5 day break...

We are in level 1 in Scotland; next Saturday we are going into level 4 along with the rest of our country. We are allowed to meet up with another two households on Christmas Day (only Christmas Day) but advised not to. Another few weeks or months won’t make much difference at this stage. We have to accept that this will be the law and we must not break it for fear of prosecution. At 71, vaccine is still a good bit away for me and my husband but we hope we are still around to get it so will stay within the law as long as it takes.

MissAdventure

I don't imagine her plans will alter at all.
She's in tier 4.

Then totally breaking the law!
“Max two households...”

Yep.
She has done it throughout, but doesn't seem to want to understand.

MissAdventure....not something I'd do in normal times...but I would be tempted to report her...that sounds awful...but as you said...all her guests will be using the communal hallway!

There are only 6 flats but one of the couples are having a baby, the other has a small toddler.
They've no choice but to use the lobby.

I'm downstairs, so have a back door I can use.

MamaCaz...really feel for you..?

Have you seen the scenes at London stations tonight as everyone tries to flee the capital?
Lockdown3 is inevitable.

This is awful, a u turn at the last minute but what else did we expect. Seeing and reading about the crowds leaving London I fear that they will just spread it, are they going to family or second homes in places like Cornwall who could end up having their hospitals totally overwhelmed. It is so selfish, its all about me and what I want and dam anyone else.

You're not actually alone there will be two of you at home together.

Dr John said in his latest blog that the Oxford vaccine will be approved soon after Christmas. And that there are plans to do mass vaccinations at football stadiums and racecourses. I was getting really worried that the vaccine had hit a problem but it looks good to go. I hope he’s correct. He doesn’t usually say anything that has no foundation. Things may seem really bad at this moment in time but we’ve just got to stick it out for a bit longer.

Wearing face masks and isolating hasn’t helped over the last year. If all that worked we wouldn’t be in this position. I want to see my family, might just as well kill myself.

We only need to wait a bit longer to see everyone. If I thought there wouldn’t be an end to this I’d probably be tempted to meet up with my family. But we’re nearly there.

Lesleyroch

Wearing face masks and isolating hasn’t helped over the last year. If all that worked we wouldn’t be in this position. I want to see my family, might just as well kill myself.

You will Lesleyroch. There are many days when I feel the same.

I feared the rules would change so we made no arrangements for this Christmas. My daughter lives 300 miles away so we couldn't do a day visit anyway.

Trouble is not everyone has worn masks, washed their hands and socially distanced.

Please find someone to talk to. It will help. Take care.

It's really up to the government to shoulder the responsibility of designing and enforcing the guidelines because leaving it up to us to judge each other obviously isn't helping-

Here in British Columbia we have a 'household only' order in place since Dec 15, so we all knew in advance not to plan visitors or extended family for Christmas dinner. The exception is for single people - they may go to one household where they are already in regular contact.

It will be just myself and my husband. He will go to the hospital to visit his mother in the morning, and we will facetime or phone our grown children and families.

Boxing Day if the weather permits I may ask to go for a walk with them, which is allowed.

I feel badly for those in Britain that had plans and now need to cancel, but understand the need.

Also I would like to say that Christmas is not cancelled. Celebrating with any other than household is. We can all celebrate in our own small way. Santa is still expected to visit children at night, we can watch Christmas mass on livestream if you check your church plans; we can eat a nice meal and watch Christmas movies, play board games and listen to Christmas music. Reflect on how little we actually need, and how much we actually have, and value the connections we have to friends and family.

A lovely post Canadian Gran.Couldn't have expressed my own feelings better.A safe and happy Xmas to you and yours .

Thanks for passing on that really encouraging news about the Oxford vaccine MayBee70

That is the one which has the potential to be a game changer I think as we have ordered enough for virtually the entire adult population.

I imagine it was the dosage which has been holding things up.
We have also ordered some of the Moderna vaccine which the US has recently passed so there is much to be optimistic about.

Whereas, the plan has always been for me to spend Christmas Day with my 'bubble family' who live just a few streets away, I had also had in place an arrangement to visit my daughter who lives right on the borders of London/Essex for a few days between Xmas and New Year. Anther daughter, had originally, arranged to visit for a day whilst I was there, although she cancelled this a few days back.

Strangely enough I found I was feeling quite anxious about this. I say, 'strangely' as at no time earlier in the year did I have any anxiety about this virus', Eventually, early yesterday afternoon, I telephoned her to say I was going to cancel. As I am very nearly 80 yrs old, I am likely (hoping) to be called for vaccination within the next couple of month. So, expect to be fully covered by March/April and will then arrange a long weekend visit to them then. Think she was quite relieved - as was rather concerned for me.

Knew I had made the correct decision, as having made that call, felt my anxiety lift - and glad it was totally my decision (in advance of the blond-wonder's latest u-turn).

My AC had all arranged for a family zoom meeting on Christmas afternoon, and will just have to make do this that.

Canadiangran: totally agree with your last paragraph. The PM here constantly gives speeches telling people that what he’s doing is taking away their liberties citing the cancellation of Christmas as in inhumane and then cancelling it anyway. He puts the seeds of discontent in their heads. And yet he then constantly gives people false hope by setting out unachievable deadlines: it’ll be over in 12 weeks, then Christmas etc etc. Jennifer. I do hope DrJohn is right about the Oxford vaccine. I must admit that I cried when I heard it. I don’t understand why Hancock et al don’t keep people up to speed about it. Even this morning on Sky news (or so DH tells me) he said he didn’t know what was happening. I was worrying that the profit making vaccine manufacturers were trying to block it in some way.

I was talking to DD about Oxford. She said that was is holding it up is the amount of data concerning the half dose - not sufficient data.

It has been an unfortunate incident, but will get sorted.

So Boris has just ruined my Christmas with my family, with tier 4z After the shock of our get together being stopped in its tracks . We are regrouping Xmas, if we have to have it in May the tree and deccers are going up. The carols will be playing and we will have a proper Christmas Day. We have to look at the bigger picture. This is the first time ever I won’t see my boys at Christmas at all.

Jayt, we're the same as you, currently in Level 1 and yet being moved into Level 4 on Saturday. I feel so sorry for the local shopkeepers who have been able to stay open here but will now have to shut again, and for the staff at the gym and the library, who will presumably have to shut too. However, at the moment we have a low rate of infection here and I wouldn't like to see that change, so if we must be in Level 4, we must. The rest of the family have been in Level 4, then recently 3, and so we weren't planning to see any of them anyway. but resigned

You're quite right minxie about moving Christmas. (Much as I hate to be fair to Mr Johnson, it is in fact the virus which has spoilt your Christmas and he has just mishandled dealing with it.) When DH had to work on Christmas Day we moved Christmas to Boxing Day and that worked fine. What's a few months here or there? Your decorations will certainly attract attention in the summer!

Quite honestly I do not wait for Johnson to belatedly broadcast his edicts. I make decisions on what I hear from reliable sources such as the Independent Sage Group. I’m sure many others do similarly considering the people I know who had already decided against a full on family Christmas well before yesterday.

Whitewavemark2

I was talking to DD about Oxford. She said that was is holding it up is the amount of data concerning the half dose - not sufficient data.

It has been an unfortunate incident, but will get sorted.

But it’s still the only vaccine that has been peer reviewed. Although I’m not sure if the Pfizer one was recently.