Open the selection box- Christmas Forum Chat Thread

Loughc

Over the hump of the week already. Roll on Friday!!

iguana

Guys, I set up the kitchen tonight for our surprise Twelfthnight breakfast. I made some cakes/pastries. Got the cream and hot chocolate fixings ready. Set up how S will find the surprise of the stocking filler toy that only just arrived in the post this week. I was all excited, looking forward to it and had managed to avoid any post Christmas blues. But they caught up to me tonight. The act of doing the same thing I did to kick off the season in November and again before Christmas eve really made me a bit sad because it all just feels like a few days ago to me. Added to that, my brother who was in Ireland since the 22nd, is heading back to Sweden in a few hours and S and I are really going to miss him. We had a big family night of tacos and board games at my parents' tonight and it was lovely but it's sad that we won't get to all be together again until at least the summer.

Hopefully S will have a great time in the morning and it's hard not to be buoyed up by an excited 4 year old waking up to a breakfast of hot chocolate cake and a small Paw Patrol figure.

Crazyteacher

Aw have a lovely day with your son iguana. Feel like doing something special for breakfast tomorrow too. Just been sitting looking at my tree for the last two hours. Trying to get my time with it before it goes down. I'm apprehensive about Christmas being over. Need some things to look forward too.

Loughc

Ah iguana have a lovely breakfast with your son. You are making amazing memories and traditions for him that will last a life time. You really are a super mom. I would pay good money for a Christmassy breakfast like that!!

Remember every time you feel blue that it's over just remember the fond memories of Christmas gone and how amazing this Christmas will be again.

Crazyteacher I do the same thing with my tree I sit there looking at it fondly trying to commit it to memory before it comes down haha.

xDisneyDivax

Was a bit depressed last night knowing that I'm back to work this morning! But can't wait to go home and sit beside Christmas tree in front of big fire! Feels like I should be sitting in PJs and watching Christmas films all day not at the desk! We went away for few nights on Monday and I was so happy putting lights on when we got home last night and sat beside the tree lol.

iguana, that is an awesome idea!! Might do something similar on Saturday!:D

BuilderPlumber

otnomart wrote: »

First day in work for me, too.
Intend to make the most of January and its positive points (although in fairness it is not blessed with very many !).

The whole concept of how one looks at a month or a time of year depends on what rules one sets and what is happening. For me the weather can make an awful difference. I recall last year virtually all the period December and January was marred by stormy wet miserable weather and 3 years ago it was even worse and lasted into February with hurricane force winds on the 12th of that month. We can be thankful that our weather this year has been lovely so far.

Posy wrote: »

Well, January has (slightly) brighter evenings, you can find post-Christmas bargains, it also has... em... you can... yeah, that's all I could think of.

One can extend Christmas into January. Officially, the first week of January is still Christmas. I think that in the race to extreme commercialism that our traditions have been killed off. I remember hearing Christmas songs played on radio and shops and festive fare on the TV up until the 6th. That's how it should be.

I feel that the fitness industry and their greed have killed off Christmas and the media get behind this. Christmas has become too commercialised and because of it, some of the lovely traditions have been killed off. The fitness industry then want to have all of January for themselves until St Valentine comes along in February. To make the most of January, one can do one or any combination of these:

1 Allow Christmas to take its natural duration.
2 Celebrate Christmas if you are Russian, etc. or celebrate it with Russian, etc. friends if you know them around the 7th.
3 Celebrate Christmas in January if you worked flat out in December and now have your holidays or if loved ones can only make it home now. Or for whatever other reason.
4 Do not overindulge for Christmas day, etc. itself. I have some sherry, brandy, wine, chocolates and cake yet to have and will enjoy these until February.
5 Choose Christmas presents well. Make sure you still are able enjoy them long after Christmas is gone.
6 If you have been flat out catering for family and visitors over the Christmas period, take some time to yourself for January.
7 If for whatever reason you are not into Christmas (e.g. a loved one no longer with us) be thankful you got through it and do something that normally makes you happy.
8 Don't buy into all this fitness and dieting pressure unless you want to really do it for personal reasons. It is also probably easier to do this when the winter is over too.
9 Be thankful you don't have to see another Mrs Brown's Boys Christmas special for another 11 months!!

SarahLil

KittenK I do that with my candles all the time
It's a great idea think I got it from online
Having a cuppa with something nice to munch on while looking at my Christmas tree probably for the last time

iguana

I've gotten all of my decoration boxes down out of the attic to start on the great undecorating 2017. It's going to be sooooo much work. This is the day that I regret having so many decorations that it takes me a full week to set them up on the first places and then I keep adding more to it (up until this week!). And while it's more work to set them up than to take them down, it's so different as setting them up is such a happy, hopeful experience while taking them down is consigning all that special happiness to memory. It's not bad because how amazingly privileged are we to have had the wonderful experiences of the last few weeks! But it's bittersweet and a little sad to say goodbye to it all.

Still though, I've a Women's Christmas night out tomorrow as a reward once it's all put away. And a child's birthday party on Saturday which should be fantastic. And it will be good to put my retro superhero covers back on my cushions. I only had a few days to enjoy them before they got replaced with the Christmas covers, so it will be nice to have them back. I might grab a few bright bunches of flowers too to keep the house bright. In the mean time I'm going to make a Baileys hot chocolate, eat the huge Kinder Santa S seems to have forgotten about and watch all the new episodes of my favourite comedies that came back this week.

Loughc

I think I'm gonna invest in some fairy lights for the mantle place to help brighten up my sitting room. It's going to be so dull without the window and tree lights

Crazyteacher

Thinking of getting heart shaped lights for over the mantle too ! Sure we can be sparkly all year round:)

iguana

Crazyteacher wrote: »

Thinking of getting heart shaped lights for over the mantle too ! Sure we can be sparkly all year round:)

They have some nice silver heart lights in Homestore and More at the moment, battery operated though. I got some heart ones and some disco ball ones today. I figure they can work for Easter, Halloween, birthdays, Christmas, days that end in Y, etc.

Toto Wolfcastle

Penneys also always has a big collection of lights that would be perfect.

Grandeeod

Loughc wrote: »

I think I'm gonna invest in some fairy lights for the mantle place to help brighten up my sitting room. It's going to be so dull without the window and tree lights

Funny you should mention this.

We have left our lights on the mantle piece. It adds so much ambience to the room when combined with candles and a blazing fire. Other light sets have been placed into glass bowls and vases for optional lights for special events. Only 3 months left until the brighter nights!

iguana

Was going to sleep last night when I remembered I'd used up the last of the coffee yesterday and hadn't bought any more. So this morning I started a new tradition. Little Christmas breakfast trip to Costa! (This is the second time I've started a breakfast trip to Costa tradition because I forgot to buy more coffee. ) Then we went to TK Maxx and found a block advent calendar on the clearance shelf, so that's next year's toy advent calendar sorted. And behind it, I found a Star Wars Hero Masher in a messed up box for a few Euro, so S got a Little Christmas present for Little Christmas.

Getting stuck into the great undecorating now. Cushion covers are off and in the washing machine with the Christmas fleece throws. Next the tree comes down.

miamee

I think we'll have one more night in with the tree and lights tonight before taking it all down over the weekend. Will have to break out the remains of the selection boxes or the enormous box of Thorntons chocolate we got from a friend last night

OUTDOORLASS

I took down all the decorations with the exception of small tree in kitchen, and main tree in sitting room. I.l leave them
for the weekend....ts so dreary.

Shoe Lover

I took everything down last night/today & while I do love all my decorations, I'm actually quite happy to have the house back to normal. I'll look forward to next Christmas tho!

Mystery Egg

We'll take ours down tomorrow. Officially Christmas doesn't end until midnight tonight anyway!

We have a guest coming over this evening for dinner and with a free-range chicken and a lump of ham left in the freezer we've decided to do one final christmas dinner. I'm going to do the full whack and make roasties, veg, stuffing and gravy. Our guest is gluten-free (not coeliac so excuse me while I roll my eyes) so dessert will be chocolate truffles and maybe some brie and chutney.

Tomorrow morning in the cold light of day we will pack everything away. I'm trying not to feel sad about it as we have lots of nice things to look forward to this year.

Posy

iguana

It's a bit like, 'OMFG! I can't believe I have sooooo much space, my house is a f*cking mansion!' For about 2 days anyway.

Loughc

Mine won't be coming down until tomorrow morning anyway. Its more so to do with wanting to relax tonight over anything else.

RentDayBlues

Mine were going to be staying up til the weekend but after a sleepless night I needed to do something so down they came! Took the full day too but happy to have it gone

Only 10 months til they're up again

bladespin

Happy little Christmas, wife's getting a special take-away while it's back to rice and fish for me lol.

otnomart

I don't have any decorations up (due to tiny flat) but my family home has lovely ones and will take them down (at a leaisurely pace) only tomorrow or even Sunday.
In my own neck of the woods, tonight is very icy and feels like what Christmas Eve should be. And this evening I enjoyed seeing many of the neighbours lights which were still up and shining bright.
So, am enjoying all the cosyness !

Toto Wolfcastle

Ours are staying up until Sunday. Don't have time to take them down tomorrow.

bladespin

Mystery Egg wrote:

We'll take ours down tomorrow. Officially Christmas doesn't end until midnight tonight anyway!

Not until the 19th (in Armenia anyway lol).

Mystery Egg

bladespin wrote: »

Mystery Egg wrote:

We'll take ours down tomorrow. Officially Christmas doesn't end until midnight tonight anyway!

Not until the 19th (in Armenia anyway lol).

I like the way you think! :pac:

Toto Wolfcastle

Miracle on 34th Street (the older one) just started on More 4.

Loughc

I'm currently dismantling my Christmas tree while wearing my Santa tshirt.

StripedBoxers

I've decided to leave ours up for another week or two.

Didn't really get to enjoy them much over the Xmas so said sod it I'd leave them up for another while and try to get some enjoyment from them

Dreading taking them down. I might see if I can pick up a few spring bits and pieces maybe to brighten the place up a bit.

I have already decided to root out my big blue turquoise vase and get some artificial twigs and wrap battery operated lights around them and put them in the vase in the corner. I hope to pick up some of these lights from Homestore and More and put them across the mantle piece and in the cabinet to help with brightness.

http://www.homestoreandmore.ie/accessories/30-led-decorative-pearl-beaded-string-lights/invt/064230

I hope they come back into stock online as I have no way of getting to a HM&S store and don't know anyone who'd be going to one either as there is none close to where I live.