The Coming Holidays

[LittleMe Jewell]

3 minutes ago, RowanMinx said:

I actually do have one of those also.  I might have even used it two years ago when I didn't put the table top tree out for the kids. Maybe we'll go that route this year.  

[Horus Salubrius]

4 hours ago, RowanMinx said:

lol - my mother had one of those.  And a 6' tree and did the house & shrubs outside ... she was kinda cray cray for Christmas. 

There will no one with us for Christmas so it's gonna be difficult to get excited about decorating but I will def put up a tree of some sort.  Otherwise it will be too depressing !  

[Syo Emerald]

The only holidays coming up for me are Christmas and New Year. We will probably not visit my grandmother this year, but if restrictions aren't increased until then, I intend to visit my parents. What I will be missing a little bit are the Christmas Markets, I love some of the food... maybe the city will allow some booths to be up in the inner city for at least some take-away.

Edited November 12, 2020 by Syo Emerald

[BelindaN]

We are five. We are already in a childcare bubble, and I'm expecting a normal Christmas, except without mother who passed in May. The last time she came over was Christmas Day.

[Rat Luv]

I can't be bothered with a tree but I will get some multi-colour fairy lights  

[Rowan Amore]

18 minutes ago, Rat Luv said:

I can't be bothered with a tree but I will get some multi-colour fairy lights  

It's always the lights I miss most when then holidays are over.  The house always looks so drab then.  I might even put them up earlier this year.  I'll wait on the tree since it's always a battle with my one cat who loves to climb it.

[Rowan Amore]

[Maitimo]

Back when I had a cat, I had to screw a hook high up on the wall and tie the top of the tree to it. Didn't stop the cat from climbing the tree or knocking ornaments off but it did stop the whole thing from falling over.

[ArgontheDevil Ormega]

If all goes well, meaning our governor does not have a fit of megalomania, my wife and I will do our usual holiday stuff, eating at a local restaurant on Thanksgiving (not having to cook is the only reason to be thankful) and a few presents on Christmas eve and then Christmas dinner at the same restaurant, hopefully avoiding any contact with family for the duration.  Personally, the holidays are a pain in the rear end and only an excuse for the lazy bums in the postal service not to work those days.

On the other hand, I get to say, "Are there no prisons?" to everyone with their paw out for my money.

[Rowan Amore]

41 minutes ago, Maitimo said:

Back when I had a cat, I had to screw a hook high up on the wall and tie the top of the tree to it. Didn't stop the cat from climbing the tree or knocking ornaments off but it did stop the whole thing from falling over.

We use fishing line to anchor it to the window frame near where we set it up.  It's just the one cat.  The other 2 leave it alone.  I stopped putting ornaments on it when we got her since she'd sit inside and bat at them until they flew off.

Not mine but you all get the idea..

[Gabriele Graves]

We don't recognise Christmas that much in our house.  In NZ it is usually very warm.  I would rather be on a lounger under an umbrella in the sun with cool drinks than messing about with decorations and a tree that were clearly aimed at the winter months.  Though sometimes we get all that out for midwinter if we are feeling inclined.  This year I expect to be working a good portion of the holiday period anyway.

One cool thing about this year is that Friday 13th is a local holiday for us.  Could it get better than that?

Edited November 12, 2020 by Gabriele Graves

[Rowan Amore]

2 minutes ago, Gabriele Graves said:

We don't recognise Christmas that much in our house.  In NZ it is usually very warm.  I would rather be on a lounger under an umbrella in the sun with cool drinks than messing about with decorations and a tree that were clearly aimed at the winter months.  Though sometimes we get all that out for midwinter if we are feeling inclined.  This year I expect to be working a good portion of the holiday period anyway.

I always find it hard to imagine Christmas in the southern hemisphere.  No snow, no sledding or ice skating.

[Gabriele Graves]

It's no less strange to us too.  We are still inundated with chocolate box imagery of snow, roaring fireplaces and dark nights with carol singers but it is juxtaposed with 30+ degrees Celsius weather.

[Chaser Zaks]

My plans:

I typically don't do much for holidays. Most my family does for thanks giving is BIG FOOD, and for Christmas, we put up tree and decorate interior/exterior a little, but also BIG FOOD, and then we have New Years which we have BIG FOOD.

Used to do Christmas with extended family at my Grandma's, We still do somewhat, but I don't go. It is mostly a drama fest because someone(mostly one specific person but occasionally anyone):

• Ignored the gift giving rule, we set up who is exchanging gifts, but someone will be like "im going to get gifts for everyone" then get upset when they don't get gifts from everyone.
• Upset because of who is helping cook
• Upset for the purpose of being upset
• Lying to start drama
• Christmas isn't going how they envisioned so they must make everyone else miserable

[Gabriele Graves]

That sounds really nice Chaser but that picture of the cat is what made me laugh

My own family are a lot like that too and it invokes a sense of "all is right with the world" for me.

Edited November 12, 2020 by Gabriele Graves

[Rowan Amore]

15 minutes ago, Chaser Zaks said:

My plans:

I typically don't do much for holidays. Most my family does for thanks giving is BIG FOOD, and for Christmas, we put up tree and decorate interior/exterior a little, but also BIG FOOD, and then we have New Years which we have BIG FOOD.

Used to do Christmas with extended family at my Grandma's, We still do somewhat, but I don't go. It is mostly a drama fest because someone(mostly one specific person but occasionally anyone):

• Ignored the gift giving rule, we set up who is exchanging gifts, but someone will be like "im going to get gifts for everyone" then get upset when they don't get gifts from everyone.
• Upset because of who is helping cook
• Upset for the purpose of being upset
• Lying to start drama
• Christmas isn't going how they envisioned so they must make everyone else miserable

Adding all that onto the extra covid weight will make the New Year perfect!

[Rat Luv]

1 hour ago, Chaser Zaks said:

Upset because of who is helping cook

Yes, my mum goes ballistic if anyone tries to help. She once let me do cheesy parsnips but was looking over my shoulder the whole time and then told me to get out of the kitchen. She always apologises to everyone for the dinner tasting horrible or being burnt or too cold even though it's fine? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 

My granddad was very grumpy. Everyone would ask what he wanted for Xmas and he'd say "I'd be happy at the bottom of a well!"  And one Xmas he just got up and took his dog for a walk for 3 hours! 

[Horus Salubrius]

2 hours ago, RowanMinx said:

I always find it hard to imagine Christmas in the southern hemisphere.  No snow, no sledding or ice skating.

Yep, it is usually weird, certainly felt that way to me in Australia. 

But once I had Christmas in Guyana, South America & they had steel drums & calypso in the streets on Christmas Eve with a black Santa in red corduroy shorts leading the parade.  Jamun wine was the drink of choice & pork pickled in garlic char grilled the food - that was the best southern hemisphere (ish .. it is on the equator) Christmas I ever had. 

 

Edited November 12, 2020 by Horus Salubrius

[LittleMe Jewell]

6 hours ago, RowanMinx said:

Ugh, we also didn't have cats the last time I put up a tree.  I did have cats with trees a couple of decades ago, but these are different cats and the 3-yr old still plays with everything like a kitten and the 6-yr old truly climbs everything in the house.  

I think I'm leaning more towards that ceramic tree now.

[fhlurs]

Christmas is probably one of my favourite holidays, but honestly this year my holiday spirit is non-existing.. usually would do a huge big family gathering but with what's going on lol don't think that will happen which is a bummer, but guess I shall settle for something intimate and make the most out of it.

 

[Rowan Amore]

19 hours ago, JenniexKim said:

Christmas is probably one of my favourite holidays, but honestly this year my holiday spirit is non-existing.. usually would do a huge big family gathering but with what's going on lol don't think that will happen which is a bummer, but guess I shall settle for something intimate and make the most out of it.

 

So many are feeling exactly like that this year.  I just talked to my sisters today and we decided they can come over one at a time to give mom her Christmas Eve birthday presents.  With people being off work too, even presents aren't going to be much this year.

I've not done a lot of decorating the past few years just because I've been busy and just getting the tree up was enough.  I think this year, I'll be digging out all the things I haven't used and going bananas with that.  Depending how the vaccine goes and how soon things can get back to some sort of normal, I may leave them all up until spring!

[Cougar Sangria]

While we will keep attendance under 25 people as recommended by the governor of our state we are pushing ahead with Thanksgiving plans with children and grandchildren in attendance.  We will also do our annual cookie baking day and our before or after Christmas get together with those that are able to attend.  This year has sucked in so many ways that I need the human contact with my family.  2020  can just go suck a big one.

[Rolig Loon]

I'm staying right here for Thanksgiving and Christmas. My daughter and her family live halfway across the country, and I'm definitely not getting on an airplane.  My son's family is closer, but I don't want to take a chance on catching something from the granddaughters or unwittingly bringing something into the house that might infect my DIL, who has a compromised immune system.  We're all just safer where we are.

[Silent Mistwalker]

On 11/11/2020 at 7:21 PM, RowanMinx said:

Never in my life have I gone out on Black Friday.  I don't care what kind of deal I could get.  In fact, you couldn't pay me enough to do it.

Makes two of us.

[Silent Mistwalker]

On 11/12/2020 at 10:17 AM, Chaser Zaks said:

My plans:

I typically don't do much for holidays. Most my family does for thanks giving is BIG FOOD, and for Christmas, we put up tree and decorate interior/exterior a little, but also BIG FOOD, and then we have New Years which we have BIG FOOD.

Used to do Christmas with extended family at my Grandma's, We still do somewhat, but I don't go. It is mostly a drama fest because someone(mostly one specific person but occasionally anyone):

• Ignored the gift giving rule, we set up who is exchanging gifts, but someone will be like "im going to get gifts for everyone" then get upset when they don't get gifts from everyone.
• Upset because of who is helping cook
• Upset for the purpose of being upset
• Lying to start drama
• Christmas isn't going how they envisioned so they must make everyone else miserable

You left out:

Showing up at least 2 hours late for dinner and wanting to use the kitchen to make the dish they were supposed to have brought with them. (SIL)

Upset because everyone else got tired of waiting and were already seated to eat when they finally drag their asses in. (SIL)

etc

etc

etc

 

While it's just the two of us now and everyone else does their own thing, I still insist on some traditions, like certain dishes and sweets, an exchange of gifts, and decorating. I love decorating for Christmas. For us, the holidays are about family, even if it is just the two of us.