to think Oliver Cromwell might have had a point in banning Christmas?

[lessonsintightropes]

I have: 1 DH, two DParents, 2 DPILs, 1 DGmaIL, 5 sets of DUandAs, 2 DNephews, 1 DNeice, 3 DSibs and their OHs, 1 DSBIL whom we are on present terms with, plus a team of five. I am dearly lucky to have them all and a job and colleagues I really like, plus 10 cousins who I adore (and am grateful we don't present exchange with!!)

Even if I limit £10 gifts to children, in-laws and colleagues (which will be seen as slightly Grinch-y), £20 to siblings, parents and partners and £50 for DH my present bill this year is £420. I am also hosting Christmas (totally my turn and happy to do it) with a food bill of circa £250 including drink. Posting (including homemade cakes to very close relatives overseas, and cards) probably about £70.

£740 so far... without counting in drinks at work dos and any home decs (minimal as I'll reuse last years with the possible exception of a tree).

This is ludicrous and I can't afford it - and DH and I are extremely lucky to have good, well paying jobs. Our family has always had what we think is a reasonably low limit on ££ value of gifts and I don't think our per person levels are very high, particularly when hearing friends and colleagues talking about spending £100+ on partner/DCs (and this is before we even have any).

It seems such an extravagant and unnecessary waste of resources we'd be better off saving.

So... was Oliver Cromwell right to ban Christmas? Or is there a way to make it cheaper (before I get completely flamed I also work on average 60 hours a week and so can't make homemade presents as I'm usually shattered at the end of the working day and we're househunting on weekends). First world problem or something others would like to fix too?

hmmmm....perhaps Cromwell's love of chopping the King's head off is a little OTT . If he'd had his way this place would be like North Korea.

Just don't so many gifts. You don't have to. Christmas is about so much more than spending money

don't buy so...

I've tried to sell Secret Santa to my (adult) family, but failed with some of them. One sister has Taken Umbrage, as she's already bought loads of stuff, and so has one of my SILs. The other SIL quite simply didn't listen to my words on the phone and just kept on talking, but that was the one who's madder than a box of frogs anyway.

Another of my own sisters has announced she's not doing Christmas at all, so there (she has no DCs so fair play to her), and the third said it sounded like a good idea but only if everyone joined in, then ended the conversation abruptly due to WW3 breaking out between dnephew and dniece, and we haven't managed to speak since.

It's all so bloody ridiculous.

Being accused of being warty and horrid because you don't buy into the commercial crap kinds makes it into a self-fulfilling prophesy. People don't feel they can admit they don't like it in case they are accused of being bah humbuggy. Well, bollocks to them I say.

Our christmas day is much like all our days spent at home together; food we like, a trip to the allotment or a walk around the village, wood burner on and me pottering - the only difference is there will be little sport on the tv for himself to watch.

And I can sow next year's onion seeds as the winter solstice has been and gone; get in.

MrsJupiterJones That is hilarious - the MN revisionist view of history! (I'm sure it could be extended to many. other topics...!)

Oliver Cromwell and his supporters were wrong on this and so many other things, and the US and the UK suffers to this day from the emotional retardness that his era brought. I've never been sure whether or not Oliver Cromwell or his namesake Thomas Cromwell (Henry VIIIs' Peter Mandelson) were worse.

Why on earth are you buying presents for uncles and aunts??

LOL at Mrs Jupiter Jones!

I generally just buy for my dd and my parents. There are a few relatives I buy for every year because of a complicated family set up, and it would look very bad if I suddenly stopped.

The whole buying for the sake of buying thing is completely out of control. There are so many people getting into debt because they feel under pressure to buy stuff which they can't afford and which ultimately no one needs.