Mumsnetters from Germany - can you help me?

[SlowDoris]

My dad’s colorectal cancer has returned along with some new growths. He is being given palliative chemo at the moment. He is well enough to come downstairs every day, and occasionally goes out for very short trips - but I know he will get weaker soon, from the effects of the chemo as well as everything else.

I was thinking about arranging a really traditional, low key, German-style Christmas as he comes from Germany and gets nostalgic about German traditions. My ideas so far are: putting the tree up and family getting together on Christmas Eve, maybe having real candles on the tree, some traditional nibbly food over both days (I think his appetite will be poor but he quite likes to pick on small things - I’d like to come up with something better than a packet of Bahlsen zim sterne and some stollen bites though!), maybe try and make rouladen as we always had that on Boxing Day. Has anyone got any tips to help me make Christmas feel a bit like the ones he had in North Rhine-Westphalia when he was a boy?

Put up an Adventkranz - a wreath with 4 candles, to be lit on the 4 Sundays leading up to Christmas (first 1, then 2, then 3 you get the idea)

Try Lidl! Seriously, their christmas stuff is great - pfeffernusse, Stollen, Lebkuchen, (lots of!) choc santas to put in shoes on xmas eve, Nuremberger sausages, Duck or fish instead of turkey, wooden decs, (FGS don't put real candles on the tree!!! Do an Xmas Advent wreath instead - one candle for each sunday in Advent) ) an Advent calendar pref wooden...

have a look at the lidl christmas stuff, should be in the shops soon. gingerbread and other things.
if you can get hold of a goose instead of turkey that would be good.
and potato salad/wiener sausages (you can get decent ones at lidl)

chocolates to decorate the tree with.

What a lovely idea, so sorry for what you are all going through????YY to Lidl v v early and the don't like me hide the lovely stuff and get stressed because I hide it so well I can't find it again. ????Things I remember from Christmas in Germany was going for a walk on Christmas even in the afternoon and when we got back there was the tree transformed. Looking back I'm still not sure how they did that as I remember both parents being there. For the walk. The point is that we the.n Each had a party piece to perform. A sing it for me a poem to say. Then rewarded with presents. Do you have children who could do something shot?????The ascents craze is a lovely tradition with a festive special coffee and cakes when we light the candles might be a small scale tradition to spread festivities across the month. ????Another meal we love is smoked loin of pirk with a crime sauce with red cabbage sweet corn booked pots but we probably did roast potatoes. Recipe v v easy if you can find the smoked pork joint. Usually m&s or Waitrose gave them in the run up to Christmas. Pm me for more details. ????Other traditions around fresh rolls with ham , cheese and jam for breakfast. We have a German baker in Windsor who sells a variety of other German foods in his shop. He does a run to Germany every fortnight or so and is happy to take orders. Pm me if you could get anywhere close to Windsor. I'd be happy to help get anything from that baker. Xx??????

I have no idea about German traditions, but just to say Lidl had Christmas stuff in today . Sorry to hear about your Dad, I hope he's feeling as well as he can be.

Might be also worth looking for some German Christmas Carols or a Christmette recording?

Thank you everyone - looks like I need to get myself to Lidl! We don't have one close by but it sounds as if it's worth making the trip.