Holidays- does anyone stay home?

waterfall11

Does anyone stay here with just yourself, DH and LO(s) for the holidays?  We are currently sick and since FIL is on chemo we don't want to expose him (the live 2 hours away and we were going to spend 3 nights with them).  I am a little bummed, even though DH and I have talked about how it would be nice to have a Christmas at home someday (I am used to celebrating with extended family of 20-30 on both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day so it seems like it will be lonely).  What do you do to make things special?  What meals do you have?  

waterfall11

At this point, my very last minute plans include cuddling with DH on the couch while watching some Christmas classics, letting DD open her stocking first thing in the morning, and then I've got nothing.  Probably Skype with our families since we can't be with them.  I am planning to get a turkey breast for Christmas dinner and make all the fixings.  For Christmas Eve I may do lasagne or steak.  We plan to have cinnamon rolls and eggs for breakfast on Christmas Eve and swedish pancakes on Christmas day.  

MommyKayla11

We're staying home for the holidays this year. DS is a handful now that he's walking and requiring more attention to make sure he doesn't knock down the Christmas tree We also just would like to spend Christmas with the three of us instead of a big bunch.

waterfall11

MommyKayla11:

We're staying home for the holidays this year. DS is a handful now that he's walking and requiring more attention to make sure he doesn't knock down the Christmas tree We also just would like to spend Christmas with the three of us instead of a big bunch.

Any special plans for your family time? 

MommyKayla11

waterfall11:

MommyKayla11:

We're staying home for the holidays this year. DS is a handful now that he's walking and requiring more attention to make sure he doesn't knock down the Christmas tree We also just would like to spend Christmas with the three of us instead of a big bunch.

Any special plans for your family time? 

Cookie baking, Christmas movies, and DTD! 

march2008

We are having Christmas at home this year with just the 3 of us. We just moved cross-country in September and DH got stuck with the crappy shift of working on Christmas Eve and then being on call Christmas day. Ugh. So, we aren't able to fly home to be with our relatives this year who have a big get together each year.

I am making meals very similar to what you said. We're having lasagna on Christmas Eve and then a Thanksgiving-style dinner on Christmas day. We go to church either on the eve or actual day; will depend on when DH gets home from work. Other than that, we'll just probably be entertained watching DD open up and play with all of her new gifts. I wish I had some exciting traditions to share!

magnoliablossom00

We (immediate family) live away from all other extended family. My mom is one of 4, my dad is one of 8, and my grandma was one of 11. So growing up, we had to rent out town halls to have our Christmas party. It was a big adjustment going from 200+ people to only our little family of 5 (mom, dad, bro, sis, and self). Just to be honest with you, you probably will feel a little lonely. I am not saying that to be a downer, just saying to be prepared for it. I think it's good that you're planning in advance for fun ways to make it special!

We usually go to Christmas Eve mass in the late afternoon, but we won't this year since we just had a baby a few days ago. Are you religious? This could be a fun way to get dressed up and get out of the house for a while.

DH, LO1, LO2, and myself will be alone on Christmas morning. We will wake up, get out the video camera, start opening gifts, and then cook a big breakfast while A Christmas Story plays in the background. Then, we will start cleaning up and go to my mom's. However, in your case, could you guys get dressed up and go somewhere? The afternoon was always the loneliest time for me growing up away from family. Maybe you could even take a drive and listen to Christmas music and get a coffee. My family always plays board games- could you and dh play a fun game?

Are there any traditions that your family does that you can do at home? My grandpa used to eat peanuts and drink whiskey sours on Christmas. It sounds silly, but it became a tradition and now we drink them every year on Christmas.

For nighttime, you could drink hot cocoa and snuggle in your jammies while reading Christmas books before bed. My little family reads, "The real story of Christmas" and "Twas the night before Christmas" every year on xmas eve.

GL!

waterfall11

magnoliablossom00:

We (immediate family) live away from all other extended family. My mom is one of 4, my dad is one of 8, and my grandma was one of 11. So growing up, we had to rent out town halls to have our Christmas party. It was a big adjustment going from 200+ people to only our little family of 5 (mom, dad, bro, sis, and self). Just to be honest with you, you probably will feel a little lonely. I am not saying that to be a downer, just saying to be prepared for it. I think it's good that you're planning in advance for fun ways to make it special!

We usually go to Christmas Eve mass in the late afternoon, but we won't this year since we just had a baby a few days ago. Are you religious? This could be a fun way to get dressed up and get out of the house for a while.

DH, LO1, LO2, and myself will be alone on Christmas morning. We will wake up, get out the video camera, start opening gifts, and then cook a big breakfast while A Christmas Story plays in the background. Then, we will start cleaning up and go to my mom's. However, in your case, could you guys get dressed up and go somewhere? The afternoon was always the loneliest time for me growing up away from family. Maybe you could even take a drive and listen to Christmas music and get a coffee. My family always plays board games- could you and dh play a fun game?

Are there any traditions that your family does that you can do at home? My grandpa used to eat peanuts and drink whiskey sours on Christmas. It sounds silly, but it became a tradition and now we drink them every year on Christmas.

For nighttime, you could drink hot cocoa and snuggle in your jammies while reading Christmas books before bed. My little family reads, "The real story of Christmas" and "Twas the night before Christmas" every year on xmas eve.

GL!

Thank you for all the great suggestions! 

csharpe636

We stay home. The only family we have here is my MIL and the rest of our family is in PA and we are in FL. We both work at the theme parks in the area and none of them close for the holidays so we are not allowed to take any vacation anyway. We are both lucky enough to have off on Christmas day so we do breakfast at my MIL's and then gifts and dinner at our house. We always watch a Christmas movie and play a game in the evening too.

Syncronicity09

We are this year because Ash has pnuemonia and my neice has the stomach flu. We are going to postpone it to a later date. I am kind of relieved to not have to do so much running!

MommaG123

We are this year because we're both on call.

We are going to do cinnamon rolls and scrambled eggs Christmas morning.  I didn't really get anything special to make for dinner/supper.

Christmas Eve will be swedish meatballs, mashed potatoes and lefse. 

waterfall11

Syncronicity09:

We are this year because Ash has pnuemonia and my neice has the stomach flu. We are going to postpone it to a later date. I am kind of relieved to not have to do so much running!

Hope Ash feels better soon! 

waterfall11

Christmas Eve down and it wasn't too lonely.  Cheese fondue, candlelight service at church and then home for the rest of our meal.  SIL and BIL stopped by on their way home from vacation (we never see them and they live 1.5 hours away) and stayed to enjoy our beef broth fondue, hot cocoa and cookies.  We exchanged gifts and had a great time catching up.  

AminaChare

I stay home every year but that is because family is spread out so far. The ones who have the extra funds usually make the rounds to see everybody. Its been relaxing to just stay home. No dressing up, no worrying about extra food or special decorations because everyone is coming by. Its usually quiet but we let the kids stay up til midnight to open one gift on Christmas Eve (They know their parents are Santa) and we bake all of the desserts on Christmas Eve so that only the main meal is cooked on Christmas day. It varies year to year on what we have. My hubby tried goose one year (too greasy lol) and we have done cornish hens and roasting chickens instead of turkey because we don't eat pork. This year we did a big roast with all the trimmings. The kids are so focused on their gifts that they don't care they are at home or they go outside and play with all of their friends. But we do call and video chat family to thank them for presents and wish holiday greetings to everyone.