An old fashioned Christmas. 🌲🎄

I must apologise for introducing sadness into this lovely happy thread. I didn't mean to do that.

Christmasses after that were much better. Mam put in the effort every year for us, although I'm sure she felt a lot of sadness.

I love the story of the turkey being delivered by the postman - amazing that it arrived safely and nobody got food poisoning. Those were the good old days. Can you imagine trying to do that now?

I remember my uncle - drunk as a skunk - driving all of us home from their house at Christmas and he somehow managed to persuade us that we saw Santa's sleigh in the sky. He was plastered, so maybe he saw it too!

moggiek

Every December 1st I settle down for the afternoon with the DVD of BoD and a box of Maltesers. Watch all of the episodes and finish the chocolates. Bliss!

Have you got the new dvd with the ‘making of’ section? There’s a Facebook page that chats about TBOD’s all year round and Hypnogoria does a podcast that talks you through each episode. I’m glad I only discovered it a couple of years ago as it has added some Christmas magic to my life.

My Christmases as a child were lovely. Parents and alternate grand parents made it the best. Lots of small presents but the one I lived was tge year I got a nightie not pjs. And the only time I got a new doll after years of inheriting from sisters.
When my father died my eldest sister stepped in.
Now she’s gone and this year a friend and I will get together as husband died in Sept.
I just want to wake up on Jan 2nd and hope it goes quickly.

Grandmabatty

In Scotland in the sixties, Christmas wasn't the big celebration, New Year was. At Christmas we had a chicken, not a turkey. Mum made lots of vegetables and their was one pudding, usually trifle. My paternal grandparents came for dinner and invariably fell out. My presents were second hand -not that I knew that at the time - and much appreciated. Mum spent hours knitting clothes for new dolls at night when I was in bed. It was a simpler time but I look back with gratitude

Yes 3-day Hogmanay. My father was in popular demand for first footing being black haired. He offered a transport contract to Japan Airlines, and we used to get a crate of satsumas at Christmas, which made him doubly popular when he shared them.

We did do turkey though, and mum would make a great big turkey and ham pie for New Year (heaps of neeps included). Auntie would make Christmas puddings in the Spring, and pass them out during the year. So trifle for New Year too.

Yes a new winter outfit for church (Summer one for Easter).

One very memorable New Year was when the builders cut the power lines and Mum fed all the neighbours with a paraffin stove and a pressure cooker

My daughter is a great cook and I am invited there or Christmas Day this year. However, I am dreading lunch because my daughter always ruins the meal by serving it on cold plates! It totally spoils the meal for me (and my other daughter, who hates cold plates too).
Has anyone got any idea how I can get round this without hurting her feelings?

FranP oh my goodness! Your mum was very resourceful.
Mum and dad always visited neighbours who had a disabled child. Unfortunately they were heavy handed with the alcohol and one year mum was so tipsy she forgot to cook any vegetables 😂

My Christmas memories are from the mid 1960’s early 1970s. My mum
never wrapped our presents!
Years later I asked her why, and she said it was so our would lounge looked like a toy shop! It never did…
I always envied my cousins whose lounge looked a right tip after opening their pressies- total chaos! We’d go to theirs after church on Christmas Day.
Was only years later that I realised that my Mum had OCD which explained a lot!
I have same eg curtains need to be ‘just so’ but Mums was obsessive I realise now, even as to where the Christmas decs had to be.

Crossstitchfan

My daughter is a great cook and I am invited there or Christmas Day this year. However, I am dreading lunch because my daughter always ruins the meal by serving it on cold plates! It totally spoils the meal for me (and my other daughter, who hates cold plates too).
Has anyone got any idea how I can get round this without hurting her feelings?

Give her a plate warmer for Christmas.
www.amazon.co.uk/VonShef-Electric-Insulated-Removable-Christmas/dp/B07YN1ZSV5?smid=A1AFJESMA8SCN6&psc=1&ref_=fplfs&source=ps-sl-shoppingads-lpcontext&tag=gransnetforum-21

Grandmabatty

FranP oh my goodness! Your mum was very resourceful.
Mum and dad always visited neighbours who had a disabled child. Unfortunately they were heavy handed with the alcohol and one year mum was so tipsy she forgot to cook any vegetables 😂

One year ages ago I had so much Buck’s Fizz, I completely forgot about the potatoes - they weren’t even parboiled. So instead of having dinner at roughly 3, as usual, we didn’t have it until around 5.
But by then everyone was that much more ready for it, so we’ve had it at 5 or 6ish ever since.

Monica, thanks for your reply. A platewarmer is a great idea, except there will be 12 of us!
Last year, I popped my full plate into the microwave and that helped! A bit impractical for several of us to do that though!

Sorry Monica, as usual, I jumped in with my reply before looking at what you recommended. I assumed it would be like one we had years ago which only held two plates! This one looks just the job! 🎄

If the sink is free just suggest you give the plates a bit of a rinse if they have been left out, then fill the sink with water as hot as you can stand, dip them in and dry them .
They should be very warm.

Thank you, UTBB. I had tried that in years gone by, but found that by the time I had dried them, they were cold again! I hate cooking, so I think that’s part of the problem. I flap when I have to produce a ‘proper ‘ meal so having cold plates is just another thing to flap about.
My late MIL used to bung it all in the oven, then go to Church. (The turkey would already have been in there for ages). When she got home, she would just make the gravy, then dish up a perfect meal! I was so jealous of her talent!