Is this too many people for Christmas?

[thebradybunch]

We are hosting Christmas for the first time this year. Just us (family of 5, small child, toddler and newborn), our parents, siblings and their kids. However both our families are big and everyone has said they're coming.

This means we've got 18 adults, 10 children and 4 babies

For context we are all really close, and our families are all friends so that's not an issue. Also everyone will bring a dish so I won't be the only one cooking. I'm worried about how we will accommodate everyone and it not feel like chaos though.

I was planning on having them all come over at 2.30pm. Any tips on how to organise the day? I'm being massively thrown in the deep end here so need some advice from seasoned professionals!

• Our house isn't huge but it isn't small either. Our kitchen table can sit 10 people at a squeeze.
• We have a decent sized playroom for the kids with a big TV in it.
• Living room sofas and chairs can probably sit 10 people.

18 adults and only 10 seats isn't great unless you are planning for some to be eating off their knees on the sofa.

Are people expecting a 'proper' Christmas dinner? A buffet would work fine and sone people will graze whilst standing or playing with the kids or whatever.

This is really a more of a party, I'd check everyone is fine with that and crack on.

It is a lot, but also doable if everyone is friendly and willing to help / have a tiny bit of inconvenience.

Ask people to bring fold up chairs and food which doesn't need to be heated if possible - oven space is probably at a premium!

You'll probably need to eat in shifts. We would probably feed babies and small children first supervised by one adult with another adult eating with the babies and small children who can then watch them in the playroom with some Christmas films while the rest of the adults eat.

Get everyone who isn't supervising small children to help with the clearing up from the main course.

When babies etc are having naps, get everyone who wants pudding together again for pudding/ coffee.

I think it's too many!

If you do go ahead then ready prepped would be the way to go and also disposable plates.

Have a VERY limited menu.

Asign tasks to other for them to do/bring. NO adult gets waited on.

Get families to bring chairs with them.

Can you split it so that you do your half this time and then partners either following year or at new year or in between Christmas and New year?

I think it's too many for a Christmas dinner. You can't really eat off your lap. As others have said a buffet style dinner would be better and people can use fold away chairs. If you do the roast it would need about 3 sittings which sounds like too much.
We tend to do one side of the family one year and the other side the next year.

It sounds like hell on earth to me.

I appreciate you are a close and loving family but where does relaxation and just chilling out fit in when it's going to involve the planning of a military manoeuvre?

Sounds to many especially as you don’t sound like you have enough seats for everyone. A buffet style dinner might work but a full Xmas dinner on your knee when you me all squashed on sofas. Even if you put all the kids at the table some adults sat in the living room you’ve still got extra adults with nowhere to sit and not forgetting the babies. Sounds stressful

That sounds like a nightmare-where will they all sit?

I would say those number are party numbers where you could balance a place of sausage rolls and crisps on your knee but not a gravy dinner!

I'm being massively thrown in the deep end here

It seems like you are throwing yourself in! Even if all the children go in the playroom, you only have enough seats for 10 of the adults. Where will the other 8 sit?

I would pull this back and do just one side of the family this year.

I think it is doable if everyone helps. Your biggest issue is seating and you definitely need more chairs. Also make sure you have plates, glasses and cutlery!

It will be crazy and cosy, but you can do it.

You will surely be short of cooking space. People have strong feelings about their favourite Christmas foods, but it would be helpful to have a couple of dishes that are good at room temp - Ottolenghi salads or the like.

I agree you will need to eat in shifts to supervise the DC. I hate seeing this become Mums’ Work whilst the Dads kick back and watch telly. Luckily your telly is in the playroom! I would give the DC some games and screens and put some sports loving dads in charge of them (and the remote).

Some (other ?) adults will need to supervise a children’s seating at table.

Yes, the adults will need to eat in shifts or separate rooms. I would split them more or less evenly so no one feels banished. ( I loathe the set up where 2 women gobble their food so they can disappear with the DC. It makes them seem like nannies. Hence my idea about the Dads above)

I always think the clean up crew should be mixed sex. Have a great time

We have 14 adults, 3 DC and 4 Babies this year and have said it’s too many. The dining room seats 16 at a squeeze. We have found it’s chaos getting everyone hot food at the same time - even with a separate breakfast room to lay it all out caused issues as one greedy individual can’t seem to see that there are say 20 portions of each food so took 9 pigs in blankets instead of 4 and 4 lots of stuffing instead of 2 etc. Playing up was a no go as just too many.

This year we are all splitting into smaller groups for Christmas Day and getting together for a boxing day curry - from the local Indian!

That does not sound like a Christmas Dinner.

Much too squashed. 28 people plus 4 babies?

More like a party with a buffet and even then…

Your small child’s new toys will be trashed, there will be overwrought kids crying, the amount of food….

What size exactly is your house?

It is too many.

You can’t do a trad Xmas dinner for that number in a normal sized house when your table only seats a third of the number of guests.

And you are inexperienced , have only normal domestic kitchen and 3 young children including a newborn.

You'll probably need to eat in shifts.

Sorry but this sounds like absolute hell. Anyone having to do this IS hosting too many people.

OP, you say your table sits 10 'at a squeeze'... but you have almost double that number in adults alone! That's without all the children - and without working out how you're going to cook an actual dinner for that many people!

As PPs have said, the only way this would work would be to have a buffet. If you definitely want a sit down meal, can you not break this down to have some family on Christmas Day and others on Boxing Day?

I’d make it work.

Find a way of sorting seating. Everyone bringing food. Make use of veg steamers, airfryers if anyone has them. If everyone gets on, it should be much easier as long as everyone chips in and helps. Basically be really clear you are not doing this on your own.

Make use of disposable trays and get some decent disposable plates. While not brilliant that will save on washing up and having enough crockery to cover everyone.

Make sure the young kids have space to chill out a little bit and also sleep if necessary.

It will be chaos but could be good fun. I do 25 on Boxing Day. Cook the meat the day before and have all veg ready prepared.

I know you all get on and hope to have a fab day, but the reality of hosting so many is quite different to the Christmas card images.

If you have agreed and no going back, well then you'll just have to organise it, but honestly it sounds like a nightmare to me and I wouldn't do it for a million quid! So many people in one place will be chaos and add in alcohol lol. But whatever floats your boat. Don't be put off by me.

Anyway, if I HAD to cater for so many it would be buffet style no question, and if that is tapas, chips and pizza with cold meats and so on so be it. Cooking a Christmas Dinner is not an option I reckon, but the magic hosts among us might think differently.

When I do a buffet, I always keep a stash of the most popular items in the oven or fridge. In other words I restock now and then, rather than have Greedy Guts hoover up everything in one go!

I wish you well and whatever you do, hope it works out for you.

I think you need to be able to eat together. Is there an area big enough in your house that you can use pasting tables for example to have a large enough seating capacity?
I host about half this number and we can all just about squeeze at our table and even then that’s chaos enough.

If you clear out the playroom can you fit multiple tables? That's what we do.

Three big tables. Three lots of everything sides wise - jugs of gravy, bowls of roasties etc. people serve themselves form platters of meat on their way to their seat (multiple platters on two units in the hall.)

You must be able to seat everyone otherwise it's a no-go.

Also if people are bringing bits that need eaten hot then you need them either to arrive with it hot at a set time so you can all just sit down, or you need to work out how you're going to keep it hot/reheat it.

We have 26-30 every year and everyone need a seat. Even for a buffet style thing (which we do on Boxing Day) everyone needs somewhere to sit and eat.

Also we borrow tables and chairs from the community centre. They're not quite pasting tables but they're long and thin. Really helps with space. Especially as the chairs stack

I had a newborn (ish) last Xmas and no way on earth would I want as many people are you’re having over. I think you should aim for 10 people (inc all adults children and babies in highchairs) so that everyone can sit down

My idea of hell but I accept kids love it. I have done it on a grand scale but in an Airbnb and Center Parcs and that was enjoyable but won't be organising it ever again now my DC are adults.

We are changing Christmas this year too. It will be a Waitrose pot luck shop on xmas eve after a morning at the spa then 6 of us eating whatever we have purchased on xmas eve on xmas day.

My days of planning and hosting are well and truly over.

Enjoy. You can do it because you have to!

It’s my idea of hell, but if you want that many people coming for Christmas lunch, you do need to ensure everyone can sit down…

Well yes if you've invited 28 + 4 babies, and you can only seat 10 in the kitchen and 10 in the living room then obviously, you've overstretched yourself.

I'd be crying in a corner 😀 Good luck OP

It's too many for a proper Christmas dinner unless maybe you put an extra table in the playroom? You need to be able to use knives and forks and can really do it on your lap.

But it's not too many for a buffet of things they can eat with their hands. So I'd say either get in an extra table and chairs so everyone can sit or switch to party foods. I hope you have a big freezer- batch cooking will really be your friend here.

We used to do large family holidays, 12 adults and 9 children. Cooking a meal for them all worked in holiday houses set up well for catering - multiple large ovens, large hobs and most importantly very large pots and oven trays. You have double the number of people. You can’t do a standard Christmas dinner, but possibly you could do a pot luck type meal where everyone brings something.