Countdown to Christmas 2024: And So We Begin (Thread 1)

[NoWordForFluffy]

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It's a leap year next year, so an extra day to wait!

I've ordered 120 baubles today, as WeRChristmas sent me a 50% code for today only. Annoyingly I could get our new tree way cheaper today! 😭

I'm exhausted now I've finally had time to sit and relax. Tomorrow is a chill day.

It's all about the chocolate here. More celebrations than you can shake a stick at and three boxes of matchmakers. The Christmas cake hasn't been touched either but it's only 4" square - I might take it to knit and natter next week and share it out.

I've got two bottles of mulled wine and I'm doing dry January 😢

Ah, we have some crisps and also Matchmakers. They're rather synthetic-tasting though.

Matchmakers had a weird taste - I'm on very limited chocolate so I thought it was just me ! We bought the mint ones a couple of days before Christmas so fresh . But to me they tasted powdery like plaster ( I don't go round licking plaster but you can imagine ) My taste has been dodgy since Covid .
DS and DD didn't notice .

We didn't buy any big tubs for Christmas either .

Fluffy I've damaged an old filling which means I need a root canal and possibly a crown. Private treatment here is going to start at £400 ish but likely more. Plus I'd have to have an initial check and X-ray which tends to be £100-150 on top.
With the NHS it's under a price cap of around £250.

I don't really understand why I have to be referred on somewhere and why my dentist can't do it, but I was so stressed when I got to the appointment I didn't ask. I've gone back to ask since and am waiting for an answer but the gits don't work weekends. I'll likely be chasing answers on Monday and will make a plan from there.

🤬 at your bin collections. That's ridiculous! What goes in your grey bin?

Wreck are you ok? Have been there with the cry in the shower.

We have a small amount of cheese left.
DH received a LOT of biscuits & chocolates as teacher presents so they're piled in the kitchen.

We've given away a box of QS, celebrations and cookies.
Currently have Ferrero Rochers and shortbread open but the stash will last months

That sounds very expensive, Crazy. I hope you get something sorted.

Grey bin is non-recyclable waste. I'm rather annoyed with the council though.

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Went shopping with DD (she got her shoes finally)
Quite a few last ditch Christmas bargains out there but nothing I wanted to buy .

Went to the big new M&S ( it's moved into a vacated shop) didn't find the layout easy to blunder round . They didn't have the leggings in my size and when I went to order online they were OOS . I'll keep looking if they come back .

Loads of houses still with full on Christmas decor , lit up , not just switched off and waiting .
This time last year I went up to see my Mum , their local shopping centre still had decorations up on the 9th and a Christmas Shop (50% off )

@NoWordForFluffy our I sympatise. Our council does this almost weekly with our recycling boxes and food waste bins. They're meant to be emptied every Tuseday, so I drag them out front Monday night and pray they'll be emptied the following day. 9/10 They're not. We also have a very narrow pavement, so wheelchair users, mothers pushing prams, etc, can't comfortably walk on the pavement while our streets recycling boxes and food bins are left out for days blocking the path forcing everyone to walk on the main road 🤦‍♀️ "we'll be with tomorrow by 3pm" is the only response I get from them. Absolutely useless!

Sounds very much like our council, MaraMar. They drive me mad!

We took the lounge and hallway trees down last night. It's bloody dark without them! And we've only ever known our lounge with a tree up, so it's the first time we've not had a tree up in the house since moving in.

The kids wanted to keep their tree and the stair garlands / lighting, so we've said yes to that!

70, the M&S in Liverpool has moved into the old Debenhams building. And still feels cramped. The home department is tiny. It's weird!

Fluffy I’ve been considering getting a permanent garland for my stairs? Maybe a spring type one? Could then get a Halloween one (I hate Halloween but the dc like it…). It just looked so nice having it there!

Meeces I’m ok. Is your tooth still painful? If they’re managed to temporarily make it comfortable I would probably wait for the NHS one but agree it’s strange that they won’t do it at your own practice.

I decided to do a click and collect at Sainsbury’s today to try to stick to budget it’s only 50p for collection, dd wants a roast today (we only had one over Christmas).

Our recycling is being collected tomorrow. Can’t wait. It’s only been 2.5 weeks but we have a full bin plus 4 black bags of it.

By the sound of it we have been lucky in our area with the bins. They have only been 1 day behind scheduled collection date. We are quite fortunate too though that if needed our neighbour would happily let us use space in theirs.

We have too much rubbish food in the house. Must remember this year not to buy so much as we then get given as gifts too (will probably scupper myself and end up with no treats in December 😂)

Anyone used Facebook marketplace. We put a few christmassy bits on to give us some space back (trying to clear out and minimise what we have in general) couple of bits gone and collected. One woman collected something, we agreed a reduction and then when she handed us over the cash she was still down on the agreed price. It's not a disaster. Just a lesson.

Marketplace is a nightmare. Even when you give something away you get cheeky fuckers wanting delivery to the next town! Or it's £2.50, and they want it delivering to the other end of town. How about no?! 🙄🤣

Our grey bin was meant to only be a day behind. And they reckoned they'd catch up by Saturday. Yet still no bin collection has happened. We're new houses, so I'm wondering if we were somehow forgotten. Or they missed us out as none of us pay council tax registered to these houses as it takes the council FOUR months to process a change of address. Knobbers, anyway! 🤣

@NoWordForFluffy I think I will have to explore all my options better as there's stuff I can get rid of but if I can get a little bit of cash for it along the way even better.

I have bought off Facebook marketplace but I don't sell things. I have heard too many stories of people not turning up or being difficult to be bothered with it.

At work today. Working from home which is far easier when you just have to come downstairs and not travel.

Fluffy can you complain to your council? Glad it's not your food waste though!

70 there's not so much as a fairy light left up around here

Wreck the tooth is still really painful. The dentist didn't actually do anything except tell me what the issue was. I'm taking painkillers daily at the mo and last night I slept weirdly on it and it hurt so much it woke me up. I def can't wait months for the NHS so if my dentist can't help, private is going to be my only option.

I tried cold dipping/cold water therapy this morning. It's meant to be great for MH and I figured everything is worth a try.
Enjoyed it afterwards but not so much when I was in!

Have a quiet day planned today - some housework, a walk, visiting my dad for an hour then DH is out at 6ish and I'll be starting my new planner and watching some crime doc or other.
Aiming to have some semblance of a plan for the garden by the end of the evening. I miss the colour out there!

@Justhereforthechristmasthreads I use marketplace to sell large bulky items. Recently sold DDs Jumparoo, didn't have issues with price negotiation, but had issues galore when it came for the buyer to collect it and it ot took 5 collection attempts before I was rid of damn thing 😂

Hello lovelies please place your bets on how much i will manage to stay on thread this year!

Hope you all had a lovely christmas, bought a new tree for next year in the sales and DH is going mad because "the house is full of junk"

DC got train tracks as their main pressie - any suggestions on how to store because I already hate the bloody thing

Been back at work a week and i am miserable because I really hate January :(

352 Bloody freezing here today!
Got started on my diary/planner last night and have a vague plan for the garden.
I'm considering using one pot/planter for winter jasmine purely so there is colour out there in the winter.

Finally spoke to my dentist who confirmed they could do the treatment there, it would just need to be done by a different dentist to the one I usually see.

I'm so annoyed they weren't clear at all. Now I've got to call back on Wednesday to book it in as person who will do it isn't in until then and reception don't know how long a slot to book me in for.
Plus side is it'll be on NHS so will be a lot cheaper than private!

Does anyone here use Monzo? I've just opened an account with them as I like the idea of having separate saving pots for different things.

@NoCheesesForUsMeeces I'm glad you're finally getting it sorted!

I had a festive surprise this morning. Dsis and I, plus our youngest DC, go for a coffee at our favourite coffee shop every Monday morning, and they still had their christmas decorations up, including the 8ft christmas tree. Decorations were coming down this afternoon, according to the owner. It was nice to have one more day of sitting opposite the lovely tree and christmas lights, and it certainly brightened my Monday morning!

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Evening!

I appear to be germ-infested. 😩😩 Physical manifestation of stress, I reckon. I'm so tired...cough cough cough all night.

I'm glad you're making tooth progress, Meeces!

I have a Chase account which does similar to Monzo. I like it.

It was my office day today. Always exhausting.

350 freezing here! So busy at the moment too it’s a struggle with the short days.

Ah no Fluffy 😷 Is there any chance of you slowing down soon?

Waiting for the dentist to call me back with my appointment as their systems were down when I called.

Has everyone been hit by January blues? The thread is very quiet and the weeks after Christmas are always a bit flat

I'm on a mission to declutter. We are hoping to get some work done around the house in the next few months so I'm using this relatively quiet time to work through my craft stuff and wardrobes and get rid.

Yeah. Now the old house is done with, we can pootle about sorting this one. But with no deadline other than maybe next Christmas!

Seems like a bloody mission to get the tooth sorted all round, Meeces.

I'm waiting for a call back about the bloody bins. Still no grey bin emptied from last Weds and no sign of the brown bins going today now either. 😬 The lady I spoke to at the council is going to find out what's what and call me back.

Maybe my dentist and your bin men are in cahoots to annoy us Fluffy?

Buck I start every new year with a plan to declutter the house but lose momentum quickly

Am literally counting down the hours until I can turn my screen off today. I feel tired and flat despite sleeping relatively well the last few nights..