How are you spending the holidays this year?

[zoebartlett]

I love hearing how everyone spends the holiday season. What are you doing for the holidays?

My parents and my sister are coming down to visit us for Thanksgiving, and we can''t wait to see them. My mom was just here not too long ago, and we were recently home for a visit, but it''s always good to see them. For Christmas, it looks like we''ll all be on our own. My sister and her husband live in the PNW (Pacific Northwest), and they invited us out there, but the flights are too expensive right now. So I think Christmas will be just the two of us, which makes me somewhat sad, but we can''t justify spending the money. I''m sure we''ll make it special somehow.

 

[Maisie]

I will be spending christmas with the children at home. I think my husband will be here too. I hope so anyway.

 

[zoebartlett]

I hope so too, Maisie! Thinking of you...

 

[sba771]

Maisie I hope the hubby will be there too!
This is our second year of being away from all our family. It is really hard for me because the Jewish holidays and Thanksgiving are so close together and are important to me. We will probably go to a big traditional German meal again. My FI doesn''t really like traditional thanksgiving food (he is crazy) and they don''t really sell turkeys here, so not much I could do anyway.

 

[princesss]

Turkey Day will be in VA with his family (followed by my annual Black Friday shopping day with a good friend of mine), the second week in December I''m going to the Netherlands to visit my parents, and Christmas....I don''t know. If he can get the day after off, we''re definitely going to see his family. If he can''t I still might force him to go up. We can drive up Christmas Eve and drive back on Christmas. It was hard last year. If he refuses to go up, we''re going to try to arrange something with a few other couples that will be down here. Dinner and movies or something. It''s hard to be away from family for the holidays.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

We''re driving to another state to spend Thanksgiving with extended family. Some we who we only see a once every couple of years. It''s great for the kids because they see family and it''s great for us because we can relax as the family keeps an eye on the kids while we kick back with a beer (or two)!

Not sure about Christmas. For years, we''ve hosted both, but this year possibly not. I love doing Christmas, but not Thanksgiving because the kitchen gets SO greasy. A film of yuck everywhere! Can''t wait to decorate for Christmas. Even if we don''t have family, I go all out!

We ALWAYS spend New Years at home. Even though there are plenty of places to celebrate, I am super paranoid about drunk drivers!

 

[soocool]

My nephew and his new wife want to host Thanksgiving this year in their new home. My sister, nephew''s MIL, and I will be helping her out her first time. It should be fun!

 

[vc10um]

Date: 11/8/2009 2:27:50 PM
Author: soocool
My nephew and his new wife want to host Thanksgiving this year in their new home. My sister, nephew''s MIL, and I will be helping her out her first time. It should be fun!

That sounds like fun!!!

SO and I will be heading from DC to KC, MO to spend the Thanksgiving holiday with his family. It''s their big holiday, and most of his family lives in that area...so it''s going to be one, big, family experience!!! (I''ve met the parents and grandparents, the siblings, and a few cousins/aunts/uncles...but not nearly the whole clan...so that''ll be interesting!)

"Christmas" will be celebrated a week early with my side (it''s *our* big holiday!) as my sister is receiving her Master''s Degree the Saturday before Christmas (she''s the 3rd in the family after my mom and me!) in Ohio and we''ll be flying out there for that...so we''re just combining the holidays.

Real Christmas will just be SO and I at home. If we have friends still in town (most are non-native Virginians, so they''ll likely be back wherever their families are...) we might do something with them, but that''s still up in the air...and after 2 big family holidays, I don''t think I''d mind spending real Christmas with just my honey.

 

[charbie]

We still haven''t solidified our thanksgiving plans. Usually we go to my Mom''s house, but she decided to head over to my sister''s future inlaws. So we might head over to my aunts or husbands aunts.

We have to do Christmas eve at my husband''s grandmothers house. She actually has told all of get children and grandchildren just to move on if they meet a potential significant other if their family celebrates Christmas on Christmas eve. Seeing that my family lives 4 hours away from his and our house is right in the middle, we are going to have our families come over our house on Christmas day. I think my mom was a bit upset because she likes to have it at her house but I can''t justify all that driving! She tried to make me feel guilty and said, "well, I guess that means I don''t need to put up a tree..." but I just kind of ignored her. Its weird, since she always made our grandparents come to our house when we were younger since she and my dad felt it was cruel to make us leave all the toys we just got on Christmas day. She needs to get used to it now, since its not gonna change when we have kids!

 

[bee*]

On Christmas eve, my parents, DH and I, my little sister and her gf and my other sister and her bf all go out for lunch and then we all head into the city center together for some last minute shopping. We meet up with D''s parents in there too and all go for a drink. This year will be the first year that D and I will be spending Christmas together so we''re going to go to my parents for dinner and then later in the evening head up to his parents. Not too sure what we''re doing for the rest of the holiday.

 

[that_someone_special]

I was crossing my fingers for christmas in Jamaica but, it doesn''t look like it''s going to happen this year So we will be in the cold winter... with family. It just won''t be the same though without certain family members.

 

[pinkstars]

We only live near BF''s family right now. Thanksgiving(which is also my birthday this year) we will spend at BF''s parents house with his brother and SIL. One of our close friends whose family isn''t up here either might join us. I love love love Thanksgiving day!
Christmas will also be at BF''s parents house. His other brother is coming up and hopefully his BF can make it up too, it''s so much fun when we''re all together! Everybody else usually plays a board game and I watch(I don''t care for games.)

I get extremely homesick this time of year, but I''m so thankful to be near people we love. Yay for the holidays!

 

[mochi]

I''m on call at the hospital Christmas eve and Christmas day 24hrsx2. That''s ok, someone''s gotta do it.

 

[Phoenix]

My DH and I are going to London to visit my dad and my family. DH is cooking the turkey and making food for about 30 people; so needless to say, he''s a little nervous!

After Xmas, we''re either going to Dublin or the Cotswolds...haven''t decided yet which.

 

[purselover]

We are hosting our first Thanksgiving for FI''s family, I think Christmas will just be the 2 of us, and the day after we''ll be getting married!

 

[Haven]

I love reading about everyone''s plans!

Thanksgiving will be at my mom''s house. (I''m bummed, I really wanted to host it again, but we''re switching off from now on.)
Chanukah will be at DH''s cousin''s house. We also have a big Chaunukah sleepover with all the young cousins and nieces and nephews at our house.
We host a Pizza Throwdown on Christmas Eve at our house. (SO much fun!)
Christmas Day, I have no idea what we''ll do. We usually go to a movie or two.
New Year''s Eve we eat dinner at our favorite steak restaurant with good friends.

 

[sctsbride09]

Over Thanksgiving, Dh and I will be on our belated honeymoon/ 1st ann. trip! Im soo excited and my hubs really needs a vacation bad. For Christmas Eve, we like to have our personal "family" Xmas with us and the pooches

.On Christmas day we go visit with family, usually mine in the am, and Dhs in the pm. Thank goodness they are local, lol. Its really neat to hear what everyone is doing for the holidays. Love this time of year

 

[NakedFinger]

My FF and I will be hosting Thanksgiving in our new home this year for the first time (kitchen was completed just in time!). I''m a little nervous, but we''ll see how it goes!

I will be having my parents, siblings and SO''s, and then my FF''s dad & step mom, step sister and her SO. Will be 16 people. Eek!

Then we have a lot for the holidays. First Christmas eve is with FF''s extended family (aunts uncles cousins parents etc)at his aunts house on his dad''s side. They celebrate x-mas on Christmas eve. Then on Christmas day we do presents together at home, then we go to his dad''s house for breakfast and to exchange gifts among us (dad, step mom, step sister, her SO, me and him). Then we go to my parents house, to exchange gifts among my parents and siblings. Then we all go to my grandma''s house, with all my extended family there. Then the day after x-mas, we go to his aunts house with all his extended family on his mom''s side (who is deceased but we still see all them). Whew! Its exhausting just talking about it!

 

[D&T]

our six year away from family. DH doesn''t have any more PTO so we''re here all by ourselves

with our house all decked out for the holidays, we might be able to fly my parents in, as they don''t celebrate xmas, But only a few more christmases here and then we''re back with our family.