So, what's up for Christmas?

[Naira]

I didn't see a relevant thread so I thought to start one...

What's up for Christmas time? Are you doing anything special?

Me, I could not get a leave from my job to go back to my hometown, so my parents drove here instead. It is nice having them around, even though my apartment is a bit crowded with 3 people. My boyfriend is in my hometown but I hope to see him on New Year's.

Other than that, I have so many things to do that involve submitting a research paper and dealing with the bureaucracy of two different countries (the horror! ), so I have my hands full.

What about you?

 

[Captain Ice]

Working double shifts until Monday here. Monday night/Tuesday morning I will bake a cheesecake and candy some walnuts. Sometime Tuesday one of my brothers or I will drive to a friend's house for the Doctor Who Christmas special. Other than that, the only thing I will do is go to church Monday night.

 

[Kestra]

Christmas is the one day this week I'm actually not doing anything. I'm at the airport right now waiting to fly back to Chicago. Looking forward to much needed quality time with friends and family this week.

 

[tomalak301]

I don't know what I'm doing for Christmas yet. I was going to spend time in Reno this weekend, but we only made it as far as Nevada City/Grass Valley (About 2 hours northeast of Sacramento). We're heading home today because the weather is so bad and I will at least be home for Christmas. There are also a lot of interesting family issues going on at the moment that affects Christmas Day so I think that might be a day where I don't do much. We're not having a traditional turkey dinner, but I do know I'm going to church on Monday Night and then opening gifts on Tuesday Morning. Might just spend the rest of Tuesday watching basketball and the Doctor Who special.

 

[StolenThunder]

Working 22nd to the 30th this year. Very poor! Totally unsociable 1pm to 1am too. Grr.

 

[1001001]

I don't know what I'm doing for Christmas yet. I was going to spend time in Reno this weekend, but we only made it as far as Nevada City/Grass Valley (About 2 hours northeast of Sacramento). We're heading home today because the weather is so bad and I will at least be home for Christmas.

Yeah, this has been one hell of a storm. Getting to Reno right now would take a snowplow. We have a center in Reno, and I was there during the last storm. Getting home was pretty scary.

Anyway, today my son and I are going to see The Hobbit, and spend the night downtown. Christmas Day will be at the in-laws, with all the brothers, sisters, and cousins. It's usually a good. mellow time.

 

[Balrog]

Chistmas again?!

I thought we had one just last year...

 

[Warp Coil]

My Christmas routine is exactly the same every year. One of these days it might be nice to do something a little different, and perhaps more enjoyable.

Morning: go to Grandma's house and have Xmas breakfast and then gift exchange with my Mom's side of the family. Bickering ensues. I get a headache.

Early Afternoon: my brother and I meet up with my Dad and his wife for gift exchange; bickering is kept to a minimum (unless my brother is in a bad mood in which case he may throw a temper tantrum like he's 12, not a 35 year old).

Mid-to-Late Afternoon: Seek refuge with one of my best friends and their family; eat; drink moderately to help me cope with the stress of enduring my own family

Evening: back to Grandma's for Xmas dinner and substantially more bickering; put in adequate face time and then politely excuse myself and leave at the earliest convenience

 

[Tora Ziyal]

Wow, Warp Coil, that would be a lot for one day even without the bickering! If that were my family, I probably wouldn't be returning to Grandma's in the evening.

I was planning to go to midnight mass tomorrow night with my former husband and then just spend Christmas day at home. But now I'm in the hospital, getting IV antibiotics, so who knows? There's a good chance I'll be discharged tomorrow, but it's nowhere near definite. And even if I am discharged, I'm probably going to be way too exhausted to go anywhere except home and to bed. Not getting much sleep here.

 

[Aeronef]

My family is on the other side of the country, but one of my co-workers invited me to have Christmas dinner with hers. Which was very nice of her.

So: in the morning, phone calls to family, and maybe a bit of work; in the afternoon, a movie--either Les Miserables or Django Unchained (just to get in the Christmas spirit ); in the evening, dinner with friends.

 

[Gaseous Anomaly]

Christmas day I’ll spend with my wife and her family, day after I'll be flying to Iowa to visit my dad.

 

[SmoothieX]

Hiking with my dog.

 

[Amaris]

My brother and his wife and kids are coming over for dinner on Christmas Eve. My mom and I have spent the past 2 hours prepping the food for tomorrow. It's worth it to have her homemade potato salad. We've also fixed banana pudding, homemade stuffing, and I've made baked beans. I also bought a can of cranberry sauce because my brother loves the stuff.

What I'm excited about is my little niece and nephew (6 and 2 respectively), opening their gifts. We know they'll barely eat, and knowing my niece, will have counted the presents with her name on it many times over. That is what will make it Christmas for me, those precious little babies.

Excuse me, I've got something in my eye.

 

[TEACAKE'S PLEATHER DOME]

I love cranberry sauce too. I eat it all year, as jam.

I have never heard of banana pudding but it sounds fabulous. What is it, I'm assuming one of those american creamy pudding things not an english dense with fruit cakey pudding thing?

This is the first year I'm not having Christmas at my house. I actually get to go somewhere and be a person bringing stuff instead of being the person providing 80% of the stuff. It will be a much smaller space but they have two balconies and it's summer.. and there will be lots of BEER and CHICKEN and K-Pop and Shakira which we play every year for some reason. And salads, many lovely salads..

 

[ladyheather69]

I just got a nice surprise from one of my co workers: she is going to take my Christmas Eve shift! That means I get to spend more time with my daughter who is home from college!!
So Christmas Eve I will be making my famous fudge, baking some cookies, and making a cheese cake for dessert.
Christmas Day, I will probably make a big breakfast--you know, pancakes, biscuits, bacon, eggs, that type thing-- opening presents with husband and kids. I will also be making the traditional-at least in our family-turkey dinner with all the trimmings. Looking forward to this, seeing that my mom cooked Thanksgiving this year, and I missed doing it!
After dinner and dessert, just chill and watch movies or whatever, and hang out.

Hope you all have a wonderful holiday be it Christmas or other! And if you are travelling, be careful and stay safe and warm!

 

[Amaris]

I love cranberry sauce too. I eat it all year, as jam.

That's how I like it (spreadable fruit), but my brother will only eat the cranberry sauce that's congealed and out of the can still shaped like the can, for some reason.

I have never heard of banana pudding but it sounds fabulous. What is it, I'm assuming one of those american creamy pudding things not an english dense with fruit cakey pudding thing?

In the case of my mother's method, it's a bottom layer of vanilla wafers, a layer of sliced bananas, then wafers, then bananas, then wafers until it reaches near the top of a large bowl, and then those layers are covered in a liquid vanilla pudding. It is a policy that every cookie must be covered.

It's then left to sit overnight in the refrigerator, and then when one gets a spoonful, it's all creamy and melts in your mouth. We use sugar free pudding so that everyone can eat it.

This is the first year I'm not having Christmas at my house. I actually get to go somewhere and be a person bringing stuff instead of being the person providing 80% of the stuff. It will be a much smaller space but they have two balconies and it's summer.. and there will be lots of BEER and CHICKEN and K-Pop and Shakira which we play every year for some reason. And salads, many lovely salads..

Woohoo! Sounds like a blast!

 

[TEACAKE'S PLEATHER DOME]

I love cranberry sauce too. I eat it all year, as jam.

That's how I like it (spreadable fruit), but my brother will only eat the cranberry sauce that's congealed and out of the can still shaped like the can, for some reason.

I have never heard of banana pudding but it sounds fabulous. What is it, I'm assuming one of those american creamy pudding things not an english dense with fruit cakey pudding thing?

In the case of my mother's method, it's a bottom layer of vanilla wafers, a layer of sliced bananas, then wafers, then bananas, then wafers until it reaches near the top of a large bowl, and then those layers are covered in a liquid vanilla pudding. It is a policy that every cookie must be covered.

It's then left to sit overnight in the refrigerator, and then when one gets a spoonful, it's all creamy and melts in your mouth. We use sugar free pudding so that everyone can eat it.

WOW that sounds great. Here we would probably use custard. I'd be adding a splash of sherry or two.

I have not had those Nila wafers in years. I remember the taste. I thought at first you meant wafers like this. We don't have the Nila style here at all, nothing like them. But it would work with these sort as well I think.

This is the first year I'm not having Christmas at my house. I actually get to go somewhere and be a person bringing stuff instead of being the person providing 80% of the stuff. It will be a much smaller space but they have two balconies and it's summer.. and there will be lots of BEER and CHICKEN and K-Pop and Shakira which we play every year for some reason. And salads, many lovely salads..

Woohoo! Sounds like a blast!

Also we are having Korean food thanks to the Korean relative which I am sure will outshine everything else, YAY

Hopefully no Korean wine though as that stuff will kill you.

 

[Retu]

Spotted Santa doing his rounds: http://www.flightradar24.com/SANTA1

 

[SmoothieX]

Nice, after my hike I'm going to do a little target practice with my mother and uncle, who have been teaching me to shoot the last 6 months or so.

 

[mari]

I'm having an extended holiday this year - Saturday I got my first present, my engagement ring (yay! finally!), and yesterday we had dinner with my fiance's family. Today I'm making soup and then on actual Christmas it's just "the people that live in the house", my parents and sister and I, with the presents and all. We might go to see my father's (very large) family, but I've avoided it for years so... I could avoid it another year, no problem. There might be some church in there too, and definitely Chinese food for dinner. My mother figures she gets one extra day off this week and she is not cooking. And then Saturday we're having another Christmas with my sister, BIL and nephew, who have to travel to be with us. So it's going to be a LONG week!