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

tab1967

Damzel_In_Distress wrote: »

Like i said in my other post, it's about the individual families, what they can and can't do and what they are and aren't comfortable with . If I had 5 children I'd probably be on a £50 each budget! So what you manage to do for them, I have no doubt is amazing
I'm lucky at the moment to have parents who are both willing to help out this year due to my recently newish situation and if it weren't for them there is no way DS would be getting his main present. If he'd asked after the split, the answer would of had to of been a firm no until i'd had chance to save up next year! But it was something he was told yes to a few months before we moved out and i split from his father so I don't feel right suddenly saying no now, I worry enough about what he must be going through after it all, without making him feel punished over a promised christmas present too.

I think this year I've been so upset and worried that I maybe have tried to over compensate in some area's because everything will be so different for DS, Waking up on christmas morning with just me and spending christmas eve as a twosome instead of with his dad as well, Right now it won't be something he'll even of thought of, but come the time I worry he'll be upset

Hi, hope you didnt think I was having a go at anyone because it wasnt meant that way at all.
I was in the same situation as yourself 10 years, not only did me an my hubby split but the same year my mum died and my kids were very close to her. Me and ex actually put our differences asside for the first Xmas and were both there to watch the kids open their presents. I know that wouldnt work for some other people and it wouldnt work with my ex anymore as nowadays we tolerate each other and no more.
Im sure Xmas will be special with just you and your kids, you will be able to devote your whole time to them and im sure they will love it. My kids are grown up now and they realise even before we split that Xmas was mainly done by me anyway. X

BBTHREE

Money_maker wrote: »

Got
Also got the Gingerbread cushion at Dunelm http://www.dunelm-mill.com/shop/gingerbread-christmas-cushion-273841 which was brilliant value - thank you to whoever mentioned them about 30 pages ago

Oh, and I put my annual £15 bet on for a white Christmas:rotfl:

I love the cushion, and was sorely tempted to get it but it doesn't match my other xmas cushions.

Mine are red xmas cushion covers from Poundworld (last year) which I have bought cheap cushion fillers for.


The only downside was I wanted four different ones and there are only 3 patterns (santa, snowman and xmas tree) so I have two Santas.

moneysavingmumofone

BBTHREE-Thanks for the Refreshers tips, hope my B&M has them! :j

chirpychick-Hope you had a good time shopping. :jDo you have any tesco clubcard vouchers? They have lots of mag subscriptions including a health and beauty one thats £14.50 in clubcard vouchers for a whole year.

watch
haribo
spy watch
kaymumof3-Hope the funeral went as well as can be expected. Be gentle with yourselves. x

ownmyown-Hope you done well at the car boot.
eljaycock-Hope your DD is ok. x
moneymaker-The Range is amazing isnt it. Thanks for the cushion link, soooo many lush things at Dunelm! The Rudolph doorstop is too cute, I NEED it!
possession-Such a shame your DD doesnt believe in Santa any more. Although she doesnt believe in Santa, Im sure she will still believe in the magic of christmas! My DS was very savvy with the elf last year and asked too many questions so I didnt even end up doing any naughty tricks or getting too much into it, the elf ended up just being a nice cuddly toy he took out with him. Didnt want to risk him digging any deeper! I remember noticing the note left from Father Christmas was in my mums handwriting, I cant remember if thats actually when I stopped believing but probably was. Christmas was still just as magical though! :xmastree:

Phew just caught up, been reading on and off all day lol! Welcome to all newbies. :wave: :xmastree:
Ive got enough thing to add to my 'To buy' list as I bought DS a spy camera as I didnt think it was a particular one he wanted but realised today that he specifically wants a spy watch that takes photos/videos etc. (been advertised on tv) Its £30 on amazon so will get that at some point or see if my mum wants to get him that. (I sort of want the credit for it though so maybe not. :rotfl:) Apart from that, the bike and power rangers figures Im not getting him anymore!! Honest! I need to go through his toys and see what he doesnt play with and also give his room a good tidy/clean to get ready for christmas. He actually still has a snowflake garland up on his ceiling as he begged me not to take it down lol. A bit of christmas cheer all round!
What rooms do you all decorate? I usually do the front room and hallway plus a few ornaments in the kitchen and DS has some wall/ceiling decorations and a little tree in his room. I want to go all out this year and cover everywhere (except the bathroom maybe lol. Although I do have a santa toilet seat cover somewhere!) x

Rebel_Hedgehog

Thanks for the heads up on the Dunelm Mill Gingerbread Man cushions for £3.99

Also I have just spotted these on the M & S website. Yes I realise they are more expensive but they look amazing!!!! Check out the Chenille Reindeer, Baubles and Snowman ones..

http://www.marksandspencer.com/Christmas-Cushions-Christmas/b/1598406031?ie=UTF8&pf_rd_r=026BB8ATMJTHQ2ZHEHKC&pf_rd_m=A2BO0OYVBKIQJM&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_i=44386030&pf_rd_p=475115433&pf_rd_s=left-nav-2

Snugglebunny8

Damzel_In_Distress wrote: »

I admit, I'm also another one who spoils DS at xmas. He gets a lot of presents, and usually around a £300-£400 budget. But this is spread out over the year as i usually start putting things about after April so I don't notice the money, this year has been harder because of the split between me and his father but he is still on track to have his same wonderful xmas. I normally get a lot of toys on glitches and sales over the year so he ends up with toys that are worth much more than I paid for them. This year he wants an xbox with kinect which is being bought between the whole family as I'm in a different financial situatuon now, even though he already has a wii, ps3, ds and an android pad. Some people have made obnoxious comments to me about him having these things as he's only young, but me and his father were able to afford them at the time so I couldnt care less what people think to be honest. Everyone buys what they can afford and has their own idea's of what is right for them, I would never judge them for what they like to do, so if they wish to judge me, then to be quite blunt they can look forward to the view of me metaphorically raising my middle finger!
I've spent less this year but he still has over 35 presents stashed away so far all of which should of cost a hair raising amount in comparison to what I paid for them.
I say - Do what you feel is right for you and your children, and let other people do the same

It really gets my Red Mist going when people are so judgmental, and rude - drives you mad doesnt it!:mad: nobody has the right to say things like that to you, it's none of their business! and it never ceases to amaze me how unpleasent some people can be, they don't even know you! they have no right to judge even if they do

I'd say 'up yours... Judgy Von HolierThanThou!' :rotfl:

My mum (when she used to come at Christmas ...) used to always make the 'oh aren't you spoilt!' comments, and (to me) 'why don't you put some by for their birthdays ...' not-very-loosely translated as 'they have too much' but I'd never dream of doing that when people have gone to the trouble of choosing and buying them a Christmas gift! they would wonder why they hadn't had a thank you note and it would be a bit rude, but she somehow thought that she could say what she liked .. one year my eldest said 'Mummy, what's spoilt?' after a visit from Grandmama ... I said 'Not you!'

moneysavingmumofone

kayandy wrote: »

When my mum was on her own bringing me & my sister up would spend about 100-150 each on us! When she met my stepdad 10 years ago the amount went up to 200-300 each! She was then unable to work due to illness && with having to pay stuff off & not working & having my baby brother it has gone down to 70-100 each but me & my sister no longer live at home & both have bf's they buy for too and we understand as there are more family members etc now & it doesn't bother us at all! I'd be happy with a box of chocolates or even a card! It's about what you can afford! To me Xmas is about spending time with the people you love not about gifts although I do like to give them!!

What is the gingerbread stuff in boots called? I have to get my grandma & auntie something so thought this would be a great gift!! Please help!!

Also my stepdad makes me get mums gift of little brother (he's 3) and gives me money! I want to get her a keyring or something similar with maybe his finger print on but they are all so expensive!! Do you have any ideas on where this can be done cheaply?

This company has loads of stuff including the keyring for £9.95. Im planning on getting MIL the silver necklace and someone back in the thread said they were really good.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/FINGERPRINT-FATHERS-DAY-ENGRAVED-OVAL-STAINLESS-STEEL-KEYRING-/200766734130?pt=UK_Home_Garden_Celebrations_Occasions_ET&hash=item2ebea13f32

Snugglebunny8

kayandy wrote: »

When my mum was on her own bringing me & my sister up would spend about 100-150 each on us! When she met my stepdad 10 years ago the amount went up to 200-300 each! She was then unable to work due to illness && with having to pay stuff off & not working & having my baby brother it has gone down to 70-100 each but me & my sister no longer live at home & both have bf's they buy for too and we understand as there are more family members etc now & it doesn't bother us at all! I'd be happy with a box of chocolates or even a card! It's about what you can afford! To me Xmas is about spending time with the people you love not about gifts although I do like to give them!!

What is the gingerbread stuff in boots called? I have to get my grandma & auntie something so thought this would be a great gift!! Please help!!

Also my stepdad makes me get mums gift of little brother (he's 3) and gives me money! I want to get her a keyring or something similar with maybe his finger print on but they are all so expensive!! Do you have any ideas on where this can be done cheaply?

It's called 'Beautiology' and its Bayliss and Harding, its really lovely and all on 3 for 2

I totally agree it's about spending time with family, I love catching up with friends and family in December, then on Christmas Eve morning closing the door on the world, getting out the lovely food and chocolates and putting on the Christmas movies and music, just the 4 of us is perfect to me.

We had no money at all when I was growing up and my mum really struggled for everything, but I still had magical Christmases, it's not the amount you spend really it's the thought behind what you are given

like so many people ahve mentioned about the Cadbury Chocolate machines they all longed for when they were little, I always wanted to have one but didnt, but I had other lovely things - but I got one for my DS this year

Snugglebunny8

Just had the Next Christmas Directory delivered, there is some beautiful home stuff, a Christmas Pudding cushion, a lovely wooden advent calendar, mistletoe lights for the mantlepiece, great things made of bark, a brilliant fake fur Christmas tree! and some lovely Christmas candles, well worth a look

also have lots of different knitted animal hats, gloves etc in all department, men, women, boys and girls

BBTHREE

Damzel_In_Distress wrote: »

Everyone buys what they can afford and has their own idea's of t what is right for them, I would never judge them for what they like to do, so if they wish to judge me, then to be quite blunt they can look forward to the view of me metaphorically raising my middle finger!
I say - Do what you feel is right for you and your children, and let other people do the same

Ooooh!! I'm Local too! I live around a 15 minute drive from manchester centre, depending on traffic around 30 mins on the bus. I've always been a lover of the city centre, I used to go 2 or 3 times a week shopping, haven't been since march this year though due to everything that happened between me and ds's dad. I'm so looking forward to going when it's all christmassy!

Wow, there's so many of us. I like the city centre but really only for Primani. I usually park where Boddingtons used to be (£3 all day, I'm a scrooge!) And head for Primani, and the big Arndale. I love it when the markets are on, and I have always had a bit of a soft spot for St Annes Square.

You are absolutely spot on, its no ones place it comment on any of us on what we spend on our kids. Love the middle finger comment, that's how I feel. :rotfl:

clayton79

BBTHREE wrote: »

Bizarrely, after banging on about it so much on here, I have just been to Bents, and it wasn't even planned.

DH works every other Sunday, and we try to do something on the Sunday he doesn't work. He said his mate had told him about a pub that does amazing 2 for £10 meals, so we headed off there and it turns out it was almost next door to Bents.

It would have been rude not to venture in, so we had a quick 45 mins or so before we went for sunday dinner.

As clayton79 has said the official xmas launch is 10th October, and so there were empty bits with "work in progress" signs.

But..there was still enough xmas stuff around to make us go 'Wow' and be happy.

The main thing I have learnt from my visit to Bents is although I am almost done with presents, and other than this years Disney ball I don't need any decorations, but....my xmas dinner table layout is pants! : (

They have some stunning table layouts on display, and whilst I can't afford Bents prices to buy all their candlesticks,napkins, charger plates etc, I am going to use them to steal ideas.

The other thing is, this could all be a bit pointless anyway, as our xmas plates are oval, and I have never seen and oval charger plate, and if I switch to round plates (after using the oval ones every year) I will feel like I am starving people as they fit far less on.



That would be lovely, the more of us the better. I had no idea they do classes, what do they do?

They do classes on a Thursday evening.. Think they start November. They are in the evening and they show you how to dress your tree... Bents style and your dining table!! I love them and try to get to as many as poss!!