Don’t all come at me, but has anyone else found the day a bit boring?

[Readyforarefrrsh]

I generally love Christmas, but as I’m getting older they seem to come around so quickly.

The dc are teens and an almost teen, we’ve been doing the same traditions since they were babies.

I absolutely love watching them open their presents, but apart from that it all felt a bit flat this year.

Dh has been saying for a while it’s felt a bit samey. Eldest ds was definitely bored but he was appalled at the idea of maybe doing something different next year 🤣

I’m not complaining as we are so fortunate in so many ways but I’m wondering if anyone else has felt the same?

Has anyone done things a bit different and enjoyed it?

I know what you mean. We kept it a quiet Christmas deliberately and don't gete wrong, it's been a nice day. However with teens in the house, once they've had presents and been fed they disappear again. Miss the chaos of a big family Christmas with loads of kids and toys !

Love hearing about how other people spent their day.

Nope, we had a lovely day 🥰

But we don’t do a traditional Christmas and never have. No DC so we had a lie in, walked the dog, cooked dinner, ate and lay on the sofa watching films and drinking Baileys. We then cleaned up and now in bed all cosy.

I read a lot about MN Christmases with tons of expectations and rules and it makes me shudder.

Thursdays are my only day off as I work 2 jobs, so I’ve made the most of not really doing anything as I don’t have an ‘extra’ day this year. Cooked a lovely lunch that everyone ate as was food they liked, lazed around watching the kids open presents, and we’ve watched Christmas films all afternoon, whilst I read my book. Seeing in-laws this weekend around work, so it was a lovely day off where I didn’t have to change out of my new pjs. What else do people want to do?

I’m so surprised to be chipping in to say it was a surprisingly lovely day. My DD (nonverbal and physically disabled as well as probably autistic or otherwise disabled such that she can’t talk (or eat or walk)) actually sat to have her presents opened and was excited by (some) and tried to say “presents” (she tries to talk).
I drove 2 hours to PILs and she was so vocal (she tries to sing) all the way there as she was so excited. She was really happy there and my naughty but adorable dog behaved and the food was delicious and it was sedate and sweet (PILs approaching 80 but very fit and active).
The 2 hour drive back was a bit challenging but then I got to speak to all my siblings on a group call which hasn’t happened much since my mum died about 18 months ago. It’s been refreshing in its simplicity with no-one getting drunk (there’s often BILs and SILs and tears).
It reminded me not to give up on anything- if my DD can be interested in presents then anything is possible!

It has been what I thought it would be, a chill day. DC both young adults surfaced at 9am, DM staying so we all opened our gifts. Dinner at 1pm and we all went off for a snooze at 3pm. Back eating chocolates and watching crap TV by 4.30pm and now DM and I have left the DC up drinking rum and coke until the early hours.

Just glad to have my DC with me after DD lost her friend this year. It was quiet but nice.

We had a lovely day. I like to think of Christmas as the period rather than the day which really helps to enjoy it and the effort more worthwhile. It takes the pressure off for me. We had a couple of people round that were happy to muck in with washing up / fetching their own drinks and putting batteries in toys etc

Everyone got some time doing what they wanted like reading / gaming. Lunch turned out nicely and a cheeseboard later in the day and puddings worked well. We got some easy games to play and I had some conversation starter cards which sound forced but work well across the generations

I try really hard to remember that I missed family Christmas in covid and it's a blessing to have people here. Doesn't always work but helps a little.

I have found Christmas day boring since I was a teen. I love the run up to xmas but find the expectations of the day ridiculous. I now refuse invites and spend the day at home with DH. Today I watched a couple of movies and slowly prepared a feast. I do like the idea of going on holiday sometime, maybe skiing.

yesz. I’ve got adult DD’s (well 18 and 20 tomorrow actually) who had Christmas morning as their dads then came to us but we’re both a bit hungover from Their Christmas Eve nights out. So for half the day it was just me, Dh and my 82 year old mum (and we were all missing my dad who died at the end of summer). We went for a lovely walk this morning but it all felt a bit meh.

Mine was lovely. It was DH, me and DS7. We got up at 6 (urgh), opened some lovely gifts, had croissants and bucks fizz then played Cluedo. Lunch, more Cluedo, and then DH sorted out 2-player Fortnite on the Xbox so they have been stalking around various landscapes as a pair! I had a long bath with my book, then lots of cheese. That said - it was very similar to Christmas Eve and the plan for tomorrow, just with presents.

I do remember that from maybe age 10 being an only child with no family round was pretty lonely and dull, so we're going to think about whether going away might make sense when he is a bit older.

Opened presents
Cooked some stuff I was bringing
Packed and drove to parents for dinner.
Had dinner
Walk with siblings
Visited cousins
Very tense board games.
Bed

Didn't get much time to be bored!

I've always felt the same but this year for the first time I did Parkrun and I loved it! Atmosphere was great and I'll definitely be doing it next year.

Yup. After the presents…hours go by then we eat a sodding roast? My least favourite food.

I honestly don’t think I’ll be doing it this way ever again. Jesus what a long dull day.

I think a bit of structure really helps. We find the day quite busy, no time to get bored.
We changed things up this year with presents.

We’ve had a lovely day. First time in several years we’ve stayed at home rather than drive 7hrs to in laws. DS (16) and I were up early for ParkRun, it was good to get out. DD & DH stayed at home but DH took himself off to church whilst 14 year old DD made cinnamon buns for post ParkRun breakfast. We opened presents when DH got home then had smoked salmon & cheese as a light lunch. The teens actually engaged for most of the day, and whilst we’ve mainly loafed about watching TV, they did stay downstairs (on their phones), rather than vanish to their rooms. We had dinner at 7.30pm which turned out well. Everyone helped tidy up after which they did retreat to their rooms and DH & I are having a glass of wine and watching Jaws.

DCat has been an ungrateful sod though. She’s not engaged at all, non plussed by her new sleeping bag and didn’t like the strawberry lik-e-lix in her stocking. She also growled at next doors cat who wandered into the garden to pass on her festive greetings. She’s definitely a Grinch.

Can you post a link to this thread please? I need to put my current shit life into perspective 😓

Im so bored with it all. I've spent the last 10 years of it mostly on my own. I went to my parents one year and caught pneumonia off them and was sick for three weeks during our busiest time of the year.
I have zero interest in it, there is nothing on tv and nowhere to go. The parcel of crafts I was going to do didn't arrive so I just read a book.
Im not interested in decorations, trees, food or presents.i just want to get back to my normal life.

I have found Christmas day boring from I was about 14. Even will small Santa believing children it was boring once the afternoon hit. It's just dinner and then sitting round watching TV or playing games. It's nice, but not the best day of the year by any stretch. I much prefer Christmas eve with the anticipation!

The best Christmas we ever had was the year we went on a cruise.

I felt like that last year OP.

So this year I just completely lowered my expectations around what Xmas Day 'should' be like. Asked the teens what they wanted to do (get up late, open presents, game/chill out) and just went with it. I got up early and went for a lovely walk in the sunshine (solo parent so went by myself). We opened presents. One teen surprised me by having lunch (ham, baked potatoes and salad) with the grown ups (me and my elderly mum/aunt) and watching a bit of TV with us. The other didn't want lunch but cooked steak for him and his brother for tea and then they gamed together for a bit which was lovely as they're usually in separate rooms chatting to/gaming with their friends.
All very low key but everyone had the day they wanted. Both the teens spontaneously said this evening how much they'd enjoyed it.

We're doing full on turkey lunch etc tomorrow with my sisters and the cousins (all late teens/adults) but we all agreed we like having a quiet and relaxed Xmas Day and we'll almost certainly do the same thing next year :-)

I'm generally more excited in the build up, the day is always an anticlimax for me.

Just dinner and lying around watching TV..

DP promised he would help with food this year. He wanted the full works. He planned, bought it. Only agreed to this as he said he would do it. I was confused as he hates cooking and wanted to go out. But thought ok.

this morning he woke up full of cold - man flu. Apparently couldn’t move as so tired and weak. So I cooked the full breakfast and dinner that was eaten quickly. He did tidy up tho.

then sofa where I watched him play computer games. We were planning games together and stranger things. But he couldn’t concentrate so we sat in silence. I asked him to go to bed to rest.

now watching trash tv. I was so bored today with his man flu. in reality he has a bog standard cold and hates cooking.

It can be a really long day after the presents are opened especially if you’re not going anywhere. We were up pretty early and my 10 year old still gets pretty hyped up over presents and extra sweets, and then moans if she no-one plays with her or she loses at board games so had more wine than i normally would.

Overall though I can’t complain though. Got some lovely presents, went back to bed for an early afternoon nap, then went out for a walk and got our ‘Xmas Coffees’ from the costa machines at the local garage. We put on xmas music, eat crisps and chocolate, then play some board games as a family (not always that relaxing with DD though).

We always get a Chinese takeaway for Xmas Dinner so no stress or faff cooking . Tomorrow I’ll cook my ‘Boxing Day Chicken’- nice roast but nothing special and the leftover chicken gets turned into soup. In a way I prefer Boxing Day as I can sleep late, the shops are open and I can get a proper coffee. I then cook us dinner without the need to be ‘extra special’.

Im sure I say this every year but next year I would like to try and and incorporate more of the traditional religious elements of Xmas again to try and recapture some of that nostalgic ‘Xmassy feeling again’.

@CarrieAnnQ and @Princesspollyyy we did Christmas Day parkrun last year and it was such a lovely and fun way to start the day we did it again this year! My middle one doesn't love the thought of it but it's the trade-off for every other bit of the day being very very chill. It's good fun seeing a sea of Santa hats running in unison!

We went for another walk in the afternoon just as the sun was setting, it was too lovely and sunny not to be outside again.

Roast is done on Xmas eve so Xmas Day is just a nice brunch and then a buffet of everyone's favourite foods in the evening.

Its been lovely!

Yup. When DD was little I loved having quiet Christmasses at home, just the three of us. Her excitement and joy was all the entertainment I needed. Now that she’s a teen, I still love seeing her open her presents, and we still enjoy a good family dinner, but she doesn’t really want to play games and watch films with us any more. We briefly played her new board game after lunch but it was clearly more the sort of thing she’d enjoy with her friends. I hoped for a card game by the fire in the evening but she was glued to her console by then, and DH was snacking in front of the TV.
For the first time I wished we could have had family visiting for Christmas Day. I wasn’t alone but still felt lonely.