Christmas Eve Traditions :-)

Jude13

'Brunches' here are super popular. All you can eat and drink with five star food, champagne/any drink for about 4 hours. There are different price points obviously and family or party oriented. In my youth they were weekly events. Then there the post brunch or 'drunch'. They are a mess.

The Christmas brunch is huge as people may have too many family over to fit in their kitchen, dont want the bother to cook, buy a ham (crazy expensive) or dont have a booze license. Its just very handy. Get all dolled up, picked up in a nice car at about 11:30 to get there for noon and back at home by 4:30pm/5pm.

Sunrise_Sunset

We did a hotel Christmas day dinner a few years ago. It was nice. Very pricey day and night though. it was a for a special occasion and it was enjoyable but prefer to have Christmas dinner (and day/night) at home.

TRS30

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119616038#Comment_119616038

Sounds great.

Jude13

Tis good any weekend especially when we were without the elves. Its more family now and Im still on the fence for Christmas day but its what the OH wants and Im not overly pushed as we get the whole morning and evening at home.

TRS30

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119616707#Comment_119616707

Sounds like a good compromise. Can be tough time of the year to keep everyone happy.

lcstress2012

What are your Christmas plans be traditions? I go to the pub with my brother for a few pints, head home order a Chinese to finish off the night! Great atmosphere in pubs during Christmas!

What date do you finish up work and when are you back? I’m off the 19th back in the 5th 😬

DvB

There's a huge thread already on this subject, have a look, sit back and enjoy the few hours it will take to read through it all.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2056400666/christmas-eve-traditions

Loughc

Merged both threads together and gave our favourite thread a much needed bump

DvB

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121403628#Comment_121403628

Always worth doing!

optogirl

ah lads - I used to love whiling away the last few hours of work reading this thread. This year is my first without my husband and, for the kids sake, we will do what we have always done but it just feels so strange. He loved Christmas and now even the thoughts of going to get the tree, Santa shopping etc are just so sad. However, my kids are 12 and 9 and they deserve to have a lovely Christmas after the hellish 6 months we've been through. New memories are in the making. Looking forward to having this first one under my belt.

jellybear

I'm so sorry for your loss @optogirl

While Christmas will no doubt be incredibly difficult, I wish you and your kids a peaceful time this year.

Loughc

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121452580#Comment_121452580

So so sorry to hear about your loss. This will no doubt be such a difficult time for you and your family, try to find solace when you can and smile when you can. Think of it as a time to celebrate your husband not grieve. I always say to my wife if anything tragic ever happened to me I'd want her to still go big on Christmas that's how we honor our loved ones by living for us and them.

CheerLouth

I'm so sorry for your loss @optogirl. Christmas is such a hard time of the year for so many. Be gentle to yourselves.

DvB

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121452580#Comment_121452580

So sorry for your loss, I can only imagine how difficult it must be to try & restart your lives after such a difficult time.

You hear all sorts of stories of people 'cancelling' Christmas or suchlike after such a loss but if your husband loved Christmas why not try & make it a celebration of him & what he meant to you all? As Loughc said, celebrate him, & don't let his love of this time of year be a sad time for you & your family, I know I'd want my wife & kids to still go all out & make the most of Christmas, look back & laugh at my Christmas insanity!!

In saying that, I strongly suspect if in your shoes i'd struggle, so on that basis I'd say do what feels right for you & your kids, I'm sure there'll be a few tears, but try & have some smiles & laughter too if you can.

Look after yourselves though & take good care of one another.

optogirl

Thanks all. Not trying to bring the thread down! Back to your Christmas Eve traditions - we will be at my sister's where all the nieces and nephews get their pressies from the aunties and uncles and we have a few drinks. Then I'll walk home with the boys and let them watch something festive in the vain hope that they will go to sleep so I can put out the pressies. Neither believe anymore but the magic is still there!

tscul32

@optogirl sorry to hear you guys are going through this. Hopefully you can still carve out some happy times over the holidays.

Declan05

The main Christmas Eve tradition for me is usually preparing food to take to my parents' or brother's place on the the 25th, so maybe it's time to start some new more fulfilling traditions.

As a kid I used love going to midnight mass* even though I wasn't religious; there was a great atmosphere, carol singing and some drunks that would come out of the pubs and up into the gallery to shout at the priest and the congregation, as kids we thought this was hilarious. I wouldn't mind going to some religious ceremony on the day mainly to hear some good live carol singing.

*I know, technically the 25th but we regarded it as a Christmas Eve.

Loughc

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121464799#Comment_121464799

I used to love the Midnight mass on Christmas Eve that later got moved to 8pm due to above said drunks. But the still the quiet in the church and the Christmas Caorls used to be magic, I hated going to mass 51 weeks of the year as a child but that week I used to love it.

Andrew93

Loved reading through this thread this morning. Lifted the spirits! Makes me sad I’ve not had a Christmas Eve tradition in the last 3 years as each year has been so different with our little elf coming and losing family over the holidays.

Hopefully this year we can get a tradition started!

tscul32

Unfortunately mine seems to be getting the house in order for the family coming over on Christmas day.

But we do cook party food for dinner and watch a movie with it, and usually the lads will leave their bedrooms long enough to actually watch the movie with us so that's a nice change.

CheerLouth

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121464799#Comment_121464799

Our "midnight" mass is now at 5pm on Christmas Eve! Our parish will have three masses on Christmas Eve - I think a lot of people prefer to go to mass on Christmas Eve now. We do anyway. As a child I used to hate having to leave my toys to go to mass & as an adult, I hate the rush of getting everyone out the door. Plus our Parish priest is so lovely. He makes it a lovely celebration for the whole family & does have a projector screen up so that he can track Santa during the mass.

I have done solo Christmas since cousins’ families are expanding with their new in-laws etc, so no practical room left in their houses. I am single, no siblings etc, and most relatives live some bit of distance away so not really an option to do a day visit.

But font feel a bit sorry for me… I mostly try & get abroad for Christmas - this year a beautiful 6 star hotel in Mexico! 😁

These times Christmas Eve is usually spent in a Spanish oriented place, and the Christmas Eve Dinner is often a big tradition. Suckling pig in Spain has been a mainstay for this meal, but I believe Turkey with a twist is par for the course in Mexico, where the bird is right at home in his native continent.

I spent one Christmas on board a Hurtigruten coastal voyage in Norway, which was quite magical. Mulled wine the only free beverage available on board, it was lovely. Norwegian Christmas Dinner on the Eve and more western turkey dinner on Christmas Day. Choir coming on board the ship on the Eve. Lots of spicy biscuits.

Dickie10

im single and always head to my sisters around 11 am on christmas morning to see what has been delivered by santa, always great fun in that house, but last year i dont know why but the eldest girl was 13 just in 1st year in school and you knew something somewhere had changed it was ever so slightly forced and something felt a little bit empty inside me for the first time, i cant describe it, the other kids are 11 and 9 this year, have to say it panged my heart a little, im strangely apprensive of the trip this year.

Dickie10

have to add i dont have dinner there just visit for an hour or so, they have dinner themselves just as a family, we all thought how odd it was they were tiny tots but actually a great idea , they have their very own very family only christmas which is lovely. i wouldnt be a massive fan of cousins going to other cousins at chrsitmas dinner

claregal1

This year I have both my son and daughter home. So new traditions starting this year. The both want to do a Christmas Eve swim, the Christmas day one is on at a later time this year. So we will head to lahinch about 9.30 them to swim me to watch.

Back home, call to visit Granny and then to town for a family Christmas Eve lunch.

Then Christmas Eve Mass at 5 for myself and my daughter, we mainly go for the Carol singing. Both my sons and husband will head to the pub whilst we are at mass. Home then to relax and get a cheeky Chinese and watch TV and bed early.

Up early Christmas morning where I cook breakfast, my husband then heads off to have Christmas day with his parents and my kids go to their Dad's until it is time for dinner.

I'm actually finishing up work today until the 2nd of January so I guess Christmas mode will be fully activated at 4pm today !

Happy Christmas everyone.

Loughc

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121516751#Comment_121516751

Happy Christmas claregal your traditions sound lovely