I miss child free Christmas

[OctoblocksAssemble]

Stuck home for a second weekend due to illness, and suddenly I'm dreading Christmas. The winging, squabbling, inane chatter, climbing on me, pestering.
I just really miss the old days of drinking and watching crap TV, eating good food and enjoying a rest. Even if they are on good behaviour it's still going to be the endless being touched and talked at, sigh.
I do love my kids, just had a crappy year and missing the prospect of a rest.
I see lots on here about small kids making Christmas magical, anyone else not find this?

Children are magical with nostalgic hindsight. Not in the moment!

I get what you’re saying but these years will be gone in a blink. Try and find some happiness in it.

Christmas is the one thing children actually make better for once

I do get it. The magical Christmas thing is just one day. You still have the rest of the holidays to get through with things shut and the weather is rubbish and it's cold and gets dark early. You have my sympathy.

I do try to give the kids a nice Christmas, and yes, if they are happy then that will make me smile. I'm very grumpy today due to sleep deprivation.
Just feeling very nostalgic for the days when no one asked me to spend Christmas sat on the floor playing with toys, nerves shredded by periodic screaming and zero prospect of a peaceful morning in the kitchen, safe in the knowledge that my efforts will be appreciated and my afternoon will be spent on the sofa.
Disclaimer, I know I am lucky to have healthy-ish kids and I'm sure we will have some lovely Christmas's when they have grown up, lol.

This.

I get a bit jealous of people who manage to finish loads of boxsets / books over Xmas holidays.

How old are your children OP?

It's nice to have a rest

Are you putting too much pressure on yourself to make it a certain sort of occasion and, if so, could you let go of that and reduce some of the fuss?

I used to go into work for a day in the middle of Christmas week just to get some peace 😁

The children are bigger now so I don't bother, I can get peace at home.

They get more fun as they get older, OP. I've been to a carol concert and ice skating with mine this weekend, and we all had fun. And child loves a lie-in now. Hold on. The days are long, but the years are short.

Yeah, I get it @OctoblocksAssemble

It's really hard.

I adore my kids but I find it all just too much.

People say "enjoy every minute, they'll be grown up before you know it" and I get it. They are getting older and those baby stages are now gone forever....but fhe baby stage was hard! So was the toddler stage! It's all hard.

We have no help. No family nearby, haven't managed to find reliable babysitters. So we never get a break. It's just so relentless.

I know I am lucky to have my kids. But the way I quite often think about it is like wishing for a nice summer. You'd love a sunny summer of around 25 degrees. Perfect.

But instead of getting two months of 25 degree weather, you get two days of 50+ weather and are absolutely melting and screaming "too much! It's too much all at once! I didn't want it all at once!"

That's kind of how I feel with kids, everyday. There are some lovely moments, but they sprinkled amongst a load of absolute shit that you have to wade through.

The climbing. Omg the climbing. Or wedging themselves down between my back and the back of the sofa, putting their feet on my back and pushing so that I have to brace myself so as not to fall off the sofa. Trying to read them books and they're slapping the book around so I'm trying to read from a book that is MOVING and giving myself a migraine. Also begging me to read a book, I start reading and they just start screeching / talking over me.

So yeah, I get it. I would love just an afternoon off from all that.

I remember all those days but the acceptance they're only here every second Christmas quite hard, but do understand girlfriend has parents too .

So I do get it. I’m a lone parent and I actually would love to split Xmas with my ex! People look at me like I’m crazy but I would love a Xmas without my kids and would love to alternate the day. Last year all my kids did was argue and it absolutely ruined Xmas I actually felt so sad and then all the pressure on me to make sure they have a good Xmas I would like a Xmas off!

Thanks for all the comments. Dd slept a bit better last night, so I'm feeling less negative. Kids are early primary, so they are at least excited (and over hyped) for Christmas. I wouldn't say I go overboard at all, the food is all pre-prepped from the supermarket as I've learned from previous years that cooking from scratch whilst the kids nag me to play just isn't worth it. Oddly enough I do treasure all the cute little moments, enjoy the school carols etc. It's only when it comes to stuff I had a set way of celebrating that I struggle with not being free to do my thing.

Yanbu

YANBU OP.

Mine are 12, 14, 16 now, and I'm a single parent (have been since they were small).

For emotional & financial reasons, Christmas has been hard - I loved it pre-kids & with money!

I'm generally nostalgic but am not in the case of children & Christmas. It's over-laden with expectation & sentimentality, will expose any under-currents of sadness or loneliness and can be stressful.

I'm not quite there but this year have worked very hard on accepting the imperfections of my Christmas, being clear about a plan with my DC, and as they are older now, those small kid demands will be less, and that does allow some of the Christmas pleasures to return.

(The trade off is instead of clamouring for me to play, my 2 DSs will be expecting prolonged time on Xbox & I'll be the one feeling twitchy at no family time. The solution has been already to agree the timings of this, during which I'll walk / run / read, perhaps with DD)

Time to make a plan with your DH that allows you have some time for what you want, even micro elements of same.