Next christmas, I am going to ....

[janaus]

Next christmas, I am going to ...

Buy less cheese I've said this for the past four years and still buy enough to feed an army

Buy less alcohol ditto

Send cards in good time

Enjoy my teenagers more as neither of them will have mock A levels to revise for / massive assessments to complete over Christmas

Stick to my list :) I've created tables of recipients and everything for 2016.

Buy DS and DD (2 & 5 respectively next xmas) four gifts each and a stocking max.

Do a £50 limit wih dh again

Use the Gift List App again

Host Xmas Eve again but buy less food!

Start shopping in July

Vouchers for adults, gifts for kids

Do the same as this year, buy presents early enough and only for the kids. Go to the curry house on Xmas Day. We pleased ourselves and it worked fabulously.

Do not buy Amazon products before Black Friday. Grrrrrrr!

Send cards out earlier
Have all Christmas shopping done by Dec 1st (although it was my intention last year but it was Dh's fault )
Not go to crappy panto on xmas Eve . We booked to go this time because the Dc have never been to one and I loved them as a child - it was awful and ruined by babies crying.
Organise something exciting for New Years Eve.

Hate it even more....bah humbug. Roll on July.

Buy less - presents, decorations, food. Everything!
Put the decorations up later.
Not bother too much with christmas dinner. None of my family seem that bothered with food so it's no fun to cook for them!
Finally, get the flu jab in september! I've been stuck in bed for a week and while I'm finally starting to feel a lot more human, I still haven't the energy to get downstairs, never mind actually function, so chances are the stupid decorations will be up for another week because DH won't bother taking them down.

Construct all the teeny tiny playmobil bits before wrapping, rather than wrapping the box and spending an hour building in on Christmas morning (playmobil novice).

Invite fewer people - it was fun this year but a bit mad.

Take the week before up. I was in a new job this year so I worked until the 23rd and then had loads of cleaning and sorting to do on Christmas Eve. I'd much rather get that out of the way and have Christmas Eve doing family stuff.

Only decorate the top of the tree as I will have a toddler

• only do cards for the older generation & those who I don't see.
• do another shopping weekend in October with my sister, where I blitz most of my presents.
• eat less!
• do more online shopping
• book a day off work in December for last-minute things

Not be painting the hall 2 days before Christmas.

Write cards in May.

Do exactly the same.

Was bloody lovely, first time in beards.

Will avoid the shitty cold for us all though.

Don't want that as a tradition.

Have Christmas in my own home for the first time ever!

Will buy my Christmas cake next year, made one this year - not worth the faff.

dont send any cards. Oh same as this year then!!!

spend it on a beach somewhere far far away!

I am going to save each week, so it won't be so madly expensive in December. Yeah, right, lol

Do what's best for my family instead of fitting in with everyone else's

^this,
a quiter xmas with just us, we tried to accommodate older persons this year, asked if people were doing food, they never got back to me then did meaning I had also brought food, and over spent, I thought it would be nice for the children to be around more people but in actual fact they were boring and flat. next year will be putting us first.

janus

This year we still over spent however the blow was cushioned by a mere £10 per month, + £3 per week, into a sealed tin topped up by money from selling stuff, birthday money etc.
Surprising how it all added up in the end! It was a help and not too much to miss each week or month.

I like the idea of buying each family an experience rather than gifts. That's brilliant!

One good thing i did this year was buy early from the Christmas bargain thread which was excellent.

Buy less cheese.

Ditto

Tell my mum not to buy the children eight presents each. We don't need any more clutter.

Beards?

Don't get it.