How would your perfect Christmas be inc Christmas eve and boxing day?

[Inneedofbrandy]

Just wondering what everyone else would do if they could have christmas exactly how they want it.

On Christmas day I would stay in, relatives could pop in with presents for naice coffee/bucks fizz and mince pies and then leave. Me and dc would have party food/buffet food instead of christmas dinner and they could play with their toys all day/ watch tv/ play on the wii/ board games in their own home while still seeing everyone so it's not just a sunday with presents feel.

Christmas eve we would go iceskating and then to my mums for christmas dinner (because I love a good roast but couldn't be arsed to do it on the day) and wrap the presents up with bailys to help and a nice christmas film while dc aslee. Boxing day we would still see relatives, have a bet on the horses (thanks MNer who suggested that) go to a panto and have a few presents we forgot about and have a 3rd day getting pissed and eating cheese and hams.

My perfect Christmas would involve not having to think about or discuss Christmas at all until 1st December. No one would pin me down on plans or what I am doing over the festive season until then.

Someone else would think about/research/shop for/wrap/distribute all the presents within my family.

Someone else would do the menu planning, online shop and large supermarket food shop and order the turkey.

I would choose the Christmas tree and decorate it with the dc, buy the Christmas cards and write them, and cook Christmas dinner (but someone else would carve the turkey).

On Christmas Eve or a few days before me and dh and the dc would be invited to a glamorous local drinks party where the hosts were wonderful foodies who had gone to an enormous amount of trouble with the Christmas buffet. The children would be taken home and put to bed by a babysitter who would be happy to stay all night at no charge.

My mum would come for Christmas and not do her usual low level whingeing and faffing and we would all have exactly what we wanted for presents and none of the dc toys would have those horrible bits of wire holding them on to the plastic.

On 6th January I would weigh myself and find that I hadn't gained a pound but infact had lost a few sorry I crossed that bit out cos that's just taking a fantasy too far [hgrin]

Oh glamorous drinks party and posh food sounds lovely! I could do with that babysitter to!

Meh I don't care about a few pounds over christmas, need more cushion on my arse for all the falling over I do in the ice [hblush].

Mine would be dh, me, the kids and loads of our friends.

And no completely weird extended family

I don't leave the house from the 23rd until the 27th, apart from curch on Christmas eve. The 23rd is my birthday and we have a bit of a party with all our friends and their dc. Its not a late party, most have just finished work for the holidays so we start about 6 and everyone is gone by about 10. Christmas Eve I cook all day, with various visits from neighbours, aunts etc. We go to church at 9pm. Dinner on Christmas day varies from just us and either side of grandparents. Some years we have both and my sister and her family and my husbands sisters and theirs. Our biggest was 22, but everyone made a dish so it wasn't too bad. My dad and my nephew play instruments (we're irish) so we'll have a bit of a session on Christmas night. Boxing Day we just have my sis, her dh and 2 dc and they stay over. It sounds busy but its all very relaxed and food is ready when its ready!

I would have some family still alive, and somebody would cook Christmas dinner for me and DS.

Lots of wintery walks, lots of cooking/baking of yummy treats, lots of craft.

Playing board games and building DCs' new toys.

Most of it is unlikely to happen this year!

Pelvic If we were friends I would invite you,

Staying in all that time sounds lovely queen I like people around instead of going to them although the clearing up can do one

fuzzpig why not?

Aww, thanks Brandy!

Because DH had surgery last month, and this year I have developed what seems to be M.E. :( it could still be better than the last couple of years though, as at least DH should be much better by December.

We've actually been invited to a friend's for Xmas day to give us a break :)

Well fuzzpig I order you to buy any Christmas baked goods instead of messing about baking them, the craft is still doable as are the board games and buy your ds toys that dOnt need much assembly!

Id have a huge big house so I could host a lovely Christmas eve buffet with Christmas songs and lovely decorations, everyone would be wearing chunky Christmas jumpers. All the family and freinds would come and exchange gifts.

Christmas day my lovely DF would be alive and DM, DB and me would all stay in watching Christmas tv, eating Christmas roasts and tonnes of chocolate.

Boxing Day would be a get together thrown by another member of the family in the afternoon and a nice walk in the white snow with ChestyDog.

Ok then if you insist :o

We did get DCs a playmobil castle though... methinks that'll take a while...

TBH, even our very tame Xmases are much more fun since we started having them on our own instead of with my parents who refuse to do anything remotely fun

We've also got the DCs lots of crafty kits for their stocking/tree presents BTW, so they can do lots of making without me having to use my addled brain to think up ideas and collecting stuff to use! Quite excited actually, now that the DCs are much more into that stuff (5 and 3)

Maybe I'll try and gets some kits for decorations and other festive stuff to do in the run up to Xmas - I dream of doing lots from scratch and having an amazing pinterest board that Martha Stewart would envy etc but I think that may be a little ambitious for now :o I do read a lot of other Christmas threads though so hopefully I'll find a few that are achievable this year!

Chesty good point we need snow!

Fuzzpig I've bought my dc a few kits from hobby craft things like painting window decorations and wooden peg angels, so I can feel virtuous without the hassle. I'm quite jealous you get to not have to be round the parents to, next year im refusing to go anywhere.

I am so much happier not being with my parents at Xmas. They really do suck the living souls out of any occasion, I have horrible memories of Xmas as a result.

Oh my mums not that bad, I just find it hard to relax and feel I always have to be offering to help/ do something when I just want to play with the dc. Also having to only unwrap one present at a time put the wrapping in the bin and wait for your turn to open another is hard on the dc. And they want to snooze on the sofa but my dc are not the quietest children, and everything is done my mums way. Just little niggles that wouldn't happen at home. Am hoping for bad weather that makes driving to pick me up impossible

Lots of ands there

My "Perfect Christmas Eve"

Pretty much what we do already- early lunch, a walk, a film, bath & Christmas Eve Hamper. DC shunted off to bed after the Late Night Buffet (and DH and I can watch a film .I'm planning Woman In Black this year)

Christmas Day- I like to spend hours cooking with rubbish TV (the soaps)
I'm always they have snow on Christmas Eve though.

Boxing Day- I'd like to do something more worthy than dossing about though..
I'd love to go to London and look at the lights on Christmas Eve but I know getting home would be a 'mare.

This year:

I'd like nails long enough to paint (maybe false nails )
Time to faff about with a bath, hair and make-up.

And snow whistfully

my perfect christmas eve get up about 7am, DH and DD would stay asleep until 9am. i would enjoy a gingerbread latte, peppermint latte and hazelnut latte on my decking in the garden and a full box of ferrero rocher there would be a light frost and the air would be really crisp and cool. i would then visit family with DD (and have a couple of mint baileys), have KFC in my mums for lunch, then head home for 4pm where DD would have a bath, we'd do the whole track santa, leave a mince pie/carrot out etc.. then she'd be worn out and go to bed at 6.30pm, i would watch carols from kings with champagne and a fabulous m&s buffet with DH.

my perfect christmas day have the inlaws over for a delicious champagne breakfast, have all my family over for a fabulous christmas dinner, all the kids would be angels all day, lots of baileys/mulled wine/bucks fizz would be flowing. we'd all play boards games, watch the queen's speech, christmas films etc.. loads of chocolates and a buffet in the night time.

my perfect boxing day full english breakfast and a lazy morning with the christmas music playing, then either a meal out with our friends and their kids about 3pm, or a family get together with all my family in someone elses house. lots of gorgeous food/drink, christmas music etc.. basically another christmas day. followed by a relaxing night home once DD was in bed, all snug on the couch with the tree lights twinkling and some good christmas telly and of course another bottle of mint baileys

Ooh, mint baileys. That'll feature in my ideal Xmas for sure :o

This is how I really hope christmas will go this year!

Christmas Eve - get up earlyish, make soup etc for next day; find the elf;make cookies for Santa with dd; have early lunch; go for a lovely walk in the frosty crisp air to visit grandparents; once we return from walk Christmas Eve hamper will be there; watch film; put out tea lights on drive for Santa; leave cookies, milk and carrots for Santa; bath time and bed. Then DH and I will do the whole Santa thing - cannot wait!

Christmas Day - get up early with dcs; open all presents; lovely but quick breakfast; play with toys whilst making dinner; family arrive and open alcohol; have dinner with lots of booze; might try a game if we're not too drunk!

Boxing Day - have a lovely pj day with no extended family and nursing my hangover.

That's the plan!

Just to not be working would be great.

Plus snow would be perfect.

NO ONE WOULD MENTION IT UNTIL AFTER DEC 1ST....

We are in the Christmas topic tho