So what will you do differently or keep next xmas

[Cupcakeicecream]

I will buy less for extended family stresses thinking I havent given them enough gifts.
Wine cho late for the adults
Give cash to nieces and nephews
Stop sending xmas cards
Wrap in brown parcel paper wrapping paper was rubbish and kept ripping.

Next year I will ditch my gas lighting passive aggressive twat of a husband for good and go on holiday with my DD 🎄

Keep - Secret Santa. I have a big family and this was more affordable for everyone as well as being a lot of fun
Keep - microwaving the pudding. Why on earth was I steaming it for 2 hours and taking up valuable hob space?!
Keep - spacing presents out through the day and using them as an incentive to get things done eg let's lay the table dc and then we'll have a present
Keep - spreading the presents through today and tomorrow
Keep - showing ds with autism all his presents before they were wrapped - no surprises, which made it much less stressful for him

Keep - depending on the weather! - checking the forecast, and if the 25th is lovely followed by 2 days of pissing down, then go for a nice walk with a picnic and do Xmas on the 26th. Having done the first part of that, I'm assuming tomorrow will be pleasant - I've just filled DDs stocking (she's 20 .....)

Keeping: egg poaching devices

Ditching Making own chestnut stuffing...it wasn't worth the effort to make vegetarian stuffing...because it doesn't taste right without suasage in it.

TBH I am readnig all the shit xmas stories on here and feeling pretty grateful that DD was on great form all day and everyone seems happy.

We've had the same Christmas Day for the past 20 yrs and I won't be changing a thing.

Get up late, have coffee and croissants whilst waiting for the teenagers to surface (1pm today) open pressies, eat chocolate, drink wine, watch crappy tv, graze on cold treats and food, more choc, more chat, teens coming and going from rooms to kitchen to living room. Just the 4 of us, nice gifts not too many.

We never have a stressed Christmas.

Thanks to a thread on here a bit back I did 'get ahead gravy' and I will dedicate be repeating next year I loved it

Next year I'm only doing stockings and money for my kids (20s) i try, they try but i just can't pick the right computer part, game etc

I absolutely loved Christmas this year. We already decided to completely scale everything down so didn't send Christmas cards and apart from buying for my mum didn't buy for any adults in the family at all. We also bought a lot less for the kids and told everybody else to do the same and just give them cash and maybe one or two presents. It worked so well, we had an amazing day just chatting with each other, eating and drinking and we haven't come home with piles of crap. Just took all the the things that make me feel bad about Christmas out of Christmas and left all the best bits.

Purchase less for my 2 DC. They're extremely appreciative and grateful but it's just too much toys. Having a good think about it tonight and DS1 would much rather technology/gadgets over toys. I guess I just dont want them to grow up!
I think I'd also might give less gifts from santa and more from me.
Buy less food for the freezer and less confectionary and snacks and more fresh, food for the fridge.
Not get drunk on the 23rd of December for the annual family party. 3 years in a row I've spent hungover and feeling like crap on christmas eve because I'm a twat!
Do more family activities in the run up/over the christmas hols.

I’m going to ask the D.C. what they want to eat next year. We did a turkey as a friend gave me one, but the toddler didn’t eat her dinner nor did the under 10. The preteen made a reasonable stab. They’d be just as happy with something simpler I think. We might go out for dumplings.

I might order a yule log. Every year I think about it and never do. 2020 is the year!

Buy less food. And skip starters and go straight to main so (hopefully!) we will have room for dessert. Made the mistake of filling up on pate and bread for starters this year - couldn’t even finish the main course 😕

Have my mum come here instead of being at my dads beck and call, who didn’t even get her a present

Stockings & breakfast in bed, mass, brunch, presents from us, dinner, presents from under the tree (family and friends) christmas tea, tv, bath and bed will be the order of the day.

For the second year in a row I had a screaming child at Christmas Eve mass after acting like an idiot and banging her head on a pew. It’s always at our sister church, so the only time of year they see us, they must think my children are feral. Luckily it’s our priest we see week in week out who knows they can (mostly) behave and who was very reassuring. Mass sounds different from the sacristy

All in all, our day worked well. Presents from family after a film and when the littlest woke from her nap was good. A hot wheels loop the loop set was pronounced best present. Which was only bought in a mad panic when we realised the biggest had asked 3 Santa’s for a racing car and we’d not got anything vaguely car like.

Pavlova made a great dessert, after the big roast something light and sweet is so much nicer than a heavy fruit cake or pudding.

Three bird roast was nothing special. Back to regular turkey joint next year.

Have a word with my adult daughter who comes over for the meal and doesn’t lift a finger to help me while her brother rushes around asking “what do you need me to do mum?”

Have more homemade presents.

Not try to cook and set up a VR headset at the same time.

Don't sleep at other people's houses

It's just rubbish

I will book Christmas Eve off. Christmas Day was stress free but the 24th was really busy and I was very tired.
I will look out for nice stocking fillers through the year. I would have liked a few more for my sister. I think she had enough overall but I should have liked a few more for the actual stocking. She is lovely, sweet and kind and probably didn’t even notice but I’d like nice things for her.
Will keep to roast beef for dinner. Beautiful relaxed meal. Sister made most delicious roast potatoes.

Didn’t buy presents for adults in the family.
Asked nephews and nieces to send me links of the items they wanted.
I will continue to do this next year

I'm going to scale things way back next year. Every year I put lots of thought and effort and a not too small amount of money towards other people and I always get shite back so I don't see why I bother.

Normally I dash out to buy a Christmas tree on the 20th or later, but this year we put it up nice and early. It’s been lovely to have it for longer as it looks so pretty (although it is starting to get quite droopy now). I’ll definitely be doing that again next year.

However, I would like to be more organised next time round - getting the house cleaned and prepped well in advance rather than scrubbing floors and cleaning up until Christmas Eve night; getting all the food in earlier to avoid the stress of last minute shopping; and buying presents earlier and putting more thought into them. I should really buy presents throughout the year as and when I see them, rather than doing a frantic shop with a week to go.

I’m 37 weeks pregnant so:

Thing I’d do differently: drink.
Thing I’d keep: DD

I have flu this year. I’m not a well person anyway so christmas is a massive effort. Was just the 3 of us thank goodness so I can be ill in peace.

Keep
Dh and dd cooked the majority of the lunch. I had to leave instructions as they have never done it before.
Not stress about decorating the table and house as much...
Buy precut carrots, peeled Brussels.

Change
Not buy dd anymore clothes, give her cash to choose her own. (Correct brand, wrong clothes)...
Spend less on dd.
Find a way to communicate better with my husband Been arguing like crazy. Always happens when I’m really poorly and I’m upset because he said some awful things.

Buy stuff I want to buy, for people I want to buy for, just to be thoughtful. No more lists, no more demands.

Nothing was a surprise, everyone knew what they were getting because they all had lists they gave me. My own children knew every single one of their presents. My extended family handed out lists and there was no joy in giving just to be nice or thoughtful. It was just expected and emotionless and spending money just for the sake of spending money.

Next year I will put time and effort into carefully choosing things for everyone that I think they will like. No more grinchy shopping running around the stores just crossing things of lists.

There was absolutely no joy this year from anyone.

I wouldn't change much - this year worked surprisingly well!

Keep: Have a big pot of soup on the go from early on Christmas Eve so there's something easy for fussy people/unexpected guests/children who insist they're STILL hungry

Keep: Spread the meal out through the day with breaks for playing in between

Change: Practice roast potatoes in advance. I usually do goose fat ones that I've got down to a fine art, but DD is now veggie so I did oil instead, and they weren't as good.

Change: Learn how the top oven works. I don't use it day to day and attempted to use it yesterday but put it on the wrong setting. Oops.

Change: Don't order from M&S. The nut roast thing was delicious but the collection system in our store really didn't work

I will put the posh cheesecake in the fridge and not leave it on the counter... what was I thinking?