Season of mist and mellow fruitfulness...and ramping up those Christmas preparations! Countdown to Christmas 2024 (thread 3) (title edited by MNHQ @request of OP)

[NoWordForFluffy]

91

(Saves us checking the old thread tomorrow!)

Here goes, folks. New thread to see us through autumn!

I'm going to the Sherlock Carol Woolly! I like to see a different version each year.

I don't have a Christmas gonk and I feel like my life isn't complete
🤣🤣

I'm not a huge lover of gonks but your white one @Hopingforno2in2024 is strangely beguiling.
It might result in a Christmas decoration massacre here as MonkeyDog would probably shred him to pieces in a matter of minutes, if said gonk was left unsupervised.

64

Morning!

I think FluffyDog may well take exception to a gonk as well, Monkey. I've not seen a white (ghost!) gonk before!

It's office day today. I like being in the office, but not the getting there and back bit. Thank god it's only once a week!

Fortunately the cats just look upon him in confusion 🤣 I can't ever let DH and DS go shopping alone, this always happens!

Mixed fruit soaked overnight so Christmas cake will be baked today.

The Christmas cake is in the oven and the house smells of Christmas :)

Managed to get some gardening done today, well weeding and leaf clearing.

I love your Gonk Hoping. Its hilarious when husbands go shopping, years ago mine brought back a massive blow up Santa from Costco. It still gets blown up every year and sometimes we put it on the balcony. Its quite funny.

I've just returned from lidl with two carrier bags full of lebkuchen and their Xmas crisps.

I remember going in early December one year and I was told that stock was out and gone months before!!

My duck is aksing safely in the freezer, last year apparently there was a duck shortage and it turned into a mammoth

Misson to get one so I'm super pleased it's safely freezer.

I'm off to Lidl tomorrow as I have a decent voucher to spend. I shall hopefully finish my Christmas snack purchases!

My DH is also a law unto himself when it comes to shopping hoping.
He says he doesn't really like Christmas and that I go to OTT for him - however, when shopping on his own he has bought:

1. A random flocked, pre-lit Christmas tree that we did not need.
2. An extra potted real tree for outside
3. A 'twiggy' tree - then another one when the first one didn't work, which he insisted on keeping even after the first one was fixed within 5 minutes 🙄
4. A garland that was about 8 foot long "for the mantelpiece" (that is a 1.2 meter beam). This was sent back.

I am getting nowhere fast with my Christmas shopping. My head is in the shed. Any ideas for couples who have everything (I have 3 to buy for) would be much appreciated!

Hey, Meeces!

Bottle of champagne each? What's your budget?

Great minds Fluffy! I was going to suggest that or a really nice box of chocolates.

Holdsworth chocolates from John Lewis are lovely and a box of chocolates is easy to wrap

@NoCheesesForUsMeeces
Have a look on Etsy.
They do some nice goodie boxes for 2.
I bought a night in/cinema night one for my SIL and partner last year and it went done well.
It had flavoured popcorn, sweets and chocolates in it.

I think they did other boxes like wellness.

63 Morning. Cold one here today and we have big plans to go to our first ever toddler group and the park this afternoon 😳

Thanks for the gift ideas. Budget is only £20 per couple as it's we've stopped doing proper presents for each other and buy for a local charity instead however, the last 2 years they've all also bought a little something for us so I want to do the same this year.

A bottle of something and some chocs will work for 1 couple but not the other 2 - 1 couple are on strict weight loss diets and don't drink and the other are health fanatics who also don't drink 🙄

Morning!

Cremant might be a nice alternative to champagne.

The other two couples sound a touch awkward to buy for! Board games?!

Ooh a game could definitely work for one of them (the health nuts).
The other couple are my ILs. They have everything they need for their home, they go out loads separately and when they socialise together it tends to be going for dinner in places I couldn't afford, plus they buy themselves whatever they need/want throughout the year. It's hard to buy for them but I want to get them something as they're lovely and they've been extra amazing lately, cooking and delivering dinners, buying LO things, doing research for us - they even took 2 loads of washing off us and returned them washed, dried and ironed.

Do they garden? How about a rose bush or something else that'll last?

They sound very helpful!

My Dad difficult to buy for and I nearly always get him something for the garden - last year was a waist height vegetable planting table thing. Or a make it yourself hamper to suit what they like.

My DS bought me a posh set of tea bag selections and 2 le creuset mugs last year that I really loved.

@NoCheesesForUsMeeces as an homage to your username 😊

cheesy

Ooh, I'd forgotten I'd taken a photo of the advent calendar we have last night. I had to empty the wardrobe in preparation for its removal! Here it is!

@NoWordForFluffy
That is exactly the kind of advent calendar I had as a child!!
It's beautiful.

FIL used to garden but he was a lot less interested this summer. Not sure why.
They do like to have a house full of flowers though so will get a nice bouquet to go along with whatever else I buy.

That advent calendar is lovely Fluffy Is it picture only?

The calendar is picture only, yes. It's properly retro (other than the lack of glitter!).

We had our new wardrobe built today, so our room is feeling very spacious. Just need to work out where everything is going now!

I am amazed by all these DHs buying Christmas things. Mine sighs and tries to race through the festive aisles. I am hoping to get to Lidl and Aldi next week for lebkuchen etc (but weirdly M&S florentines are cheaper than Lidl - but I will probably get Lidl mini ones as well). Meeces Sainsbury's have etienne dumont champagne for less than £20 and it's in the buy 6 bottles of wine get 25% off offer. (It's mix and match so you could add cheaper bottles too). I had a bottle last year and it was really nice. Fortnums do nice teas and jams/ honey / marmalade etc which look lovely in the carrier bags and you could probably get 2 or 3 items for your budget (you need to look carefully to spot the cheaper items!)
Your calendar brought back memories Fluffy!