Christmas

[DR]

So lovely HEXUS readers

It's that time of year - I don't know about you - but I tend to have a "routine" family tradition for Christmas - we always do the same thing (Well I now do too following on from my parents tradition)

- Wake up
- Stockings
- Breakfast, always a Ham and home made bread
- Light the fire in the lounge! (V.important!)
- Get Lunch on - and happening, everyone in the kitchen talking and helping
- Pop to the pub/see some friends
- Have lunch - whenever it's ready
- Clear up lunch
- Open presents under the tree
- Watch amazing re-runs on TV
- Cold meat sandwiches
- Crash out and sleep

What about you guys?

[scaryjim]

Woah woah woah - lunch *before* presents? Take it you don't have any kids in the house? Or if so, that you keep them sedated?

We tend to open stockings (usually in bed), then get up and have breakfast, then open the rest of the presents, potentially saving one for after dinner. Then dinner, a walk, and chill for the evening. There's usually at least one new boardgame in the pressies pile, so we'll often give that a go. Wine tends to flow relatively freely throughout the day. Tea tends not to happen (seriously, if you need tea on Christmas day you're not making a big enough dinner ), but snacks and nibbles are pretty much a given. And chocolates, of course

[Ferral]

Get up
Have Brekkie, usually something like a Sausage and Egg Muffin
See to horses
Open presents
PJ's most the day messing with stuff you get
Dinner
Crash out watching re runs

We tend to do dinner on Christmas Eve and have it around 5.30pm so on Christmas Day all that needs doing is warm gravy in a pan and microwave the dinner to sit down at around 4pm. We usually cook off sausages and anything else ready for breakfast on Christmas morning so they can be just heated in microwave.

[wasabi]

Only routine we have is I usually head out on the motorbike for an hour or two while the turkey is cooking, and wife gets on the phone to relatives in Germany. Lovely as the roads are usually clear and it gets me a breath of fresh air before we hit the turkey and sprouts.

Oh and usually open a bottle of the wonderful Cardenal Mendoza brandy in the evening and have a few of the neighbours round.

[Domestic_Ginger]

Interestingly DR has presents after lunch. Very similar here to most with drinks for breakfast and maybe a sleep before tucking into lunch. Apparently my Grandfather used to make my Mum and the family clean the house thoroughly before opening time. I remember as a kid; my father used to take what felt like an age to get dressed before we could start.

Better have those sprouts after being couped up in leathers!

[g8ina]

Our routine is always messed about with by Sally's work shifts

This year she is on a late sleep on Christmas Day night.

So, our amended routine will be something like :

Wake up
Medication (yeah, for real, tramadol etc)
Breakfast - my tradition is either fresh or tinned figs, cant remember when or why it started.
Pressies
Either visit grandkids or they come see us
Lunch - Bone in rib of beef this year, getting it on the 10th, Tesco butcher is a good matey and will keep me a good one, AND it's half price from Wednesday (9 quid a kg)

Sleep

Tea
Telly
Take Sally to work for ten pm
Get home, open the Laphraoig.

[Galant]

Haven't established a family tradition for Christmas Day, yet. Married five years and two kids with the eldest at 3 years old. This will be the first Christmas of significance to him, I think, so just starting to sort out traditions etc.

Apart from the day itself, though, we have been enjoying a new tradition, through out the month of December - the Advent season - whereby, each evening before bed time, we switch to candle light, find a carol on Youtube and sing along, then we might read a Christmas story book or similar, open up a door on the advent calendar, talk about being grateful to God for the good and beautiful things we have in life, pray a short family prayer each saying thank you for something, praying for our friends and family near and far, and then we sing the carol again to end. Then it's time to brush teeth and head to bed.

On our own, and still be candlelight, my wife and I have been enjoying some short but good advent readings each evening, before praying and heading to bed.

It's been nice to fill the Christmas season with meaning, in different ways, and sort of with observation, rather than just waiting for one or two single events. Really makes a difference.

[Galant]

Get home, open the Laphraoig.

Open the TCP you mean?

Here I thought Laphraoig drinkers were like yetis. You see partially drunk bottles from bar to bar but never actually witness someone imbibing.

[Splash]

Open the TCP you mean?

I here I thought Laphraoig drinkers were like yetis. You see partially drunk bottles from bar to bar but never actually witness someone imbibing.

I'm not standing for that! While I can see that Islay malts might be a little of an acquired taste I love the stuff: Laphroaig, Caol Ila and Ardbeg being my favourites.

[MrJim]

Open the TCP you mean?

I here I thought Laphraoig drinkers were like yetis. You see partially drunk bottles from bar to bar but never actually witness someone imbibing.

More like engine oil! Give me a Macallan instead!

[Galant]

I'm not standing for that! While I can see that Islay malts might be a little of an acquired taste I love the stuff: Laphroaig, Caol Ila and Ardbeg being my favourites.

A little? Only if drinking the contents of one's medicine cabinet can be considered normal.

[stevie lee]

my mum used to bribe me and my sister with 'food-for-presents'
"if you eat those sprouts, you can have another present"

consequently, I really liker sprouts now so the veg bribing worked.

still didn't stop me going downstairs at 4 in the morning and opening, playing, breaking, then rewrapping the presents though.
"but muuuummmmmm.... it must've been broken when you wrapped it.." tee hee..

only did that once, santa kept a closer eye on presents after that.


not had a proper routine for 15 years, just not been the same without grandma.

[vicar]

Christmas Eve (Midnight) Celebrating/ presiding at Mass or Holy Eucharist in Church

Christmas Day: 10.30am Again Celebrating Mass in Church.
12.30Pm Home Visits, for as long as it takes.
Lunch and breakfast whenever I finish.
Watch a bit of TV etc and fall asleep.

That's my Christmas Eve/ Christmas routine every year.

Wishing all Hexites a joyous Christmas in advance.

[Darkmyst]

Get kicked out of bed by the wife, and a demanding Cat.
Feed the wife and the Cat, not always in the correct order.
Ring family, and pass on wishes.
Drive over to visit the Kids and grandkids, start raiding their supply of Pigs in Blankets.
Return Home, Forcefully remove Cat from guarding the oven.
Have lunch, I always cook a full Christmas dinner, Fight with the Cat over the rights to the Roast Chicken.
Eat Lunch, while being watch closely by the Cat.
Watch re-runs on TV. Goldfinger anyone !
Feed Cat, who by now will be complaining she's not been fed.
Cold Pigs in Blankets if any have survived the initial attack & open the spirits
Get ready for bed, Feed cat so I get a full nights sleep.

[Saracen]

- Wake up
- Eye clock, mutter something I can't repeat here, and go back to sleep
- Repeat above at least once more, before proceeding to get up.
- Breakfast
- Wish I had a fire (and fireplace ) in the lounge!
- Turn TV on. Review online guide. Realise mistake, curse extensively and turn TV off again.
- Go online instead, check forums.
- Stay out of kitchen, and not get in way. It's more than my life's worth.
- Have Christmas meal.
- Clear up lunch. Those that didn't cook it clear up and wash dishes.
- Turn on TV. Re-remember why I don't bother, repeat morning's expletives.
- Turn off TV. Turn on Kindle.
- Cold meat sandwiches
- Crash out, giving thanks that it's over for another 12 months.

[Lucio]

Have to agree that Laphroig is lovely, got me into drinking whiskey when I was 18. Local Unwins guy suggested it as my mum had always drunk Bells and I found it far too light and sweet. That said, my current favourite is Aberlour A'bunadh, a Speyside that embraces some of the tastes of Islay and sold at cask strength.

Anyhow back on topic.

I don't have a Christmas routine, my mum and step dad are a nurse and copper respectively so we will celebrate Christmas any day from the 24th to the 28th whenever they're both off and even then the times totally change.