A Jolly Holly Christmas - It's the 2022 Christmas Chatter Thread!

princesskitty29

I bought a couple more Christmas presents yesterday, a health and wellbeing book for my friend and some snowflake earrings for my mum. We’re going to visit my parents for a couple of nights tomorrow which I’m really looking forward to as I haven’t seen them for a few months. I’m going to make a note of my mums moisturisers and get her some of those for Christmas.

@mandco you’re right, DS2 always loves activity books so I don’t think it would matter even if he goes off it a bit by then. Well done on winning the voucher, that’s a nice surprise! Yes the wildfires are scary, the dung heap on the farmers field next to our estate caught fire on Saturday, he managed to stave it off by cultivating around it thank goodness.

@Spendless The hamper you made sounds lovely and what a bargain! And that sounds about right with the stocking fillers, I could get loads of stuff now given half the chance but I daren’t risk it! I think I will get the space activity books though.

@Redredrobin Oh thank goodness you weren’t in the car, but still awful to watch it happen. What a nightmare. Poppy is 9 months old now and I would say the nipping stopped a few months ago, so around 6 months. Hang in there, I’m sure it will get better!

Beshki

Now the weather has changed, I intend to pull out all of my gifts and make a list. Christmas will be a token affair this year, due to a loss & also the cost of living. I think I’ll be surprised at how many ticks on the list I have, or at least I hope so. I even purchased a few pairs of pyjamas for myself at a reduced price to give OH to gift me. Seems silly for him to pay full price when they’re the exact same thing if bought now or bought in December! That’s all I need so all sorted there  

sammy_kaye18

Hello All
Sorry I have been so quiet. 
I have been absent from the boards for a while but you know when they say it never rains, but it pours.....well we have had a proverbial sh&t storm this end. 
Summer holidays started, kids were suffering in the heatwave, Husband got covid, my phone broke and I didn't realise how much of my every day life used a phone and how many things need double verification which usually ends up being a text message and now £95 lighter for the fix - here I am again! 

Have been sat today thinking about things to get for christmas - christmas lists were all on an app ON MY PHONE! but have been thinking. Definitely doing the 5 senses idea with a smellies hamper each and a stocking I think.
 
TASTE - Both son and daughter have asked for mini fridges for their bedrooms to have their own little snack stations basically so I think that might be an idea to go with taste and then I will get a few little bits with each food shop to slowly fill it with. 

SEE - ????

HEAR - ????

SMELL - The smellies hamper each. 

TOUCH - Son wants a new gaming chair as his is about 5 years old and knackered. Daughter has seen a C&C cage for her guinea pig so I think these may be their main gifts each.   

I have a few bits to do but Ill think of them slowly. 

I have also had an idea for my sister and my mother in law - I am going to get some terracotta pots and paint them with herb names and have already ordered some seeds to go into the pots so they can start their own herb gardens. I have also ordered some CATNIP seeds for my mother who has a cat called Sumi so she can add that to her garden for him. 

Very much getting in the christmas swing. Have taped a load of christmas in July films the other month as well so once the kids are back in school I will be focused on Christmas. 

Hope your all well. 

Welcome back @Hotcocoahotflashes

@princesskitty29 thank you for the birthday wishes (I know Im like a month late) and Im glad your feeling better. 

Beshki

@sammy_kaye18 Keep an eye out on fb market for c and c grids, you have plenty of time and they are often on there v cheap. Correx can be bought from Wickes or similar. 

Spendless

@sammy_kaye18 - How frustrating re your phone. 

Daughter once did the 5 senses for someone. Trying to remember some of her ideas.

Sight - could be a book, even if they're not big readers are they past the age of Annuals even if it's on the more ahem 'risque' side for the eldest, often you get a few of the ruder jokey books at Xmas time, I've bought DH them before, cinema tickets, a visit to watch/see something depending on your budget and locality. Even adapting your idea of the herbs and getting them a plant that they watch grow. My eldest has had and liked before a Venus fly trap, an aloe vera plant (your younger one might like that if she learns about aloe vera being used in some skincare products)  and only this week sent me a pic of his Chilli plant that he received as a Xmas present last year from DD - it was one of those grow from a tin things, but can be done cheaper. 


Sound - Music, audio book, do either play an instrument - if so could get something connected to that, ear phones/ear-buds. I should imagine if eldest is into gaming he uses ear -phones, again depends on your budget.

From his teens every year when we wracked our brains for something for DS for Xmas, as he just wasn't into clothes, trainers  or sports or aftershave or anything that you'd typically think of for teenage boys, it invariably ended up something connected to his computer, a chair, a gaming mouse, gaming mousepad, ear-phones. With the consequence that when he went to Uni his new-found friends envied all his gadgets -lol 

I'd like the idea of using the 5 senses myself as a guide but I'd need to take costs into account as DD will invariably send me a list of items taking that she's got a coat into account.

I wish to get future DIL her fav perfume as a set so she can wear on her wedding day. I believe if I don't think of this no-one else will and it won't be something she'll spend on herself.

DS completely lacks basics, which is frustrating because we've spent the last few years asking what he needs. We haven't seen him as much since the first lockdown because he got stuck/preferred to be in his Uni town, so I couldn't spot that he needed stocking up on underwear/socks, toiletries, T-shirts and basically everything he'd spent his teenage years not being interested in!   

mandco

beshki  fingers crossed you manage to cross off a good number of gifts once you sort your stash. I try to buy all our pjs on offer no point paying full price when there is almost always some on offer. I got some really fluffy ones reduced for £30 to £5 earlier in the year they'll be perfect over winter.

sammy it never rains but it pours eh? hope dh wasn't too bad with covid  - I think its very easy to underestimate how much we rely on tech esp our phones 

for the 5 senses
hear  if ds is a gamer some kind of gaming headset &/or a stand for them? my ds prefers the wireless ones 
see - family trip to the cinema/theatre  poster or artwork for their room.   my boys have these 3d illusion lamps which are pretty cool and come in load of designs 

spendless - the perfume set for dil is a lovely idea   

Ds has only asked for 1 thing for his birthday - a new game that comes out soon £85  he even offered to pay some towards it. I got him a light weight jacket & some new joggers from the under armour sale as they are both things he needs anyway which I'd put away so at least he'll have something to open on his birthday.
 







 

ForTheLoveOfChristmas1982

Silly me created a new username a few weeks ago & forgot to save it or write it down! So I've created this one & it is saved in my passwords, a screenshot of it on my phone & I've also written it down in my diary

I was here a few years ago & love the Christmas threads.

So my prep for Christmas so far:-

I have set a budget with my sisters. We have done this for the last few years & it makes life so much easier, because it's fun trying to find a gift within budget & I also don't feel stressed about the expense.

I ordered a few candles from the sale on Candles Direct a few days ago. They arrived today & smell amazing! I've put them away in a box in my bedroom so they don't get used before I can give them away as gifts.

I've set my budgets for everyone else & already started making a list of ideas for some people.

That's it. It doesn't sound like I've got a lot done, but it's small steps that will help me this year because last year everything seemed to come around so quickly & I ended up feeling so overwhelmed.

We are doing a huge renovation on our house next year, which means we will have to pretty much have to pack up the whole house & maybe even have to move into rented for a while so I am trying not to accumulate too much clutter this year.

Anyway, that's it for the time being. I've got a quiet evening planned today, so I might have a little online browse for any deals.

sammy_kaye18

ForTheLoveOfChristmas1982 said:

Silly me created a new username a few weeks ago & forgot to save it or write it down! So I've created this one & it is saved in my passwords, a screenshot of it on my phone & I've also written it down in my diary

I was here a few years ago & love the Christmas threads.

So my prep for Christmas so far:-

I have set a budget with my sisters. We have done this for the last few years & it makes life so much easier, because it's fun trying to find a gift within budget & I also don't feel stressed about the expense.

I ordered a few candles from the sale on Candles Direct a few days ago. They arrived today & smell amazing! I've put them away in a box in my bedroom so they don't get used before I can give them away as gifts.

I've set my budgets for everyone else & already started making a list of ideas for some people.

That's it. It doesn't sound like I've got a lot done, but it's small steps that will help me this year because last year everything seemed to come around so quickly & I ended up feeling so overwhelmed.

We are doing a huge renovation on our house next year, which means we will have to pretty much have to pack up the whole house & maybe even have to move into rented for a while so I am trying not to accumulate too much clutter this year.

Anyway, that's it for the time being. I've got a quiet evening planned today, so I might have a little online browse for any deals.

Welcome back! again! :-) 
Small steps mean its lots of little jobs towards one goal. 

I may have to have a look on the candles direct page! 

sammy_kaye18

Evening all

Well my best friend reminded me today that it is 19 sundays until Christmas so I think from now on Sundays will be my christmas prep day as well as crafting / planning / movie day to keep me in the festive spirit and just have a bit of self care for myself. 

Currently sat looking at fridges for the kids bedrooms. 

Also trying to find the C&C cage for my daughter and checking local pages :-) 

C_J

NINETEEN SUNDAYS??!!!

Suddenly I don’t feel nearly organised enough 😂

I bought a few little bits and bobs for baby granddaughter’s Christmas stocking today, including some winter tights, a cute bunny beanie hat and matching mittens, and a nice child-size stainless steel cutlery set.  I also found a very inexpensive Duplo set on eBay the other day, which builds into three little animals (a chick, a dog and a cat) and it arrived today - it doesn’t look as though it has ever been played with. I’m going to use it as three advent calendar bag fillers for her.

At 2.00am on a sleepless night this week I also ordered a couple of bits from AliExpress since there is plenty of time for them to arrive - I bought another of those little pocket wind up music boxes which plays ‘we wish you a merry Christmas’ and a small set of those geometric wooden balance stone things.