Commenting negatively on my Christmas due date

[Amber76]

I don't think I'm being unreasonable at all - just want to vent.

I'm pregnant and due on Christmas day (though it will be a caesarean so likely to be one week earlier). I am sick, sick, sick of people saying "oh, terrible time of the year to have a baby" - yes, thank you for your opinion, I'm aware its not ideal but there's not a whole lot I can do about it.

My sister in law, who has a child born on the 13th December, said how "awful" it would be to have a baby on the 18th December as that was the same week as Christmas. But that her darling born on the 13th was , thankfully, born far enough away from Christmas so that the birthday wouldn't get lost in Christmas celebrations. I just said we don't care when the baby comes as long as its healthy which is true but wish I'd said something more to show her what nonsense she was spouting.

Rant over..

[everybodysang]

I actually find this really upsetting. DD was my 6th pregnancy: and my only baby. So by the time we conceived - and hung on - to her, we did not care a jot about when she was born. She was due on 18th December and my only concern was that it's also my DSS's birthday (he loves his birthday being near Christmas, by the way). I did have the odd twinge of guilt throughout my pregnancy as my birthday is in early January and I've never liked that but what can you do?
In the end, DD was born by emergency c-section after a dreadful labour on 23 December. She was in NICU over Christmas and it was so frightening. But there were real moments of magic in there - when the SCBU staff called me over to the unit to give her her first breast feed since being intubated, at 3am on Christmas morning, and there she was in her little incubator with a Christmas stocking, and there was a card for me with her photo in it and her little footprint (god I'm tearing up remembering it!) and then, the next morning, Santa came round delivering presents to all the babies and he was just the kindest man (as one might hope!!!) so concerned for DD and for us. And then, when she was well enough to take out of her incubator, taking her into the corridor of SCBU and showing her the fairy lights.
The only problem, really, is that all I could think to song to her through those scary days were Christmas songs so now I am DOOMED if I hear a Sally Army band or a children's choir or something singing carols - floodgates open.
In fact, DD is watching a Winnie the Pooh Christmas special right now (don't ask) and I'm getting teary at that.
Anyway - the point is - it's wonderful. A baby is wonderful at any time. Tell 'em to fuck off!

[Sweetmotherfudger]

Sounds a lush time of year to have a baby. You can wear pjs all the time, eat loads of christmas snacks and have great tv for feeding times. I had a newborn at christmas. When she was up all the night there was loads of great things on iplayer to watch. A mumsnetter once told me there's nothing livelier than christmas lights twinkling on a newborns face.

[jamdonut]

My DD was due on boxing day,so I spent all Christmas wondering if she was about to arrive - in the end I was induced on 2 January !

She loves the date of her birthday because all the decorations and tree are still up,but all the main festivities are actually over. The downside is,all the celebrations come at once,so she spends a whole year with nothing else to look forward to!...but makes the most of it when it arrives. She is 18 next birthday.

[indigo18]

Why do you care what people say or think? Not much you can do about it. If we take 'Christmas' to mean the week around Christmas, then approximately one in every 50 or so people will have a birthday at this time.
Find something else to complain about.

[pennyapples]

My baby is a Christmas Day baby! She was due on the 20th and I was a bit worried about the possibility of it being CE, CD or BD, but when it actually happened it was very special, and still is. She's our little Christmas elf! We celebrate her birthday and her half birthday, haven't totally worked it out yet, but we will. It's ace, ignore them, I do!

[oldsilver]

I second getting b/day wrap/card early (Septemberish ) as it is impossible to find anything decent after then.

[oldsilver]

DS was born on Christmas Day by EMCS (due 8/1).

He loves it. When he was younger he loved the fact that everywhere decorated up for his Birthday and that he gets an extra gift and card off of F/C.

We do Christmas in the morning and after lunch, Birthday. We ask that b/day pressies are in birthday wrap.

Most people start off going "aw sorry" when he tells them, but after listening to him, they change their mind to thinking it's cool.

[MyFairyKing]

People love spending money at Christmas time too, so you'll get lots of extra presents. Also, if you're on of those people who always get lumbered with running around after guests, you have the best excuse to sit down and put your feet up and snuggle a sweet little baby.

[CuppaSarah]

I want a newborn to snuggle up with on Christmas.

[AppleCrumples]

Its a lovely time to have a baby!

Ds2 was born 24th dec and he loves it. He loves all the festivities and the fact it feels like the whole world is celebrating his birthday. I keep his birthday xmas free. Its his day. In fact have always gone over the top and think his sibkings may be a bit jealous :)

Dd2 was due end of jan last year but arrivd early hours of jan 1st. Ds2 is happt as they both have 'special' birthdays!

[ifyourehoppyandyouknowit]

The more I think about this, the more it makes me cross. Surely the only acceptable thing to say when someone announces they are pregnant is 'congratulations!' We had some funny remarks about DS being born at Christmas and our bad timing and I had to really bite my tongue not to snap back that a) having had a msc right before getting pregnant I wasn't bothered as long as the pregnancy stuck and b) when I went into labour three weekday early, the fact that it as Christmas eve was just by the by.

Christmas is an amazing, festive time. DS is probably going to think it's all about him from about Nov onwards!

[diddl]

Yes, never having a party with friends on your actual bday.

Mind you, as kids, parties were usually the nearest weekend anyway due to school.

[TaliZorahVasNormandy]

My Dsis was born 21st December, shes never been caught up in the xmas celebrations.

As a PP said, its much better than having an August birthday like me and DD do.

[Theonlyoneiknow]

DS was born on Christmas day. Rather than have a half birthday celebration in the summer we have his party at the end of November so it's close enough to.his birthday. He is too young to fully understand at the moment (5yrs)

It baffles me why people say these things. Getting pregnant is such a miracle, who cares when the baby arrives!

[BreeVDKamp]

Ugh. *its!!!!! Sorry

[BuzzardBird]

Same as my dd :) due Christmas day, had her by section a week early on the 18th. Never found it a problem other than you are overrun with excitement and presents in December so a good idea to save a bit of birthday money to spend in June. Parties have all been fun as very festive and all the chaos of arranging and present buying in over in one foul swoop.

No-one ever gave me any nonsense over it though as it would be non of their business when I have sex. :)

Congratulations.

[BreeVDKamp]

Pssssh, the baby obviously just gets a birthday party midsummer on it's half-birthday. And then also celebrates it's real birthday on around Xmas too. Win win! That'll show em.

[Clayhead]

Sorry, haven't had time to read all the responses but just to say I know how you feel - my dd is a teenager now and I STILL get those responses.

DD loves her birthday, it's a time of year when school's winding up and people have celebrating on their minds. She often has a party at the end of the school term and has always, from being tiny, had lots of Christmas stuff at her parties and enjoyed the fact that the tree is up and the house feels festive.

As she's got older she's chosen to have joint presents sometimes in order to get the bigger things she wants. Her choice. She's also often bought vouchers which she gets out later in the year so she doesn't get everything in one week.

HTH x

[QuintessentiallyQS]

Not to mention you can buy a lot of "I was born in 2014 stuff" at silly prices, and dress your baby entirely in 2014, elf and pudding baby gro's!



Whats not to love?

They are just jealous. (And if you really want to shut them up, just say "oh, you are just jealous that my child will born in the same star sign as Jesus".

[Bigglesfliesundone]

yes, we get this - dd2 is Christmas eve, and the sadness people show us... she does get a bit fed up during the year when everyone else is having parties but in the last two years we've held a small summer party for her - no presents, just a few girls coming round and having some food and games. Problem solved!

[NumanoidNancy]

Ahem, I am a Christmas Day baby. Its awesome most of the time and you should tell them to get lost!

Positives: You feel special when you are a kid because you get in the newspaper the very first day you were born, you never have to go to school on your birthday, no-one ever forgets your birthday, if you do what my parents did you get to have your birthday first (well after xmas socks anyway) and you can make your siblings wait in mute agony for their christmas to start while you slowly and painstakingly unwrap your birthday presents ;-)

There are some negatives, its a family day so you never get to have a birthday party with your friends on your actual birthday and when you are older it is a bit crap because you don't get a special day where you get treated, mostly I am cooking Christmas dinner on my birthday! Also when you go through something like divorce christmas day becomes an extra difficulty wanting to see your kids etc, but these are all grown up issues and might not apply anyway!

[diddl]

Well all birthdays are a year between as is Christmas, so really if you are organised with your money then there's no problem!

I guess you can't expect everyone else to be.

Then again in my day, no full class parties and presents were something like a box of maltesers.

Parties were in the house playing pass the parcel, squeak piggy squeak etc & the food was crisps, sandwiches, cocktail sausages, pineapple & cheese, jelly & blancmange & cake to go!!

[macdoodle]

My Xmas baby (28 dec) loves her Xmas birthday (she says it means she's like Jesus :-D). Takes a bit of organising and saving but it's a lovely time of year.

[Showy]

My birthday is NYE and it doesn't bother me as I don't celebrate it but I can see why it is annoying for others. People already have plans or they are skint after Christmas, places are either booked months in advance or charge triple price as it's NYE and people give you joint bday/Christmas presents on the 25th.

I love the idea of a Christmas baby though. How magical.

[MaryWestmacott]

diddl - I know that DS has been complaining now that it's "ages" until his birthday - seems the only problems are the one big dump of gifts and then nothing all year rather than it being spread out (but all winter babies have this issue!) and money being tight because of Christmas, so they don't get the same amount as they would have got if they'd had a birthday in say, July - but again, November, January babies have a similar issue.

But as a parent, you just have to make a concious effort to still make their birthday special and are fair with the amounts you spend in total compared to other siblings with birthdays at other times of year.