Christmas being “cancelled”.

[Stuckhere2021]

Disclaimer - my DCs are now young adults so we are past the “must have” toys for Christmas but have done the queuing in the rain for 4 hours to get a full set of telletubbies/Tweenies/Paul Smith bag etc.

Would it really be so bad if we had to go a bit more “basic” this year? Say we only eat food and veg produced locally/regionally. Everyone makes do with fewer gifts. More time spent playing games.

YABU - Christmas is special and after the shit 18 months we’ve had, we should have something to look forward to.
YANBU - Christmas is what you make it and shouldn’t be all about the gifts / spending.

i so hope christmas is different this year - i want to spend it with my kids. They couldnt come last year due to lockdown

I can’t get excited about Xmas lunch anymore. I frequently make a chicken roast dinner, which isn’t far off it.
I’d like to just graze through the day instead !

You're confusing me.
Say we only eat food and veg produced locally/regionally. More time spent playing games
Surely this is the definition of a good Christmas? This, plus some rousing carols, a walk in the crisp air and a classic festive film is what my celebration, pre and with DC, have always been about.
How can this be a cancelled Christmas?

You know you’re amongst the middle classes when people start bragging about how little they spend

This is pretty much our Christmas every year. We only do presents for the few little kids we know, our parents and our adult D.C and those are all low key and inexpensive. Nothing for or from friends, cousins, colleagues, neighbours etc. We go to church, have a traditional roast turkey dinner for as many family as we can fit around the and play games all evening. If this year it's roast pork or sausages instead of turkey we will still enjoy it.

Of course if there is a wine or gin shortage it will be a bit more of a crisis!

This thread is a bit mad. You’ve always had the choice to have a quiet tat free locally sourced Christmas with all your gifts hand hewn from local fallen oak trees if that’s what floats your boat.

That doesn’t make shortages of fuel, gas, toys and fucking meat a good thing.

@suspiria777

What do you think Jesus would prefer?

I’m an atheist so I wouldn’t know.

A documentary regarding the materialism of Christmas.

Got a chicken factory and a meat processing place down the road from me. And an Amazon. Keeping it local is going to work well here.

My family are all old. I'm in my fifties. All years of gift buying we all agreed to mutually disregard the gift buying now as (a) We all have too much stuff anyway (b) People didn't want to receive the generic stuff like toiletries (c) people couldn't never decide what they wanted, as for a while we did Christmas lists... The last few years, I would always ask for coffee beans, wine, etc - anything that could be usefully consumed and wouldn't take up room or that I wouldn't have to give away.

I think Christmas is really for the children!

Ours was already scaled back compared to what you describe as your perceived "norm", I have never queued for the must have toy etc, I doubt I am unusual.

Yabu though- each to their own, happy.for others to spend it however they want etc, whether that is naked sharing champagne and oysters, a classic 90s American Xmas, a massively rustic scandi Xmas or small family gathering, whatever works is nothing to do with me.

@boris is that you?

You know you’re amongst the middle classes when people start bragging about how little they spend
Tarquin is getting a second hand book this year and we will be having our usual bracing walk then home for a festive bean casserole and a square of 85% dark chocolate.

@CuteGirlsWatchMeEatEther

Op, have you literally queued for 4 hours to buy presents?

Yes- when DS was about 6 or so, queued to get a full set of the Tweenies. Not my finest hour I admit.

@CuteGirlsWatchMeEatEther

Op, have you literally queued for 4 hours to buy presents?

I can remember back in the 90s when people were queuing overnight for the must-have presents, Teletubbies being one of them one year. Online shopping wasn’t something we had back then.

If I’ve get Prosecco and Ferrero Rocher I’m happy

We've always had a bit of a "basic" Christmas. We don't order food in advance and have always waited until 2-3 days before Christmas to buy our turkey (and we've always got something!). I wouldn't be surprised if all the panic leads to a glut of turkeys this year after everyone has bought theirs in advance. If not, we'll make do with a ham or a chicken. Tbh, DC would be perfectly happy with fish fingers and chips.

I always find Christmas itself slightly underwhelming. What I enjoy is the lead-up to it...Christmas parties, taking DC to see Santa, Christmas lights, steam train trip and carol service. And decorating the tree with DC and doing Christmas handprints, baking and other crafts. Watching Christmas movies and posting DC's letter to Santa.

Why don't you ask everybody what they want to do?

@LateDecemberBackInLowB12

So basically, you had all the years of getting your dc exactly what they would like, the joy of managing to find the right thing and see the excitement on their faces, but now you're done with all the that rest of us with younger kids should follow suit?

No thanks, I'm making the most of these years, just as you did.

Fair point. Can’t argue with this. It was never my choice to buy into this sort of thing but the younger me allowed myself to be cajoled by others / advertising etc. I wish MN had been around then to show me the light!! But yes I admit, it does sound like I am being unreasonable WRT that.

@ifIwerenotanandroid

Why don't you ask everybody what they want to do?

Eh?

I hate dry turkey and have told my husband that I refuse to cook a Christmas dinner as I don't really enjoy it. So unless we get invite to one of our parents homes he won't get a Christmas dinner.

I'd prefer a good cheesy pasta bake instead of turkey and a day of nibbles.

@DogFoodPie

You know you’re amongst the middle classes when people start bragging about how little they spend Tarquin is getting a second hand book this year and we will be having our usual bracing walk then home for a festive bean casserole and a square of 85% dark chocolate.

😂

A whole square of chocolate though? Seems a bit profligate to me [sniffs]

We cut back a few years ago when ds(17) was 10ish, mainly to get rid of all the plastic tat and not replace it and to stop the clutter and waste. Doesn't stop me buying presents, I just don't pad them out with tat.

We stopped Xmas cards, day to day edibles with excessive plastic packaging, novelty toys etc. I am determined not to twitch and send 20 year old artifical Xmas tree and decorations to landfill etc.

This year it looks like ds will be getting tools for toolbox, polarised driving sun glasses, money, chocolate buttons (in last years glass jar). All useful/needed. Not bothering with a new board game this year, but will play last years again as enjoyed it, but havent had time to play again.

Will have some nice food and drink. That is a given!!!

We do it like this every year OP so I can't understand why you'd describe a 'within your means' Christmas as being 'cancelled'?

@Sportsnight

It’d be quite nice to not feel we have to have turkey. No one likes it!

You REALLY don't need to have turkey when you don't like it... why would you spend money on something you don't like😱 Goose is more traditional actually