Why do people put their Xmas trees etc up now then take them down Boxing Day

[Beon]

If they say that they are sick n tired of the sight of them or find it difficult to clean around them.

Don’t put the tree up early then!

I will put mine up in December-around the 5th but if I am going away on NYD, I will take the majority of them down on NYE. I will leave my crib up until the 6th.

That's a whole other thing in itself as to whether people want kids to be hyper for the best part of two months. I remember breaking up from school at Xmas and my friends and I climbing the walls with frustration because we just wanted Xmas to hurry up and come - it feels a long time as it is as a kid.

the "12 days of Christmas" is not something that exit for many people, that's the point. It's more than an opinion to believe that Christmas is over when Christmas is.. gone

If you've read most of the posts on the thread, I'm a bit puzzled as to why you think it's 'more than an opinion'. Lots of people on this thread have a different one, plus Christmas very definitely lasts till 6th Jan in the religious calendar, and that's still significant for many people. (I won't get even started on Candlemas or your head would probably explode... 😂) In another of your posts you're puzzling over the point of Christmas decorations 'after' Christmas. The answer is that for a lot of us it's still Christmas. It's not rocket science.

because most of our year is not like that? There's winter skiing to look forward to, then there's Easter holidays, kids have a break in May and that's another holiday, plus the summer to start organising, and the many birthdays that are coming.

Yes, holidays and birthdays are a thing for those of us who celebrate Christmas differently to you as well. Doesn't negate the fact that some of us still like to enjoy Christmas the traditional way, with most of December being Advent (which used to have a very different feel to it, which personally I miss) and Christmas Day as the start rather than the end of Christmas proper.

Christmas is not that special, it's a fun month with all the parties and everything, but it's not more special than any of the other events and holidays of the year. No need to make it last longer than necessary

Again, your opinion which you're entitled to, but I don't really understand the levels of disdain and borderline sneering in your posts generally for those of us who don't share it. For some of us, on either side of the 'when to celebrate' coin, it is special.

Not all kids are going to be identical to your kids! Some kids might be overly hyper for months and too over stimulated if they go up early.

I think people got very depressed during lockdown and felt a need to decorate and have something to look forward too. As a nation we became addicted to decorative crap. My DS once pondered whether you could now get Gonks for every celebration in the UK because suddenly a Gonk wasn't just a Christmas creature. They had Valentine's, Easter, Summer, Halloween etc ones as well. I knew someone who had a different wreath on their door each month.

I think it's the same dopamine buzz as planning a holiday. You buy stuff you don't need and make lots of plans but once the holiday is over, you're exhausted again. I think people really enjoy buying stuff for Christmas and Halloween and decorating their house because it's miserable outside, and dark, and people don't have much money and they can't afford luxuries. So they just buy a continual stream of cheap rubbish to keep the dopamine flowing. Then once they've celebrated Christmas for one day, they're done.

I don't put up decorations before 19 December and they come down on 6 January at the end of Christmas. I usually have or attend a massive Christmas party on 6 January to end Christmas. For most people including my IL, Christmas finishes on Boxing Day. In fact my IL think it's when you box up the decorations...

Not everybody has kids or the indulgent big family gatherings. When you're back at work on the in between days, you can't even be bothered to turn the Christmas tree lights on by the time it's 27th or beyond, Christmas seems long gone by then for some of us.

I put our decs up on 1st Dec or the nearest Saturday to it and take down around 27th. That's enough for me, I enjoy the run up to Xmas but it's always a bit of anti climax when it gets here as we don't have kids or big family gatherings as a lot of relatives have passed away now. By the 27th I don't feel the same vibe, I feel excited for the new year, excited for the long haul holiday we always go on around end of Jan and my house always seems so tidy & big when I take the decs down. By 27th I don't have an urge to even turn lights on or look at Santa's and reindeer etc.

I definitely can't get my head around this new trend if so many people putting decs up on Nov 1st or in the first week of November as if they keep them up til 6th Jan that's two full months! For a two day event.

For those with kids it must be hard if they are prone to getting over stimulated and they see decorations appearing all over nearly two months early! I can imagine some parents repeatedly being asked "when is Santa coming?"

Yes that always strikes me as an odd thing to say. If the tree is such a nuisance to them why do they put it up so early?

I am just replying, I said you could celebrate Christmas until Easter, who cares.

But to the question: why do we get rid of the tree on Boxing Day? Again, because Christmas is over. It's fairly obvious why!

I actually do celebrate Epiphany, even if it makes your own head explode 😂. I just don't need Christmas tree and decoration for that, that was for December, by New Year Eve's we'll have move on. Why is that such a problem?

No one I visit or know has a tree long after Christmas, and certainly not after the 30th. It's pretty common for people to get rid of everything before New Year's Eve. The tree collection points are full by that time too. Of course it's an opinion, but a very common one.

I think it's because they stop playing Christmas music on the TV/radio to follow the trend of celebrating Xmas from Nov-26th Dec, there are fewer twinkly lights and Christmas trees to look at and unless you live in a bubble you are aware that other people think it's all over by 26th-27th so it feels less special, less about shared joy etc.

I think it's because they stop playing Christmas music on the TV/radio to follow the trend of celebrating Xmas from Nov-26th Dec, there are fewer twinkly lights and Christmas trees to look at and unless you live in a bubble you are aware that other people think it's all over by 26th-27th so it feels less special, less about shared joy etc.

You can play Christmas music whenever you want though. It shouldn't feel less special because others aren't doing it exactly the same, Christmas varies so much for so many people, no one would find it special otherwise.

Probably because so much stuff accumulate so no room?

Brilliant post, thank you! Sums up my feelings really well. All the things you mention drag me down a bit as well, despite all the ‘but what harm does it do?’ posts.

And as I’ve said on another thread, it’s really disrespectful to go full on Christmas before Remembrance Day. They are entitled to say it does no harm, but I’m entitled to think they are dicks.

Agree. My experience has been that through making a lot of effort I can keep the Christmas feeling for my family until New Years Day by saving some activities and keeping our decorations up but into January it's too much for me to do when I'm the only one trying to do it.

I think it’s peculiar to take trees etc down when the Christmas period has just begun (ie Boxing Day). I think it’s weird to put them up weeks before.

But, it’s none of my business and everyone I know in rl is normal.

I don't think she's objecting to them doing it, so much as them choosing to do it, then whinging about it!

Which I understand. Make decisions that make you happy, not the ones that piss you off 🤣🤣

mine goes up early, comes down late! I love it & just clean as usual 🎄 . I have an artificial tree (physically unable to deal with a real one now) so I don't need to worry about it.

Looking at most of the responses here, I despair how few people know what Christmas is actually about. Philistines.

Poor poor woman. Whatever brings any small joy to them. 😍

I don't know how normal this is but in my experience churches seem to follow a 01/12-25/12 pattern too in that all their Christmas events are during Advent. I'm assuming that this is to give the people that run church services and activities time off but it doesn't seem that much different to the secular world on a practical level.

Each to their & so whatever makes you happily! 😉 but I am not remotely ready to change over to 'spring' amid the snow in January 🤣

Costy Christmas lights all the way!!

Honestly, just get them
told! Tell them you don't care when they put it up, but you don't want to hear any whinging about it!!

I put mine up early, I have it up late. I LOVE my tree & traditional lights. But I'd NEVER whinge about the 'mess' or cleaning. I know what I need to do if it makes me feel annoyed, without whinging on at others! 🤣

I also don't see why people find it so hard to clean with the tree/decorations up - they just get dusted/moved etc like anything wise.

Now you're just being rude. Putting my Christmas tree 🎄 & decorations up early does not make me bonkers.

Other things might 🤣🤣

That's not completely true. The Beeb show Christmas themed idents until the 2nd Jan - at least they get it!

Christmas is about fun! Parties, lots of family time, good food and drinks, presents and days off work.