❄❄ Let It Snow ❄❄ :: Christmas 2012 Chatter Thread

chirpychick

ellie9ellie wrote: »

Does anyone have a list or plan for how to organise food shopping. Every year my DH goes mad and wants to buy loads of stuff that ends up getting wasted - well not this year. This year I will be organised - she says with her fingers crossed x

I didn't until last year.
This year I will do my weekly food shop as usual and menu plan that food to last us a week.
However extra things we wouldn't normally buy such as stuffing or pigs in blankets etc I will pick up 1 or 2 items with every shop between now and Christmas as and when I can afford to, that way we don't really notice the money being spent on extra treats.
Also although we do buy a lot of treaty food in we mainly gift them to each other in stockings and things.
We don't buy in anything for "incase people drop in" the only thing we really spend extra on is proper meat.
I try to account for the food within the regular food shopping maybe add some Tesco voucher and £10 on top. But really don't like to go overboard, we will only eat it and get fatter LOL

ellie9ellie wrote: »

Does anyone know the best place to get advent calenders? The children like to have a chocolate one and then we have a lovely wooden train that I put chocolates in as well.

For me personally I don't get the advent calendars until November when there are better deals. We have brought poundland ones but didnt like the chocolate so we treat ourselves to malteaser/mars ones and usually from Morrisons (walking distance from our house) they are all far too expensive and not much choice at the moment.

kayandy wrote: »

Also can you make a kids baking hamper for less than £10 my bf little cus loves baking and I have no idea what to get et hit we only spend between 5-10 on her!!

Definitely.
I haven't got time right this second but I saw a baker hat & apron for £2 somewhere (will hunt out the link in a while) poundland for mixing bowl, cutters, rolling pins etc, very very easy and cheap to do.

girlinayellowdress

Own_My_Own wrote: »

I'm so glad I finally joined in on this thread. It's lovely to be able to chat about Christmas in September. None of my friends even think about Christmas until December. They all moan at me when ever I say something. Then they all moan in Dec when they are running round like headless chickens.

They all think I'm mad as we don't even have a Christmas day here.
I am a single parent of 2 children. I have a 15 year old dd and a 19 ds.
My ds has Aspergers and finds the whole thing too much.
So we have a normal day with some presents and chocolates.We do try to have a roast dinner, but a couple of years ago when the 25th fell on a Saturday we had to have a curry.We had the roast on Boxing Day, as it was a Sunday, and the day you are meant to have a roast.
It has been known for him just to stay in his room all Christmas day.
We do have a SMALL tree in the corner of the lounge. But that is it. My big tree and decks are in the loft, as I can't bring myself to get rid of them. (They are very old now)

I do miss the festivities, especially when the rest of the family ring, and I can hear everyone in the background. We tried to join them one year but it didn't go to well.:(
When it gets me down on the day, I have a glass of wine and think I could be stuck with in-laws, and I seem to feel better .:rotfl:

I think I over compensate our lack of Christmas by organising it all year! Yes you really can organise nothing.LOL
Even this has to be quite low key. BUT NOT ANYMORE. I HAVE YOU LOT :T:T:T

This year he is going to stay at a friends on the last weekend of Nov. So me and dd with 2 friends are going to Bury St Edmunds for the weekend. It is the weekend of their Christmas Fayre and we can't wait.:j Just hoping he still wants to go when the time comes. Fingers crossed

Ah, my DS also has aspergers along with OCD and anxiety issues, but we do have Christmas (just him and me). It's quite hysterical at Christmas time, everything has to be in place, as for the tree all decorations have to be eight inches apart and the lights held on with the little wire things you use to tie bags up with. God help me if someone knocks against it and the whole thing is stripped and redone. Christmas dinner is set as if we are in the 1920s, I swear he should of been born then. Cutlery is precise and we have to follow his traits, woe betide me if I pinch a piece of dinner as its being cooked. Everything has to be in eights again, carrots, potatoes etc. Once the day is nearly over he decides Christmas is over for the year and everything has to be packed away before the end of Christmas Day! Then he will not go to bed until Christmas has been cleaned away and I find myself cleaning and hoovering the whole house just to get him to bed, by then of course I've had more than my fair share of whiskey in my cups of coffee and I'm quite squiffy. Boxing Day always consists of flasks of hot drinks to the hill where he will fly his kite and play pooh sticks (no I don't know why either but we do, he insists). Then maybe we will call on family to see them but they don't appreciate having their trees re-dressed and told Christmas is over!

his_missus

Am I the only one who isn't that keen on choccy advent calendars? My poor Hubby spends ages trawling around the shops looking for one with just pictures that doesn't cost a fortune. Yes, I do have an advent calendar at the age of, ahem, 39

We do have a couple of felt advent calendars with pockets and we usually share out a box of celebrations or heros to fill each other's calendar. Fortunately, we like different chocs so it works out well.

Possession

Amazon has some very nice picture advent calendars.

LalaGomay

his_missus wrote: »

Am I the only one who isn't that keen on choccy advent calendars? My poor Hubby spends ages trawling around the shops looking for one with just pictures that doesn't cost a fortune. Yes, I do have an advent calendar at the age of, ahem, 39

I'm just the same! Our garden centre does a big Christmas display and they sell really nice big old fashioned advent calendars with just pictures (and lots of glitter). Chocolate calendars don't feel at all Christmassy to me as our family never had them when we were kids.

Snugglebunny8

I always had the picture ones when I was a kid (yes 39 too!! ) and loved them, I have been looking for a picture one as well, thanks for the Amazon tip, will have a look!

W H Smith have had picture ones in in the past few years, though nothing in there when I popped in last week.

Snugglebunny8

LalaGomay wrote: »

I'm just the same! Our garden centre does a big Christmas display and they sell really nice big old fashioned advent calendars with just pictures (and lots of glitter). Chocolate calendars don't feel at all Christmassy to me as our family never had them when we were kids.

how funny - first thing I thought too was 'lots of glitter'! :beer:

moneysavingmumofone

chirpychick-How nice of your mum.

noodles86-My OH always leaves things out it drives me mad! He gets it from his dad as he does it too!

Own My Own-Im glad this thread helps you get your christmas fix.


I have had a super christmas shopping day! Drove to Reading to the new Home Bargains and it was fab! I spent far far too much though. :eek: I was so chuffed because Id reserved two Dr Who sets (Cybernetics kit and Silurian Crystals) at Argos for £8.99 and £7.99 and was going to pick them up today but Home Bargains had them for £5.99 each! (originally £29.99 at argos!) They also had a Dalek identifier set for £5.99 so I got that too as my savings on the other 2 sets nearly covered the price! (justifying it here lol) I also got DS one of the only things he's asked for a spy camera for £7.99! I have never had so many bags from HB lol. The only christmas things they had were selection boxes, wrapping paper and gft bags so just got some wrapping paper. :xmastree:
After leaving HB we were driving home and OH was nearly deafened by me screaching ''theres The Range!!!'' :rotfl: I didnt know there was one in Reading so was erm a tiny bit excited to spot one on the other side of the road! Of course we went to have a nosy. I have to say I was a tad disappointed at first as they only had a foody christmas section and the rest seemed to be crafty stuff/photo frames/canvases etc. OH suggested we go upstairs so we looked at some rather nice oak furniture and started to walk over to the halloween decs when lo and behold I spied some twinkling lights at the far end of the shop to which I again deafened my OH with 'LOOK!!' :j:j:jand he after spotting them too said 'Breeeaathe!!' :rotfl:I flew over there and there was a HUUUUGE christmas section, I apologise to whoever has to see the ccctv footage as they will see a grown woman (in body, not spirit!) actually dancing in the aisles. :j:xmastree::xmastree::xmastree: I was in christmas heaven! And due to my HB spree I actually only spent £3.78 on xmas things! :eek: (although I did pick up a few gifty things too) I even picked up a wooden advent calendar then was sensible (eurgh) and put it back! They had loads of lovely advent calendars (the ones with drawers) ranging from £8.99 to £14.99 and I think i will get one if there's any when I go back. OH wants to get a snowman surrounded tree stand for £19.99 as we're getting a real tree for the first time this year. I left Reading a very happy christmas crazy girl.

Anyway I should be ashamed of myself reading that back but I am on too much of a Christmas high right now to care. :rotfl:

Ms_Bertha

Hello all....mind if I join you? I love Christmas and, like so many of you, I'm banned from talkng about it at home yet...hubby is a grinch, lol.

It just wouldn't be Christmas without an advent calendar, my mum still buys me one every year (I'm nearly 39), it has to be pictures, not choccy - but last year she got me one that had little stain glass window style pictures, you had to tear of the tab behind each window to let the light shine through. I popped an electric candle behind it and it was lovely!

I'm getting there with the pressies, just my mum & dad left - they are so hard to buy for, always say "just a card and your company" when we ask what they would like.

I have just been to check the holly at the bottom of the garden, I like to use lots of it to decorate the house at Christmas...I cut all the berries off and wire on fake ones though; too worried puddy cats will eat them!

I hope you don't mind me dropping in, I have read through the more recent posts (sorry, I need to go back and do some thanking), you have made me feel all glittery and festive :rudolf:

moneysavingmumofone

Ms-Bertha-Welcome. The advent calendar sounds lovely!!


I just thought the zombie apolalypse hamper I want to do my brother would also be a perfect pressie for my horror film mad uncle!! Doh! Today I bought an end of the world recipe book and coffin shaped box filled with candy body parts but only one of each and cant go all the way back to HB just to get those! (well i would hehe but petrol costs grr)