I just told dh he was a bloody old misery 😡

Wonderful memories being made for them, I salute you. I would have heard the same from mine and also continued regardless.

welbeck

i agree with your husband

I do as well. I don't purchase useless tat and don't want our GC in shops making unnecessary disposable purchases.

Norah

welbeck

i agree with your husband

I do as well. I don't purchase useless tat and don't want our GC in shops making unnecessary disposable purchases.

Tree decorations are something to be treasured and passed down; I'm still hanging ones on the tree that were my Mum's which I remember from when I was a child and also have some from my MIL.
They are not disposable tat.

When they come out of the box each year, they bring back lovely memories, the excitement of the tree going up and remembering that my MIL would never put the tree up until Christmas Eve.

🎄🎄

It's OCTOBER!!
What are they going to do for excitement in December?
Surely there is something else available ....

Fleur20

It's OCTOBER!!
What are they going to do for excitement in December?
Surely there is something else available ....

School plays, carol concerts, Christingle services.

What a lot of miseries there are on Gransnet these days.

It’s such a sweet idea Witzend. Children love tat. And hopefully , that ‘tat’ will be hanging on their Xmas tree for years to come. Btw you are brave to go shopping with 4 little ones. Is Scrooge coming as well - only joking 😂 Have a lovely time !!

My grandchildren don’t finish school until the afternoon of 22nd Dec. No one in their right mind would take a child into town on the Saturday before Xmas! Or any pre-Xmas Saturday, come to that!

I think a trip to buy a bauble is a lovely idea, though I might balk at taking three aged under eight! Nowadays, if you leave these things until a couple of weeks before the big day you will probably find all that’s left to buy truly is the cheap tat. We still have glass decorations we bought for our first Xmas together in 1972. I don’t think that can be considered tat. They’re full of memories and still as pretty as the day I bought them.

I think it's a lovely idea. The GCs will enjoy the novelty of the bus and the store already set up for Christmas. Exciting for them. Making memories.

Anyway, it will be their 'tat' not his. What's he worried about!!

School plays, carol concerts, Christingle services.

And a visit to Father Christmas.
Looking out for the sleigh going across the sky on Christmas Eve!

I love the John Lewis Christmas shop Witzend but I haven’t been around to get there for the last 4 years and doubt I will make it this year either! No way Mr. B will agree to take me, if I’m honest I’m just not up to it at the moment. Have a lovely time with the grandchildren.

I needed a lie down after reading 3 nights 4 full days 😱

Until last year I bought my youngest granddaughters Christmas decorations. Last year it was different. Aged 7 we went to Fenwicks to buy Christmas decorations. They had £5.00 each but they had a little leeway (a bit later). Afterwards we went for hot chocolate and cake that was enjoyed by all. They looked at the different decorations for ages before deciding which ones they wanted. We will be doing the same this year.

My oldest daughter introduced the idea with her two children, now grown up. They each have a set of Christmas decorations with memories. I hope my grandchildren will have the same memories. For me, it’s not just about the decorations it’s about making memories with them.

I think it’s too early. Garden centres and shops around here are full to overflowing with Christmas tat and it’s just too much.

Every year when we get our decs out ….. week before Xmas ….. I look at ours and it’s all years old. Stuff the kids made, knitted bits my Mum made, things I made, some shop bought stuff.

There is a box of 6 Mr Men Baubles dating from 1980. They are those very fragile glass effect baubles. I think of my late SIL when I see them as we were both new Mums with babies just a few weeks apart. We were shopping with the babies and bought a set each. There wasn’t the choice back then but the image of that shopping trip is fresh in my mind. My SIL passed away just a few days off 2 years ago.

Children grow up so quickly enjoy them while you can Witzend. Ours are now 12 and 10 and we realise in a year or so they will be off doing their own thing.

Enjoy yourselves and take lots of photos. 🥳

Every year when we get our decs out ….. week before Xmas ….. I look at ours and it’s all years old. Stuff the kids made, knitted bits my Mum made, things I made, some shop bought stuff

So do I.

But it was all new once!

PS we let the children set up an assault course downstairs with cushions, duvets and small tables to run round. It was chaos and they loved every second of it. 🤣

I think it's a lovely thing to do. Old Grumpy will love it.

This post has reminded me that I need to buy some new white fairy lights. And I only need quite a short length which is difficult to find. I must measure up and go online today.

Thanks OP. Hope you have a lovely afternoon with the GCs. DH may come round and be excited himself!!!!

Go for it Witzend.
Our daughter and three grandchildren have just spent three weeks with us. They were visiting from New Zealand. Mr M and I took the three children out all over the place without their mother. We went for a day in the New Forest, a day at Legoland, a day at the local country park, and we took their cousin there as well, so had four children. We went to Park Run, and to various local parks.
My daughter and I took them to London for three days where we visited The Tower of London, went on the London Eye, did the London bus tour and saw many of the sights, went to Hamleys, used the underground whilst there and used the overland train to get there. We also went to the Natural History Museum and had the Dinosaur afternoon tea at the hotel opposite. The children were absolutely fine. What I’m saying is it’s perfectly possible to take children out and about and have a wonderful time with them.
The theatre and John Lewis visit will be lovely.

I must admit I gulped a bit at the thought of four children for four days but then I re-read your post and I think the youngest is three and a half, so no five year old!

I also think it’s a lovely thing to do, and you already have a couple of great outings planned which I’m sure the children will absolutely love.

I think you should insist your husband comes with you to help though, grumpy or not!

The nights wouldn’t worry me.
None of them are babies or toddlers so they will all sleep fine, especially after action packed days.

As others have said it’s all about making memories isn’t it, for you two and the children.

I can still remember how much I loved staying with my grandparents.

To limit the spending for our own three children, we decided they could all choose just one new decoration each every year.
I used to write the date on a little sticker and put it on the back.
They liked working out how old (or young!) they'd been when they bought them 🎄

It'll be lovely, I'm envious. Leave the miserable blighter at home!

I hope you have a great time with your grandchildren Witzend. Don’t listen to the killjoys on here! I’ve frequently had all 4 of my grandchildren, 2 pairs of cousins, to stay for a few nights and we always have great fun. Favourite activity is turning the living room into a campsite with bed sheets and old curtains draped round the furniture. Turn out the lights, give them a couple of torches and enjoy the squeals of delight 😃

Christmas decorations are a lovely idea and are not disposable tat. I’m sure there are many of us who use have family favourites that are used every year. I have some Christmas tat that’s 40 odd years old and it’ll all be coming out again in December 🌲

All the tree decorations that my children made many years ago have sadly now disintegrated, but were used for many Christmases. My oldest bauble is from our first Christmas after getting married, 1963.