To ask what you're dreading most about Christmas with your inlaws this year? ( lighthearted )

[BossaNovaOnAllNight]

I know its a time of year for giving and being with each other but let's be real, the people we spend christmas with don't magically have a personality transplant just because of the date on the calendar. What are you already anticipating will wind you up this Christmas? I'll go first, DH'S grandmother noticing everyone's weight ( gain, loss anything ) and bringing it up just before dinner when we are all about to eat a ton. DSIL will undoubtedly say something my autism finds unacceptable, like she's lied about something not arriving from Etsy and got a refund from a small business . Oh and I truly do not want to go on a huge family walk in the freezing cold really, I run daily and want a day off. As I say, this is light hearted and I will have a lovely time and I can't wait to see my in-laws but its a full on few days haha. Aibu to ask what you're dreading?

The double dipping of chips and dips. I don’t think I need explain further!

Nothing!

Because we're having Christmas with our best friends who live a 5m walk away with a similar aged toddler instead.

Plenty of flex to appreciate each other's schedules and traditions, big glorious dinner at the end, relaxed evening with fizz after.

Family relegated to the days when their complaints and foibles can't spoil Christmas with two gorgeous and energetic children.

FIL is very health conscious, which brings untold joy at Christmas.

Omg I COMPLETELY agree. I was on a ferry today with work... the amount of time it takes people to get off their arses, down the stairs and to their cars when the ferry comes in is astonishing. Especially the 'quick wee' brigade queuing for the loo's who have just had a whole journey to use them! Mind blowing.

Husbands family are great but their social battery is depleted after a couple of hours. Nothing wrong with that apart from the fact that they don't want to admit it /DH doesn't either and all insist we stay longer, so I'm left trying to entertain my son in a room full of adults who are all silently watching.

(I think this year will be better because DH has finally observed the dynamic and understood what I'm sayingz and we've kept visits since then much shorter)

Hahahahahahaha I can only imagine. I remember when MIL ( who is an angel ) plated herself up steamed veg and turkey without skin for Xmas dinner. DH was horrified and told her to start in january... she did and actually enjoyed Christmas then went on to do very well health drive wise!

Im a Chihuahua owner and am besotted with mine but that is fucking unhinged 🤣

Aristotle passed away in August but they are bringing his ashes in a little treasure chest (MIL got this made by her ‘crafty’ friend it’s covered in diamanté) so he can still participate 😬 (can’t complain really as last year his participation in Christmas seemed to be some kind of mission to impregnate soft furnishings🤮).

😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

You should be thankful - my SIL's son and partner have had their deceased chihuahua taxidermized and she goes EVERYWHERE with them, from room to room! They now have 2 other live chihuahuas too, but, nope, the dead one still is everywhere! Even on the bedside table at night.

OMG all this Chihuahua content is causing me to wake the neighbours with laughing.

MN needs a Chihuahua Board where all this can be brought together and shared

I'm dreading that FIL has decided they're not coming to Xmas lunch with my family due to 'health issues'. He's capable, just doesn't want to make the effort for DH sake. They come to mine as SIL is too selfish, and they've nowhere else to go. They're always welcome & it's very light and simple.

I've flat refused to run away after lunch to sit around FIL & his DW's tiny, dull unit. DH says he's not either, but bets on he'll disappear for 'an hour' with the DC and be gone all afternoon, saying 'it wasn't the plan to stay so long, but...' and my DM whining the DC aren't there, etc.

Then SIL will demand a lunch in another day. I just wish they'd all go away!!

@Christmaslogistics can I just check: Is Timotei really named after the shampoo rather than Timothée Chalamet?

So when we see each other we turn into teenagers giggling behind our hands and whispering in jokes. She is an angel from heaven, knows I barely drink and don’t drink wine so last year made a bottle of cocktail just for me. We were missing when dinner was called, eventually found in the garage by one of our teenagers. We got a row at dinner and separated which we found hilarious and our children couldn’t believe. We took the dogs out for a walk before pudding because “actually we’re not teenagers and you can’t stop us”. We missed pudding because we were drinking in the shed with 3 dogs

The pair of you sound insufferable. Maybe tone it down this Christmas instead of trying to prove how cool you are.

@SlothfullyYours did you miss the part where I am the in law who people dread at Christmas?? That was literally the point I was making. It’s a weird bubble where I can relax and spend as long as I want with someone compared to my usual life. Would it make you feel better if I promise I contribute what I’m asked, clear up afterwards and buy everyone thoughtful gifts?

Sorry this isn’t so lighthearted but both my MIL and my Mum have had serious health issues this year and we don’t know how much longer we’ve got with either of them. So although a Christmas with lots of driving isn’t what I wanted for this year, it’s about making the best of the situation. I shall be a paragon of virtue until I’m home alone and then I shall eat all the sweets in front of whatever heartwarming crap is on the telly!

One thing I hope never happens is that I become the subject of. The Christmas Bingo. When my M was alive my Dd used to give us all bingo card that contained all the things she would do and say. She never could understand while every often someone would call “Line” and a chocolate would wing its way to them. If she said the same thing three times that would be Bingo and a gift would arrive

Now am the oldest I shall be looking out for any sign that I have taken her place.

Oh my god, 11 degrees?!

Ah, go on, Father! You will, you will, you will

She sounds horrible but so do you

I'm dreading them not being here. This is the third Xmas without MIL and the first without FIL
There will only be five of us for most of the day and that feels really empty (sorry to lower the mood)

This is my family.
My mum especially, went shopping with her and my sister last weekend and mum found something to buy for dad.
She couldn't just buy it, she had to tell us three times all the reasons why it would be a good thing to buy. Three times.

No, I didn't miss it and I don't get why you and your SIL behave so obnoxiously.

You are guests and should act accordingly. If you and your SIL want to get drunk and act like idiots then you should meet up some other time, not spoil other people's Christmasses.

Your husbands must be mortified.

I remember my mother asking for a lift to Homebase.
We spent an hour and a half in there and came out with one bloody plastic bucket.

It’s our first Xmas with the baby

We’re at my husbands family this year

I’m predicting the day will involve the standard events when we go round any given Sunday. My brother in law will be drunk. My mother in law will be squawking about her health, wanting to hold the baby more, that I’m “hogging” the baby by breastfeeding and that no matter how long we are there that we won’t have stayed long enough.

Thankfully my husband backs me up when I put my foot down over the baby and my FIL is delightful so I’ll probably be hiding in the kitchen with those two.

Oh and my husband and I will get very competitive over a game of trivial pursuit - I’m the current reigning champ and intend to keep it that way!

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

@BossaNovaOnAllNight I'm fortunate that my in-laws & parents get along well enough to celebrate many holidays together, but my mom has some contrived form of orthorexia (and other mental health issues, to put it diplomatically) which complicates get-togethers; my DH's mum generally entertains & does a fantastic job of it with plenty of food options, but my family always has to awkwardly explain that my mom "can't" eat anything, even things like celery/carrots laid out as hors d'oeuvres and my poor MIL is always (justifiably) bewildered every time🫣

P.S. I hope I don't come across as insensitive to people with dietary issues, in my mother's case I'm 99% sure there's some sort of Munchausen-esque affliction at play, her "diagnoses" are constantly shifting, and she's always eager to wax poetic at length about her latest restrictions...hard to explain, but the first example that comes to mind is a time at a restaurant when she interrogated our poor server about how long the cheddar cheese in one dish was aged for 😓 apparently she can only eat cheddar cheese if it's aged for 10+ months 😅 so that does throw a spanner into many a holiday interaction with the ILs!!