cheer!

Maybe I'm jealous of the husband who has been driven round race tracks,treated to stunt aeroplane rides and been presented with the cabbage growers personality of the year award by a newsreader. OK he's not really a cabbage grower. Year after year of perfect, successful lives. I've given up sharing news with them, because ours can never compete.

Oh god, I LOVE them. Hilarious. In my family, we get one from a lady called Rosemary. We read it out loud and wet ourselves with laughter at her smug rantings. Its a Christmas tradition xD

I do my own smug one, just for those who send me theirs.

my parents always do one.
smug smugger smuggest
and they always include the worst photos of me and my dc. (they do the same to my siblings)

There is a clique of mums from the school that I can imagine are the type that do the smug round robins; all competing each day about outfits, competing to see who has the biggest car, who has the best/most expensive holiday, and talking very loudly about Tamsin and Hugo's violin lessons/Russian lessons/horse riding/private maths tuition.

loving it and I must say I have only ever seen boasty ones rather than complainy health problemy ones !

Am with the poster about Aspen , I mean fine you're in Aspen but ffs who cares.

Also loving the made up family one being updated !