Best Christmas Tips - all in one place

[Kirst26]

I thought we could have a tips thread where we could share tips relating to Christmas budget, planning, food, household things etc all in one place that help remove stress and hassle!

Mine would be:

• Parboil the potatoes a day or 2 before Christmas and then keep them uncovered in the fridge, they develop a starchy crust that roasts up beautifully
• Stock up on bin bags, toilet roll, ibuprofen, ketchup etc before December, its an expensive enough month without having to get too many basics in as well
• Sign up for newsletters for places like Clinton Cards and you usually get 10% off your first order
• Start buying things like peanuts etc before the Christmas stuff hits the shops, it'll be cheaper if they aren't in Christmas packaging
• If you start buying non-perishable food early make sure to have a list where it can easily be ticked off so you don't end up duplicating things
• Plan the Christmas dinner out as soon as you know the weight of your turkey with resting time factored in - you'll soon notice if that would mean getting up at 4am and would be able to move eating time to later on in the day with no fuss. I have a full timetable typed up that I just amend the time I need to start putting things in depending on the turkey size - keeps me calm :)
• Check how long the meat will need to defrost as it always takes way longer than I think it will
• if gifting choccies etc, best tell the recipient not to keep it next to the fire/radiator

If anyone has any other top tips please share them here!

I cover a cardboard box with wrapping paper for each person and as gifts are opened and played with they have a place to put them with all the little bits.
The children then often drag their box into the other room to go through them again.
We also have a note book so I can jot down who the presents were from.
A shoebox, again covered in wrapping paper on the coffee table with scissors, notebook, pen etc in.

And yes yes to two identical stockings so one can be filled in advance and swapped!

My top tip is that’s it’s just a posh roast dinner and that if you feel overwhelmed it’s just a day so try any enjoy yourself.
After finishing wrapping I am going to buy more gift bags next year! Get in early to B&M or similar and buy big toy bags! I’ve just wrestled odd shaped toys into paper!
Make your own cranberry sauce. Buy cranberries and cover with fresh orange juice and some brown sugar to your taste. Heat in saucepan until they have popped and are soft.
Bailey’s is just whiskey, condensed milk, single cream and some Camp coffee.
Merry Christmas!

Buy everything in advance. Order stuff online etc. Take advantage of deals on wine especially and make lists too. Make the most of loyalty cards in addition to that.

Keep gift bags in a drawer at home and find out about Xmas events in advance on top of that. Delegate tasks, food preparation and the like to other family members to prevent overwhelming tiredness. Color code everything for ease of reference.

Be aware of dates for cards and dates in general here. Prepare a list of activities/films/music for Christmas parties.