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Christmas

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Original poster

Dh's weird Christmas family traditions?

111 replies

deaconblue · 06/12/2006 22:26

What weird traditions do your husbands/partners' families have? I now have to buy extra presents for the tree to give to us on Christmas Eve thanks to Dh!

OP posts:
WanderingTroll · 06/12/2006 22:29

A big fight.
Every year.

B*stards.

This year they all get Bach Rescue Remedies and, if things get physical, arnica.

HoHoHorsewoman · 06/12/2006 22:41

DH used to knock over the fireguard and tramp the ashes across the floor to look as though santa had done it. Never cleaned it up next day, though. Apparently his dad used to do it (bet he never cleaned it up either, in fact surprised he bothered to do anything for his kids at all)

hatwoman · 06/12/2006 22:45

christmas dinner on christmas eve. but am now a prosylete

Quootiepie · 06/12/2006 22:47

Waiting until after lunch/dinner to open the presents... ive knocked that one on the head sharpish!

Oh, and not a tradition as such, but... tinsel. Ive banned it

SantaGotStuckUpTheGreensleeve · 06/12/2006 22:49

Cheese in bacon, as well as sausages in bacon!! He can stick that up his arse!

hatwoman · 06/12/2006 22:51

we've ended up compromising on the present opening. some in the morning and some later on. I'm not convinced on that one. tinsel is absolutely utterly banned.

flutturkey · 06/12/2006 22:55

Ooooohhh sausages wrapped in bacon yum yum yum!!!!!

Anyway I have been sooooo lucky DH and his family never really celebrated Christmas with anything other than a visit to church, no presents, no dinner no stupid traditions.

When DH first had Christmas with my family I think he nearly had a break down the house was packed full (7 siblings) and noisy with grown adults who behave like children at Christmas. He loves it now and can't wait for it every year.

themulledSNOWMANneredjanitor · 06/12/2006 23:05

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Stockingsofdinosaurs · 06/12/2006 23:21

Just being boring and never getting any fresh air.

Stockingsofdinosaurs · 06/12/2006 23:27

Oh Janitor, how old were you?

MerryChipmonkAndAHappyNewey · 06/12/2006 23:40

MIL believes in buying loads of crap presents for a person instead of buying one decent one. With the result that last year she gave me, among other things a bag of 400 nappy sacks and a pack of baby wipes. Thing is, I use neither because I use cloth nappies and re-usable wipes. But because it takes ages to open all the little individual crap presents, and it only takes a few minutes for her to open the nice present I've gotten for her, she makes me feel as if I've gone to no effort at all!

themulledSNOWMANneredjanitor · 07/12/2006 00:07

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

hatwoman · 07/12/2006 09:50

janitor - i can so relate to that! dh's family just don;t get excited by Christmas. sitting reading the paper like on a normal Sunday - that's fil all over. drives me mad! My mum and I love it, we go to lots of effort to decorate the house and make everything look lovely. when I was a kid dbs and I would take our pillow cases into mum and dad's room and rip all our presents open in a frenzy of excitement sitting on their bed. it was lovely. fil came last year and whilst he didn;t mean to be grumpy, his failure to get excited felt, to me, like grumpiness. along with his mutterings about the kids having too many pressies (sorry, but not true, I know houese with 5 times as many toys as we have) and his declaration that they "ought" to wait until after dinner to open some of them (that really pissed me off - not the sugestion in itself, but the fact that he felt himself in a position to make it! my house, my kids, and, mostly, my presents). I'd better stop before I turn this into a whinge about fils thread...he's not a bad old fart really...(and he's not coming this year...)

themulledSNOWMANneredjanitor · 07/12/2006 10:15

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

noogles · 07/12/2006 10:18

The main difference for us is that dp used to have to wait until after lunch to open a special pressie. We have kind of carried this on for the adults but not for ds yet (I think its unfair as he is only 3.5). Also Christmas has never been a huge event in dps family but in ours it is,right up until new years day. My mum goes all out,(the house looks like santas grotto,although this year is slightly more subdued and me and siblings keep complaining!!),lashings of food, in our house Christmas is for the kids and everything is enthusiasic and made really exciting. DPs family would just like to drink the day away (cos apparently thats what the TRUE meaning of christmas is!! )

GodRestYeMerryPebblemum · 07/12/2006 10:22

My IL's give out presents on Boxing Day. They are only normally token presents ie under £10 but when you have 25 people to buy normal Christmas Day presents for it works out qute expensive when you have you buy 12 more things for people to open the following day as well.

My neighbours sprinkle glitter down the paths outside (its supposed to look like magic dust from the sleigh) Last year they did it outside our front door as well and in the morning Dh stood in it and then walked it all through the house, he was not amused

santasaltire · 07/12/2006 10:26

The first Christmas we spent with DH's mum and step dad was the year i was pregnant with DS1. She set up the video camera on top of tv, put everysingle present in middle of room, and said "sit down". Me, 7 months PG and she expected me to sit on floor. Anyway it turns out that they used to put all gifts in middle of floor, the oldest person would take one off the top, read it and give it to the person who it was for. They would then open it, watched by everyone else, then they would pick one off the pile and give it to whoever it was for. Took us four hours and there weren't even any kids. I soon put a stop to that. now, the DS open their santa presents, we have breakfast, and then all the others under the tree get opened. The DS can read so they hand them out, opening their own ones in the process. it;s chaos, but they have fun.
DH never had a stocking either. They never had turkey on Christmas day.

paulaplumpbottom · 07/12/2006 10:36

My MIL trys to get everyone to do a party piece. Me and My SIL never do it as it is sooooooooo hokey.

sunnysideup · 07/12/2006 10:55

unfortunately on Dh's side the family tradition appears to be attempting to sit on your arse for more hours than anyone else, completely ignoring all children present once the presents have been given out, making sure that most of the presents include brightly coloured sweets, smacking the kids for inevitably misbehaving, then sitting around some more talking about work and saying how Christmas is all for the kids really, isn't it.

sigh.

We're staying at 'ome this year as DH prefers our family tradition of having a lovely time

melrose · 07/12/2006 11:23

Just diving in a opening all your presents in a frenzied 5 mins with no one saying thank you to anyone, only spent xmas day with them once and hated it! In my family we hand presents out from under the tree one at a time and watch each other open them, much nicer!

My family gained table prtesents when my StepDad joined us. But as it his tradition he usually buys them so it is OK!

TEEstheCEEsontobejolly · 07/12/2006 11:26

Yep, my DH and his family open their presents late too, after dinner. I let my 2 open their presents the minute they wake up like I always used to.

NOELallie · 07/12/2006 12:50

sunnysideup - my DH's family could sit on their arse's as an Olympic sport!! I get so antsy sitting there. Only done Christmas once and I hated it. Kids told to sit quietly - no can't watch TV as the adults are talking, can't run around 'cos the flat is full of junk that mil won't chuck away, and no-one would ever dream of taking them out to the park for a while to let off steam!! At the time DH's 2 neices were very 'musical' (or so mil described it ) and we were treated to about 2 hours of agonising playing on every fr*gging instrument under the sum and singing. It was hell!

Also mil totally failed to cope with cooking for that many people and the meal was mostly cold - and she got really stressed and snappy. So she comes to my house mostly these days so I can do it properly

meowmix · 07/12/2006 12:55

does talking shite endlessly count?

"oooh mags look at that turkey..."
"ooh yes jean isn't it big"
"Da, Dad, DAD,DAD - look at that turkey.."
"oooh thats a big one isn't it..."

....

"oooh mags look at that christmas pudding.."
"ooh yes jean isn't it big...."

and repeat... all day...

and they wonder why I drink

hatwoman · 07/12/2006 13:00

re presnt unwrapping I see there are 2 camps - frenzied excitement vs civilised taking it in turns. the adults on our houses are pretty civilised ie we physically give them to each other and say thanks, but the kids are allowed to be chaotic. it all ends up chaotic anyway.

hatwoman · 07/12/2006 13:00

lol meowmix.

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