Your best - or worst - Christmas memory?

[jo10000]

Mine was the same Christmas. Finally had a little girl (adopted) after years of trying for a child but mum, who was hosting, was sick in bed all day. (Many people in family sick before, during or after that Christmas!) It snowed, but that meant family might not come to Christmas evening party and when they did one had had a car accident in the snow. What do you have fond, or not so fond, memories of?

My worst Christmas would be 2002 my dad found out he had bowel cancer had the operation all went well got out a few days before Xmas. For Christmas Day he stayed in bed wanting everyone to run around after him which wasn't easy as he had an affair good few months prior. I had a lot of resent towards him didn't want anything to do with him but did for my mother! They are still together I've forgiven him but will never forget. I have lots of great memories at Christmas I love Christmas but it would be 2009 my now Dh proposed to me on 17th of December it was lovely and unexpected even tho I was 5 months pregnant on our ds. We now have 2 children so Christmas is even more special and do lots of lovely family things together leading up to Christmas!

Xmas 2009 was my worst, but nothing like as awful as some here. My DH had been made redundant and was desperately looking for work. My salary covered our rent only. His mum in Oz had terminal cancer and in November he'd gone out there for her last days, but she lingered on in pain. I missed him so much and getting to work that Winter was awful. I had a bad fall on the ice on the way to the station and hurt my hip, and I was being bullied at work. On Christmas Eve I came down with the worst case of norovirus I've ever had. I spent Christmas day unable move anywhere but to the loo, and I streamed about 9 episodes back to back of the TV show True Blood all through Christmas Eve in the dark. Who doesn't love Vampires at Christmas? Not thinking straight there at all. I was in a haze, unable to see anyone, and lost half a stone. DH's mum passed at the end of Jan 2010. Awful time.

to so may of you and so sorry for your losses.

Best and worse as a child are the same couple of days. My dad had been made redundant again (Newcastle in the early 80's) so there was no money. We got bikes after dad did some paving for the guy who owned a bike shop near us. My brother got a BMX, my little brother a black bike with yellow on and I got a red raley apple with a white basket. We dragged them up stairs and onto mam and dads bed to show them what Santa brought! Then my little brother rode his down the stairs into a plate glass door meaning an ambulance and a few hours in a&e.

A couple of years later dad was out of work again and begged and borrowed the bits to make me a dolls house. It was amazing. The nearest thing to it now would be one of the massive kidkraft ones from Costco. It was wallpapered and carpeted and had loads of handmade furniture. It was beautiful, a true work of art. A girl at school bullied me for years because we were too poor to have a 'proper' Barbie dolls house. I'm ashamed to admit I sort of hated the dolls house for a while.

Growing up in poverty I have too many of these stories 😟

The best as an adult was when DD was 4 and got Christmas. It was the first year we iced the cake together, made decorations and had at home, just the 3 of us. It was perfect. Playing with DD, drinking wine with DH and just relaxing.

Worst as an adult was when I worked away at 20 and was on my own Christmas day, my wages hadn't been paid so no nice food, just some plain pasta, no presents because no-one had posted them in time. Noone remembered to phone me on the day either, so I was completely alone.

The first Christmas after my dad died my mum went hysterical in the middle of Christmas dinner. I was 11 and DSis was 6. We had to go and fetch the neighbours. I hated Christmas for a long long time after that and there are certain 1980s Christmas songs that I can't listen to, to the point I have to walk out of shops if they come on. It was over 30 years ago.

My worst Christmas was my DM's last. She was in hospital Christmas Day and I just wanted to put Christmas on hold until she was better. She died a few months later.

My best was when my DH proposed on Christmas Day.

Truly sorry to read some of the stories on here

My best and worst are the same one. I went into hospital on the early hours of Christmas Eve with pre eclampsia and HELLP syndrome. I was very unwell and the delivery was complicated. We made it through though, and the staff made what could have been traumatising, quite an exciting, fun time.

Christmas day that year was spent hooked up to a magnesium drip in labour ward, feeling the worst I've ever felt. But it was also my best as me and ds made it through safely, I got to give my parents and pils a grandchild for Christmas, and dh a son.

Best of all though was that when my Dad brought my three year old dd in, he brought a massive sack of presents for her, then went home and cooked me, dh and dd a massive christmas dinner, complete with gravy in a flask. I was finally up to food and after watching dd enjoy her gifts and ds take to breastfeeding like a pro, a Christmas dinner was exactly what I needed. I did feel awful and the recovery was tough, but I'd go back to that day in a heartbeat.

actually dh story;his dad was a ww2 vet and they were struggling to keep things going.dh and sil were 3and 5/he woke up in the wee hours xmas eve.his dad was crying,because he had found 2 bicycles in a junk yard and spent weeks rebuilding and sprucing them up.someone stole them out of the car.it didnt concern dh that the toys were lost it was his dad crying saying "what are we going to do for xmas".he had never seen him cry.doesnt remember what xmas was like but knowing my amazing Mil she managed somehow.

best was 6'5" 250lb husband dressed as an elf(tights and all),giving out presents to children in need ,while i sat with huge belly full of twins soon to be born,new year babes
second best was becoming a godmother 2minutes after midnight.to niklos
so sorry for those who lost loved ones,

Best/funniest: Christmas 2007. We forgot to get the turkey out the freezer until midday on Christmas Eve when my mother - who never swears - suddenly shouted "FUCK" and ran out the room. We were all like Eh?! Until she came back in and explained. We had cheese sandwiches for Christmas lunch and sat down to the turkey about 9pm Christmas Day. We still laugh about this now. Looking back, it wasn't that funny in the first place, but it's something that amuses us!

I honestly haven't experienced a really bad Christmas - although there have been a couple of being too poor to get people decent gifts and feeling horribly guilty - but my heart really does go out to those who have found Christmas a difficult time.

Christmas was generally pretty crap in hindsight as a child due to weird parents. My best christmases are generally since having my own children, especially now they're old enough to really enjoy it.

Worst Christmas for me personally was last year, DS was injured and we had to call an ambulance and spent the day in A&E.

THIS year is going to be a good Christmas!

Very sorry for all those who have experienced loss at Christmas. I hope this year's Christmas is peaceful for you all x

A Lot of these stories have put so much into perspective for me.

So sorry to everyone that’s suffered losses and had awful christmases.

My worst Christmas, I was single for the first time in a long time. I had been working nightshift and came back home to an empty flat. My parents were 500 miles away visiting (other) family. I felt like I couldn’t even get anyone on the phone to talk to. Had to work the next day, which actually wasn’t so bad.

My best Christmas was the first Christmas I spent with DP and his family. I felt like one of the family.

My worst was Christmas 2000. I was at university and we all got thrown out of halls. I had a boyfriend but we had an almighty row as I turned 19 towards the end of November and went out for a joint birthday/Christmas thing at the start of December with some girls from my course and he decided I was flirting with some lads and blah blah blah. It turned into the mother of all arguments and I left him. Rang my dad who nervously said something about maybe for one night. Turned up at home and my stepmother crucified me as my dad did nothing. I left on Christmas Eve and then to top it all off my car broke down and my boyfriend was working Christmas Day. So I spent Christmas Day 2000 in an Asda car park.

No wonder I hate Christmas!

Oh my goodness. Such stories. I've tears streaming down my face reading them... big festive hugs to y'all...

to everyone on this thread.

It’s a memory, but not sure whether worst or best! Visiting my terminally ill mother in hospital on Christmas Day (she died two weeks later). A lovely nurse taking orders for lunch ‘Mrs Salinger! It’s Christmas Day! Would you like some turkey or the vegetarian option for lunch?’. My famously abrasive mother ‘Bugger that - i’ll have pethidine... and gin’.

My worst would be the one my paternal Grandfather died. My Father was in the military posted abroad at the time and my Mum hates his family. This year for some reason or another she convinced him to lie to his parents and say we were staying in Germany when in fact we were returning to the UK to spend Christmas with her family.

Box Day my Grandfather had a massive stroke. My Grandmother phoned our home in Germany, got no answer and then tried Dad at work. Of course he wasn't there and she was told he was on leave in the UK spending Christmas with family. My parents promptly blamed each other and started a screaming fight which lasted hours. He died before my Dad got to see him and the rift between my paternal Grandmother and my Mother has not improved over the years.

Worst Christmas was when I was about 14 and I went to my dads for Christmas Day. He was alcoholic and spent the day in bed with a bottle of vodka. No tree, no presents, no Christmas dinner. I sat on my own all day watching tv.

Best Christmases have been a few:
When I was about 7 and it snowed. My dad had arranged with a friend to hang lots of little tiny presents from a massive fir tree in his garden, it was beautiful and magical picking the presents from the tree as the snow fell and a herd of (fallow) reindeer appeared from the woods. I’ll never forget that.

When I was about 5 and I got a pink knitted Jumper from Father Christmas with my name across the chest

Christmases since we’ve had ds have been magical and seeing his face on Christmas morning is the best.