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How far are you on for Christmas?
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Gloomendoom wrote: »To some people it's more than a bank holiday... and I'm not just referring to religious folk either.
Agreed, the commercial involvement seems to start earlier every year. I was in a pub at the start of July and there was a poster up urging me to book early for Christmas, complete with a menu.
However, from an "old style" perspective, preparing for Christmas has long been done in advance. For example, Christmas cakes and, in particular, pudding improve with age (within limits).
Take out the presents element and it is really much different? If it wasnt, then everyone would spend 4 months building up to Easter.0 -
A little nonsense now and then is relished by the wisest men :cool:
Norn Iron club member #3800 -
I'm carefully ignoring anything to do with the C word, same as usual.If your dog thinks you're the best, don't seek a second opinion.;)0
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Take out the presents element and it is really much different? If it wasnt, then everyone would spend 4 months building up to Easter.
Take out the presents and I doubt if anyone bar the children would notice. Christmas is big thing in our family, Easter less so, but we still get together.
Yours might be different.0 -
Gloomendoom wrote: »Take out the presents and I doubt if anyone bar the children would notice. Christmas is big thing in our family, Easter less so, but we still get together.
Yours might be different.
So why the urgent push for sales (on gifts for everyone, not just children) in September if nobody would notice the absence of presents?0 -
Nor do I buy the excuse that people must start planning in advance because of large families, birthdays close to Xmas, etc. As I said, people did not have the urge to do so 20 to 30-odd years ago; and now, we have the benefit of many more retailers AND more pertinently, the internet, where you can sit and buy about 20 presents in an hour.
Well it's always been the case in my family and I'm almost 40. My parents always prepared in October half term as mum was a teacher and dad worked weekends. Mum couldn't have got things on behalf of Father Christmas with us kids with her! :rotfl:
We didn't had lavish or many Christmas presents growing up, and throughout my married life my hubby and I have always set a budget and stuck to it. It makes no difference if you choose to spend your budget in February, August or December. I shop now and will not even go into the city again until 2018. One of the many joys of living out in the docks.
From what I've read on here nobody's dashing out to buy the latest 'must-have' tat because of advertising or retailers. Preparation is a large part of what keeps my family close, sane and able to budget so effectively.
We should be embracing that we're all different and choosing to watch our spending/savings while we focus on what matters to us.0 -
dingdongsaving wrote: »Well it's always been the case in my family and I'm almost 40. My parents always prepared in October half term as mum was a teacher and dad worked weekends. Mum couldn't have got things on behalf of Father Christmas with us kids with her! :rotfl:
We didn't had lavish or many Christmas presents growing up, and throughout my married life my hubby and I have always set a budget and stuck to it. It makes no difference if you choose to spend your budget in February, August or December. I shop now and will not even go into the city again until 2018. One of the many joys of living out in the docks.
From what I've read on here nobody's dashing out to buy the latest 'must-have' tat because of advertising or retailers. Preparation is a large part of what keeps my family close, sane and able to budget so effectively.
We should be embracing that we're all different and choosing to watch our spending/savings while we focus on what matters to us.
I am the almost the same age as you then and I never recall in the 80s a big push for sales prior to late November. And to be fair, you might not have been able to get things on behalf of Father Christmas with kids around previously, but you can now with the click of a mouse button.
If retailers didnt think they could get money out of people in October, they just wouldnt spend the advertising money....0 -
dingdongsaving wrote: »We should be embracing that we're all different and choosing to watch our spending/savings while we focus on what matters to us.
Hear hear!
And on the theme of being different my 4 year old has requested that Santa brings him 'London Bridge' and 'a Christmas pudding'. It's a good job I've already explained you don't get everything you ask for.0 -
Just thinking about what Jil said; yea it’s a great time of the year to get rid of all those bits and pieces lurking in the cupboards and freezer that’ll will never be used
I have just read back, I won't be wasting anything I hope, by getting rid I will use it up, donate to a foodbank that sort of thing. But it has been so much easier to plan and use up by tidying and sorting the cupboards. I even found some mini Christmas puddings BB April 18. As well as four packs of walnuts.0 -
I'm also about the same age as you NineDeuce and I remember my mum basically knackered in December running around trying to make Christmas special.
I don't want to buy presents at a click of a mouse when I'm on a limited budget and want to put some real thought into my presents. Again like Martin Lewis says we all know Christmas is the same date every year, so If I see something that my DD or a family member would really like, with money off say in April I would be a fool not to buy and store it. I've saved quite a few hundred doing it this way and I've got gifts that I know family members would really like.
I physically cannot do a lot at one time, as pain clinic say I have to 'pace' myself or put myself in hospital so If this means buying throughout the year then that's what has to be done.
I would rather have a happy, healthy and stress free Christmas with my family than be stuck in hospital.Decluttering challenge 2023🏅⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Decluttering challenge 2024 🏅🏅⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️0
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