A thread for those having a small Xmas with their late teens/young adults

[RosieandRobin]

I am aware I may be the only one on here but hoping maybe there’s others out there. Looking for ways to make the day a bit more exciting. It will be me, dh and 3 dc 22,20 and 18. Youngest two are at university.

the excitement of Xmas has disappeared over the last few years and we seemed to have slipped into it becoming just another day. Would love to find some ways to make it a bit more fun again.

Everyone puts in requests for food and drinks, we play games and see if there is anything we all want to watch on TV.

We play the tacky present game which is often the highlight of the day.

Present opening ceremony.

What's a tacky present game? You mean no real presents or a silly present as extra?

Do you drink?

Champage breakfast

Presents

Cocktails

Christmas lunch

Walk

More cocktails

Game

TV and nibbles.

Leisurely breakfast and some presents, maybe stockings if you still do them. Everyone helps with food prep. A new board game. Maybe a walk . Boxing Day or next day we often do a theatre trip. Some kind of mystery challenge, Cluequest or escape room kinda thing, you can buy online. Some kind of silly cracker game, little racing things or bell ringing. More presents later on in the day. My DC are not drinkers but if they were maybe a short pub visit if they are the sort to get twitchy sitting at home all day.

It will be us this year, plus our two adult DD's and their boyfriends.

We will let the 'kids' sleep in a little while me and DH get the dogs out for a small walk, feed them and consume some coffee to wake up.

Then everyone in the lounge for pressie opening followed by some breakfast.

Then TV while dinner cooks (plus the obligatory snacking on selection boxes and nuts) and the kids will most likely retreat to their rooms for an hour.

Christmas Dinner with all the trimmings and a bottle of champers gets popped

Walk on the beach with the dogs

Up to the pub for a quick drink

Back home for games and cocktails

We always mix cocktails, put some music on and then play some games. We always have such a laugh and will be doubled over laughing at several points during the evening.

Would love some idea's for fun games to play with 6 adults. We feel we have done so many but always looking for more ideas.

Mine are young-mid teens, so still get excited by all the stuff, but also we don’t have lots of visitors or go on visits. I’m a lone parent etc etc so we do feel the need to liven things up a bit and they’re probably closer to your big kids in interest than say 8/9/10 year olds. Anyway, I say all that to say, stockings are still a big excitement and they love all the babyish stuff I put in. We still wear matching pjs even though they think it’s lame, but nobody’s complaining once they’re cosy!

We vote on foods in advance over a nice winter dinner in about November and I chuck stuff in my Ocado basket when we agree, all while looking through all the supermarket magazines and agreeing what we all fancy on Christmas Day. We all get Lego (even me) so it’s tradition to do our Lego all together with Die Hard or Home Alone on. We go out at some point, last few years it’s been nicknamed the creepy walk, as it’s always deathly quiet and dark by the time we get out, and we have a lot of churches and alleyways so deffo feels creepy. If anyone has a PS5 or some other gaming thing, get them to bring it and look for a game with multiplayer. We play Gang Beasts, Mario Kart, or Smash Bros. It’s always hilarious as I am absolutely terrible at them, kids are excellent but do things like get caught up fighting each other in the game and I can snatch a win sometimes. It’s all about shared enjoyment and sensory experience with the lights, candles, food, trees and decorations. Bowls of merry munch from M&S everywhere, fake candles on 24/7, and YouTube fire crackling all the time have my shrugging teens practically weeping with Christmas spirit. Food seems to be at the heart of it all.

It’s a variation on this including a dice where different numbers mean you can swap steal or give away anyone’s gifts.

We say £5 usually sourced from a charity shop, a couple of items each if fewer than 6/7 people. It’s amazing what horrific items folk fight over.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_elephant_gift_exchange

Our three will be 24, 19, and 17 this year and Christmas is definitely not the event it used to be! But one thing they all seem to still really enjoy is buying each other's stockings. We started it when the youngest was about 10 as a little way to get them thinking about each other a bit more, they really got into it and it's been their highlight ever since! DS1 moved out to live with his girlfriend this year but texted just the other day to check that he's still included in the stocking list 😂

This is us, we have lovely Christmas’, everyone gets involved with food choices, we do light shows and things like the week before Christmas,, sparklers in the garden in the evening, there’s plenty of excitement.

Mine are 15 and 10 but sen so we always have a quiet Christmas as they get overwhelmed otherwise. This year we are having a Harry Potter season one binge in the evening. 🤣 we also play a board game in the day.

All adult children. Christmas Eve, we do hot dogs and s’mores in the garden on the bbq, sitting by the fire pit with mulled cider ( and a shot of rum) reminiscing silly stories of previous Christmas’s. All wrapped up against the cold. Ridiculous but fun!

It’s always just the four of us, Dh, me, ds23 and ds16. We still do stockings for the boys which they open with us, then a late breakfast. Table laid and bucks fizz. Then some presents, pub at 11.30/12.00 for an hour.
Home to start lunch and we open more presents and usually have something to make or set up. Games, very late lunch and then tv and drinks.
It’s very calm but fun and easy. I think we would all love to have some guests dropping by but we don’t have that kind of family so we make do with ourselves and the dogs. Boxing Day is usually a beach walk.
Skiing this year which is very exciting.

Mine are 28 and 30. Both have partners but not children. Both they and their partners like to go home for Christmas so it seems to suit everyone.
They'll come Christmas eve and stay overnight, usually head home boxing day.
They still like the old routines, tree traditional Christmas dinner etc. I cook something nice Christmas eve. Christmas day we usually play some board games, Ticket to Ride or similar.
It's quite and relaxing which they like because both have busy lives. Their partners families are more gregarious and have lots of visitors and chaos which is very different. It's rare we are all four together so I treasure it although every single year I encourage them to do their own Christmas and visit us some other time. I'm sure they will eventually.

Good post OP

It’s usually just us three now. DS is an only and is 25. It can be a bit flat.

We do presents in the morning when DS eventually appears. DH and I wander over to the pub at 12 for a village get together for a hour. Then back home and open some fizz and orange juice. We tend to play a few games while dinner is cooking. DH cooks mostly. Uno Extreme went down well last couple of years even though DS wasn’t convinced when he opened it first.

We eat around 5 and then tend to watch a movie.

Boxing Day our neighbours usually pop in for a drink. Or dinner depending on what they are doing.

jumping on as I think it might just be the 5 of us this year. We normally have some combination of family staying over but not sure we will this year.
Kids are will be 16, 18 and 20 at christmas with 18 year old at Uni.

I have booked light trail for the 23rd in Cardiff so we will go into town and do that and some last min shopping and dinner out etc.
Xmas eve. normally decorate a gingerbread house but not sure if they will still want to do that. Will watch a couple of christmas films and chill.
Xmas day - get up, open stockings, then have some breakfast. Everyone then gets washed and dressed and then we do the under the tree presents.
Rest of day will be christmas dinner around 2pm, then chill playing board games which we all enjoy.
Boxing day is buffet, pjs and films.

Just the 4 of us again this year, kids will be 18 & 15.

Still do new pjs on Christmas Eve with a movie.

We do a fancy prosecco breakfast with the table set.

Presents after breakfast. Still set the presents out like when they were small, just less of them now.

M&S Christmas food so not much food prep so we spend the day playing board games, walking the dog etc.

Boxing day we spend doing what ever craft gifts we have and have a boxing day buffet and left overs for dinner.

I remember thinking that Christmas wouldn't be fun when they got older but I love it. No getting woke up at 4am to see if Santa has been then being knackered by 12pm, loved it atthe time but love this stage 😀

It is usually just me and two adult DC. This year it will be just me and adult DD, so I definitely need some tips on making it fun.

DD isn’t much of a drinker 😥

Sounds perfect tbh. I was thinking this year of adding in a charity shop present challenge, I have been volunteering in one and you can get some bargains but also new stuff like jewellery and scarves. I'm not even sure I wouldn't eat out and get dressed up.

There are 3 of us - me, DH & DD (24).

At midnight we each have a silly Christmas gift and reminding DD about the time she thought she was missing out, ran into our room & leapt onto our bed, cracking the slats in the process. The next 30 minutes of Christmas Day that year was spent fixing our bed.

Nobody is allowed to open presents in the morning until all 3 of us are up & awake. Breakfast is pastries & coffee.

Proper Christmas dinner (chicken, not a turkey) mid afternoon, then we play board games, watch Wallace & Grommit, Casablanca etc. Lots of phone calls to family.

Wish I hadn't written it down now, but it's a special day for us. This year though DD will be in Australia & we're renting a cottage & visiting my family on Boxing Day

this year we have the big kids for Boxing Day instead- they have xmas day at their partners this year. Ive just spent ages making a treasure hunt with clues to find gifts, quite silly but they are lovers of escape rooms and pub quizzes so...
ive also got an artists online water colour tutorial and the stuff to paint with, so we will all be following along painting a reindeer in the evening.

Gifts this year are vouchers and ticket to fancy restaurants, farm shops/deli type places.

Ive gotta say this is the first time in 34 years Ive not had any of the 'kids' in the house for xmas eve and day. a little bit odd for me but its only til Boxing Day! ... the four of them are aged are 21-32

This is a lovely thread and I am definitely borrowing some of the ideas shared by you all. This year is just us and the DC, 15-19, but all pretty quiet and introverted, and not keen on much of the going out stuff we used to do so I will need to get creative to find ways to bring us all together.

That part will probably be centred around Christmas dinner, I will consider myself lucky if they all want to watch a film with us at the same time...

DS is 18, I thought he might grow out of it too tbh but he’s still excited. Told me the other day he can’t wait for the music, movies, food etc. gave me his Christmas list the other day complete with a play by play of each thing. Dd14 is the same. I was worried that once dd stopped believing in Santa everything would change but they both still love it.

4 of us here...
2 dc - 18 and 23.
We have family on boxing day usually.
Older dc will struggle this year after a breakup 💔
Younger dc will struggle with lack of college routine 😕
My mum comes for lunch but literally eats, then leaves 😁
I'm going to suggest walks and games this year...I think it might feel a bit "meh" 😕
Neither dc need or want anything...I'll do a stocking and some cash, but need a few gifts for them to open.
Older dc going away with friends over new year, which I'm pleased about.
No show/gig planned (we usually go) but the dc seem less interested as they've got older.
I'm not really looking forward to it this year 😞

I wouldn’t call most of these “small” when there are 4 or 5 people. It will be literally me and DD (23) this year again. We do things in a relaxed way, full turkey roast will have been done a few days before and we have massive leftover sandwiches on the day. We usually go to the pub for one pint, it is less than 5 minutes walk and we have lots of presents. We make the most of Christmas time rather than the day itself as we don’t have much choice in the matter. We always have a big tree, lots of decorations, start watching the films and listening to the music from 1st December. It does feel a bit lonely but we do our best