* Step into Christmas * & 2020 - It's the 2020 Christmas Chatter Thread

nic2075

Tried to read back, but I’ve missed so much. 

red robin, I hope your hubby is feeling much better now. 

Stoke, I hope you are feeling better too. I have days where I feel ok and pretty even, then I start overthinking and anxiety takes hold and can be crippling.  I’m trying to not think too far ahead at the moment and focus on today and tomorrow. I can just about cope with that. 

After last night announcements I feel pretty mixed. We were just having just us for Xmas day anyway and only travelling to drop of presents at family’s doors or back gardens if it’s nice enough. But the thought of being locked down going into January is really depressing me. I always struggle in Jan. the excitement of Christmas is over, no money, dark dreary weather and not a lot to look forward to. My DD is also meant to be doing prelim exams for her Nat 5’s (GCSE’s) as soon as wee go back. But already we going back online learning until the 18th of Jan at the earliest. So that already overlaps her exam timetable, so I have no idea what is happening now. Gives her more time to study I guess, but it’s the unknown that is stressing us all out. 

On a plus, I am the most organised for Christmas I’ve ever been lol. I have everything bought and wrapped. The food delivery arrived yesterday, so my potatoes and veg are in the garage. It’s nice and cold in there, so they should stay fresh enough.  Trying to just relax and spend time with the kids doing nice Christmassy things. Usually I still have little bits and bobs to buy. It’s hard to relax. 

Floss

"qualify for it"? Is there an exam? Nobody told me about having to qualify for the vaccine... hope someone has told the medical director & chief nurse at my workplace that they may need to set questions...

kerri_gt

Tree up, Santa Dash run, popped into town (shops no more busy than normal at this time of year despite what the media may be reporting)...and feeling no more festive. Wouldn't actually care if it was just about one day but it's not, it's the whole run up to Christmas and catching up with friends afterwards. The whole year feels like its been a waste of time and next year is set to start in the same way. Sorry to be bah humbug but this is not living. 
Watched Krampus last night, seemed appropriate.

Spendless

What a week. Whoever thought by the end of it  Tier3, where we've been for weeks, not seeming as bad. . Started it, wondering if we'd get to the London show and asking about tickets being changed, to find out, if you don't watch the Tuesday evening show it won't be happening and you need to book train tickets. Then people going to sleep on Friday night in Tier2, but in Tier4 by the time tit struck midnight on Saturday with only 24 hours in Tier3.  I feel so sorry for the people stuck, the student offspring or young adults who live in the affected areas and hadn't returned due to work committments, or waiting for the next payday to book transport home, or were isolating for a week beforehand before travelling back to relatives and now face  a Christmas by themselves, to the recently widowed, who couldn't be put in a support bubble back int he summer, because their spouse was still alive and it wasn't possible to add them, the terminally ill who are aware this was their last Christmas to see love ones. Sorry but nothing will convince me the rise in cases since the Autumn wasn't to do with schools/colleges/Unis being allowed back at once. I looked no end of times for guidance on returning students BEFORE we signed up to a year's rental agreement. I found precisely nothing! And how can Schools have whole year groups as a 'bubble' which is broken every night the child returns home to school aged siblings. What a mess.

On the Christmas front, the majority is wrapped. DD was done, but a trip to TK Maxx today had her finding a dress on the clearance rack, reduced to £65. It is Armani! So, it's bought, tried on and being put away for Christmas where she will assure her Dad it's a surprise hahaha. She is 18 in the Spring, so this dress is ideal for any occassions she may have, or to sit in the house with - lol. Annoyingly I also saw a Guess bag which fits the safety criteria we've insisted her having since her ipad was stolen. It was £20 cheaper than the Harrods bag we've bought!  DD's last Christmas Eve hamper mostly done, though I seem to have lost a mini box of chocs and need to add a straw for her starbucks frappacino.

I'm behind on the cards as per usual, with no excuse this time as I bought them prior to lockdown2, so that is my tomorrow's task along with ringing my Nan and asking when I can drop her present off. 

Spendless

Hopefully to make you all smile. DD sent me a message on Saturday saying she'd heard there's going to be a Tier5 & Tier6. Her boyfriend's family knows someone in Westminster and back in March she was hearing news that hadn't yet become official, which was handy but that news scource dried up within a couple of weeks, so I believed her till I read what she'd put. Tier5 will be only 1 person per house, so the rest of the family will need to move out and Tier6 is the same apart from you'll need to remove all doors, windows and the roof and the only pets allowed are chickens, hahahahahaha.

I've yet to switch the tv on, but the papers leading story about French blocking the ports has unnerved me a bit about a food shop. I'm part way through running the freezer down in anticipation of filling it back up with festive food and enough for the students who will still be here Christmas Day and the vegetarian options DD likes. 

Hope everyone is keeping well with their now changed plans. 

Beshki

Sorry to ask on an unrelated thread, but i feel sure there will be a ‘stocking up for Brexit/preparation for Brexit’ style thread on here somewhere and I can’t find it, can anyone please advise? Thank you x

Redredrobin

well I well I knew things were going to well ! Only just realised that I have to spray paint a photo frame for dds William Beck signed photo and it’s peeing down lol hoping it’s at least dry tomorrow so I can get it done .

Food shop is done we went to Aldi for 7am it was lovely and quiet and shelves were fully stocked as was Lidl an hour later .

Hubby is improving and wanted to go shopping today but it’s worn him out , anyone had the virus ? How long did it take before you felt stronger ?

Floss

Beshki said:

Sorry to ask on an unrelated thread, but i feel sure there will be a ‘stocking up for Brexit/preparation for Brexit’ style thread on here somewhere and I can’t find it, can anyone please advise? Thank you x

Have a look on Old Style

skogar

Princess kitty - lovely cross stitch. Really beautiful.

Sending a big hug to all who have had to change plans at short notice or are feeling a little low. 

Spendless - your tiers 5 and 6 did make me chuckle.

Spendless

@Redredrobin - Most people in hubby's office got it just before lockdown2. They were recovered within a couple of weeks, regardless of whether they'd had a mild or bad dose. My friend though believes she got it in a hotel over August BH weekend, and she was bad with it, unable to sleep at night, then after she was considered not contagious, she still had a very bad cough for several weeks afterwards and now a few months on she is still very tired though nothing else. She's not really considered a vulnerable group but is on meds for bi-polar, some of ehr medication makes her put on weight, so she'd be over ideal weight range.

I have everything for DD's last Christmas hamper, though I'm kicking myself about not picking up some shampoo and conditioner when it was on half price offer earlier this year, I looked at it enough times! Mindful that DH doesn't get paid until NYE, which makes Jan loads easier for us, but this time of year is a pig (we normally rely on my wages, but this year I'm not working), I've bought just a small travel size one, it's Charles Worthington and looks slightly bigger than the minis you can get. It will still probably only do one wash on daughter's thick long hair but hey, ho will have to do. I was also struggling with straws till I found a pack in poundland.

So the very last hamper contains, PJs (Jack Wills, on offer at an outlet store, cost me less than some Primark ones do), bath bomb (bodyshop, came today, have been struggling to find a mid range priced one, this was £3) yankee christmas cookie votive candle and a holder (both from a Clinton's outlet) box of long matches to light candle,  bath puff and flannel, plastic light up ducks to float in the bath, a xmas tree ornament in her initial    (cheap shops like home bargain, B & M, savers), the forementioned mini shampoo and conditioner, a wine glass (poundland) and then she has a can of  pina colada (I'm cheating with this as it was one I bought her a few weeks back  and she diddn't drink but was from Tesco) and a small glass bottle of a Starbucks frapaccino with the straws. 

 I've been doing the Xmas hamper for around a decade and this is the last one. DD asked me the other day what sort of things would be in it and I said because I hadn't started this until they were older and so had the Xmas mince pie plates and Santa stop here signs already in, I thought that perhaps they should all go in there as a 'bye bye to childhood'  (I was winding her up) She wasn't impressed - lol and suggested Santa needed a re-think. I've realised typing all this I still need to find those chocs (or get some others!) and also the dog was at the  groomers the other day and got his own Xmas Eve mini goodie bag, so I think I'll put that in there too. He is obsessed with presents and sticks his nose (or tries to) into every shopping bag that comes into the house.

So there you have it, my final Xmas Eve hamper. Wonder what I'll think next year, be sad I'm not doing it  or relieved it's one less thing to think about and stick to my guns of telling of telling DD to go to the pub if she's bored (assumming we're out of lcokdown by then hahaha and that pubs still exist!)