Countdown to 2016 - a whole extra day to wait.

[AbbyCadabby]

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[santa]

Lolly you need to go on eBay (or there's a brilliant site for All Things Festive that you didn't know you needed)

Look at the Christmas teatowels and sigh
"Oh that's very similar to mine. Only £2.47. Oh, wait. £30.72 P&P. from Arizona. Or one from China , free p&p but it'll take 49 days. Will it arrive before Christmas. Hmmmm"

Keep doing intermittant sighs
"Oh that one is out of stock. Oh Dear"

He needs to know the error of his ways.

Would it be really weird to spend my birthday money on some lovely white and gold crockery to stash in my Christmas cupboard?

You need to post a link on the aforementined lovely white and gold crockery Woolly then we can all pass judgement

This is it (I hope) - my table is usually white and gold and purple and I have so far used my ordinary off white crockery on gold charger plates. Some gold and white crockery would make me very happy. DH gave me the look tonight when I mentioned it - buuuuttt it's my birthday and I can drop the C (Christmas) bomb if I like.

It's very nice Woolly and it's a really good feeling putting something in the Christmas Cupboard.
You can easily use those on other celebration days (tell DH you want them for special occasions anyway and roll his look right back at him )

261
Spending money on Christmas crockery is an investment. Think of all the years it will bring you pleasure

Belated Happy Birthday Wooly!! Lovely crockery choice, and it is totally suited to other occasions too!! (I got round red sequined placemats for Christmas 2014, forgot where I'd stashed them, found them in Feb last year, and then managed to not have Christmas at home again, so they MAY get used for Christmas 2017!!).

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Nice round number

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[fgrin ]

I have a wedge of newspaper that I'm sorting through (taking the staples out ) and I've saved the Christmas supplements and TV pages (from 2015) to scan through later. (They're for the guinea-pigs)
Give me ideas about what foods I could try next year and what delights I need

I didn't watch "The Stickman" but DD says she did. (I must've been cooking )

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70 I have a stack of Christmas Good Housekeeping and BBC Good Food magazines - looking through the new edition Christmas GH is a real treat each year. It must be done with a cup of tea and an empty house. Bliss.

I don't think we watched Stickman either but I remember the year The Gruffalo was first broadcast. DS was about 5 and could recite the complete text of the book (as could the rest of the family). He was enthralled.

256 Stick Man was great, we recorded it and watched it umpteen times already! I have my eye on the spode Christmas tree dinner set.

nick I think these might be cheaper Dawsons but I can't find a dinner service set so it looks like you have to buy the individual pieces. In your link the dinner plates were £45 for a set of 4 and Dawsons sell them for £5.70 each so £22.80 for 4 - assuming my dodgy Tuesday morning maths is correct.

I bought my Spode bits from them and they send me emails with codes for an extra 10 and 15% off from time to time too.

I have Christmas editions of Good Housekeeing, Good Food, Woman and Home etc for the past 15 years. Not all every year. But they are kept in a basket for when I want some inspiration!

I will say, part of my planning would have worked very well last year had all gone to plan! We opened the bottle of M&S port over the weekend to have with cheese, first chance we've had since then, and it was delish and also just perfectly small for 2 people. Must bear that in mind for next year and build in a "Christmas back at home" night once we return from visiting! The desert wine will probably only get used then anyway.

ooh TheWoollybacksWife you are a star, I need a setting for 6 so the plates, side plates and bowls from there do indeed work out cheaper, I already have the cups (which are tiny and awful!) so that with a serving bowl is £107..... Oh god that is a lot of money but a bargain, what shall I do???

Oooh love love LOVE the Spode crockery. I'm going to have to build up a collection. DH came home with his shift pattern yesterday - he is off on Christmas Day!! He will be at home for Martha's first Christmas .

Nick

Buy it over a few months.... £40 here and there isn't anywhere near as scary as spending £100 in one hit.

Good to hear that DH will have Christmas Day with Martha.

TKMaxx / HomeSense have Spode/Portmerion , worth a look , but well before Christmas. Usually round Hallowe'en , but I got some one year in September!

I love GH and W&H at Christmas, I only really buy magazines Christmas and when I go on holiday.
My plan is to buy a wedge of mags,brew a pot of coffee and sit down with a notepad/pen or Post It Notes to mark thing. Never managed it yet .

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Nick the code FRIENDS can be used for an extra 15% off cookware and tableware at Dawson's. That means an extra £16 off your £107 total. That's practically free

I was going to give out the Woolly for being so naughty, but it IS in the aim of a good Christmas and planning ahead means not blowing the budget.

Nick I thoroughly recommend getting some nice ware for good (if it's purely Christmas, so what?!).

I spent a few minutes after seeing the chatter yesterday wandering around Googleland to various lovely US suppliers of Christmas ware....maybe I will see what my DBro could bring home from Canada in the summer!!

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Not a lot of Christmas today - still in "organizing camp" mode. But I did spend some time browsing and purchasing in the bookshop, including a nice book that I think 1 DSis will enjoy in her stocking.

Otherwise, yell at child to get ready, commute, work, commute, childcare, shovel in food, housework, yell at child to go to bed (having asked politely 100+ times), sleep, ...repeat on a loop.

DH, having left home at 4.30am Wednesday, got home at 12.30 last night (flight delayed over an hour), left just after 7.30am this morning. Home Sunday lunchtime. Gone Monday before 5.30am, back Wednesday late evening. He'll have spent roughly 25 hours in his own house (including a trip to the "Ideal Homes" exhibition on sunday afternoon) over the course of a full week. And at least 3 days travelling the following week. But MIL still giving him guilt about not spending enough time with her (rings daily and is spending all weekend down there). She sees him more than me!!

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I got three £2 coins this weekend for my £2 tin, I do wonder where they all
disappear off to.............into savings jars no doubt.

I aim to save £4-£6 a week, it adds up for guilt free shopping