When should Christmas start?

[suespud]

We don't mark the religious and marketing pressured sort of xmas ...

... there are presents to get etc.

Isn't that a contradiction?

Hi David and Alan,

No, it's not a contradiction - we celebrate (just for one day) having completed a year well lived. As it seems likely that it's going to be a 'quiet' day (no shops etc) we give out gifts beforehand, and have a lovely quiet day in our own way, just quietly and contentedly.

We offend nobody, and we enjoy ourselves - nothing wrong with that. Then we get 'back to normal' for a couple of days, and then celebrate the first day of the new year in a similar way. The gifts are done again, and we celebrate all we plan and hope to do in the year ahead, just quietly and hopefully.

So are you not putting your tree up on December 1st ?
Did you ever get the lights for the garden, you were looking at at last year?

We have lights still in the trees from our Ruby Wedding celebrations...not switched them on since, but they will be at the end of the month

[wolfie]

We don't mark the religious and marketing pressured sort of xmas ...

... there are presents to get etc.

Isn't that a contradiction?

Hi David and Alan,

No, it's not a contradiction - we celebrate (just for one day) having completed a year well lived. As it seems likely that it's going to be a 'quiet' day (no shops etc) we give out gifts beforehand, and have a lovely quiet day in our own way, just quietly and contentedly.

We offend nobody, and we enjoy ourselves - nothing wrong with that. Then we get 'back to normal' for a couple of days, and then celebrate the first day of the new year in a similar way. The gifts are done again, and we celebrate all we plan and hope to do in the year ahead, just quietly and hopefully.

Surely a little one in the family will make it a very exciting and busy Christmas for you all.

I lost my Dad some years ago just before Christmas, so it's a time of reflection on times past for us BUT, we are never maudlin and remember all the Christmases that we DID spend together. One of our daughters, who usually has to work over Christmas, (police officer),does have time off this year, even though she has to leave in the very early hours of Boxing Day, around 4am, for work 200 miles away.

Anyway, I do wish that Christmas would not start until, as meg said, Advent. Then, IMO, it would seem far more special than this never ending run up to it.

[GillD46]

This year will a very different one for us. Our son, will be, as always, abroad, our eldest daughter is going to her new In-laws and our second daughter will - God willing - have her baby home from hospital, probably only just home by then and they will need to be on their own as a new family. So we shall be on our own, for the first time in nearly 40 years. But I know we shall talk to them all on Skype or FaceTime sometime during the day.

While it will be different, we are quite looking forward to a change - though charades with just two of us will be very different indeed. On the plus side, we will be able to watch Downton totally uninterrupted!

[Boris+]

We don't mark the religious and marketing pressured sort of xmas ...

... there are presents to get etc.

Isn't that a contradiction?

Hi David and Alan,

No, it's not a contradiction - we celebrate (just for one day) having completed a year well lived. As it seems likely that it's going to be a 'quiet' day (no shops etc) we give out gifts beforehand, and have a lovely quiet day in our own way, just quietly and contentedly.

We offend nobody, and we enjoy ourselves - nothing wrong with that. Then we get 'back to normal' for a couple of days, and then celebrate the first day of the new year in a similar way. The gifts are done again, and we celebrate all we plan and hope to do in the year ahead, just quietly and hopefully.

So are you not putting your tree up on December 1st ?
Did you ever get the lights for the garden, you were looking at at last year?

We have lights still in the trees from our Ruby Wedding celebrations...not switched them on since, but they will be at the end of the month

As I said in my recent post, this year 01 December seems to be a convenient day for us, and we will probably do our festive tree on that day.
I did see some nice lights last year, but didn't get around to buying them.

[Boris+]

Hi Wolfie -

Yes little one will be busy this year - moreso than last year, but we mustn't be greedy and have more than our fair share.

[Meg 50]

This year will a very different one for us. Our son, will be, as always, abroad, our eldest daughter is going to her new In-laws and our second daughter will - God willing - have her baby home from hospital, probably only just home by then and they will need to be on their own as a new family. So we shall be on our own, for the first time in nearly 40 years. But I know we shall talk to them all on Skype or FaceTime sometime during the day.

While it will be different, we are quite looking forward to a change - though charades with just two of us will be very different indeed. On the plus side, we will be able to watch Downton totally uninterrupted!

I have no doubt you'll make it special.

I hope the baby gets home.

[Stephen]

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[GillD46]

This year will a very different one for us. Our son, will be, as always, abroad, our eldest daughter is going to her new In-laws and our second daughter will - God willing - have her baby home from hospital, probably only just home by then and they will need to be on their own as a new family. So we shall be on our own, for the first time in nearly 40 years. But I know we shall talk to them all on Skype or FaceTime sometime during the day.

While it will be different, we are quite looking forward to a change - though charades with just two of us will be very different indeed. On the plus side, we will be able to watch Downton totally uninterrupted!

I have no doubt you'll make it special.

I hope the baby gets home.

Thanks Meg. If it's meant to be........but fingers tightly crossed. It looks promising.

[suespud]

Isn't that a contradiction?

Hi David and Alan,

No, it's not a contradiction - we celebrate (just for one day) having completed a year well lived. As it seems likely that it's going to be a 'quiet' day (no shops etc) we give out gifts beforehand, and have a lovely quiet day in our own way, just quietly and contentedly.

We offend nobody, and we enjoy ourselves - nothing wrong with that. Then we get 'back to normal' for a couple of days, and then celebrate the first day of the new year in a similar way. The gifts are done again, and we celebrate all we plan and hope to do in the year ahead, just quietly and hopefully.

So are you not putting your tree up on December 1st ?
Did you ever get the lights for the garden, you were looking at at last year?

We have lights still in the trees from our Ruby Wedding celebrations...not switched them on since, but they will be at the end of the month

As I said in my recent post, this year 01 December seems to be a convenient day for us, and we will probably do our festive tree on that day.
I did see some nice lights last year, but didn't get around to buying them.

So really you just do the same as the rest of us who celebrate Christmas, but putting up the tree early in December..decorating the house..with whatever...you said you liked the Scandinavian theme for runners and chair backs..and little houses that light up... reindeers for the garden...
As for New Year..I bet a lot of us reflect on the previous year...and have hopes for the coming year.
So you are doing just the same as all of us...but just trying to make it sound different?

[Meg 50]

Just to annoy EVERYONE.... SD spent last Tuesday morning unpacking 2 boxes of tinsel headbands for angels, fabric squares and headbands made of old tights for shepherds in readiness for out children's service at 4.30 on Christmas Eve...

This early every year so we know how many news bits we need to make/scrounge/buy - people have a tendency to take home their headdresses yes, even adults dressed as shepherds....

[GillD46]

Meg - when I worked in an infant school, I was always the one digging out the Nativity costumes, and there were always some shepherd headdresses and angel headdresses missing. My supply of tea towels and tinsel was depleted each and every year!

Happy days.

[Boris+]

Hi Sue,

We have a tree which is decorated, and we have some small items which we put around the house. I never did get around to the Scandinavian touches (I meant too, but didn't get the free time I needed to do the embroidery). The reindeers etc in the garden were something I wanted, but similarly, I was busy doing other things and never did get back to the shop to buy those items.

I don't do a nativity scene, we don't do crackers on the table, and we don't work through mountains of traditional UK festive food and drink - we do our own thing. We don't do tinsel, and we don't have any angels (or similar). We don't do an outside door wreath, and we don't do outside lights or displays of lights in the windows either; and yet we are just quite simply happy.

Not really sure what is on the menu for this year - I expect DH knows, but I haven't got into that yet.

[Meg 50]

Angels - what? no angels?

I have a very special friend who collects angels and every cruise I would bring her back an angel - or 3. But they are so beautiful - Venetian glass, quayside in Helsinki, street market in Alicante etc etc etc that I HAD to buy some for me too. We now have ridiculous quantities of angels all over the place (including some bought on our hols in Ireland this year!)

[suespud]

Hi Sue,

We have a tree which is decorated, and we have some small items which we put around the house. I never did get around to the Scandinavian touches (I meant too, but didn't get the free time I needed to do the embroidery). The reindeers etc in the garden were something I wanted, but similarly, I was busy doing other things and never did get back to the shop to buy those items.

I don't do a nativity scene, we don't do crackers on the table, and we don't work through mountains of traditional UK festive food and drink - we do our own thing. We don't do tinsel, and we don't have any angels (or similar). We don't do an outside door wreath, and we don't do outside lights or displays of lights in the windows either; and yet we are just quite simply happy.

Not really sure what is on the menu for this year - I expect DH knows, but I haven't got into that yet.

So you didnt put your foot down and tell your OH you wanted lights for outside and reindeers and little houses that light up??
Boris...its Christmas tell him...a little bit of frivolity is fun !!!

We do cribs. lots of crackers..tinsel, door wreaths...and outside lights..all the nice daft bits...that make the place look very christmassy..
Meg, we do angels too
Each tree has an angel on the top...

[GillD46]

Oh yes, you can't have a tree without an angel. Actually I have a pair of glass angels that sit on the mantleshelf as well.

I must admit I'm not a massive tinsel fan, but we do have the door wreath, various garlands, a really lovely old nativity set that I set out, and lots of other Christmas ornaments that come out year after year - it's Christmas after all!

[Boris+]

Hi Sue,

We have a tree which is decorated, and we have some small items which we put around the house. I never did get around to the Scandinavian touches (I meant too, but didn't get the free time I needed to do the embroidery). The reindeers etc in the garden were something I wanted, but similarly, I was busy doing other things and never did get back to the shop to buy those items.

I don't do a nativity scene, we don't do crackers on the table, and we don't work through mountains of traditional UK festive food and drink - we do our own thing. We don't do tinsel, and we don't have any angels (or similar). We don't do an outside door wreath, and we don't do outside lights or displays of lights in the windows either; and yet we are just quite simply happy.

Not really sure what is on the menu for this year - I expect DH knows, but I haven't got into that yet.

So you didnt put your foot down and tell your OH you wanted lights for outside and reindeers and little houses that light up??
Boris...its Christmas tell him...a little bit of frivolity is fun !!!

We do cribs. lots of crackers..tinsel, door wreaths...and outside lights..all the nice daft bits...that make the place look very christmassy..
Meg, we do angels too
Each tree has an angel on the top...

I didn't put my foot down (as you phrased it) over the matter of exterior lights and reindeer -and anyway those items would have been in the back garden - besides, we don't do what you call frivolity I think.

However, we are comfortable with what we do, and it offends nobody - so that's fine.

[wolfie]

On our last cruise we found a little shop that sold handmade glass and we bought 3 small, ( about 4" high) glass angels. Being hand made each is slightly different; one for us, one for our daughter's first Christmas in her new home and another for our other daughter who, fingers crossed, will move into her new home by then.

We also have, and this will take some imagination, an angel around 1 foot tall and conical in shape which was made from a steel drum; bought it in the Caribbean many years back. Oh, it does have metal wings as well.

[oldbluefox]

Suespud, do you think you may have overdone it a bit last year?

[Mervyn and Trish]

So long as you didn't put them up before 1st December you're ok with me Foxy. It was Christmas songs on November 6th that got me going.

[qbman1]

I love Christmas, but am I alone in hating it starting in November? All the shops already have their Christmas stock on display, the Christmas lights are going up and in a Costa coffee shop today they were playing Christmas music. I just don't want Christmas to last two months. It makes it less special somehow when we actually get to Christmas Eve. I don't mind a bit of a build up but it's getting bonkers and worse every year.. Am I alone or has the world, especially the commercial world, gone crazy?

November ? You're lucky - there has been stuff in the shops here since the end of September. Bloody ridiculous !

One of my favourite things about a Christmas cruise is I can avoid all the circus of buying enough food for the whole village, trying to eat it all in two days, failing, feeling terminally nauseous and then spending the next 2 months thinking up ways to use it !

[suespud]

Suespud, do you think you may have overdone it a bit last year?

LOVE IT......that was amazing...

Mine is not that good...yet..

[Dark Knight]

it should start on the 24th of December and finish on the 26th
any adverts before that time should be banned, as should any reference to Christmas until the 24th of December
the meaning of Christmas in the UK , is excess, overspending ,over eating and it is ridiculous

[qbman1]

I'm deeply concerned - that's the second time I have agreed with you in a week !

Apart from the northern European cities with Christmas Markets, you can go anywhere in Europe and people are out and about doing their shopping and enjoying the spirit of Christmas on Christmas Eve - and not before !

[suespud]

I'm deeply concerned - that's the second time I have agreed with you in a week !

Apart from the northern European cities with Christmas Markets, you can go anywhere in Europe and people are out and about doing their shopping and enjoying the spirit of Christmas on Christmas Eve - and not before !

Christmas Eve???!!!! who you kidding???
Yes buying last minute gifts or a forgotten bag of sprouts..
But anyone who leaves the bulk of their shopping to do till Christmas Eve needs their head looking at

[qbman1]

The point is they don't buy hundreds of presents - just a token gift for special friends so it is perfectly feasible to buy that and food for 2 days on the 24th.

It is just us that insist on spending equivalent to the national debt on presents for the family and getting in the contents of a small supermarket "just in case anyone calls round"