To ask about weird Christmas dinners?

[EightChalk]

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!

We have main presents after lunch too. People seem appalled when I tell them that.

It's what we always did at home. Stocking presents, breakfast, church, Christmas Dinner then main presents in the living room. One year me and my sister moaned that everyone at school was allowed to open presents in the morning and our parents let us have ours before lunch but it made the rest of the day seem a bit flat so next year we went back to the usual tradition voluntarily.

I do the same in our house now (not church as we go on Christmas Eve instead). The stocking presents are planned to incorporate stuff to keep the kids excited and busy - Wreck This Journal was a great success last year. I'll help with the dinner prep - H is the main cook - then watch a Christmas film with the kids. Dinner, quick clear up then main presents. We've asked them if they feel strongly if they'd like to do it differently , and some years they've had one main present before lunch, particularly if it's something to use outdoors in the light like a skateboard or scooter but generally they are pretty adamant that they like having presents to look forward to in the afternoon.

We also have one extra small present each "from the tree" on Boxing Day - also a tradition carried on from my parents and grandparents.

As far as Christmas dinner goes, I've not experienced anything too weird. My grandmother had terrible timing and everything was always cold. She would refuse all help but eventually my mother (who is very organised) insisted. Also the first time I went to PIL's on Christmas day I was a bit shocked that there were no cups of tea (I love my tea!) Straight into the champagne first thing and then booze all day. I like a drink but not that much. I asked if I could please make a cup of tea at one point. FIL looked aghast but went and made me one, about the size of a thimble with a slice of lemon on the side as they had no milk!

MIL's dinner was lovely - she was a great cook - but there was no other veg except Sprouts which I can't stand. No carrots, no red cabbage etc. That was a bit of a surprise.

The PP who posted about being made to do a poo before presents was surprising particularly as she's a similar age to me.

I know in times gone by people were a bit obsessed with "moving their bowels" as a sign of good health but I thought it would have been prior to that generation. My dad who is nearly 82 says his mother was fixated on the subject and would grill him every day as a child about whether he had "been to the toilet" (she didn't mean a wee). And my husband recalls an ancient babysitter who would make him and his siblings sit on the bog in turn and not be allowed off until they had "been". Rather a challenge if you didn't need to go!

Nothing super weird in my patents' home except that my mum never does turkey, it's always either duck or goose (fine by me) and that no one is allowed to open any presents until she's back from church (fine now, quite frustrating when I was a kid.

In our house the weirdness is probably that we don't do Santa with the kids.

My rule is people eat what they like for breakfast and don’t expect me to make any. You want to eat your entire selection box then go ahead. As soon as children were big enough they did their own breakfast.

We used to open our stockings in our parents bed and then my mum would have to go to work (nurse) so while she was working my dad would prep and cook Xmas dinner while my sister and I watched Xmas films and played with stocking gifts (and poked the gifts under the tree). Mum would get home around 3 and we'd have dinner and then presents after dinner. I loved doing it that way, the anticipation made it exciting.

With my own kids we are lucky not to have to work Xmas so it's stockings downstairs and then presents after we have made tea and coffee. I save a few gifts to open in the evening as a throw back to my childhood and always include one special gift in there.

Worst I ever heard of (but thank goodness have never experienced) was the advice I read (probably on here) to cook the turkey a few days in advance, slice it up and freeze the meat, and then warm it up in gravy on the day - before plating it up.
Such sacrilege should be banned by law!

Another I’d be massively disappointed in would be the whole salmon cooked for Christmas dinner, every single year - no alternative - by a relative by marriage, but thank goodness we were never invited there. TBH I find salmon decidedly overrated anyway - unless it’s smoked.

As a child, my American niece absolutely adored crackers, which they never saw available in their side of the pond, so when she and Dsis weren’t coming, I used to send a few with the presents every year. Strictly illegal, because of the minute amount of gunpowder in the ‘snap’! I think they’re available now, though.

A dd who was working in Ethiopia some years ago, came home for Christmas, but returned in time for their orthodox Christmas on the 6th January. She raided the sales beforehand for (formerly expensive) crackers to take back for their team Christmas dinner. They had never seen such things before but absolutely loved them - only trouble was, there were some arguments over the little ‘gifts’ inside!

@WhamBamThankU that sounds absolutely awesome!

@WhamBamThankU that sounds absolutely awesome!

Yes my family! We still do it! DH hates it 🤣

We never did stockings. And we did take turns to open presents (all together but still in jammies), but there wasn't a huge pile - growing up it was more like two or three each. Then breakfast and mass. Dinner was around 5 and we always had 'strays' for guests and I think a few had there eyes opened by the fact us kids were there throughout and we did games after (they were strays as far from home with no family).
We did once go for a Christmas meal at Australian friends of my husbands who were in the country for a couple years. It was like he had one idea what the dinner was, and she totally forgot her end. So we had very odd cold puréed cauliflower soup for starters - thick, unseasoned and just vile, then he produced a lovely roast lamb cooked to perfection, served with, I kid you not, sliced white bread and salad. My husband was puzzled as much as anything because he knows they can both cook. I don't think this was their 'traditional Christmas meal', but it was odd!

I'm with you on this one.

@mondaytosunday glad to see someone else who doesn't do stockings ! We didn't have them growing up and didn't do for DS. I think it's only been via MN that I've gathered they are a 'thing' and it's separate from the sack of presents downstairs. We have always opened presents within immediate family in PJs with a cup of tea after getting up, each person opens one in turn. Presents with grandparents or anyone else visiting were done in the afternoon after lunch. Again, I followed the pattern we did growing up. Slightly different now that there's only me and DH at home - but again we'll do presents between us first thing and later with DS & partner depending on what time they come round .

Not my tradition bus I wish it was…

A colleague spends Christmas with family and all eight of them wrote down what they want for Christmas Dinner and that’s what they have… he’s raging he’s not had a ‘traditional’ Christmas dinner in three years - but had had two Chinese takeaways and Fajitas.

The draw was last night (first day of advent) and I haven’t seen him today I’m not sure what he’s got - but I know his wife put Thai Green Curry as her selection.

God ours is surprisingly normal but that’s because we host Christmas at home every year - maybe when our kids start having their christmases with partners they might look back and laugh at ours!
I have always had to wake them to do stockings, 8-8:30 we’d wake them up. Only because we have guests arriving and have to get cracking.
Stockings downstairs now by the fire, used to be on our bed but everyone’s too big now and we like having the fire lit.
Then quick tidy up, breakfast and showers then down to do tree presents about 11ish. Don’t care who’s cracked open the chocolates or the champers, I don’t drink until later on in the day as it’s too long a day and I’d be sleepy at 2pm.
When we were kids we had our presents put in piles and had to open them one by one, each person taking it in turns. I found it really awkward having everyone watching me. We don’t do that, one of the dc sits by the tree and slides out presents to people and then the kids just start opening. Dh and I don’t really have many presents so can just sit and watch them opening theirs, it’s really lovely.
We don’t have Turkey cos, well, i hate it, we always have a big four rib forerib of beef, ham and a turkey crown for the great grandparents and we definitely don’t have mashed potato! I love it but it’s too filling on a Christmas dinner.

We have sweetcorn with our Christmas dinner also😂love the stuff

We do stockings first thing. Then Christmas breakfast where all the under the tree presents are piled up by each person’s plate. Then we take it in turns to open one at a time during breakfast. I did this as a child with my parents too.

Wow!!

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As a child, we opened all our presents, had bacon sandwiches, then either my maternal grandparents came to us for dinner or we went to them for dinner (armed with a load of our new toys) on alternate years. No games or anything like that, no Christmas films - quite boring actually but it was just the norm.

Now with my own kids, I wasted so many Christmas Day's in the kitchen, getting stressed, missing out on them playing with the things I'd bought, having to break off to help put something together or put batteries in. So two years ago we switched it up, we now have our Christmas dinner on Christmas Eve. Then its time to open the Christmas Eve box - new pyjamas, hot chocolates, bath bombs, chocolate coins, a game, and always a Christmas film before bed.
Christmas day is all about presents and there are no rules - chocolate for breakfast? No problem. Wearing pyjamas all day? Absolutely. We don't have any visitors or have to go out anywhere because we don't really have any family outside of the 6 of us. My mum is local but isn't interested in spending time with her grandchildren over Christmas (or anytime for that matter). Lunch/dinner is a load of buffet style food and leftover turkey.
A bit unorthodox I guess to have the big dinner on Christmas Eve but it works for us - I wouldn't go back to how it was.

My in laws are (IMO) bonkers and Christmas at their house is very austere.

They think Christmas trees are a waste so have a large twig spray painted silver instead.
TV is not really tolerated and when it is allowed on there is a strict set of things that are ok and a a long list of things that are not (The Great Escape is on the forbidden list as it is a war film).
Presents are opened at “Tea Time” which is a random time in the afternoon divined by some magic I have never in the 35 years I have known them managed to work out (coffee time is similar but that is in the morning).
Christmas dinner is what I imagine would have been prepared in the early 1950s when some rationing was still in place.
A bottle of wine will only be allowed if 6 or more people are seated at the table, any fewer and that means there is too much wine per person, no other alcohol is allowed.
chocolate is similarly rationed at one square from a big bar or one chocolate from a box after dinner.

myself & DH have not spent Christmas with them for 20+ years.
One year MIL’s sister was staying with them (she is very different) and as an act of rebellion she made DH & me share a bottle of wine & a whole tin of quality street with her on Christmas Eve, that created a very frosty atmosphere 😂

I don't let my kids open a damn thing until after a really long leisurely breakfast...oh yeah I really drag it out and the suspense kills them 😁

As a child it was just me, mum and dad. No stocking, just all the presents covering the whole of our wee living room floor. Mum was probably more excited about the opening than me and it was a “demolish all wrapping immediately” set up. We usually went to maternal grandparents for dinner (not lunch!) where the big difference is everything was served up in the kitchen already on the plate for you, no piles of dishes on a dining table to self serve. But always MASSES of good food.

The weirdest thing for us then and still is no alcohol due to family alcoholism. Even in dark times, Christmas was booze free and I loved that about it. The tradition has continued as it’s just my dad now who comes to us, he hates alcohol because it was the death of my mum. Luckily if we go to the in-laws it’s also teetotal as they’re Asian and don’t like the Asian flush.

On that note, if we do dinner there it’s a fusion of Vietnamese food and a roast dinner - they never did any Christmas stuff at all till the DILs came on the scene.

Stocking was always on the end of my bed, to be dragged into DP’s room and opened in their bed. Downstairs for DF to have a coffee, nobody allowed into the front room until he was done. Tree/family presents done, taking in turns to open (I’m an only child so never too painful), then the booze and chocolate was cracked out!
Always bagels for breakfast.
Pyjamas all day.
Full turkey dinner, always just the 3 of us so plenty of leftovers. Sherry trifle pud.
I only spent 2 christmases as a child at anyone else’s house, both of which weren’t enjoyed by anyone. We had DP’s newly divorced and lonely friend come for dinner on Christmas once though and that was nice.
After dinner was for watching whichever Xmas special DM had circled in the radio times magazine.
Boxing day would always (and still is!) spent with DM’s DF and DSM. Same 3 course meal every year of Chinese belly pork, duck and pancakes and pavlova for dessert. Then plenty of board games and drinking.
We are creatures of habit!

I forgot that my mum was an absolute angel over Christmas. She ALWAYS hosted my very prim aunt & cousin, and my grandmother (her MiL) every year, all of whom contributed absolutely nothing & mostly just sat around as she worked her arse off, not making any conversation either.
The weirdest Christmas we ever had was the combination of those three & my Dad's friend who wasn't taking his divorce well, and brought along his ten year old twins. Divorced friend brought a swimming pool of wine, drank most of it, made a lot of awkward comments, and then fell asleep at the table. I was clearing the table when my aunt got up & wandered out of the dining room.

There was then THE LOUDEST FART I have ever heard in my life which seemed to bounce off every wall in the house and go on for about 30 seconds. A very stunned silence followed before we all burst out laughing. Aunt came back in, blissfully unaware. Drunk divorced friend briefly stirred and said 'I never guessed you had that in you Sarah' and went back to his snooze.

Mum & I looked at each other and said 'Right! Let's get the cheese then! Anyone for coffee?'