Dream Christmas for two

[BaoWow]

Every year, Christmas is stressful because I host for my family, but at my sister’s house (to accommodate her small children). This involves dinner on Christmas Even for 22 people, then Christmas Dinner for 18. I never get to cook what I want because of picky eaters and it’s just generally stressful and rushed. By 5pm on Christmas Day I’m tired and left questioning why I bother. It’s all rushed because there are lots of small kids, and there’s no appetite from my family to enjoy a board game or a film- everyone is kind of in their own group just eating and watching tv.

This year, it’s different. My sister will be abroad with her husband’s family and my brother and his wife have offered to host. The inference is that I will do all the shopping and cooking, as I always do.

I think this is my opportunity to have an amazingly peaceful Christmas with just me and my husband. We don’t have kids, live rurally, and very much like relaxing and a bit of luxury.

So, if you were us, what would your plans be for Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and Boxing Day?

Stay in bed with champagne

Last Christmas Rick Stein did a package deal to Padstow which included a hotel and about 10 meals across the three days. If I didn't have children I'd have been straight down the M5!!

A cruise

Just to say, we don’t want to travel.

We just want to be home in our own house for the first time ever at Christmas.

Loving the idea of three days of bed and booze, @Egghead68

Hunker down at home, Chinese on Xmas eve (if you're not too rural, it's somehow become our tradition), something lovely but relatively easy, fillet steak or a prepared Wellington from a decent butcher. Champagne, cocktails and crappy TV.

Boxing Day - have you got a pub within walking distance? We go to watch the Morris dancing, a few drinks and something to eat, home for more tv and cheese.

Not hosting Christmas has been a revelation for us.

If I was you I’d be flying out somewhere hot and relaxing! I certainly wouldn’t be in the cold, cooking Christmas lunch.

Sort out what you’re eating and buy/order/plan it.

I’d do a walk on each day, have the radio times opened and circled, and I’d not be answering the phone to anyone.

I would tell everyone I was turning my phone off for a few days (and genuinely would.)

Christmas Eve: hot chocolate at a cafe somewhere, home for a long soak in a bubble bath then lobster, scallops and champagne in the evening.

Christmas Day: I'd cook a grass-fed fillet steak, chunky chips, green beans and peppercorn sauce. Something decadent that's not too faffy. Loads of red wine, chocolate and watching TV.

Boxing Day: lie in bed then a long walk to a country pub with an open fire for a meal and a couple of drinks. A board game and more TV in the evening.

I love, love, love Christmas Mass - I don't think you need to be religious to enjoy it but it usually has such a lovely atmosphere.

Def a walk in morning, it's always an extra cheerful greeting you get from people...

I would be tempted to drive to the coast on Christmas eve. Or even Christmas day. I love it at the coast, and before dc I used to do tjis, made my heart feel soothed!

DO IT,DO IT,DO IT, DO IT, (you get the drift?)

Spent years trekking back and forth between parents in laws etc. The first year we stayed in our own home I was miserable as I didn't think it would be nice - it was wonderful and since then I refuse to leave my home in Christmas Eve until re day after Boxing Day. It's champagne for breakfast for God's sake !!

@FireworkParrot that plan sounds perfect!!!

Spend Christmas at a luxury hotel and forget about the extended family for once.

www.warnerleisurehotels.co.uk/breaks/festive-breaks

If you're expected to cook and shop for the Xmas meal, then your brother isn't hosting in the traditional sense. He's just giving you a kitchen to cook and pay for his Christmas Dinner........sounds a bit frugal on his part.

We did this two Christmases ago OP and it was blissful. Takeaway Christmas eve, canapes and champagne until late Christmas goose Christmas day, with ALL the Christmas films and a good beach walk on boxing day. Doing it again this year and I cannot WAIT!

I would love to do this!

Personally I’d book a Christmas package somewhere like The Fish or just go somewhere hot. But if you’re set on staying at home, the most decadent food, lots of champagne, a Dishoom naan kit for Christmas morning and then maybe something like a Hawksmoor cook at home kit for Boxing Day. Or if I was feeling really lazy I’d just nibble on M&S party food for the whole 3 days.

We’ve had a few christmases alone, so we’re pretty good at it now (although I’m due our first later this year so it won’t be just the two of us for while).

We wake up. Lounge about in bed for a bit. When we get up, DH starts the fire and I put the frozen pastries in the oven. DH opens the Buck’s Fizz. We pour a glass each and put the presents into piles while we wait for the pastries to cook. Having eaten our fresh from the oven pastries and drank a glass each, we start opening the presents. Generally do the dogs presents first, then we take in turns to open one each. Open the chocolates along the way. We then finish the rest of the plonk and let the fire die down.

We put our Christmas jumpers on and take the dogs for a walk. Come back, get the fire going again. We might get changed into something nicer, sometimes we stay in the Christmas jumpers. FaceTime our parents and wish them a merry Christmas. We both start cooking dinner and we do something really fancy as we can both cook and do enjoy making a bit of effort. This year we might just have a really nice steak and chips. We have all the timings written down next to the oven, so if something comes up (we once had someone break down outside our house and they knocked on the door asking for help as we were about to start) then we just delay and write over the timings. No stress about things being late. There’s plenty to snack on if we’re hungry as we always do a large meal on the 23rd so there’s always leftover from that.

If there’s a decent film on, we’ll watch that. Otherwise we’ll entertain ourselves. DH might play his game and I’ll read or crochet. Open the wine while cooking and eat dinner whenever. Roll back to the living room and then it’s time to open the baileys/gin/rum/whiskey. Oh and another box of chocolates. Graze on leftovers for the rest of the evening and play fridge Tetris to get everything to fit back in.

We did this last year, just the two of us and it was utter bliss not having to deal with any family

Christmas Eve - long walk, celebrate being nowhere near a shop, come home, watch a film ( Christmassy or not), cook a lovely dinner - absolutely anything you enjoy. We did Rick Steins Carne con Chile. Cocktails and lovely wine if that's your thing

Christmas Day - I got up and did a workout, out for another walk, cooked a roast chicken dinner, telly with whiskey and chocolate

Boxing Day - honestly can't remember

Or stay in bed for three days! The whole point is you get to please yourselves, and don't have to entertain anyone. And you have loads of time to plan! Enjoy the hell out of it

I’m so envious; we usually have Christmas just the two of us and it’s bliss, but we have to go to the in laws for a big family Christmas this year, so we’ve had to push ours back to New Years Day.

We’re very traditional (we love the full turkey dinner) but it’s all done at our pace. We spend a lot of money on delicious food & drink and we spoil each other rotten. If we want to nip down to the beach for a walk with a flask of hot drink, we do. If we want to sit around in our pyjamas and eat chocolates, we can. It’s utter bliss. I think that the key is to discuss what you both want (so one of you isn’t dreaming of a military planned Christmas and the other of a three day sleep) and enjoy each other’s company.

If I were you my plans would be this:

Christmas Eve , 3-6 mile walk incorporating pubs . We tend to do a shorter walk now because we have children but that's what we did pre children! Especially if you live rurally! Then home for lunch (if you didn't eat at the pub). Fire on, mulled wine. Play some scrabble. Last minute wrapping. Maybe even find a church service on.

Christmas Day- posh breakfast (dh loves salmon, I don't) but with a bottle of champagne to share. Then mooching around, opening gifts etc. Then cooking your roast together with a bottle of red :).

Boxing Day is usually our tidy up day!

We love settling down early Christmas eve so a takeaway and a movie or two. Christmas day a long lie, homemade waffles for breakfast, open presents, take time making nice dinner when we feel like it or just do snacks. Movies or maybe a tv series or read a book.

Boxing day I wouldld go shopping and eat out

Get up, luxury breakfast and then have Christmas dinner in the evening. You can do presents before that and then it’s relaxed and you can eat when it’s dark by candlelight, much better than at lunchtime! Boxing Day walk to a local pub

We’re very traditional (we love the full turkey dinner) but it’s all done at our pace. We spend a lot of money on delicious food & drink and we spoil each other rotten. If we want to nip down to the beach for a walk with a flask of hot drink, we do. If we want to sit around in our pyjamas and eat chocolates, we can. It’s utter bliss. I think that the key is to discuss what you both want (so one of you isn’t dreaming of a military planned Christmas and the other of a three day sleep) and enjoy each other’s company

Love this. We’ve had a rough year (legal issue, pretty severe health issue, a bereavement, unwell relatives) so the idea of just closing the door on the world is very, very appealing.

I had a little think today and came up with this-

Christmas Eve
Spend the morning picking up any last minute bits, wrap the end of the presents (I LOVE wrapping), plan to be on the couch by 3pm with a Bailey’s coffee and a cheesy Christmas film, ideally Elf.
Then, maybe a chessboard that night with charcuterie and lovely bread and lots of olives and champagne. Might make a batch of blinis for smoked salmon.
Watch another film, likely Die Hard and argue with DH about whether or not it is a Christmas film (it is not).

Christmas Day
Lie-in til maybe 10am then a big cooked breakfast. Thinking maybe a glass of champagne with apricot purée.
Open presents, admire all of my new diamonds (I will not be getting diamonds, but if I am planning my dream Christmas…), laze around and start prepping dinner at about 1pm with the aim of eating around 3-ish.
I’m not a fan of turkey. DH loves it, but could be talked into fillet steak or beef Wellington. Maybe with potato gratin, green beans, a very nice gravy, roast potatoes, and yorkies.
Nice bottle of red to go with it.
And port.
Gentle music, instead of the usual noise of small children who aren’t mine on Christmas Day.
Then maybe a little snooze on the couch in front of yet another film.
More Bailey’s.
Game of Scrabble.
Will squeeze in a dessert somewhere.
Box set.
All accompanied by cocktails and chocolates.

Boxing Day
Sleep until we wake.
Another cooked breakfast.
Nice walk to blow off cobwebs.
Back home for more Bailey’s board games and tv.
No set dinner. Just heaps of cheese and bits.

We’re very good-orientated

Book a holiday!

(I actually have)

@BaoWow

Sorry just seen you'd prefer not to travel.

In that case, lots of lovely, well thought out food, no rushing.

Carols from Kings on Christmas Eve a special cocktail and special dinner, a film and a walk on Christmas Day (mince pies and mulled wine for a pit stop if it's not raining) Boxing Day - lie in, tv and no real cooking, indulge in leftovers.

That's what I tend to do most of the time.

What you said @21:48:56 , but the week before christmas book 4 days in Vienna. Go to the christmas markets. Go to see the Lippizzaners. Go and have taflspitz at Plachuta. Go and eat proper sacher torte and visit the opera.

then what you said.

Sounds bliss. But why I earth do YOU end up hosting at your sister's?