Covid safe Christmas 🎄

[Anotherducker]

Would anyone else like to share tips for keeping safe within a Christmas bubble on Christmas Day? We have young children and the grandparents will be eating with us.

So far I thought:
We can isolate mostly for two weeks beforehand.
Detol wipes in the bathroom
Keep some Windows open (within reason I don’t want to freeze everyone to death)
Apparently it’s better if one person serves the food so there is no sharing of serving bowls and spoons.
Make the day shorter than normal.
Maybe a walk outdoors.

What are you thinking of doing? (It would be nice to keep this a safe space for those who are mixing households as per the rules and not a debate about whether we should do so).

Ah ok, only said that about isolation because you said you were, if none of you actually are isolating then yes you need to do the other stuffI and Have suggested.

@Chelsea567 I don’t disagree with anything you’ve said. If it was solely up to me I’d wait, but a family is a mixture of people who have different priorities and attitudes about Covid.

I’m sure there are a lot of people like me who have Grandparents who are desperate to be included.

The shorter time is actually better as it’s all about viral load, say someone there had it, breathing it in for 4 hours is safer than 8 hours.

We're just not seeing grandparents.
Because of my job, SEN teacher, they don't want to take the risk of seeing me.
I feel incredibly guilty

@Aprilrainbow

Many elderly do not understand the risks, they are living as normal, going hear, there & everywhere, endangering them selves then endangering their children who may them selves be in their 60's. Don't kill Granny but also don't let Granny kill you.

It's not an age related phenomenon though, is it?

Remembering anyone in your Xmas bubble (unless living in isolation) can pose the risk to you all.

It would be utterly wrong to be ageist about it

@Chelsea567

Surely the best way is not to see anyone outside your household?? I know it's rubbish not to get together and Christmas is important to everyone but surely keeping people safe is more important? If there was no light at the end of the tunnel then yes, we have to start living our lives again and at some point say sod COVID and get on with things, but the vaccine seems to be just round the corner. Can't we wait just a little longer? The virus isn't going to spread less just because the government have said we can get together for five days. Surely protection of elderly vulnerable relatives and being able to be with them next year and the year after that is more important than this year's Christmas lunch.

I see what you're saying but I would be on my own. And frankly I think that would tip me over the edge emotionally. I don't think the Christmas bubbles have been made for everyone to go 'woo let's all party and hug and kiss under the mistletoe' I think it is more to stop people being on their own. If you're happy with me, and many others in the UK, being alone on Christmas whilst you're with your little family then that is really selfish.

Dh and I usually just spend Christmas Day with each other, so nothing different there. My adult children probably won’t be home, but I’ll see them next year, I hope. I’m visiting my elderly parents in advance of Christmas and we will have an outdoor picnic with sausage rolls, salmon tartlets and brownies, ie individual things that don’t need passed around. . I don’t think you need to wear PPE when serving food, just wash your hands thoroughly beforehand, that goes for everyone who will be touching serving spoons or dishes. And people should be doing that anyway, Covid or not.

I know my mum has got Christmas party favour bags type things to put individual cutlery and serving spoons in for each person, a bit like the way the restaurants were working when our ones were open. She also is putting out a few extra gravy boats and is sticking a Christmas sticker for each family group, same with salt cellar. No fabric towels in the loo and she is serving most of the meal herself, usually it's all in the middle of the table. We always have lots of windows open anyway and the day will be shorter.

Sit the children at the other end of the table from grandparents- they are more likely to be asymptomatic if infected.

Set the table ahead of time.

Air the house thoroughly before they arrive, then whack the heating up to take off the chill, leaving windows ajar rather than wide open.

@Thenumberofrebels

Is anyone considering wearing PPE to cook and serve food?

Sorry but that is completely nuts quite honestly.

The whole thread is completely nuts.

Please OP stop watching the the BBC and don’t read any news papers or news sites for a while to let the brainwashing rinse clear

Ds gf are having Xmas dinner outside.

We are having a completely normal Christmas with my side of the family.
We all including my parents in their early 60s work in schools except SIL who is a midwife.
None of us have caught it yet, school finishes on the 18th so if anybody has to isolate for contact or develops symptoms before then we will rethink, but as everybody has been fine with no distancing or PPE at work throughout this we are happy to do what we normally do.
We will not be seeing DHs family as MIL has COPD and is 83 and BIL has T1 diabetes so a completely different risk profile.
You have to make your decisions based on your circumstances.
If my circumstances meant I had to consider cooking and serving in PPE then I would choose to stay at home.

We have a little thermometer you point a a forehead. Noone can enter our home without a green reading. I even make child have temperature taken before he goes to school and again after. He showers the moment he gets in from school. Clothing washed. Could you get a thermometer?

Antibacterial wipes in downstairs loo and just guests use that loo. People who live in house use upstairs loo. Antibacterial wipes in lounge for use on door knobs, light switches and remote control.

Everyone have own serving spoon to fish up their own meal instead of everyone using same ones.

We have just decided to have a second Xmas once we have all had vaccine. I have a turkey breast for this in my freezer.

I don't think the Christmas bubbles have been made for everyone to go 'woo let's all party and hug and kiss under the mistletoe' I think it is more to stop people being on their own

That's true, and it is right that we should be doing somethig to make sure those who don't want to be alone at Chirstmas aren't. The truth is though that some people really are thinking "woo, let's party", especially with the news about the vaccine. I think we will pay the price in January.

FFS some of the replies in this thread certainly shows that the UK has Bigg problems with mental health.

One of parents is vulnerable so me and DP are quarrantining for 14 days before visiting, we both wfh and are tier 3 so not difficult. Unfortunately my vulnerable parent is tier 2 and going out socialising all the time now so it makes a bit of a mockery!

I don't think the PPE comment is crazy.. when we've had people over for food before I've found it virtually impossible to take something out of the oven without instantly breathing all over it. A face covering during food prep makes sense to me.

Also having seen PIL talking normally, unaware that the afternoon sun was illuminating a shower of spit that sprayed over my table with every uttering, I'm having people within a household sat opposite each other.

I'm hoping that as we currently have Covid in the house, that by Christmas we have some immunity to not pass it on.

I am really not sure what to do, I would love to see my sister and nephew but she is at the moment in a tier 2 area and I know is socialising a lot and has basically said the bubbles over the 5 days dont matter she can see who she wants. She is moving next week and has 4 different friends helping her.

Why would you need to do all this if you are isolating? And if they aren’t bothered about picking it up from anyone else eg the 84 year old why would they be bothered about getting it from you? Sounds like they would be more of a risk to you.

We aren’t having my parents for dinner the most we will do is go inside their house and sit 2m apart with masks on for a few mins.

Wearing PPE to serve Christmas dinner is madness. You’re plating up a Turkey dinner, not providing personal care.

We have a guest coming, because she would be on her own if we didn't have her. She's staying two nights from Christmas eve. We are probably about as risky as each other tbh, as she is a HCP and we have two dcs, one in school and the other in childcare.

The only things I'm doing are:

• giving her the use of a bathroom and not letting anyone else use it while she's here
• cooking dinner while she and DH and dcs hopefully go somewhere outdoors for a bit
• opening windows more than usual
• not letting dcs sit right on top of her all the time, as they normally would

We are all under 40 and low risk. We aren't seeing older relatives indoors. DH might take dcs to see their GPs somewhere but not indoors.

We are going to sit at one end of the lounge, it's long and thin so actually set out well. We aren't eating at theirs (well a mince pie but not lunch)

I’ve said it up thread, but I’m not sure why I’m ‘nuts’ and it’s ‘madness’ to consider wearing a mask or visor to serve food. Dinner ladies in school, staff in care homes, waiters and waitresses are all wearing them. Does serving food to relatives instead of strangers make a difference to viral transmission?

I probably won’t wear it, we are going to do our best to isolate before Christmas, but for those of us who want to consider and discuss the options of keeping our families safer we are allowed without it being suggested we’ve got mental health problems.

Thankyou to the posters who have shared what they are planning to do. It’s very helpful.