OS Christmas Support thread & timetable

squeaky

From the FOE newsletter:-


Celebrating christmas with a vegetarian in the family? Get some top tips at
http://www.vegsoc.org/xmas2002/takingcare.html and recipe ideas at
http://www.vegsoc.org/christmas/index.html If you need inspiration for a vegan Christmas, visit
http://www.vegansociety.com/html/food/special_occasions/christmas.php

BWZN93

Bought my chrimbo tree today! Boyf's eyebrows raised when I told him how much I spent, but he agree's is is a particularly good example of how a christmas tree should be, and also agreed that I would have been mad to spend half the price on the other tree I considered simply because it was cheaper (and no where near as nice, id only have resented it and got rid of it anyway!)

Also bought a tree topper today - a lovely gold star from next. Im trying not to get too modern or too old fashioned in my choice of decorations, simply because the house is modern but retro too, and I didnt want the tree to clash (I wish Id never worked at an interior designers in the past, before that I didnt care and now I care too much!)

Also bought my turkey today, its in the freezer, along with 2 packs of morrisons posh streaky bacon and some expensive salmon for xmas eve dinner. Ive only got to get the fresh stuff, some booze for the boyf (to be hidden until xmas!) and a few other bits and bobs like crisps, nuts, chocolate biscuits, cake incase we get visitors.

My work vouchers are also now safely on their way to me, so I can buy the mugs and a few other house things (Im thinking maybe champage glasses or something). My tree lights will also be here within the week and im about to buy a nice coffee table off ebay!

Im feeling very organised!

Jo xx

moggins

The turkey is coming with tomorrows Tesco delivery, the booze is bought all except for the whiskey as I haven't been to Lidl yet. The prawns were on a BOGOF and the smoked salmon was reduced and was freezable

I think I actually have an excess of presents but as either DH is sleeping or the kids are sleeping I can't get into my bedroom and turn them all out so I can see what is what! The new telly is being delivered on Tuesday so we have to move the old one upstairs tomorrow night.

I am going to make regular trips to my usual christmas tree place to see if I can get one similar to last year, the kids adored the tree as it had pine cones all over it. It was actually rejected because of that and I found it in the £5 bargain corner

Chipps

I think I have found the ideal MSE way to feed everyone on Christmas day. My mum & MIL are both widowed, as is my grandma, so they will come to us, also my sister & her family. My dear MIL says that, as her Christmas present to us, she will buy & cook a turkey & a joint of beef!
Now, who can I get to bring the sprouts???!!

omega_2

Chipps wrote:

Now, who can I get to bring the sprouts???!!

lol @ Chipps. No seriously, great way of doing it.

And I am trying to encourage this type of thinking when folks have asked me what I would like for Christmas, eg I've ordered my Christmas cake from my friend, have asked my Mum if she wouldn't mind altering some as-new curtains my sister has given me by way of a pressie. I know some might be distinctly UNIMPRESSED with these type of pressies, but I'm quite a fan of practical presents.

nicki_2

Pressie situation

Left to buy :

• DD (£11.27 in budget) - DVD that she wants of Madagascar. She's off school at the minute though so its a bit difficult to go get it!
• My Nanna (£10 in budget) - Groceries £8 of which is already covered by Tesco vouchers
• FIL (£4.67 in budget) - Need to get him one more thing from us so it might be something daft, or handy or.... I don't know!!!!!
• Dog (£1.54 left in budget) - Need to get a dog stocking or something similar from us for the dog as DD has already bought him something.

Also got £46 in cash for OH to spend on my Xmas pressies so he (in theory) won't go overdrawn this month

Decorations

• Window - Done but needs touching up where DD has had to touch :rolleyes:
• Advent Calenders - Up and being done every day
• Tree - bought a new one yesterday and spent 4 hours putting the lights and strings of beads on it. Will spend some time today/tonight putting baubles etc on with DD and possibly OH
• Other decs - none existing ATM and I don't know whether we will bother or not.

Xmas Other

• Cards : foreign written and ready to post, Postable ones ready to post and OH still has 2 plus work related to do :rolleyes: Hand delivered are mostly done and DD's are still to do
• Cake : Made but needs the mazipan on it this week.
• Food : Not necessary this year as we are at MIL :money:
• Clothing for Xmas day : Done except for a pair of tights for DD which I'm going to take her for soon. I also need to adjust a top that I've bought which is a little too revealing around the neck line, especially when I bend down to see to DD :eek:
• Anything is not done :rotfl:

Now if I could just get DD back to school I might just be able to get the house straight again and get on with some baking I want to do

Loadsabob

Hello everyone!

Finally I get a breather...Christmas is not turning out the way I'd planned it earlier in the year. Going away for the holidays has meant I abandoned the completely homemade Christmas, and feel a bit like a fraud, having started this thread! However, next year will be more the way I'd planned this year's.

However, to let you know what I am giving people, (in that person, age, way that may help people looking for gifts for similar):

Nephew, boy, 2 and a half - Tablecloth fabric tabard for crafts (could have made this given more time and planning; very cute! Will get a toy of some sort, too.

Mum, 52 - "John" book by Cynthia Lennon and KT Tunstall's CD. I know she would appreciate homemade gifts, too, but I like to give her things that she wants, as she doesn't have a great deal to spend on herself, and would only once in a blue moon buy herself a book or CD that she wanted.

Dad, 53 - "Heaven and Earth: Unseen by the Naked Eye" (here) , a great book of pictures of things you can't see with the human eye - inside the body, underground, from space...really great images, abstract sometimes, something to stimulate every inquiring mind! Gorgeous heavy glossy paperback for £9.95, too. And for his birthday on Jan 6th, I've given him a World Vision goat, as he is a Capricorn.

Brother, 27 - "Mr & Mrs Smith" DVD...just not being very creative there, but it's something he wants.

Sister-in-law, 31 - CD, Faithless Hits, again, not inspired, but something from her list.

Boyfriend, 46 - Lamp made from recycled carrier bags! It's a wrap-around plastic sheet, looks great! Have to say, £39 is the most I've ever paid for carrier bags, but I know he'll like it. Also giving him a Dali diary, a Colins Gem Trees book and other bits and pieces.

Friend, female, 29, ex-goth, having baby - Necklace including beads made from left-overs from those wine glasses made out of old wine bottles. Looks like sea-glass, in blue and turquise, really nice. Though she could do with something for her, not for the impending arrival.

Friend, female, 29, likes clothes and shopping and sunbathing - Earings made from recycled glass.

Friend, female 29 - Same type of necklace as ex-goth friend, different, paler colours to suit her personality.

Friend 31, female, new baby - bracelet made from coloured plastic disks made out of ols shampoo etc bottles...yep, something I will be making for myself over the coming year! all recycled jewellery and lamp from a local shop.

Friend, 31, male, new baby - "Great Lies to Tell Small Kids" book. Very funny!

Auntie, 57, into gardening - "The Little Book of Garden Heroes", from the Centre for Alternative Technology, a bit about good things to have in your garden, and compantion planting and useful plants etc...little gift-type book.

Uncle, 60, carpenter - a book of black and white photos of St Michael's Mount in Cornwall, bought from our museum. He's Cornish, and I think he'll enjoy it. Loads of views, all with the mount somewhere in the pic. I don't know him very well.

Cousin, female 35 - Pendant made from buttons by local designer, from local shop.

Cousin, female 31 - Hand knitted socks (not by me, as I haven't mastered socks yet!) But from local shop.

Friend, female, distant, 30 - Bath herbs from local grower and seller, with fairtrade chocolate.

PenFriend, female close, 30 - Book on making your own cosmetics from natural ingredients.

Friend, female 29, teacher - "The Writers Block" - a book to help of kick-start creativity.

Granny, 87, Handcream made from natural, organic ingredients. For her birthday on 27th december, am planting 50 trees for her through Oxfam unwrapped.

Auntie, 60 - Recycled glass tealight holder, quite large, and scented tealights.


Hopefully that's it!

Looking at it, not too bad. Bought most of the books in Ottakars locally, have had to resport to Amazon for DVD and CDs, as cheaper, and I realised that the recycled stuff was lovely, but had made a bit of a dent in the finances!

Hope my ideas may help one or two people,

take care for now!

omega_2

Loadsabob - what a lovely selection of presents, and I've just checked out the great lies book - would defo appeal to someone I know! Thanks for posting.

Yorkielass

Loadsabob those are great presents - wish I had a little local shop like yours nearby.

Sounds like you've got a good one there

Loadsabob

Yorkielass wrote:

Loadsabob those are great presents - wish I had a little local shop like yours nearby.

Sounds like you've got a good one there

Thanks Yorkie lass...actually, that's quite mis-leading of me, I should have put from "A" local shop each time...there are about four local shops I used for the pressies above. Doing my "buying it local" thing! We have a really good range of independently owned little shops, it's not bad for Christmas shopping!

If I could get all those things at one local shop, that really would be a godsend! Imagine!