I'm feeling pressure to be organised - how far have you got for CHRISTMAS?

[peckarollover]

Now that we are in to November Im desperate to get organised.

I have bought most of the kids presents that I have to buy for (still some from santa for mine to come) but havent even started on the adults.

Hows about you?

I am pretty organised this year and last year even more so - but last year had new babe and recovering from c-section so needed to be organised , this year will have a dd1 recovering from tonsils and adenoids out and grommets in just before Christmas.

SO:

All Christmas cards ( except immediate family) written and ready for posting
Dds presents bought, laybyed or at home already wrapped
2 neices - presents bought
db and sil - presents bought

STILL:

buy for parents, inlaws, other db and sil, dh and make some short bread, sweets and gingerbread for dd's teachers

No idea about food - not sure where we are having Christmas yet - either ours, mothers or db's place.

When I was footloose and fancy free and not having to meet overseas posting - I usually left it until the middle of december when I was on summer holidays and had all the time in the world to wander the shops.

Well DH and I wandered round Lakeside today in a vain attempt to compile a list of pressies for DD and DS. Struggled with it really. I mean how many Barbies does a girl need? How many race tracks does a boy need?

Decided not to bother

Not reeeallly, just stuck for inspiration.

I did get DD the Usbourne book of Art £10 reduced from £24.99 though which is a fabulous book that she will love, budding artist that she is.

Dinner's at mine this year (hoping not to have ambulances or fire brigade in attendance this year - and that's a whole other story

Sending my mate's DH to Smithfield for the turkey and the beef and whatever else (top tip London gals - get over to Smithfield for the best that money can buy at half the price you normally pay!).

How can people have presents WRAPPED at the beginning of November???? I just don't feel Christmassy until December but these days with DS and DD I will start to think about it, prepare and plan etc but won't DO anything for quite a while yet.

Nooooo can't think about Christmas until well after Bonfire night. So there!

Dp usually sneers at me for starting shopping really early, until I point out I have about 25 people to buy for, he has 3. (I am not sure how it worked out that he buys for his mum and dad, and I buy for everyone else, but there you go.) It's easy to be insouciant about wandering into a shop mid-December and picking something, in that situation.

this thread has made me feel slightly sick. I have DH's and DD's birthdays to get through in next 3 wks. Have no idea about presents for these, let alone 25 Dec

###########NOT LISTENING########### PARP
My head is firmly buried until atleast December. I am too busy preparing for my Christmas fairs and that is bad enough.

Have everything to organise. Plus have lots of family coming to stay so will have to do this as well.

Have bought all of ds3's pressies for xmas and his birthday in the New Year, so feeling pretty chuffed about that!

Have got dd's birthday in 3 weeks which is easy to sort, but have no idea what to then get her for xmas.

ds4's 1st birthday is 9 days before xmas; as he is so young it won't be too hard to please him.

As for ds1 and ds2 - well, I have no idea at all.

Me and dh tend not to buy anything for each other, rather something for the house. What I have learnt over the years is that 2 or 3 good quality presents goes down just as well as loads of cheap tat so I end up saving a fortune and the kids all have toys/gifts that I know they will like and will last beyond the New Year!

Christmas? when's that then?

....isn't it late summer at the mo?

I have got my parents and brother all organised, because they arrive at the weekend, and I can't do it while they are here.

Dh has as usual done absolutely nothing about his sister's birthday despite the fact it's next week and needs to be posted to the UK. I sometimes think that's why men get married.

Got for 2 of my sisters, 1 to go. Almost sorted the BILs. Have decided on DD1's pressie (or should I say she's told us what she wants lol). Sorted the teachers. Have an idea for Best Friend. Need something for nephew almost 12, godson 16 and godson 4 (though he will be easy once I've spoken to his mother). Niece wants cash as she's off to New York for her birthday.

DH has booked a day off so that DSis3 and I can go shopping in Watford. We do it every year. Fab. So the shopping will be completed by the end of November. Have ordered Christmas cards via Traidcraft.

Turkey will be ordered in a couple of weeks via the Fish man.

Having 2 Christmas dinners this year as DSis2 is going away with BIL.

Davros - not wrapped and dd1 thinks they are all for her and she can try and pull them out to play with. Wrapped and they become invisible...

its creeping up isnt it! Did a bit on the net yesterday on innovations site! Got most of DS4 and 3's bits for other 3 but i know what their main pressies are going to be. got god childrens and know what I am getting niece and nephew. Trying not to panic, but we are broke! So it loks like christmas on plastic this year!!

No. pleaase remove this thread it makes me nervous.

Have made my christmas cake and am feeding it regularly, nit pregnant this year so it's going to be boozy.

Have planned to do a few things a week for christmas, so I don't have to try and do it all in one go. Have started cooking and freezing things and started making cards. I'm ablut halfway though present buying and have booked a date with DH to finish it off.

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Have got all shopping done except DH. But I'm due 18 December so had to get on w/it.

Have half a freezerful of goodies baked and prepared.

All cards are made and we'll ask FIL to take our family photo after I get my hair cut on Saturday - my family all lives abroad, so I like to send out a family photo in our card every year.

I still need to start writing everyone a personal letter - NO newsletters here! - for the cards, though.

Have started stocking up for New Year as well.

Have you thought about shopping from the comfort of your own home (and I don't mean the Internet)? I work for a children's book company and do home parties which are brilliant at this time of year as it's so easy to shop for the children this way PLUS you even get FREEBIES for having a party!

So if any of you want to have a few friends around and let me help you do your Christmas shopping (and you are based in Devon or Cornwall), please e-mail me on tachalane at hotmail dot com.

Happy shopping - I am certainly not going out into the big wide world to struggle around the shops with the hordes of other - aargh!

crikey some of you lot are organised!
We are making our cards and have only done about 20 so far, will need at least 100 I think (school friends etc).
Impressed with anyone who has them writtenalready.
Tho in fact have got quite a few of the children's presents.
Pretty candles - very impressed. I normally make mine in half term but was away the 2nd weekend and realised we hadn't done it (takes so long to bake). That's this Saturday's project then!

have been trying out recipes as well - yesterday was peppermint shortbread, weekend - white choc fudge, and gingerbread bells... shortbread is fab. ( As I have never made recipes and wanted to use some of these as presents - thought I better try out recipe first.... secretly just an excuse to have lovely nibbles in the house )

I'm very organized this year. i have a big family, about 32 pressies to buy, and have bought all but 6 of them. i also order vouchers, and they came about 3 weeks ago so me and my sister went to bots at trafford centre on wed night, they had a fab deal of 1200 extra points for every £5o you spent. got some real bargains. DD1 just needs new outfit and dd2's main pressie is ordered and paid for. feeling very smug too.
my sister has wrapped all her pressies too away from the prying eyes of my niece. going to sil for dinner . have bought a few special cards but not many and not wrote them yet.

have started already but always start early anyway. kind if have to when collectively me and dh have:
8 sisters, 3 brother, my parents, his parents and step parents, 2 neices, 3 nephews, several aunts and uncles, four sets of grandparents, quite a few cousins, two goddaughters & now a daughter.
mind you, i am on maternity leave at the mo (dd nearly one month old) and must say that prams are brill. stuck a load of pressies in the shopping tray and save wrecked hands from holding loads of bags like i got last year!!

Nothing at all [cackles hysterically !].