<p>So it seems that the holiday season has invaded CC. Look at the name of the recent threads. </p>
<p>So are you ready for the holidays? How do you feel about them–dread or thrilled? </p>
<p>I hate them.
Most depressing weather and expectations that can’t ever be met.
Especially my own.
I feel so old I can’t even remember a time when I looked forward to Christmas.
Every year it gets harder.</p>
<p>I love the holidays. But really…we have so scaled down…everything…gifts, decorations, food. But it’s one time that our kids are both here, and we celebrate that. </p>
<p>We won’t be having Christmas morning until December 27 due to travel schedules…but that’s fine!</p>
<p>I’m looking forward to getting the decorations out after Thanksgiving. Trees don’t go up until the weekend before Christmas.</p>
<p>And I love love the holiday music!</p>
<p>I get what you mean. It was always my favorite time of the year. But then it became overwhelming and kind of became the worst. I am now trying to make it less stressful and more a very relaxing , spiritually filled family time together.</p>
<p>How much do you decorate?</p>
<p>I love the holidays. It’s the one time when both of my grown kids are here together, either for Thanksgiving or Christmas. This year we will also have “Christmas morning” a few days after Christmas because of travel, but we always plan at least one day together. Some years we have my son and DIL for a week or more- and their animals, too.
This year, Thanksgiving will be the bigger celebration at our house. I love cooking all the traditional foods, getting out the fancy china and decorating the table. My family appreciates the little touches, so it’s worth it. I usually buy a couple of new things around this time of year for the house- candles, pretty plates, wreaths, garlands. This year I bought some of those little lights that you put in hurricane glass lanterns or pretty jars in an amber color, and I’m eager to try them out.</p>
<p>I grew up with big and messy family holidays and as a child imagined that I had a close knit family. Unfortunately now the holidays are a reminder of how different we are and how distant we siblings have become. I do my best to fight a feeling of sadness during the holidays because it would hurt my husband and daughter if I went into a funk. I will say that I married into a lovely small family who, though they bring their own baggage to the table (pun intended), do love each other and manage to get along. So I’ve got that going for me. :-)</p>
<p>I play holiday music non-stop to fake myself out. No one has owned or downloaded more Christmas music than I have. (Ok, I couldn’t bring myself to buy any Mannheim Steamroller.) I also am a master wrapper and rather enjoy the mindlessness of the wrapping process. Salespeople think I am a bit odd when I decline having my gifts wrapped. I keep our holiday decorating to fresh greens and some twinkly lights these days but remember having to-the-death battles with my little sister over the placement of my mother’s garish (and wonderful) decorations and how much tinsel to put on the tree when I was a kid.</p>
<p>I feel horrible that I hate the holidays now. I am on the wrong side of the war on Christmas in my home town. Over the last few years I have been verbally attacked multiple times for the sin of saying Happy Holidays. In my old town, we celebrated multiple holiday events from friends and neighbors of different cultures. Now my neighbors treat us like freaks for celebrating Solstice. We used to celebrate both Solstice and Christmas but now we just go for Chinese and movies on the other holiday. Those people around me that show not an ounce of tolerance have ruined the holiday for me. </p>
<p>I make a big deal out of Thanksgiving in terms of cooking and hosting, but Christmas is immediate family only and we never have a formal meal. We spend most of the day in our pajamas just hanging out. So yes, I very much look forward to that, but it’s completely non-stress. I really try to avoid shopping centers in December too. I love our Christmas eve church service so that’s something to look forward too.
I guess January and February are my down times.</p>
<p>We haven’t had my kids together for Christmas for years, and we have very small and standoffishish families so it is usually just H and I with the youngest coming home for a few days, or last year we went to her college town.
I do admit having conveyor belt sushi for Christmas dinner was a lot of fun and then we played Ticket To Ride.
:)</p>
<p>
Get out! That is terrible. I think of it as the polite thing to say when I don’t know what a person celebrates or when I want to be very broad based in my good wishes.</p>
<p>Ha! I was in line at Trader Joe’s today . . . well it wasn’t really a line, just behind one woman who wouldn’t leave. She was clutching her un-bagged produce to her chest and lecturing the checker about “offensive” and presumptuous wished to have a nice day. Apparently she thought his post check out send off had religious undertones. What is the world coming to when people can’t accept well wished with grace?</p>
<p>People who don’t have a holiday around December get tired of being immersed in other people’s beliefs. Why do you assume wishing a happy holiday is appropriate??? The whole world, and many in the US are NOT into the Jewish, Christian or Muslim mythology. You are forcing them to acknowledge your beliefs after they have been bombarded with them via the stores, TV et al, even if it is a secular means. In your enthusiasm for your holiday you are forgetting this. Once Thanksgiving is past the next holiday that is universal in this country is New Years- and it is premature to tell people to enjoy that until late December.</p>
<p>Bravo to those who remind you to be less self centered, sharing your joy when it isn’t theirs. The US is much more multicultural now than when I was a kid. Christmas is so big because of commercialization and Hanukah made more of because of Christmas doings. Divali is past- why didn’t you start your holiday greetings for this most important Hindu celebration just in case the stranger was of that belief???</p>
<p>Christmas is sure different now that my siblings’ kids and mine are grown or nearly so, all of our parents and grandparents are long gone, AND we no longer live mostly close together.But my H’s family dynamic includes in-laws of in-laws as actual family and everyone is invited anytime a holiday happens. We have the best house set-up for a gathering so it’s usually here, and that’s fine with me. It’s not that we have a huge house-far from it, but it’s got the right amount of space.</p>
<p>Since H and I met in our late 30’s we already had enough for a whole tree each, so we alternate years with a tree type of our choosing and our own collection of ornaments. D loves to decorate and has put up lights, garlands, window clings with joy as soon as I give her the word. H smokes something-will it be a turkey or a brisket ?Maybe we’ll spring for prime rib or ham…and all those in-laws of in-laws bring a side dish. We’re not the most religious bunch, but before we eat we always remember those no longer with us. There’s always a bit of wistfulness on my part-my parents would have loved H and D and all these new people who love me. </p>
<p>Um, so yeah, I love the holidays.</p>
<p>@wis75 …I can be happy for the joy of others, even if I don’t particularly subscribe to that belief system. My motto…be polite, accept well wishes of ALL sorts, and move on. </p>
<p>There won’t be a Thanksgiving dinner or Christmas at my house this year… Don’t ask. </p>
<p>As a Christian pastor, the primary joy of my holiday season is the religious significance of Christmas. But, aside from that, I also like seeing Christmas decorations especially in the large department store windows. I also like Christmas carols, but only sung by a live choir, not constantly blasted through the sound system at my grocery store, etc. I like the smell of a live Christmas tree or other greenery. I enjoy baking cookies with my family. I like buying stocking stuffers for my kids, even though they are grown up. </p>
<p>I have always tried not to get caught up in the commercial frenzy of the “holiday season.” I don’t send Christmas cards or decorate my house, except for a tree. I don’t buy presents for anyone but immediate family. I don’t go to or host many parties. </p>
<p>I realize that most people only really celebrate the secular side of Christmas. And many don’t celebrate Christmas at all. So I try to be considerate with “holiday greetings” and such. I will respond to such greetings, but I don’t give them out unless I know the person. </p>
<p>Thanksgiving. Living in London, I sometimes forget that not everyone celebrates the holiday. But as Americans abroad, we have a big celebration and turkey dinner at our church on the Sunday before. And on Thanksgiving Day itself, we celebrate at St. Paul’s Cathedral at a service hosted by the American ambassador. H and I sing in the choir for the event and it is glorious. Last year, we went out for sushi afterwards. </p>
<p>We host several friends at Thanksgiving every year and love it. It is truly my favorite holiday.</p>
<p>We celebrate Christmas and for years I disliked it. Several years ago I opted out of H’s family’s excessive (to me) gift giving. I felt bad for years that H’s parents wanted us to travel, but refused to ever come to our place at Christmas (my parents have a few times and we all loved it). Again, some years ago I just decided that we would come up with our own thing so now H, the kids and I attend church, have dinner and open gifts on Christmas eve. On Christmas Day we have brunch at a local Chinese restaurant and then see a movie. We really enjoy this.</p>
<p>The funny part is that I know I am “Grinch” or “Scrooge” to some people because I don’t get into the gift thing, but I love so many things about Christmas. I love the music, decorations, parties, church service, etc. </p>
<p>Ah decorations. Well, DD is here,mand she loves to decorate. So she will do that, and we will do the trees…yes plural. I have. Beautiful fake tree. And my DH insists on a beautiful real tree. </p>
<p>We have pared down the decorations a lot…but we have it all, including holiday towels for all,the bathrooms, dish towels too. I think the only thing we no longer have is holiday sheets…but we used to have those too!</p>
<p>It’s festive and different…and we enjoy it all.</p>
<p>While we love the decorating…we wish those stinking elves would come along and UNdecorate…and pack things away. We don’t particularly enjoy that!</p>
<p>Christmas has really been scaled down at our house. Our S’s are grown and gone but neither are married. So they pay us the obligatory trip at Thanksgiving/ Christmas. We’ve retired this year and moved away the town our S’s were born/raised in. DH and I are very happy in our new place but know it will be a drag for our S’s on holidays…the obligatory forced march. In years past, they enjoyed seeing old friends but won’t be able to do that now. I feel a little guilty but know that I shouldn’t.</p>
<p>Also I have two siblings that we generally only see once a year at Christmas. It’s always a drag trying to figure out dates that work for everyone. So weird that we only see them at Christmas and act as if we’re so close knit but the rest of the year nada…</p>