Holiday Hoopla...the good, the bad and the ugly...share stories, ideas, recipes etc

[Sprailenes 47]

I remember for me it all came out at once... and it was strange. But please keep in mind my mother is strange and I swear I was more like her strange social experiment rather then her daughter.

Me: "Is there a Santa?"

Mom: "No"

Me: "What about an Easter bunny?"

Mom: "No"

Me:"What about the tooth fairy?"

Mom: "No"

Me: "Is god real?"

Mom: "No clue"

It was so nonchalant and meh.

The other day I was at the movies with my son and he asked me about Santa and made me look into his eyes and tell him the truth, and I just said: "It's not about what I believe, it's about what you believe!" and that was enough for him... oh and he brought up that time he was 3 and said: "I know he's real because I heard him mom! I did!"

Ahh I love being a mom.

Edited November 24, 2009 by Sprailenes

[Danu 19]

Lol. This is a cute thread (except for evil inlaws). No one in my house believes in Santa any more, but he still comes. Without trying to sound materialistic theres nothing like seeing 1 or 2 things under there and then coming home to a million (not really) boxes! My parents have used Santa to give me a bunch of stuff to set up house, its so cute. I love them for it. I still remember when my sister still believed and I didn't, I got to help be one of Santa's elves and help my mom set out the gifts. Mom is Santa for all of us and Dad and I play Santa for her, so she doesnt know what she will get either

[Carlawarla 1]

This is a lovely thread. Can I make a suggestion and say that we post holiday recipes in a new thread? I can see where this thread is going to be very long, and to sort through 50 pages to find specific recipes is going to be difficult. If a few people agree...mainly poprocks since this is your thread, could we start a new one?

This will be my third Christmas here in Saint Louis. We don't travel anywhere. We go up my in-laws for Thanksgiving, and then to turn around and go back up for Christmas, is just too much. It's only about a 5 hour drive, but you never know about the driving weather. It can be very stressful. At Thanksgiving we stay at my in-laws and then everyone comes over there. At Christmas they go to Gene's sister for dinner, another hour from where they live.

I love my in-laws dearly, and my MIL is my best friend, so being with them at holidays is not an imposition to be sure, we just really don't want to travel at Christmas.

I really like, maybe because there was just my ex and my two kids for so many years, quiet intimate Christmas' so that's what Gene and I do. We usually get up Christmas morning and just stay in our jammies until almost noon. I so miss not spending Christmas with my kids. My daughter often works Christmas day now, and my son seems to spend all his available time, including Christmas now with his girlfriends side of the family. They're actually very close.

Christmas for almost all the time while my kids were younger was very very stressful. Expectations, money...I put a lot of pressure on myself. My kids as they got older had expectations (that I implanted I suppose!) that I had trouble meeting, especially after the divorce, and I had so little money.

I would like someday to get back up at Christmas to spend it with my kids, but the logistics of travel, gifts, where we'd stay, is something we'd need to plan. My kids are also at an age where their significant others are very important in their lives, so to have them down here, with their partners, is just too much financially for them to do right now.

I'm going to cut down on baking this year. I make far too many things. Gene has requested less goodies, as he's feeling some weight gain. I normally don't eat too many goodies as I'm diabetic anyway, and sweets isn't really my downfall.

I think one of the best Christmas' I had here was my first year here after we were married. We had a Christmas Open House, and had about 50 people to a come and go. We had so much fun, and everyone enjoyed themselves. I love entertaining. That being said, it's a lot of work, and when I asked Gene if he was up to it this year, he said he wasn't. We do a lot of "parties" for a large group of people that aren't very respectful about RSVPing, and this same group never reciprocates, so Gene says he'd like a break.

[Peachey 10]

I am very bummed because I think this year will be the first year Santa doesn't stop at my mom's house :'(

[Carlawarla 1]

I am very bummed because I think this year will be the first year Santa doesn't stop at my mom's house :'(

I get so angry when I think of your whole holiday situation with your in-laws! Why wouldn't Santa stop at your Mom's? You're going to be there for the 20th, does your Mom come to your Aunt's for Christmas on the 25th? Sorry, I don't understand....

Edited November 24, 2009 by Carlawarla

[CdnMN 0]

I figured we could start a thread for this festive season, from thanksgiving to Christmas....anything to do with gifts, family, meals, you name it!

This is my first US Thanksgiving, and we have opted out of the family affair...my MIL is unbelievable and we are really avoiding the drama...

She is still bitter about 'not being invited to my eldest son's wedding' even though we told everyone we wanted to be alone on the beach, just the two of us...she is also causing a stink because she has yet to meet my son...I should say that this woman has issues, and my husband is the first to tell ya....they are not close....his parents divorced when he was 10...after she got caught running around with other men....she is greedy and tried taking his dad to the cleaners during the divorce LOOOOONG story). Anyways, she is nosey and has said some pretty horrible things about me...so my husband has been avoiding her for a while...she is so nosey, she wants to know how much my ex pays me for my son so 'her son doesn't get stuck with the bill' can you imagine?

Anyways, my SIL and her husband are going to Ocean City to be with her for Thanksgiving and we decided to stay home and forgo the drama...they even have issues with her, but feel bad....so we will likely lay low.... my back has been pretty bad...and my hubby doesn't want me going all out, so he said we should just order a meal from Boston Markets. I've never had their food...is it good? They do this Turkey special thing...

My hubby also wants to go at midnight and stand in line at Best Buy for a flat screen TV...HAHA! Don't ask...he is a techy junky lol...

I know eventually we will have to deal with my MIL for Christmas, as she will likely be down here...and we will have t have her over. My mom will be here too, and staying with us for two weeks with her boyfriend, in the nanny suite...I can see it now, the MIL will be pissed that my mom gets preferential treatment...whatever....she is also all about 'what did you buy me for X-Mas?) we have already vowed that this year, no adults are exchanging gifts, only for the kids.... it gets too expensive...she never listens and expects big gifts... me and my husband have decided that we will get her something small....$20 bucks...and be done with it....

I've already started decorating, I love Christmas... we do this thing on X-Mas eve, where the kids go up to put on their PJ's and that's when Santa happens to visit downstairs....hubby will come in making noise and leaving gifts (it's something my dad used to do and i'm keeping the tradition)...last year my son heard him and pee'd his pants from the excitement lol...

I'm also planning on baking....we love giner cookies, so I want to find a good recipe... if anyone has one, please share...

Anyways, i'm sure I will have many updates about the step monster from now till then, and it will make for a great read lol....

I love getting ideas and stuff for the holidays, so please share

Someone needs to come up with a law to outlaw in-laws. We got married in Ontario. My wife's parents came up for the wedding....just to see if they could talk her out of it.

They still invite her ex to all the family events.

On the other side of the coin...my mom gets along great with my wife. She is going to be here for Thanksgiving.

We'll be heading to Ontario for Christmas. We do the same thing every year. Fly in Christmas Day, pick up my son and stay at my mom's place and fly back home on the 30th. New Year's Eve is low key. We start with escargot for an apitizer then I cook a seafood dinner (usually lobster and shrimp or scallops), we watch a movie or something and I don't think we've ever been up for midnight.

I'm going to be making a special desert for the day after Thanksgiving..... Italian Bread Pudding with a white chocolate and Frangellico sauce.

Cooking is my hobby (my uncle was a professional chef years ago in Toronto) so I usually experiment through the holidays with different foods.

Last year I made a New York Striploin Roast. The idea was to serve it flambe. Well, afetr a couple of glasses of wine while cooking and then being a bit rushed in making sure everything came together at the right time. I always heat the Brandy before ouring it over the food....light it in a thick walled glass and pou ####### while it is flaming. I had a major brain fart when I did this last year. Without thinking, I poured the Brandy into a plastic cup...then lit it.....(note to self...plastic gets hot, soft and catches fire easily...do not use) After spilling the flaming Brandy all over the counter because I dropped the plastic cup, I decided that a flambe presentation wasn't really needed.

[ScooterMac 2]

I was late into the whole "Santa isn't real" thing too...my cousin told me when I was 10 or so, and I stayed up late that Christmas eve to see if my cousin was lying. I saw my dad carry all the presents from their room to the living room with "Santa" on the tags. To my dad's credit, he waited until 2 or 3am and check to see if I was "asleep" first. I never told them I knew, I think they just assumed at some point I figured it out.

We get presents from "Aunt Edna" and "Uncle Jake". Apparently, in the late 70s during one of their first Christmases together, my dad had asked for an album he knew my mother wouldn't buy him. She didn't, and when they were opening packages together on Christmas morning, she was surprised to see it turn up in his gift pile. He'd bought it for himself and given it as from "Uncle Jake". This happened every couple years until my brother and I were kids, when "Aunt Edna" showed up on the scene. My mom wanted the toilet seat replaced in the bathroom, so she gave dad a toilet seat from "Aunt Edna". The next year, "Aunt Edna" and "Uncle Jake" started giving us kids presents as well. Stuff from "Aunt Edna" is always practical and usually a necessity, and stuff from "Uncle Jake" is usually the fun stuff. We get presents from our parents and our pets as well.

After reading that last paragraph, I think my family may potentially be crazy.

We do the "big" family celebrations - Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter - at my grandparents house. Thankfully, this year, we live in their upstairs apartment....cuts down on travelling time! We usually do Christmas night at my parents house, as my brother and SIL have a kid and do Christmas morning in Pittsburgh as a family.

The "big" celebrations include about 20 people, and it's usually chaos. Good times At least this year we can finally escape upstairs to our apartment and lock the door!

[Varba 0]

I am very bummed because I think this year will be the first year Santa doesn't stop at my mom's house :'(

I get so angry when I think of your whole holiday situation with your in-laws! Why wouldn't Santa stop at your Mom's? You're going to be there for the 20th, does your Mom come to your Aunt's for Christmas on the 25th? Sorry, I don't understand....

Last year I got presents from Santa for the first time ever! At Peachey's Christmas!

This year with her family, we kept the gifts low key and exchanged names... so no santa.

Yes, my family are awesome. Christmas went from my favorite holiday to my least favorite in 1 years time. Holy hell will be unleashed if they ever try to screw with Christmas again. We can compromise this year, but next time. DIAF we're being merry without you kthxbai.

Edited November 24, 2009 by Varba

[Peachey 10]

I am very bummed because I think this year will be the first year Santa doesn't stop at my mom's house :'(

I get so angry when I think of your whole holiday situation with your in-laws! Why wouldn't Santa stop at your Mom's? You're going to be there for the 20th, does your Mom come to your Aunt's for Christmas on the 25th? Sorry, I don't understand....

Oh because we picked names this year, so my mom (aka santa) isnt' buying gifts for everyone.

[MapleLeafBaby 1]

@poprocks,

we saw this cool toy for boys at the local sam's club - it's a type of the connex toy where you make your own roller coaster and then this thingy goes down with it with a real digital camera and then you can re-design the ride the way you want it - scarier, higher... I think it was around $60.

That sounds so cool...and inexpensive for what it does...i'll have to look out for it! Thanks

My son is obsessed with recording his voice and doing little news reporting and interviews with me...when i'm with him, I let him use my iphone, but I think i'll try and get him a recorder of some sort..he will love that or even a kids video cam

This is a lovely thread. Can I make a suggestion and say that we post holiday recipes in a new thread? I can see where this thread is going to be very long, and to sort through 50 pages to find specific recipes is going to be difficult. If a few people agree...mainly poprocks since this is your thread, could we start a new one?

I think that's a great idea Carla...get one started! I was just feeling festive, and I didn't want to keep the thread all evil and 'in law-ish' lol.... but I like where it has gone...

I have a girl that comes and cleans our house twice a month (because of my back...it's not worth me trying to to major cleaning and end up in bed for a week after the fact)...she is going back home for a month....and of course during a time where we will have all sorts of people over and entertaining...people coming through etc... i'm so worried in trying to keep the house up to par during Dec... lol...my mom is coming to visit...but I hate her having to clean for me, as she will be a visitor...I try to do things here and there, but cannot manage the major stuff....I figure if I do something small each day, I may be able to manage through the holidays...

I actually want to get her something...the girl that cleans for me. She's in her 20's....from Brazil...very nice girl...she's in school and working on her MBA...what can I get her?I was thinking a gift certificate? book store? Dept store? or I was even thinking a nice key chain? I hate shopping for people I don't know well

Anyone know of any Christmas specials that are coming up on TV? I saw that they released a Xmas DVD for Madagascar...my son loves them..so i'll try to get that...but if it's on TV, I can record it with my DVR and let him watch it...after a few times, they get bored and the money spent on DVD's isn't worth it sometimes...

[Marilyn. 340]

I am a sucker for sappy Christmas movies.. the more sap the better..lol

[MapleLeafBaby 1]

I have a question for cat owners...

We have a cat (whom I inherited when I married lol)... i've never owned a cat my entire life...so i'm learning new things all the time. He likes to eat things he shouldn't and then gets sick...you think he'd learn...well i've started to put out Xmas stuff..I havea little tree, and he keeps eating it! And then gets sick all over the place that I have to then clean up...grrr lol...

Well we are getting a real tree next week, and my husband says that not only will he be nibbling on it, but also be climbing in it! WTH?!

Do cats do this? How can I keep him out of the tree?

[Marilyn. 340]

I found this article..

http://www.wikihow.com/Cat-Proof-Your-Christmas-Tree

Edited November 28, 2009 by Marilyn.

[MapleLeafBaby 1]

I found this article..

http://www.wikihow.com/Cat-Proof-Your-Chri...-Christmas-Tree

Thanks! The link has no article attached to it? it says no article exists yet. Feel like writing one? lol

[Marilyn. 340]

it should work now..lol..