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Original poster

Any minor Festive Fuck-ups yet?

209 replies

lucysmam · 01/12/2025 21:19

Someone <ahem> decided to go and buy new lights for their 6.5ft really bushy Christmas tree today...and they decided 1000, on a 10m cable, from The Range, is plenty for this tree (bear in mind, their old ones are 600 on a 22m cable).

Dear Reader...

10m of lights, no matter how many are crammed onto it, are certainly not enough for a giant tree. They just about cover it's bottom half...if they're spaced very far apart <sigh>.

And I can't even couple them together because I lose the white and blue from the new set if I do that, and they don't quite sync properly <BIG SIGH>! So now I either put old on back/new on front, slightly out of sync OR I bus back to The Range to once again browse their many and varied aisles of festive lights 🤔 (I cba to bus back tomorrow & really want to decorate by the way).

My dad offered a sensible solution - he will collect 2000 warm white lights, in the morning, when he goes for garden centre cafe breakfast. But they're white. Not coloured. And might not even be enough! I need about 3bazillion metres looking at this!

Any other minor Festive fuck-ups going on? 🎅

OP posts:
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Ohpleeeease · 02/12/2025 01:25

I bought DS a slow cooker because he said his GF had told him he needed one. I now think maybe she might have got him one too.
Nobody wants two slow cookers for Christmas.

MouldyCandy · 02/12/2025 01:28

I didn't fully consider the distance from my internal plug socket to my front fence when hanging a new string of lights.
Some of my lights are now trailing across my flower bed after I had to untie them from the fence so I could actually plug them in.

On a positive note, my plug socket timer remembered the on/off program I set last year.

ImNotReallyHere · 02/12/2025 01:31

This might be outing but my MIL sent a message saying we are doing a photo shoot. Dressed in White!!! I replied WTF but was intended to DH not MIL.

lxn889121 · 02/12/2025 01:57

(can you only wrap the front of the tree? I've had times where my lights didn't quite reach. Depending on the position of your tree (against a wall, in a corner etc.) sometimes it is possible to kind of zig-zag across the visible 2/3rds leaving a gap at the back that no one will notice if it is in a corner.)

To answer though, I've had a couple of present mishaps. Photos that I didn't rotate properly and need re-printing.. and a set of hair ties that I thought were for women but are obviously tiny and for little girls... Nothing major that can't be easily fixed yet.

lxn889121 · 02/12/2025 02:00

I did nearly have a major one though.

I keep all of my son's santa presents in the boot of our car. it is big and completely divided from the car, and enclosed, and he is young enough that he never looks in it. We rarely use it, so its been the perfect hiding place for the past 3 years.

Getting into the car the other day, I was adding a present to the boot, and he was coming up to the car - I tried to close the boot in plenty of time, but my bag fell of my shoulder and got in the way, blocking the boot and causing me to panic.. Got it closed just before he got there, but I'd say I was about 3 seconds from him seeing a boot full of everything he wants for Christmas.

Lesson learned. I've put an blanket over the presents now, so wouldn't see, even if it happened again.

MarcusRashvest · 02/12/2025 10:29

Yep, my friend asked me for some ideas of stocking filler ideas as we have boys the same age. I took some photos of them (including very personalised items) to send her. I thought I’d deleted them, but this morning my DS was looking through my camera roll and asked why I had photos of X, Y and Z. I’m gutted as he still believes in Father Christmas, plus I love them having surprises. Gutted!

justthecat · 02/12/2025 11:06

Off to check the length of my new lights 🙈

Vroomfondleswaistcoat · 02/12/2025 11:11

Had family staying last week while I was away to look after my dog. Left all the presents up in the loft room, unwrapped - and they had to go up there to find something they needed that is stored up there.

Hopefully they did not peek (and most of it is still in the Amazon bags anyway). Even so. Harrumph!

BurntOrange · 02/12/2025 11:13

I’ve lost a £45 present for DD. It’s got to be in the house somewhere but we’ve searched high and low and it’s nowhere to be seen. Finances are tight at the moment so we could do without having to re-buy it

MYOB12 · 02/12/2025 11:17

If it’s any help OP, I had 1000 lights on a 50m cable for a 7’6” very wide tree from Home Bargains for £19.99 yesterday. Perfect fit and I trail the lights around the edge of the branches as well into the middle.

Pancakeflipper · 02/12/2025 11:19

I have eaten the chocolate coins already.

Happens every fucking year...

GETTINGLIKEMYMOTHER · 02/12/2025 11:20

Not this year, but a couple of years ago we were looking after a neighbour’s elderly Labrador for a few days before Christmas. We knew not to leave any food where he could possibly get at it, but I hadn’t thought about some wrapped presents left (for some reason) on the floor.

He managed to get at a small pack of dark chocolate ginger (or orange peel, I forget which) - rip all the wrapping off and scoff it. He also managed to get all the wrapping off one of those big ‘footballs’ of Lindor chocolates but the metal ‘football’ defeated him.

Just goes to show their sense of smell if he could smell the chocolate through all that!!
We did wonder about consulting a vet re the dark chocolate, but it was a very small pack and he was evidently fine, wasn’t even sick.
A lovely old boy though, RIP now, 🐶❤️

InveterateWineDrinker · 02/12/2025 11:27

OP, your story reminded me of when my dear departed FIL bought lights online while not wearing his glasses and we ended up with a 100m string instead of 10m.

He decided to string them end to end along the entire conservatory roof and we ended up with something that could be both easily seen from space and mistaken for a landing strip for the Space Shuttle.

Cornflakegirl7 · 02/12/2025 11:27

GETTINGLIKEMYMOTHER · 02/12/2025 11:20

Not this year, but a couple of years ago we were looking after a neighbour’s elderly Labrador for a few days before Christmas. We knew not to leave any food where he could possibly get at it, but I hadn’t thought about some wrapped presents left (for some reason) on the floor.

He managed to get at a small pack of dark chocolate ginger (or orange peel, I forget which) - rip all the wrapping off and scoff it. He also managed to get all the wrapping off one of those big ‘footballs’ of Lindor chocolates but the metal ‘football’ defeated him.

Just goes to show their sense of smell if he could smell the chocolate through all that!!
We did wonder about consulting a vet re the dark chocolate, but it was a very small pack and he was evidently fine, wasn’t even sick.
A lovely old boy though, RIP now, 🐶❤️

Not recently, a few years ago but my Northern Inuit ate a whole Toblerone that I didn't know was there(as yet unopened present, wrapped up with something else so no visible Toblerone shape). It was my DP's present from a colleague so I bought another one,re-wrapped it with the other present and hid it, and she found it and did the same thing again.

Both times the vet was called and said that as she was a big dog and Toblerone contains very little cocoa, she'd be fine, which she was. Apart from 'that' very guilty look each time I came home and found yellow cardboard bits everywhere.

No disasters this year so far other than I am visiting a friend on Friday to haev a 'false xmas' as she doesn't have anyone to spend xmas with, and my car is up on blocks, MOT failure. Everything crossed that it is fixed for Friday!

MorrisZapp · 02/12/2025 11:29

I've bought two identical coats on Vinted because I don't trust the first one to arrive on time for my Christmas do.

Pancakeflipper · 02/12/2025 11:32

GETTINGLIKEMYMOTHER · 02/12/2025 11:20

Not this year, but a couple of years ago we were looking after a neighbour’s elderly Labrador for a few days before Christmas. We knew not to leave any food where he could possibly get at it, but I hadn’t thought about some wrapped presents left (for some reason) on the floor.

He managed to get at a small pack of dark chocolate ginger (or orange peel, I forget which) - rip all the wrapping off and scoff it. He also managed to get all the wrapping off one of those big ‘footballs’ of Lindor chocolates but the metal ‘football’ defeated him.

Just goes to show their sense of smell if he could smell the chocolate through all that!!
We did wonder about consulting a vet re the dark chocolate, but it was a very small pack and he was evidently fine, wasn’t even sick.
A lovely old boy though, RIP now, 🐶❤️

A few years ago my DP spent Christmas Day night at the emergency vets as our dog had done a death defying leap and accessed the high shelf with all chocolates.

He said the emergency vets waiting room was a row of guilty looking dogs who had snaffled chocolates, Christmas puds, Christmas cake etc.. all waiting for charcoal and tummies emptying.

A costly Christmas Day.

Justploddingonandon · 02/12/2025 11:37

I've just realised that I have totally forgotten to buy the kids Christmas jumpers and there's sod all left in the local shops. Not only that but I cannot find their ones from last year anywhere (they haven't grown much, they'd probably be fine if I could find them!)

DeftGoldHedgehog · 02/12/2025 11:47

10m of lights, no matter how many are crammed onto it, are certainly not enough for a giant tree. They just about cover it's bottom half...if they're spaced very far apart <sigh>

I did the opposite and bought three packs of lights imagining I was going to get the 25 year old Woolworths tree down from the loft again, and finally wanted to replace the blue lights DH chose years ago, which make the front room look like a police station for Christmas- though we've never had a burglary, to be fair. The tree is fine, it's just that the box is more Sellotape than box, which makes the operation slightly fiddly.

Then I saw a a cute fat 4ft Nordmann fir in a pot at the garden centre, and one pack of warm white lights was absolutely ample!

Anxietybummer · 02/12/2025 11:49

MarcusRashvest · 02/12/2025 10:29

Yep, my friend asked me for some ideas of stocking filler ideas as we have boys the same age. I took some photos of them (including very personalised items) to send her. I thought I’d deleted them, but this morning my DS was looking through my camera roll and asked why I had photos of X, Y and Z. I’m gutted as he still believes in Father Christmas, plus I love them having surprises. Gutted!

I had something like this. I told my DD it was santas catalogue and he needed some ideas for presents. She said ‘oooo I hope I get some of those’! So worked reasonably well.

hope you managed to throw him off the scent.

GETTINGLIKEMYMOTHER · 02/12/2025 11:58

Justploddingonandon · 02/12/2025 11:37

I've just realised that I have totally forgotten to buy the kids Christmas jumpers and there's sod all left in the local shops. Not only that but I cannot find their ones from last year anywhere (they haven't grown much, they'd probably be fine if I could find them!)

Charity shops? Dd always buys Gdcs’ there, if there aren’t any outgrown ones to pass on.

IfOnlyYouWouldListen · 02/12/2025 12:08

Was ordering a replacement part for a much used item that has broken. The retailer asked for the original order email address solace that (they already had my email). Instead of sending me the order confirmation they sent it to my relative! Thankfully all adults so only ruins the surprise of it being fixed a bit early.

Hoppinggreen · 02/12/2025 12:14

I bought our tree from a well known cheap German supermarket for £20 as opposed to the £60 I usually spend at the garden centre.
I have just removed all the string wrapping to find that all the branches are pointing up in a sort of "I surrender" position, I am hoping it may relax a bit and look less weird

Baninarama · 02/12/2025 12:24

Did some very minor DIY last Thursday and managed to get Araldite all over the tip of the finger I use for touch-ID on my laptop. Made the Christmas online shopping over the weekend a right pain in the arse, as I must have typed my password in about 11,000 times.

Loub1987 · 02/12/2025 12:31

I had a bad work day yesterday and ate 1/3 of my hero’s advent calendar, but also opened all the doors to get the choclates I like best. I have to hide my shame from the children!

Sartre · 02/12/2025 12:41

Ordered coloured lights for the tree to replace old broken ones, they delivered ice white ones. I wouldn’t mind warm white but ice white hurts my head. Had to order some more and have a lightless tree for a day.

Using a new tree stand after our 12 year old one gave up the ghost. It’s a different design to our last one and the tree fell over entirely about 2 hours after we put it up. Some baubles smashed and we had to put the fucker back up. The stand seems ok now DH has added some more screws in to strengthen it. It’s also really hard to water the tree, it just isn’t a great design.