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Original poster

To ask about weird Christmas dinners?

176 replies

EightChalk · 03/12/2023 11:13

And weird Christmases in general! My in-laws are totally normal, welcoming, the house is warm, and the festive food is entirely as expected, with no weird rules around present-opening or enforced games (and of course I think my own family customs are normal!). Grateful as I am for this, I love reading the threads about weird rules you've encountered at other people's houses, and was hoping that there would also be some tales from bizarre Christmases past!

OP posts:
eish · 03/12/2023 11:16

When we were young we were not allowed to open presents (apart from stockings) until after the queen’s speech. I hated her )the queen that is) for it! I was most surprised when I watched it as an adult to discover it was only about 10 minutes when I was sure it was at least 1.5 hours.

OrigamiOwl · 03/12/2023 11:18

Not massively weird, but my in laws have a rule that present can't be opened if everyone is not in the room. Which I can see the sense in, but it it is infuriating as my FIL lives to open a present and then disappear for 3 hours to read the book/start the puzzle/research something on the computer, leaving the rest of us twiddling our thumbs.

Original poster
EightChalk · 03/12/2023 13:42

@OrigamiOwl That would be so frustrating! We also only open presents when everyone is there, but it's a single occasion so no wandering off! I did spend Christmas with someone whose family enforces spreading out the opening across the day, at set times, which I can see the logic in but felt a lot less fun.

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Teefndrama · 03/12/2023 13:54

DHs family also do the no opening presents unless everyone is in the room and everyone opens one present at a time in turn, with much cooing and fussing over each present before the next person can open a present. All of which I'm fine with but then someone will constantly wander off, to the loo or to make a cuppa or to check the dinner and they'll never do it at the same time! Eg, if I saw someone was going to the loo I'd use that time to quickly check the dinner etc, cut down the interruptions. As a result present opening takes most of the day!!!

Rjahdhdvd · 03/12/2023 13:57

I spent Christmas with an ex boyfriends family and his mum made the Christmas dinner in the morning, plated it all up and then microwaved each plate when we came to eat about 3ish. Unfortunately it didn’t microwave well and as there was a few of us the first person was done eating by the time the last person had their food (she insisted we start so it didn’t go cold)

SharonEllis · 03/12/2023 15:40

OrigamiOwl · 03/12/2023 11:18

Not massively weird, but my in laws have a rule that present can't be opened if everyone is not in the room. Which I can see the sense in, but it it is infuriating as my FIL lives to open a present and then disappear for 3 hours to read the book/start the puzzle/research something on the computer, leaving the rest of us twiddling our thumbs.

Thats a rule in our house too, though nobody is allowed to bugger off like that. Thats just rude. We all open presents together

TheNewSchmoo · 03/12/2023 15:51

I know this may be contentious. But a friend had sweetcorn on her Christmas Dinner and I was clutching my pearls. No.

quicklybeendrivenmad · 03/12/2023 15:58

Having my In laws serve mushy peas on a Christmas dinner for me that goes with Pie or Fish

PuttingDownRoots · 03/12/2023 16:01

We bbq on Christmas day.
Yes... in England. Turkey burgers, ful size pis in blankets, Brussels sprouts...

Rosiem2808 · 03/12/2023 16:04

There is nothing.. I say nothing wrong with mushy peas on Christmas day. In fact they should be served with any meal with the exception of a full English.

NovemberAutumn · 03/12/2023 16:08

A few years back we were invited to a neighbour's house for Christmas dinner. She suggested that we contribute £50 per person (regardless of age) for food (so £200 for DH and I and a 7 and 4 year old) and bring the champagne for 12 adults as a starter. So there were 16 adults (including the hosts) and 4 children which meant that if the hosts did not contribute the £50 each themselves (my suspicion) the cash amount handed over was £800 ex alcohol which was brought separately for everyone by us and the other adult guests who had been issued instructions about bringing wine for main and dessert wine for pudding etc.

So- we paid £200 for food. Plus brought 4 bottles of Veurve Cliquot at about £120.

The food was all frozen and heated up stuff from Iceland with the exception of a one serve nutroast from M&S for DH.

I think they probably made (taking wine into account) a fair whack of profit that day.

ShinyAppleDreamingOfTheSea · 03/12/2023 16:12

You have to admire their cheek though @NovemberAutumn !

Original poster
EightChalk · 03/12/2023 16:14

PuttingDownRoots · 03/12/2023 16:01

We bbq on Christmas day.
Yes... in England. Turkey burgers, ful size pis in blankets, Brussels sprouts...

I quite like the sound of BBQ sprouts!

OP posts:
FuckoffeeBeforeCoffee · 03/12/2023 16:14

After our stockings, we were only allowed to open one present from under the tree per hour.

I hated that rule.

Original poster
EightChalk · 03/12/2023 16:16

NovemberAutumn · 03/12/2023 16:08

A few years back we were invited to a neighbour's house for Christmas dinner. She suggested that we contribute £50 per person (regardless of age) for food (so £200 for DH and I and a 7 and 4 year old) and bring the champagne for 12 adults as a starter. So there were 16 adults (including the hosts) and 4 children which meant that if the hosts did not contribute the £50 each themselves (my suspicion) the cash amount handed over was £800 ex alcohol which was brought separately for everyone by us and the other adult guests who had been issued instructions about bringing wine for main and dessert wine for pudding etc.

So- we paid £200 for food. Plus brought 4 bottles of Veurve Cliquot at about £120.

The food was all frozen and heated up stuff from Iceland with the exception of a one serve nutroast from M&S for DH.

I think they probably made (taking wine into account) a fair whack of profit that day.

That's one way of getting a Christmas bonus! Did anyone say anything?

OP posts:
VickyEadieofThigh · 03/12/2023 16:16

Rjahdhdvd · 03/12/2023 13:57

I spent Christmas with an ex boyfriends family and his mum made the Christmas dinner in the morning, plated it all up and then microwaved each plate when we came to eat about 3ish. Unfortunately it didn’t microwave well and as there was a few of us the first person was done eating by the time the last person had their food (she insisted we start so it didn’t go cold)

Are you me? That's exactly what happened to me with my ex's family!

She was in the kitchen cooking for hours all morning, then brought out one plate at a time and the first person to get theirs had a cold dinner by the time the others came out.

These were lovely hosts, my former in-laws - but they had zero knowledge of wine, so the good bottles I took got put away (never to be seen again) and lukewarm Liebfraumilch (it was the late 80s) came out. I also took a kilo box of Leonidas chocolates, which also got shoved away and the tub of Roses came round...

NovemberAutumn · 03/12/2023 16:16

ShinyAppleDreamingOfTheSea · 03/12/2023 16:12

You have to admire their cheek though @NovemberAutumn !

Yep.

It made a whole lot of other things about them fall into place. To cut several long stories short they were (and indeed are) always on the make.

OhNaffOffYouWazzock · 03/12/2023 16:18

PIL do the opposite of the present for presents rule and will hand out gifts the second you set foot through the door. It's incredibly chaotic and every single time the DC lose something or can't remember who gave something. One year they bought the younger DC those vtech cameras and before DH and I had even arrived (we took the car home and walked back) they had been opened and MIL had chucked the rubbish out including the chargers which were never seen again.
Also they don't refrigerate drinks, serve potato croquettes with dinner, will only serve prawn cocktail or pate for a starter, and cook all meat on Christmas Eve and serve it cold on Christmas Day.
It is good fun at their house though, lots of games etc and I've learned to bring a cool bag for my booze!

NovemberAutumn · 03/12/2023 16:19

EightChalk · 03/12/2023 16:16

That's one way of getting a Christmas bonus! Did anyone say anything?

Show quote history

No no-one said anything at the time. Cowardice and plain surprise was the order of the day.

(I have not said anything IRL either except to DH. Then I was voluble. Many many many times).

But we have noticed that no-one stays friendly with this lot for long. Total revolving door of new people friends.

Eatbetterthisweek · 03/12/2023 16:19

Open presents whenever you want in my family I use to hate having to wait for even when I was a kid.

My only rule is no chocolate, sweets or alcohol until noon!

MagpiePi · 03/12/2023 16:21

I had a friend who’s family had a rule that if you got clothes for a present you had to wear them while you had Xmas dinner.

MagpiePi · 03/12/2023 16:23

My only rule is no chocolate, sweets or alcohol until noon!

What, no bowl of Roses with Baileys on for breakfast?!

LadyMacbethssweetArabianhand · 03/12/2023 16:26

Santa's presents and stocking first thing. Then nothing else touched until we had breakfast. Then we took it in turns to open the 'under the tree' presents. That took ages!

AllTheChaos · 03/12/2023 16:27

My ex in laws don’t ‘do’ Christmas, and haven’t since their children became grown ups. Which is obviously fine and their choice. DD however was surprised when she went there for Christmas last year (she was almost 9) and their one concession to the season was the piece of tinsel twined around a cheese plant! They had done a roast, but are obsessed with ensuring no one in their family gets fat, so the portions are always tiny (think one roast potato for a child, two for an adult!) Oh, and no presents for anyone, even DD (their only grandchild). Strangely she hasn’t wanted to spend any time with them at Christmas since… They aren’t bad people, just very set in their ways! Other than that year I have always bought her presents ‘from them’, which maybe I shouldn’t, but I really thought with her being with them they would have got something (especially as they are loaded, and I am skint). And they certainly expect to RECEIVE presents. Oh well.

Original poster
EightChalk · 03/12/2023 16:28

MagpiePi · 03/12/2023 16:21

I had a friend who’s family had a rule that if you got clothes for a present you had to wear them while you had Xmas dinner.

Okay, now THIS one is bizarre! If I knew someone in this family I'd find it hard to resist giving them a top hat, boa, gold lamé suit, etc...

OP posts: