Anyone want to take part in a 'Lessons Identified' for next year?

[everydayaschoolday]

I'll happily go first:

1. No need for small pressies in advent calendar; kids only wanted the small piece of chocolate!

1. You cut back this year a bit and nobody noticed; cut back a bit more again next year.

1. More than 2 bottles of shloer is required .

1. All the material/clothing items (character bath towels, slippers, dressing gowns etc) from the elves on Christmas Eve worked well as our adapted Christmas Eve hamper.

1. Prep the veg and set the table on Christmas eve next year.

1. Hide the chocolate brioche from DH otherwise it'll be gone before christmas morning breakfast .

1. Fewer, well chosen items were highly appreciated this year. The no tat challenge was a success.

Take dessert and extra wine to ILs even if they insist they don't need us to bring anything.

I think The Twitch is when there are shopping days left at the completion of your Christmas shopping, and The Twitch is when you succumb to the need to fill those days unnecessarily handing over more cash for unnecessary purchases.

Thanks every.

Wrap in batches, and do the DCs stuff the second to last week of term in case they go off sick the last week.

Use Riverford (veg box people) for meat and veg, all delivered fresh and free on Christmas Eve.

Start shopping before half term, the weeks get busier and busier afterwards. Keep lists.

Jamie Oliver's make ahead gravy is brilliant.

Do not allow DH to do the online shopping. He always caters for 15 even when there are only 6 of us.

Do not allow in laws to have our gifts sent from Amazon unless they pay for the gift wrap service. How was I to know the 400 page History of Austria was for me??!!!

Plan elf activities in November instead of having to do them in a panic at 5am

1. too many stocking fillers - keep a list or practice filling it before hand (also think i can buy these earlier)

1. still spent a bit too much in hindsight

1. confine xmas to the designated holiday week for next year (have booked CP)

Great ideas here. We need to deal with post-grandparent depression as well!

For me next year :
prepping ahead veg and stuffing etc worked well

small number of nice things in stockings better than piles of tat. Food a good choice!

xmas eve box with dvd and hot chocolate was a calming influence

wrapping stuff earlier and with help from dcs was sensible. Fun and functional!

BUT less food is needed. Lots of leftovers that would have been fine to use next day had i not planned a menu for ten days of new stuff each day. Also START EARLIER. This year was nearly chaos with an ill dc the week before on the day off work that i had earmarked for shopping. Dd has birthday mid december so next year i plan to sort xmas before this, not in the aftermath

most of all, keep reading this thread!

ooermissus I am with you on the Amazon gift wrap - I worked right up to Christmas Eve, then at 10pm I was wrapping presents for my children from two people who are retired and one who had been on leave since the beginning of December.

Never again.

Also don't buy two bottles of Baileys - it is not helpful when losing weight.

1. The DC don't like panettone so don't bring it out as a lovely treat breakfast.

1. Carry on with asking family 'Is-there-anything-you'd-particularly-like-for-Christmas-or-shall-we-get-you-some-lovely-surprises-we're-going-shopping-tomorrow?' in September, so they go for the easy option of not having to think about it, meaning they get fab bargainous presents (my side of family) rather than me trawling websites for a discount on specific designer umbrella (DH's side of family).

For me
Buy more of the sheets of wrapping paper (so much easier than cropping the rolls)
Start the wrapping earlier so there's not still a load to wrap on Christmas Eve.
Cut down on the stocking fillers for smallest dd (another overflow again this year)
It's possible to get ds 18 (ASD) to be happy about a surprise if you spend a week or two beforehand brainwashing him to believe that it's something he'd like
Don't buy lots of extra food, it doesn't get eaten so may as well save the money.
Definitely order meat, bread, veg and fish from local independent stores who will have it ready to pick up at 7.30am Christmas Eve so saving any battles with last minute shoppers.

Oh yes - Costco wrapping paper = best paper ever!

buy a smaller tree and put it in a different place, avoiding need to re-arrange entire lounge. This way when presents arrive it may still be possible to move across lounge floor....

having gift list planner app thingy on my tablet was brill for keeping track of pressies bought and budget.
useful items in stockings (bobbles, hairbrushes, nice shower gel etc) much better than endless plastic tat (though still a bit of that!)
getting dc outside for an hour in afternoon helped moods (helped by new go-kart to play on and bright sunny day!)

1. get a new table cloth . This years had a horrible stain on it from last time I didn't check till Christmas Eve .
2. buy double the amount if gift tags you think you need
3. I will invest in a proper Sellotape dispenser . No arseing around with trying to find the end all the friggin time

Spend time thinking what gifts you are going to buy and note where you can get them. I find this helps make the actual shopping trips much easier and quicker.

Keep lists of what you have bought and keep a running total of what you have spent.

Buy wrapping paper and Christmas cards now whilst they are cheap. Plain foil paper can also be used for birthdays etc.

Keep a note of what went well and what could be changed for next year. For us we need smaller amounts of things, such as a smaller pack of biscuits for cheese, a smaller gammon and less fresh fruit.

YY proper sellotape (I buy the ScotchTape (regular and gift tape) from Costco - each one in a plastic dispenser with a cutting blade. Much easier than a roll of tape.

Decent scissors to cut paper ( mine all vanish )

The past few years we've learned by experience not to overbuy food.

But buying bottles/cans/packet food in advance and storing the bottles/cans of drink in the garage helps a load. I don't want to be hauling heavy trolleys round.

And not forgetting what utter c**ks people can be in supermarkets in the run up to Christmas

When the decorations come down this week, some of the lights will have to go (my lights on the upstairs landing were only about 75% working. I did try them, they worked , but when I'd actually wound them round the swag, I saw that some weren't working at all. Too late/too lazy to undo them <img loading="lazy" class="inline-flex mumsnet-emoji" alt="Blush" src="https://www.mumsnet.com/build/assets/blush-Brh13p-7.png"> )

I'll scrutinise what has to get thrown out (decorations) or recycled via Charity Shop if they're in good condition.

Last year I bought a gorgeous tablecover + napkins in Debenhams at the tailend of the sales.

I bought ivory because I needed a big cover but they had red and green too.
IIRC it was £110 reduced to £27 or something. (I know it was a phenomenal reduction from the marked price. Not sure who would have paid £110 for it though ) but I used it at Easter and Christmas so I know it was safely stored away.

i think this was one of the best stress free christmass we had.

but things i would change.. cloth advent calendar.. just buy nice bigger chocolates for it.
plan activity for elf.

things i would continue.
buy through out the year.. i have to do this due to budgits.
keep to less is more. 6 presents each, 2 to share and stocking.. they wasnt overwhelmed and they loved and played with everything .. unlike last year!
wrap as you go or at least a couple days before the big day!
make sure the house is in good shape before christmas eve so you enjoy the fun instead of rushing around trying to tidy.

Buy the absolutely cheapest red and white economy paper, as found in Tesco, Asda etc for Christmas stockings. Then santa will have the same paper style every year and you can tell what's supposed to be in a stocking.
Also for first time this year I numbered every stocking item in small writing diametrically opposite the recipients name, which I always put on in silver pen (and record the numbers). Then if you need to swap something you can find the requisite present more easily.

Keepyoureyespeeled - my Christmas tablecloth has a stain now, but it's near the muddle, so I bought a runner to cover it, might that work for you?

Don't end up paying first class postage in cards and presents!

I have been saying this for the last 25 years it still happens more years than it doesn't.

so right star £28 in parcel postage fees

Heavy tape dispenser from Poundworld, best pound I've spent this year. Didn't lose the tape or the end once, I just need an amazing easily cuts and won't get lost scissor alternative

Lakeland used to do a thing with handles and a blade that you push through the paper iyswim. I've got one somewhere, I'm going to dig it out and see if it works. Think I'll also get proper Sellotape on a dispenser next year and pick up smaller gifts and stocking fillers earlier in the year. I can't do big gifts or Xmas shopping before December, it's not right! I will get some cards, decorations, lights etc in the sales though

I've just chucked out one of these paper cutters Scotch because it was crap. Scissors are much easier.