They're doing it again, putting all the Xmas chocolatey things on special offer, if you buy early. I'm looking at a tin of Quality Street, a box of M&S choccy biscuits and 3 boxes of their chocolates. I don't give much for their chance of reaching their intended recipient at Christmas, in fact, as OH is away and both boys out, they might not even make the end of this evening. Anybody got any spare willpower please?

:rolleyes: yep, I do it every year. I even start buying the mince pies well before hand and by the time christmas comes I can't bear to look at another one :P And its absolutely pointless me starting on stocking up the booze!! :D :D

I just bought two boxes of chocolate liquers this afternoon, i dont drink alchohol at all but they are already opened!

willpower, please define. I'm sorry, I don't know what language you're speaking. :-D

Hi

I brought my turkey today and i can safley say I am not at all tempted to nibble it :rolleyes:
Wendy

I buy mine then give them to my mum to keep till Xmas, she has amazing willpower with chocolate.  When it gets to the New Year she drags out all these boxes of chocs and chocolate oranges that "we haven't managed to eat".  Needless to say they find a very welcoming home at my house.

I brought my turkey today

Maybe that's the answer - to freeze the whole bloomin' lot!!!

Although I have bought the fruit for making the Christmas cakes - and I'm never tempted to cut into one before Christmas .....well apart from the teensy weensy one I make for sampling ;) .........

Margot

Well I am most impressed that I have started my christmas shopping, got a fair few pressies already.  Last year I was rushing round like a lunatic and vowed I would not do the same this year.  

I've brought a few pressies, though as always I will probably forget where I put them, maybe forget I've even got them and buy a load more, then the kids end up with more than expected ;) and the ones I've 'lost' will be found in the new year :rolleyes:
and yes... I've opened a bottle already ;) :P :P

Have you actually bought pressies for other people though Missie! ;)  Thought you had been purchasing for yourself there!

ooh Rachel.....:P :P

I did manage to buy a bit for others :P :P

Lokis mum, freezing chocolate does not stop you from eating it,lol.

No. consider chocolate ice cream :D

I brought my turkey today  Would that be for Thanksgiving then?  Now there is something I've never wondered about before, is Thanksgiving just a North American holiday?  It is this coming Monday, Oct.9, in Canada and I've ordered my fresh turkey.  In the U.S. it is celebrated late in November, too close to Christmas for my liking.  No Christmas items on sale yet here.  We have to get past Halloween first.

Yes, Thanksgiving's purely a North American thing. An unknown date over here. Turkey is for Christmas this side of The Pond.

We have Harvest Festival which will usually fall in September but sometimes in October but it is generally only celebrated in churches and schools not really in the home.

It's not a public holiday either. Christmas is the next one. Hallowe'en's not a terribly big thing (certainly not for adults); Guy Fawkes' Night's bigger, but again, not a holiday.

Thanksgiving IS a public holiday here, always the second Monday in October, so a nice long weekend.  Where I live it is usually the peak of the fall colour and truly a time to reflect and be thankful for all your blessings.  Although it originated in Christian churches we have many other faiths here and those (people) I know also welcome this tradition of turkey, family togetherness and a time to be thankful.  Perhaps even more so than the rest of us if they are recent immigrants from war-torn or economically depressed countries.

Halloween, unfortunately in my opinion, has also become huge.  Staff in stores and businesses, banks even, will often have costumes on and it is a massive commercial marketing operation to sell candy and costumes for children and adults. 

I'd rather we made more of harvest festival here.  I think Hallowen has become pretty loathesome and it has to be said it's got rather worse since the adoption of American trick or treat style practices ;)

Except American kids don't ask for money! And they dress up. I used to love seeing the little ones on Halloween night. (that's another thing, they only go out on Halloween) Imagine my surprise when I had some teenagers knocking on my door mid-October, saying trick or treat and asking for money! Lucky for me I had the right accent to tell them they had it all horribly wrong.

Fully agree Lori. I always put a big notice on my door saying "NO Trick or Treat or Penny for the guy". I cannot BELIEVE all the british mothers allowing their kids to go begging for money like this. And soon afterwards it turns to Christmas carols (long before Christmas), except again it is teenagers singing about 3 words then waiting for money.

When I was a kid in Sweden we used to go singing on Lucia (13th of December) in the block of flats where we lived (32 flats in total), and we did it because it was FUN, and whenever anyone offered us money we refused it!

Wish I could put out a NO Trick or Treat sign.  It's the only time we buy candy and the OH would have a fit if we didn't "shell out."  He wants the leftovers.  Years ago I thought I was being smart to buy candy we like so the leftovers would at least be edible.  Now I'm not so sure that was a good idea. 

Wish I could put out a NO Trick or Treat sign.  It's the only time we buy candy and the OH would have a fit if we didn't "shell out."

Trouble is here it is most definitely NOT sweets the kids are after but money -offer sweets and you get dirty looks!

Why dont you put all your christmas goodies away, out of sight out of mind this is what i do, as long as i dont go near them i forget they are there after 2 weeks. Try it and see if it works for you. :)

I only nipped into M&S this morning to pick up a salad for my lunch...I am now trying to figure out how I ended up with 2 boxes of Mince Pies in my basket :rolleyes:

You are only thinking of your family and guests. One has to sample different pies in order to choose only the best pie to serve company. :-D Well that's my story and I'm sticking to it!

>One has to sample different pies in order to choose only the best pie to serve company.

I wish I could use this as the excuse, but our only houseguest over Christmas is our friends' Bernese Mountain Dog.  For some reason, the presence of 3 huge dogs seems to discourage visitors of the human variety. Can't think why :D

I know what you mean SL, years ago everyone came to mine on boxing day, for the past 2 years its been just us :rolleyes: LOL