Today I want to talk about Christmas. I know it's still a long way off - but not that long! It's a slippery slope now all the way down to December 25th and I honestly cannot wait. We don't have a massive family although I do have in-laws living with me, but we are a small family which means Christmas is relatively low-key and for now, that's the way I like it. Christmas always seems to be a source of stress for people, especially the logistics of who is going where and when so I wanted to asked the question - Christmas, are you doing it your way or do you spend it trying to please others.
I've done it both ways, most years are a bit of a compromise and normally somebody is left feeling grumpy. This year the in-laws are off to my husbands sister, my parents are staying at home and I'm battening down the hatches. Christmas with just my husband and my children - perfect, it doesn't really get better than that. I love to cook but this year I am mostly ordering in and opting for convenience food - I'm having a year off! I feel like I spend most of Christmas Eve and Christmas Day in the kitchen and whilst I don't really mind, this year I'd like to be able to spend more time with the children, play with their presents and all curl up and watch a film without having to run and check on a turkey every 20 minutes. I don't want to go out and visit relatives or even have them come to visit me, so selfishly, I am not going to. We'll see everyone we need to see in the run-up to the big event and then I shall sit at home in a wine, mince pie and Ferrero Rocher induced coma and feel very happy with myself.
Don't get me wrong, I love the hustle and bustle of the festive season and part of the reason I originally wanted four children (never going to happen by the way...) was looking way into the future and think about the possibilites of having HUGE family Christmas's. We will of course do a big family event again, probably next year, but after a busy year, I just want a peaceful one with my close family and I'm enjoying the thought of not having to make three different types of stuffing or carefully selecting foods because of diabetics, vegetarians, nut allergies and non-pork eaters!
So, do you like a quiet Christmas or a busy one? Are you getting what you want this year or are you going to be pleasing other people? Do you like to be the entertainer or the entertained?
Christmas for me has always been about balancing time between my mum and my dad. Usually I would spend Christmas with mum and NY with dad. When I got older I spent a few Christmases with my dad which was a nice change! However when I got married it became clear that the balancing act would become even more difficult with in-laws in the mix, especially as they live in the same place as my dad and family, so the mad rush to see relatives pretty much doubled in intensity! My Oh and I made the decision early on to spend Christmas by ourselves. We would see my mum on Christmas Eve, then fly out to Belfast on Boxing Day to see my dad and OH's family and various friends. However I am concerned about what will happen when we have kids - too many people to keep happy :(
ReplyDeleteAs for food - as neither of us are that fussed on turkey dinners and don't want to cook one for the sake of it, we have M&S party food on Christmas Day!
I think it's whatever works for you at the time. I'm lucky that we have nothing to do with my in-laws (horrible people, say no more)
ReplyDeleteI love Christmas at my parents and I enjoy Christmas at my house.
But this year, the same as last year, I've decided to sod the expense and booked us all into the local pub for dinner. No rushing around, no trying to find room for everything in fridge, then the oven, not to mention the washing up.
I just can't be doing with the stress of it all. It makes for a different type of Christmas, but as long as I get to spend quality time with the people I love, I don't really care.
I am looking forward to our first Christmas in our first proper home together as a family - and by proper home I mean the house we are finally in the process of buying rather than the homes we have made in other peoples houses on the rental market.
ReplyDeleteWe will arrive at our new home on the 18th December, the movers will deliver the majority of our belongings on the 19th. My brother in law will arrive on the 21st to spend Christmas and New Year with us.
We will spend Christmas surrounded by boxes, and it will be very low key, but it will be magical, and I cannot wait!
Always do it my way, which is now our way, though it wasn't hard to bring my husband around to my way of thinking. We do the visiting either side of Christmas but please ourselves on the actual day. I rarely do a traditional meal and it's almost always pre-prepared because, like you this year, I like to relax and enjoy myself rather than slave over a hot over for picky kids and a husband who wouldn't notice if it came from a packet anyway.
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