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Christmas

From present ideas to party food, find all your Christmas inspiration here.

so its only....

1000 replies

RabidCarrot · 26/12/2012 10:10

364 days till Christmas Xmas Grin

OP posts:
DaddyPigsMistress · 28/08/2013 07:22

119

BiddyPop · 28/08/2013 11:03

17 weeks today!!

I should be working but I got so stressed at home this morning with DD (aspergers so school transition time is very wobbly) that I am losing myself in planning for a couple of hours. Then I will get stuck into real work and be much more productive than if I tried to start it straight away!! Wink Grin

fuzzpig · 28/08/2013 17:14

I was talking to a colleague about Xmas today and she DIDN'T look at me like I was mad! She has just become a grandma for the first time so she is excited about choosing something.

DH's first stocking filler has arrived along with DS' last couple of birthday presents (he turns four on Friday) - it is a tiny bagged Lego Harry Potter set that was down to £2 and I thought I'd better get it as they aren't being made anymore I don't think. I'm thinking of doing a tiny Lego set each for the DCs in their stockings too as it will give them something to do first thing.

BiddyPop · 28/08/2013 22:20

Ooh, Fuzz, where did you get the Lego? Dd loves Lego and HP, and was disgusted that DH didn't read the wii HP Lego game disc right when he bought it in America so it only works there. Might be a nice surprise to make up a bit in her stocking!

50shadesofknackered · 29/08/2013 07:33

118

fuzzpig · 29/08/2013 09:09

On amazon, biddy :)

It's only a really little set in a plastic bag but I think he will like it. Package is a bit crumpled though so I may unpack it.

fuzzpig · 29/08/2013 12:22

Excited! Just went to hobbycraft to get boxes (one of which will hopefully store Xmas decorations!) and also found that their canvases were on 3 for 2. I got 3 of their dinkiest ones (10 by 10 cm!) for only £2 and have squirrelled them away. I am going to do a little painting each for DH and DCs. It's the first time I've really made something as a present (apart from DH's first advent calendar where I wrote song lyrics on little cards).

They are little enough to go in their stockings BUT since the stockings are from Santa it would give the game away so I will just wrap them. I will somehow have to find time to paint them in secret! I'm going to paint Totoro (from the anime film) for DD, not sure about the others. Maybe a thunderbird for DS and silver surfer for DH although that would be quite tricky. Or there's always daleks, minions etc. Decisions decisions.

70isaLimitNotaTarget · 30/08/2013 00:12

117

BiddyPop · 30/08/2013 10:15

I have just sent off the application form for the Santa trani tickets Grin

They went on sale yesterday but I was not online til late evening - but they had already sold out 2 trains. They were NOT on sale yet on Wednesday. So I have sent the form by courier rather than the post - to get there today instead of Monday with the bags of post from all over the country all weekend long....ok, seems a bit overkill, but I can't deal with DD not getting tickets again this year (last year was my fault) and this year we are really awkward in terms of getting a day for a family outing (DH is away all but 6 trains, 2 are 30 November which is too early for us, 2 are the day of DD's parties (my office one for kids and her Sports club one - which this year includes graduation for DD's group from the Academy to Juvenile section of the club) - so that only leaves 2 trains on 1 day - the last day they're running!).

Seperately, as there are lots of "threshold spend" vouchers for all the supermarkets this month, I am getting a lot of storecupboard items to stock up on, but have also put away 2 bottles of wine and 2 of naice lemonade for Christmas (basically allocated the "free" money to those).

And I got a few stocking fillers for DD (a retro dynamo car, box of marbles and bug magnifying glass) and some bits for Dad (big ball of string that I will put into a coffee tin I am decorating and punching a hole in and some plant labels) when I was out yesterday. And I collected a big bag of pine cones too - all different types - so I will use some for decorating, and others for the stove as the weather cools down!

AnneEyhtMeyer · 30/08/2013 10:41

Hello again,

I've been trying to step away from planning Christmas as I had already done loads by July, but I just can't help myself so I have decided to surrender to the urge!

Went to Costco yesterday and bought the big box of 50 Christmas crackers for about £11 (DD is mad about crackers, so these will keep her happy) and a lovely nutcracker ornament.

I have hidden them from DH as he thinks it is mad to buy stuff like this in August. Little does he know I've been getting Christmas stuff all year!

70isaLimitNotaTarget · 31/08/2013 00:03

116

Must check out the Costco crackers (they did the Tom Smith crackers before. Seemed very ££ but really good value compared to other shops)

I need bottles of water as well but when I'm in there it can't hurt to loook buy loads

AnneEyhtMeyer · 31/08/2013 06:50

70isalimit - they did have the Tom Smith Crackers there too, but they work out at about £3 per cracker. Shock Although they have lovely things inside I'm afraid I'm just after a quick bang, some plastic tat and a lame joke as DD can pull them at a rate of knots!

buzzgirly · 31/08/2013 08:34

I wish I could buy juice to keep aside but as DH is a fizzy juice addict lover it would be gone in 5 minutes!

I was doing some clearing out and found some toys that ds got last year that are still in their boxes. So that is our nephews christmas present taken care of! Or is that terribly mean?

biddy the train sounds fab, I hope you get tickets.

fuzzpig · 31/08/2013 18:27

Biddy, what do pine cones have to do with the stove?!

fuzzpig · 31/08/2013 18:29

Oh wait i guess you mean to burn instead of chopped wood Blush

70isaLimitNotaTarget · 01/09/2013 00:32

115

Into September now.
This is the month for me where it all starts taking form.
My DC go back to school, so on the days I'm not at work, I can get started on the stocking gifts.

Lakeland Limited will have their Christmas Catalogue out in September (yes)

Shops start seriously swinging into Autumn mode.

It was chilly by 9pm.

fuzzpig · 01/09/2013 09:32

How the Jeff is it September already?!

Xmas is going to look a bit different this year, present-wise. Less is more and all that. And hopefully we will have got a lot further with decluttering - we are making progress but it is slow as I am not well enough to rush it.

I am actually considering asking DH if we can basically plan our presents together as I don't really want surprises this year, and there are a few little things I am really coveting! But then I want to surprise him... Argh.

BiddyPop · 01/09/2013 09:45

Fuzz, yup, burning them- they make nice flames and smell nice too.

I spent a couple of hours yesterday sorting DDs clothes, and threw 1 bag into clothes bank last night (too stained and torn for re-use), and I have another for BILs DCs. And I sorted lots in the kitchen too as I had a big Internet shop delivere (skipped the supermarket chaos, soooo worth the delivery fee!).

Today I have an extended family event so 3 of 6 of me and my siblings will be there. We might get progress on decisions for joint presents

Less is more is my motto too, and I hate to see loads of things not being appreciated anyway. But that takes more time to think and source things that are both nice and meaningful for people. Time for crafting is not possible this year tho.

70isaLimitNotaTarget · 01/09/2013 23:12

My DD is reading "Lost Christmas" (in September, yes Grin )

It's a film with Eddie Izzard that IIRC was on TV two years ago.
It's sad but lovely.
One of my Christmas Traditions now.

70isaLimitNotaTarget · 02/09/2013 00:16

114

BiddyPop · 02/09/2013 10:13

I got myself up and moving early this morning, even though it was a bad night's sleep (DH snoring, wind howling, and me too hot as well). But I made myself move once the alarm went off - I didn't go to the gym as I had half planned (I intend going to a new yoga class tomorrow morning, very early, so that will get me started on exercise, my tummy is a bit upset this morning) - but I did go to the coffee shop and make out all of my lists (HGP started yesterday, so I did my weekly lists for that).

Over the weekend, I managed to get a fair amount of sorting and decluttering done, as well as had some fun with DH and DD (climbing walls on Saturday after collecting DH at airport, and then an extended family gathering for my Dad's family yesterday, which was nice and relaxed).

Today, I am feeling positive after having a black dog hanging over me for the past 3 weeks or so. I ended up blubbing, very quietly but properly blubbing, during the mass at the family gathering yesterday (one uncle is a priest, so we started with a mass to celebrate our grandparents' lives - this was the first whole family gathering since Grandmother died just over 4 months ago, so uncle was remembering them well, and I ended up starting because of that and bright sun in my eyes, and just lots coming to the surface). But I was able to get myself together before the mass ended so that was ok. And as we are now into the autumn and back into routines, I think that is helping me too - we are over the transition period again, DD was in much better form, and I am making progress on a number of fronts with different things. I am finished antibiotics and feeling physically better (not perfect yet, but better). And I stood up to 1 DSis yesterday, and called her out on doing something "on behalf of us all" before asking if we wanted to (I had already given a gift to the person in question on her birthday but I was asked, as they drove to the event, if I wanted to be part of a "siblings" gift to relative 4 months after the event, expectation that I would cough up money towards what was already bought, and provide a card as that hadn't been thought of, but sure Biddy has a great drawer full of cards!! She will rescue us!).

And of course, DH is home, so he's giving out about the state of chaos that the house is in (although I had made some progress on it), but also doing a lot of sorting too himself.

So, today is "Oh what a beautiful morning!!" sort of day.

buzzgirly · 03/09/2013 06:48

113

Sorry that you were upset the mass, sometimes a good cry can help get rid of all the stress. And well done for standing up to dsis, it's so hard with overbearing family.

I had planned to start the holiday grand plan, but ds has been sick everywhere so think we'll be having a sofa day!

BiddyPop · 03/09/2013 09:28

THanks Buzz. It's all about Baby Steps on the HGP - I look on it as a way to get further than I otherwise would, even if that is only clearing 1 clutter spot or deep cleaning 1 section of 1 room. So my lists are loads of small jobs (breaking jobs into tasks) and the more ticks, the better - but I just aim to try and get 1 tick per day. And if I miss a day (or even a week!) then I don't worry about it - I'll get to it later if I can as I have a list to refer to, but if I don't, then it doesn't get done.

Sofa days are important though. (And while DS is snuggled up beside you, you can do thinking and list making bits rather than physical cleaning or buying parts Grin )!!

70isaLimitNotaTarget · 04/09/2013 00:29

112

fuzzpig · 04/09/2013 12:34

I am being brave and have decided to make one of DS' presents. He is desperate for a fix it Felix outfit!

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