Single adults with no kids - what do you do at Christmas?

miss_independent

Hi Everyone,

Christmas is swiftly approaching and for the past few years I've felt it has been like a damp squib.

I'm 31 and whilst I would have loved to have been married with kids by now, so far life has had other plans. There is only myself and my parents (late sixties/early seventies) who live in the UK from our family. My single friends live in various cities across the UK and Europe. My local friends are all married with kids and have their own families.

Christmas day usually involves going to church then making dinner with Mum and Dad and then we eat and they fall asleep and nod off on and off or watch rubbish telly until bed. This has been how it has been for the last few years and I usually end up on a massive downer, wondering how it's all come to this and promising next year it will be different.

I'd like this year to be...nice...enjoyable...dare I say it, fun! And less Bridget Jones like.

What do you all do? And do you enjoy Christmas?

pmlindyloo

Christmas day usually involves going to church then making dinner with Mum and Dad and then we eat and they fall asleep and nod off on and off or watch rubbish telly until bed.

Add to that eating copious amounts of rubbish food and drinking yourself into a stupor is par for the course for many households!

I think Christmas is very over rated and a lot of distress is caused by people believing that someone else is having a much better time than you are.

Yes, if there are young children around Christmas can be more interesting but coupled with this is the stress and strain of over tired kids, overworked parents and people getting themselves into huge debt.

If you want to make it different then volunteer at a homeless centre (or similar) and then visit your parents for tea. Otherwise, treat it as one day in the year when you can eat copious amounts of food and drink and watch rubbish TV!

PasturesNew

I, too, had to "go to the parents" for donkeys' years, until one died and the other went into a care home.... then I had to collect from the care home and take to a sibling's. Not a sibling that "offered", but was close, so it's what happened. But this year it's different, both gone now so I said to my sibling "not coming, don't want to set a precedent for something you never bought into anyway".

When you're single it is nigh on impossible to do anything different than to go to your parents. At one stage it was a 700 mile round trip to achieve it too. But it's what you do.

duchy

If you don't want to go to your parents (and it won't upset them if you don't) then you can do anything you want- as suggested if you are minded you could help out a charity for the day, or spend the day with friends or spend the day having an indulgent day alone or go on holiday over the Christmas period. Plenty of people would envy you having options when they have none.

What ideally would you LIKE to be doing ?

When I was single and childless I usually spent Christmas eve with friends and spent the day with my parents - but made sure I did the cooking to give my Mum a break ...... one year I went skiing which was fun and different.

BrassicWoman

I have xmas the weekend before with friends who also have parent visiting. We eat well and get very drunk. Then xmas day doesn't seem too bad, because we've already had xmas.

Jagraf

Spend some of the time with your folks then do something for charity.

I think everyone should do this at some point anyway, kids or no kids, OH or no OH.

Person_one

I work shifts and am off Christmas and Boxing Day for the first (and probably last) time in a few years. Your Christmas Day sounds ok to me! Its just a day after all, putting too much pressure on ourselves to have a Christmas like an M&S ad is pointless, I expect more people do what you do than have huge happy family gatherings for 25 with a giant turkey and carol singing.

I will go to my parents' house, we'll take the dogs for a long walk, have a big dinner, then my siblings will probably pop in with their kids for a few hours around teatime.

I plan to thoroughly enjoy being able to relax, and fall asleep on the sofa full of roast potatoes wearing a hat out of a cracker, and I don't plan to care at all if that's a bit 'Bridget Jones'!

Oakie

How about you go away somewhere for Xmas [with or without the parents].Here in the UK or somewhere warmer like The Canaries.
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I find a walk on a Devon beach in December is a good hangover cure.

worried_jim

I treat it as a normal day off. No fuss, no worries, can't see what the fuss is about. Haven't put any decs up since 2002.

I have the food and drink that I like and watch the films I want. If only the office opened.......

tea_lover

I go to church, vo to my parents (along with sister and teenage niece) then eat too much. Absolutely love it! Having spent the last few years dreading Christmas I'm now single again and totally over excited about being able to enjoy myself again.

miss_independent

Thanks everyone, sounds like a lot of you are in a similar boat!

a) I do have to/want to spend it with my parents. We only have each other so it feels right and unfortunately I am also having to live at home at the moment due to having to resign from a live in job in October.

b) I would volunteer for a charity but I currently work for a charity and I need a break from it on Christmas Day. Its an extremely demanding hands on job due to the client group (mental health needs, learning disabilities, physical health problems, often violent towards me).

c) Going away isn't an option this year as I am working most of Christmas (but only working Christmas Day morning) and my parents also still work.



I suppose I would have liked for us to maybe go out somewhere nice for Christmas dinner or go for a walk and play some fun games or something after dinner at home. I've just raised it with them and Mum has says she absolutely categorically is not leaving the house on Christmas Day and says pigging out in front of the telly is what its all about!


I think the main thing is that I usually feel bored and alone! So I am trying to come up with ways to entertain myself.

I think people are right in saying that we tend to compare and feel we are worse off when many people would wish they were in our position.