Christmas households: just to confirm..

[Lelophants]

If we see my parents on Christmas day and DH parents boxing day, that means we are three households. So my parents can't then visit their elderly parents or my brother. And my in laws can't visit their other children. 🙈

So if I go to see my diet and her family and my parents, that's three families in one bubble. Fine. Then we go home on 27 December - when can we see another person or change out bubble? How long does the Xmas bubble last for??

Diet = sister

I've been thinking about this and am in a similar position to the OP.

If DP and I visit my DM and his DM does that stop them having indoor contact with other people because they're both in our 3 household bubble?

We all live in the same city that is likely to be in tier 3 unless there has been substantial reduction in the numbers during lockdown which I don't think is the case. No-one is going to be staying overnight, it would probably just be visits for a couple of hours or so to catch up and exchange gifts.

Or can my DM look at it from her point of view and not count MIL as part of her 3 household bubble because she won't meet her? I'm genuinely confused on this point. BBC website says DM and MIL can't meet other people because they're in our bubble but I'm not sure I can see anything on gov.uk that says this isn't allowed.

Anyway, I've done a diagram for illustration.

A = DP and I
B = DM (widow, lives alone) and her support bubble which is dsis and her family
C = dsis adult DS and his family, which DM/DSis are likely to want to meet, I would normally but obviously not this year.
X = then it gets messy because adult DS dad is Dsis ex so that's a different household and then you have to consider his DW side of the family - quite big and normally extended.

On the other side

D = MIL who has two siblings that she would normally see, but probably not this year unless it's an outside walk in the park. MIL is married to her second DH, who doesn't really have any family as far as I know so they are likely to choose us and her other DS, E
E = BIL and SIL, who will want to see MIL but can live without meeting us. However SIL family is also complex, she has lots of siblings, adult DD and family and her parents, so I don't know what they'll do, especially as seeing many of these would require travel and overnight stays.

So Venn diagrams rather than bubbles. I suspect not strictly within the rules but I think that's probably what will happen in our family, for A to E at least. The risk is probably low enough for a couple of short visits if we're careful, both our DMs have barely been out anyway and nowhere inside and crowded.

I think lots of people on here are acting like it'll suddenly be 'safe' at an arbitrary point around Easter, but that's unlikely. Realistically, I think this will be treated like the flu- i.e. the vulnerable will receive a vaccination, the rest won't. The idea that the whole population will be vaccinated and COVID eradicated by Easter is farcical. In my immediate family no one is at greater risk except asthmatic DF, aged 57, who has had it anyway (and recovered totally inside a week). We'll probably bubble with them and my DSis (with MIL as a support bubble because we have a baby under one year old), but I bet you DSis will also see her in-laws. 🤷

Very confusing. My step daughter is coming 24th and my ex husband will be here 25+26th. That's it for me so tough if it's not allowed. And sd and exdh are back to work 27 anyway.

What about separated parents and their kids?
Mine will go to their dads on Christmas Day he lives with his mother and sister - ill either he alone or go to my parents ( with my brother)
On Boxing Day my sister and her two kids will come to my house with me and my kids my kids will be

A fixed bubble doesn’t work for seperated parents

Although I am some will question what if you don't like Quality Street and can we eat Celebrations or Caburys Heroes instead?

I don't like Quality Street. In @beela's world, will it be against the rules to eat Celebrations instead?

How will this be policed out of interest?

Will you have to show a family tree, council tax bill etc to prove anything?

I'm going to draw a family tree, full with headshots and addresses so I can show this to the police when they turn up?

Do you think they will turn up to every household on all 5 days but avoid eating times?

Three households in a fixed bubble. It’s not designed to allowed a free for all and meet loads of people and it won’t cater for everyone’s situation. Its nationwide. No tiers. People can travel. Pretty crystal clear from the reports I’ve seen.
At the end of the day, caution is needed. No one wants a third wave ...

@Heatherjayne1972 children who are going between parents can be in a bubble of 3 households with mum and a bubble of 3 households with dad

@Bonkerz

Very confusing. My step daughter is coming 24th and my ex husband will be here 25+26th. That's it for me so tough if it's not allowed. And sd and exdh are back to work 27 anyway.

That’s fine for you, but if either of them meet up with other people you’re exceeding three households in one bubble.

Surely the bubble of 3 is for the whole 5 days ? So, you cant choo and change the 3 in that time as otherwise they wouldnt have said bubbles. We are staying at home anyway. Too risky for my mum to be around 5 grandchildren who have been in their covid covered schools. My sister would rather be at home.

@EveryFlightBeginsWithAFall
So they can go to their dads And if I go to my parents ( my brother lives alone but will he there for Christmas) that is 5 households mixing in total on Christmas Day
Plus the next day we will be three more different households mixing as my sister is coming over- she’s a single parent too

It’s so complicated

Oh I thought everyone was allowed to see people from 3 households but no more. So if someone has seen two other different people we can't see them then, even if we've not mixed with anyone?
We can't see our kids then as I'm already bubbled with my elderly parents who I look after. 😭 Totally understandable but we were hoping to finally see them over Christmas.

The bubble that I would like to make would potentially have 14 people in it, it'll seem so odd after everything and whilst numbers aren't exactly rock bottom. I wonder how many people will actually feel comfortable doing this with their elderly parents.

@Sara2000

Surely the bubble of 3 is for the whole 5 days ? So, you cant choo and change the 3 in that time as otherwise they wouldnt have said bubbles. We are staying at home anyway. Too risky for my mum to be around 5 grandchildren who have been in their covid covered schools. My sister would rather be at home.

Yes. You can only be in one Christmas bubble.

"The bubbles will be fixed, so you will not be able to mix with two households on Christmas Day and two different ones on Boxing Day. Households you are in a Christmas bubble with can't be in others."

That's what I thought. Someone upthread was asking if they could change the bubble of 3 in the 5 day period.

@MessAllOver

Although I am some will question what if you don't like Quality Street and can we eat Celebrations or Caburys Heroes instead?

I don't like Quality Street. In @beela's world, will it be against the rules to eat Celebrations instead?

It's fine as long as you don't mix the two together.

Households you are in a Christmas bubble with can't be in others

What if you want to see a family but they don't want you in their bubble?

Or if we see my parents and the IL, they will also want to see my sister and brother's family and the IL will want to see SIL... difficult choices!

I think we might just try and see friends instead!

@Heatherjayne1972 if your brother lives alone he can be in a support bubble with you anyway so you'd class as one household . If your sister has children under 18 she can be in a support bubble with your parents so you, brother , parents and sister would only class as 2 households so you could add another household!

They can then see their dad and another 2 households on his side

For everyone saying “this doesn’t consider in laws or larger families or step families” etc...

It does.

They’re not supposed to be rules in which normal Christmas mixing can be accommodated. It’s very very clear that normal Christmas mixing shouldn’t take place.

Correct

@Bubbinsmakesthree exactly! I wish they'd make that a bit clearer in their messaging.

Grrrrrrr...., Listening to the radio this morning it was so frustrating with all the people calling in complaining about the new rules and saying it’s not fair because I wanted to see this person and that person etc etc and how do I choose?

These are grown adults! It’s one year people!!!!!

See that's where it gets confusing long whiskers because exdh will go home Christmas Eve and Christmas night and he lives with his mum!