*The Holly and the Ivy* and the You Know What 2013 Chatter Thread.

nicolax

Just sticking Nativity 2 on with a mince pie so feeling festive!

Almost done my christmas shopping - just need to get dad one of them bath bomb snowmen from lush

... Then I need to stop!! And not buy bits just cause I see them and they look good!

Peppapig

OMO - am thinking ds may not have enjoyed the Spurs game as much as hoped?

JJ - glad you're having such a fab time (apart from the germ sharing).

Sorry to hear of the issues some of you have with your ex partners. It's always so heartbreaking when one party won't put the children and their feelings first. :grouphug:

Have spent the whole afternoon watching Christmas films - lazy but nice. Also my twinkly white lights for the hallway arrived yesterday and I've decided to put them up tomorrow - partly because I'm not 100% sure how they're going to hang and I don't want to leave it until the beginning of December in case I can't get them right. Can't wait to get the decs out of the cupboard because my Christmas mug is somewhere with them and I want to have hot chocolate in it!

DD1 still hasn't had the new baby so looks like he might go to the due date after all (due next Saturday but I've put in a request for this Tuesday instead ).

FeistyFidget

Hi Lovelies,

This weekend has been bitter sweet - sweet because I got to have my wonderful DH home, but bitter because he is only on weekend release and must go back in tomorrow. They still don't know what is causing the fluid, and despite it all draining, it seems to have increased since he's switched to oral water tablets.

In other news I've reached a bit of a life changing decision. With DH set to be in and out of hospital the older we get, it's time he took priority over my businesses. I'm the main income earner, and as a female, I do feel somewhat over-whelmed at trying to be the perfect wife, home-maker, business woman and the ever present worry of will I ever get to be a Mother, achieve our much wanted house etc - things must change. I am not super woman, and I am fed up of being stressed, tired, irritable and snapping at poor DH because I'm struggling to cope. 2014 will be the year that I stop trying to do it all and just enjoy what I am fortunate enough to have.

Thank you all for your suggestions re the gratitude, we already have boxing day buffets at my Mum's and then for my husbands parents we are hosting an evening buffet at ours

Money_maker

freespirit66 wrote: »

Oh no OMO not you as well, whats happened? Yes these used to be beautiful as well, no im not going to bother next year either, i dont know if they think people havent got the money why should i bother or what but you would think they would make a proper effort with what little they have got, flipping eck i cant believe £12.99 either, what about families with 3 or 4 kids i dont think its even that at Harrods is it??

Nope, Harrods is free:j

They charge £10 which they credit to your Harrods card providing you turn up. You can then spend the £10 in store. Actually, the Harrods grotto was brilliant this year with the best Father Christmas ever.

£12.99 is ridiculous, there's no way I would pay over £5 just to see a Father Christmas. Someone is coining it in. Wouldn't be so bad if a large chunk went to charity. £12.99 :eek:

On the Christmas front, got some long wispa 'bars' from BHS for £2 last week (think it was 4 singles in a row) and malteser 'crackers' from tesco for £4 which I think is about 5 bags. Good for filling big stockings.

freespirit66

FeistyFidget wrote: »

Hi Lovelies,

This weekend has been bitter sweet - sweet because I got to have my wonderful DH home, but bitter because he is only on weekend release and must go back in tomorrow. They still don't know what is causing the fluid, and despite it all draining, it seems to have increased since he's switched to oral water tablets.
In other news I've reached a bit of a life changing decision. With DH set to be in and out of hospital the older we get, it's time he took priority over my businesses. I'm the main income earner, and as a female, I do feel somewhat over-whelmed at trying to be the perfect wife, home-maker, business woman and the ever present worry of will I ever get to be a Mother, achieve our much wanted house etc - things must change. I am not super woman, and I am fed up of being stressed, tired, irritable and snapping at poor DH because I'm struggling to cope. 2014 will be the year that I stop trying to do it all and just enjoy what I am fortunate enough to have.
Thank you all for your suggestions re the gratitude, we already have boxing day buffets at my Mum's and then for my husbands parents we are hosting an evening buffet at ours

FEISTY so glad DH was home for the weekend, i hope you both had a nice quiet, restful one, poor DH and you still not knowing the full extent of whats wrong, it must be so frustrating. I totally agree with you making some important decisions, as much for yourself as for DH, and it doesnt need to be permanent, you just need to find a fine balance of work and home life, you need me time as much as the next person, how you have coped with everything this year i just dont know, you are a very strong person and should be very proud of yourself, sending you much love and hugs xx

freespirit66

Money_maker wrote: »

Nope, Harrods is free:j

They charge £10 which they credit to your Harrods card providing you turn up. You can then spend the £10 in store. Actually, the Harrods grotto was brilliant this year with the best Father Christmas ever.

£12.99 is ridiculous, there's no way I would pay over £5 just to see a Father Christmas. Someone is coining it in. Wouldn't be so bad if a large chunk went to charity. £12.99 :eek:

On the Christmas front, got some long wispa 'bars' from BHS for £2 last week (think it was 4 singles in a row) and malteser 'crackers' from tesco for £4 which I think is about 5 bags. Good for filling big stockings.

Wow, there you go Harrods = FREE, Garden Centre = 12.99, UNBELIEVEABLE

Laurajo_2

FeistyFidget wrote: »

Hi Lovelies,

This weekend has been bitter sweet - sweet because I got to have my wonderful DH home, but bitter because he is only on weekend release and must go back in tomorrow. They still don't know what is causing the fluid, and despite it all draining, it seems to have increased since he's switched to oral water tablets.

In other news I've reached a bit of a life changing decision. With DH set to be in and out of hospital the older we get, it's time he took priority over my businesses. I'm the main income earner, and as a female, I do feel somewhat over-whelmed at trying to be the perfect wife, home-maker, business woman and the ever present worry of will I ever get to be a Mother, achieve our much wanted house etc - things must change. I am not super woman, and I am fed up of being stressed, tired, irritable and snapping at poor DH because I'm struggling to cope. 2014 will be the year that I stop trying to do it all and just enjoy what I am fortunate enough to have.

Thank you all for your suggestions re the gratitude, we already have boxing day buffets at my Mum's and then for my husbands parents we are hosting an evening buffet at ours

Glad to hear your husbands home, albeit for a short while. It's miserable being in hospital, and very stressful when a loved on is in. We had a similar thing with mil having fluid on her lungs, she then developed a kidney infection (or so we were told - we never really got to the bottom of it) which caused kidney failure. It was a big shock as before then she had been a very healthy 63 year old. She now does dialysis three times a week, and has been doing so for a couple of years, and is almost as spritely as she was before. It was a horrible time when she was in the hospital though, as no one seemed to know what was making her ill and we couldn't seem to get any straight answers out of anyone.

Good luck with the future, wishing you both all the best xx

Own_My_Own

pumpkin1964 wrote: »

I have a 20% discount code if you want to order dads boxers from M&S today. PM me if you want it

Have PMed you . Thank you so much.

Peppapig wrote: »

OMO - am thinking ds may not have enjoyed the Spurs game as much as hoped?

I am so glad I went out. The 4 phone calls were enough. He still had hope until the 4th goal. This was because his team went 3-0 down today but pulled it back and won 4-3. He scored twice so was very happy about that.

Well thanks to the generosity of pumpkin and a phone call to my cousins daughter 2 tasks will be done today.
My cousin is not going to London this year, but like everything else in her life she thinks if she doesn't mention it, it will go away.

So myself, dd and my cousins daughter are going up on the 15th. We take all the presents to my Gt Aunts in Borough and she distributes them from there. As it's not far from Southbank we can go to the Christmas Market. We will go to Lakeside first then on into London.

My cousins daughter (24) is so excited. Her grandparents moved out of London before her Mum was born, and her Mum doesn't know her way around. Whenever they go up there they only visit family and never really see any of London. She squealed when I asked her if she wanted to come as she knows I will take her somewhere she hasn't been before.

quidsy

Started the choc sleighs today, made 4, one was a practice so my DS can have that one, the other 3 came out much better. I was pretty fast by number 4, have another 9 to go but will do them in stages. Bought a glue gun today, I think I am in love with it, thinking up things I can do to use it. lol.

Ruth_honey

I've FINALLY got my Halfc0st order to go through. Almost TWO days of trying!!! Ordered more wrapping paper than I intended to because it was taking so long to remove it from the basket. Still, 24m for 80p, you can't go wrong, can you? Also bought the gingerbread man plate. I think someone else on here said it was nice when they'd ordered it.
Will need to write out my Christmas cards soon. Find that task so boring. Think I'll stick on a Christmas film and do it when DH is at work, then just get him to sign his lot when he gets home.