Any holiday mishaps?

[school17777]

It was unclear until a few days before Cmas who was hosting.  I had heard that my sil was (she sometimes doesn’t want the whole family), but we were never invited so I invited everyone here.  That sil thought everyone knew it was at her house, but was fine and I think relieved that I ended up hosting everyone.  Everyone was fine coming here, except fil.  Not sure why he was upset or cared where it was, but he cussed out a different sil on Cmas Eve about me “fing up” the plans and he didn’t speak to me one time on Xmas.  
 

The only reason dh can figure out why it bothered fil so much that we hosted instead of sil is that her house is bigger (same floor plan, same amount of seating - just a wider house in a more expensive neighborhood).

[unsinkable]

Ugh...I'm sorry he treated you that way! 

He should have/could have been grateful he had a family Christmas to attend! Or if he couldn't do THAT, kept his nasty thoughts to himself! Or if he couldn't do THAT...tell you to your face so you could defend yourself. I can't stand that kind of swearing/complaining behind backs. Have the balls to address the person you have the issue with! 

[ikslo]

My dog takes awhile to get used to people in the house.  He’s a really good guard dog.  Well, my mom knew this but figured since they got along so well last time she visited the dog would remember her.  She tried to give him a treat while his teeth were still bared.  She admits it was her fault, but she got bit.  It was just a small cut on the side of her hand, and she handled it best as can be expected, but not the way we hoped the visit would start off.  Her boyfriend came for the visit so it no doubt added to the dog’s reaction (big guy).  At least the dog bit family and not him?  Small blessings and all.

The dog was fine with them the rest of the visit (3 days).

This is why we have very few house guests.

[Elizabeth86]

Some of my kids have been sick so I'm not sure if it is related, but a couple have had bratty ungrateful attitudes about gifts and I'm threatening to cancel anything fun and good for a long time. 

[aggie96]

Well I had food poisoning from awful enchiladas on Christmas Eve. Lay on couch during Santa. Stayed in bed for rest of day when in-laws were over. Got to snuggle new kittens all day and avoid company so it worked out after all. 🙂

New kittens climbed 12’ tree to the top! Had to bust out the ladder to get them down. Little kitty head waaaaay up there!

[teachermom2834]

I had a gift mishap though it was more of a lesson.

Ds who is a month shy of 17 yo wanted wireless earbuds. AirPods would never be in the budget but he found some online he wanted and sent me a link. I thought it was a good idea for him but I expressed reservations about buying from an unfamiliar company/knock off brand. Dh has Skull Candy wireless earbuds and he has been really happy with them so I suggested those. Nope. He wanted to knock off brand he had sent me. I continued to try to convince him but he insisted that he had read reviews and checked out the company, etc etc. So, I went ahead and ordered him the ones he wanted and Skull Candy ones for his big brothers. 
 

So Christmas comes and big brothers have their wireless earbuds but the no name ones 17 yo ds wanted never showed up. I googled the company and immediately found tons of one star reviews and people calling the company a scam. So, no wireless earbuds for ds. I can file a dispute with my cc company and I’m not super upset about it. 
 

I do know I could have and should have researched myself before buying but my ds can be so bullheaded that after expressing my reservations and giving advice I just ordered them figuring he would be the one who had to live with the outcome. 
 

Hopefully it is a lesson learned for him both in “buyer beware” and “listen to your parents.” I get tired of kids not listening to my advice. 

[math teacher]

MIL had to go to ER Christmas Eve-her blood pressure was stroke stage and she was having visual disturbances. (She refuses to take her meds.) ER treated the blood pressure and sent her home-no ct, mri or anything. Christmas Day, she hadn't even checked her bp and didn't take meds. The 26th, I had just sat down at my desk when I got a call to take her to the walk in clinic. They sent her to ER. BP was stroke stage and her visual disturbances were worse. She's already had TIAs and at least one stroke. They did all kinds of tests (different hospital) and we are waiting on results. She's pitching a fit to go home-she just wants them to treat and release-wishes she hadn't come up there. I'm pretty fed up with her. Take your medicine lady.

[JustEm]

1 hour ago, Elizabeth86 said:

Some of my kids have been sick so I'm not sure if it is related, but a couple have had bratty ungrateful attitudes about gifts and I'm threatening to cancel anything fun and good for a long time. 

Don't cancel things. This time of year is high anxiety for many kids and it's a great time to learn patience. Some of my most grateful children have had ungrateful moments this week. If they aren't generally like that it is more likely just the anxiety and excitement of the holiday bringing it out.

[JustEm]

We missed Mass because ds6 was having a really hard time with lack of sleep and excitement. So when it came time for us to get ready for midnight Mass I told him he could stay home with my parents and sleep. But he didn't want to go to Mass or stay home without me. So, we decided to just get everyone into bed because he needed us to just go with his flow.

There were a few other moments where ds6 got overwhelmed and almost melted down but we caught it before a full blown issue and were able to deescalate it. 

[Sallie Mae]

Being a dog person, and never owning a cat, I didn't realize that a cat would actually climb to the top of a Christmas tree. I saw the comic strip Mutts this week with a drawing of a cute couple looking up to the top of their Christmas tree at their cat at the very top, "Our traditional Christmas Tree topper." I laughed at the idea, but you have picture proof.

I really do learn a lot about what people go through during the holidays that you would never know about just looking at someone: people being ungrateful after someone graciously opened their home; how people react to stress and anxiety; how being medically non-compliant doesn't just hurt the patient, but others too.  I learn a lot about how I should react and what I don't won't to do. Sorry for the challenges you all went through. May things settle down and improve.

[PrincessMommy]

Mine are minor compared to some here.  @school17777 I'm so sorry your FIL had a terrible attitude.  @aggie96 love the cat photo!! 

I bought a large beef tenderloin - which I do every year - along with ham.  I overcooked the tenderloin by quite a bit!  It was very chewy and rubbery.  Everyone was gracious about it but I was so disappointed.  The ham was great.  After this I'm never buying the spiral cut again.  It's always so dry.  This was just a regular ham which I cooked(heated up) in the oven.  It is so juicy.  But I'm still annoyed with myself about the tenderloin.

I tried to make Yorkshire pudding but instead caught the oven on fire - again (over spill of the fat).    It was really bad this time.  We were almost at the point of calling the fire department when dd found my fire extinguisher.  It was right after I'd realized I'd over cooked the tenderloin, so I was already annoyed with my cooking.   I spent several hours yesterday cleaning the oven. 

2 gifts still haven't arrived. 😡

[Terabith]

My kid had a panic attack at the Christmas Eve service and she and her 14 year old sister went and sat in the hallway for the rest of the service.  I am grateful, because I didn't miss the service, but I felt kind of guilty for not taking her home but also annoyed and worried, because when I went looking for them at the peace, I couldn't find them.  (I had suggested the lounge; they went to a bench further down the hallway because ushers were sitting in the lounge and they felt it would be awkward.) 

[Loowit]

I completely changed my menu around to accommodate my FIL, but it didn't work out being any better.  I cooked a rib roast to medium, which is more cooked than I like, but I guess FIL only eats very well done.  MIL asked that I cut an end piece for him, so I did, but he barely took a bite.  None of the other dishes except mashed potatoes went over well with him either, and he for some reason thought it was funny that I made challah bread for Christmas and kept joking about it.  I wished I had just stuck to my original menu.  I usually get along great with my FIL, but he is very hard to cook for.  I think next year we might just invite them over for dessert.

I was in a hurry wrapping things the night before.  I get DH and the kids fun t-shits every year and thought I was clever for hiding them in my dresser.  In my haste to get things done, I accidentally wrapped one of my homeschool mom shirts for DH instead of the one I had actually gotten him.  It was very funny, but I was embarrassed.

[Tree Frog]

My mishap was not as bad as any of yours, but I forgot the sugar in the meringue of the lemon meringue pie I made. The crust is horrible, the meringue is nasty, but the lemon part is very good. I seem to have an issue with putting sugar in pies. A few years ago, I forgot it in my Thanksgiving pumpkin pie, too. 😂

[school17777]

2 hours ago, PrincessMommy said:

@school17777 I'm so sorry your FIL had a terrible attitude

[school17777]

Just now, school17777 said:

2 hours ago, PrincessMommy said:

@school17777 I'm so sorry your FIL had a terrible attitude

He kept his disappointment to himself and I would never have known if I wasn’t told, so he didn’t spoil the day with an attitude.  Everyone is just confused as to why it upset him so much.

[school17777]

@PrincessMommy  So sorry your meat didn’t turn out.  I’m sure that was an expensive cut too.

[school17777]

I normally have gifts wrapped before Christmas Eve.  Not this year.  I didn’t even start until we got from the Christmas Eve service.  Dh said he would help, but he only helped by carrying down gifts at his leisure.  I had two bags of stocking stuff.  One bag was unwrapped stuff gave I wanted to put in first and then I’d add the wrapped ones next or spill them around the stocking.  Dh didn’t listen and only carried the bag of wrapped stocking stuff first and started stuffing the stockings and then got the other bag.  At that point, I was do whatever, so I didn’t notice that ds didn’t have anything in his stocking but candy until the morning.  Normally, I would have realized this days ahead of time because I separate all the gifts for the kids to make sure they are “even” and I could have added to his stash.  Girl stockings are way easier to fill than boys!

[matrips]

3 hours ago, Loowit said:

I completely changed my menu around to accommodate my FIL, but it didn't work out being any better.  I cooked a rib roast to medium, which is more cooked than I like, but I guess FIL only eats very well done.  MIL asked that I cut an end piece for him, so I did, but he barely took a bite.  None of the other dishes except mashed potatoes went over well with him either, and he for some reason thought it was funny that I made challah bread for Christmas and kept joking about it.  I wished I had just stuck to my original menu.  I usually get along great with my FIL, but he is very hard to cook for.  I think next year we might just invite them over for dessert.

I was in a hurry wrapping things the night before.  I get DH and the kids fun t-shits every year and thought I was clever for hiding them in my dresser.  In my haste to get things done, I accidentally wrapped one of my homeschool mom shirts for DH instead of the one I had actually gotten him.  It was very funny, but I was embarrassed.

I’m wondering how old your FIL is.  My folks, now deceased, still loved the idea of food when they were older, and would still ask for or order what they loved.  But then they would complain.  They never quite realized it was them- their teeth couldn’t chew well anymore, and their taste buds were gone, and they filled up quick.  My dad always loved meat, but couldn’t chew it. Neither could my mom.  And tons of salt went on everything. I’m just wondering if that is what is happening to your FIL. Plus, the filter on older people seems to disappear.  The older they get, the more like children and infants many often seem.  😞. 

[Elizabeth86]

5 hours ago, hjffkj said:

Don't cancel things. This time of year is high anxiety for many kids and it's a great time to learn patience. Some of my most grateful children have had ungrateful moments this week. If they aren't generally like that it is more likely just the anxiety and excitement of the holiday bringing it out.

Yeah I won't, I'm all talk.  I am super annoyed though.  They have never acted like this at Christmas before.  It just took me by surprise.  We had a big talk before each place to be thankful no matter what, people didn't have to get you anything.  They just were brats about what Santa got them. Ugh.  

[alisoncooks]

No mishaps but MIL and SIL (who live together and host Christmas for that side of the family) neglected** to tell us that they'd been sick. Like, requiring antibiotic, coughing-up-a-lung sick. Despite my obsessive Germ-X and elderberry use, youngest DD is currently laid up on the couch with a fever and sore throat. Grrrr...

**and by "neglected," I mean purposely didn't tell us because they wanted our presence, no matter what. 

[Terabith]

48 minutes ago, Elizabeth86 said:

Yeah I won't, I'm all talk.  I am super annoyed though.  They have never acted like this at Christmas before.  It just took me by surprise.  We had a big talk before each place to be thankful no matter what, people didn't have to get you anything.  They just were brats about what Santa got them. Ugh.  

Well, it feels "safe" to complain about what Santa brought.  After all, he's not there to hear, so his feelings won't be hurt.  

[Elizabeth86]

8 minutes ago, Terabith said:

Well, it feels "safe" to complain about what Santa brought.  After all, he's not there to hear, so his feelings won't be hurt.  

You are so right.  

[mlktwins]

42 minutes ago, alisoncooks said:

No mishaps but MIL and SIL (who live together and host Christmas for that side of the family) neglected** to tell us that they'd been sick. Like, requiring antibiotic, coughing-up-a-lung sick. Despite my obsessive Germ-X and elderberry use, youngest DD is currently laid up on the couch with a fever and sore throat. Grrrr...

**and by "neglected," I mean purposely didn't tell us because they wanted our presence, no matter what. 

I would be so ticked off at this.  I would not go next year for any reason 😁.  Seriously!!!

My SIL came to Christmas dinner (noticeably sick) at my house.  She was licking her fingers after dishing up her food and before moving on to the next serving spoon.  Who the he!! does that if you are an adult?!?!  I went behind her and switched out all the spoons.

[Amy in NH]

2 hours ago, wilrunner said:

My mishap was not as bad as any of yours, but I forgot the sugar in the meringue of the lemon meringue pie I made. The crust is horrible, the meringue is nasty, but the lemon part is very good. I seem to have an issue with putting sugar in pies. A few years ago, I forgot it in my Thanksgiving pumpkin pie, too. 😂

 

My 4-H club did a pie fundraiser for the first time this year.  The families sold pies ahead of time, and we met during last weekend to bake and deliver them. 

We found out on Christmas that someone (me?) forgot to put sugar in the pumpkin pie.  It was still good with maple syrup poured on top, but 5 were made and delivered this way.  Oops!

[Loowit]

2 hours ago, matrips said:

I’m wondering how old your FIL is.  My folks, now deceased, still loved the idea of food when they were older, and would still ask for or order what they loved.  But then they would complain.  They never quite realized it was them- their teeth couldn’t chew well anymore, and their taste buds were gone, and they filled up quick.  My dad always loved meat, but couldn’t chew it. Neither could my mom.  And tons of salt went on everything. I’m just wondering if that is what is happening to your FIL. Plus, the filter on older people seems to disappear.  The older they get, the more like children and infants many often seem.  😞. 

FIL is in his early 70s.  He has always been a picky eater.  He likes his food overcooked and very bland.  I don't cook that way, so it makes it hard.  He does eat steak when he goes out to dinner, so I doubt it isn't a teeth issue, although I know he eats a lot less than he used to.  And yes, he and MIL have both lost their filters, but then so have my parents.

[Shoeless]

No mishaps exactly. MIL's demeanor seemed a little chilly when she stopped by on Christmas Eve because we didn't go to her Christmas party the weekend prior.  She planned a multi-day event 3.5 hours away from us, and was upset that she couldn't nag DH into going.  We've told her again and again that everyone is more than welcome to come here, but we are NOT going to Houston to SILs house.  It's too far, it's too expensive (we'd have to get a hotel and board our animals), and DH and SIL don't even like each other, so there's no point in going. DH hates MILs Christmas party anyway, because it's always a clusterf*ck. Honestly, DH doesn't like spending a lot of one-on-one time with MIL.  He has his reasons for that, and it's not up to me to change his mind or fix their relationship.  I just follow his lead.  

Rather than acknowledging any of that, MIL has been insinuating that I am keeping DH from seeing his family. 🙄  Yes, that must be it.  

 

[jen3kids]

We were just about to start opening presents when older ds tossed his weighted blanket to dh. Unfortunately, in knocked dh's cup of coffee onto the carpet, so we ended up doing a 'pre-present opening' carpet cleaning.  It didn't take very long, thankfully.  Everyone rushed around being helpful - moving furniture, grabbing paper towels from the kitchen, running to the basement to get the steam cleaner, finding the cleaning solution.  It was cleaned up in a jiffy, and presents were opened without further mishap.  We ended up having to clean the carpet again today as the spot was still there 😉 

[lynn]

DIL said she wanted to host Christmas day at her house.  Okay, I'll bring a dessert and an appetizer.   Last week, can we move it back to your house, I'll bring ham and potatoes.  Okay, still no problem with me.  Then Christmas Eve.....son texted at 9pm "we didn't know Wal-Mart closed at 6 and we didn't get the ham or potAtoes".  Okay fine, whatever come over anyways so I made bacon wrapped smokies which I had planned, then had to think what I had so I came up with toasted ravioli and I had a box of bagel bites.  I already mAde dessert and my neighbor gifted us with a mix of something sweet and yummy and I had a few other things to put out.  It was what it was and all went well.  Gotta have a talk with that girl about etiquette.  Bailing on a holiday dinner last minute....Not cool.....  Luckily Navy kid was home and I had extra appetizer food on hand to make.

[Sk8ermaiden]

My MIL keeps bringing up extremely divisive political opinions at holiday dinners. She did it at Thanksgiving and then again (the same question!!) at Christmas. I don't think she's trying to start a fight. I think she truly believes BIL and I would just naturally agree with her, of course. We don't. Him halfheartedly and me vehemently. Ugh.

[Ausmumof3]

7 hours ago, wilrunner said:

My mishap was not as bad as any of yours, but I forgot the sugar in the meringue of the lemon meringue pie I made. The crust is horrible, the meringue is nasty, but the lemon part is very good. I seem to have an issue with putting sugar in pies. A few years ago, I forgot it in my Thanksgiving pumpkin pie, too. 😂

I did that once!  Salt instead of sugar!

[vmsurbat1]

2 hours ago, Ausmumof3 said:

I did that once!  Salt instead of sugar!

You are not the only one. I once made a BIG batch of special rolls chock-full of goodies only to discover I had used salt instead of sugar.  They looked beautiful and my crew bravely tried to eat them....  I had to throw the whole batch away.  Sigh.

[Monica_in_Switzerland]

11 hours ago, Ausmumof3 said:

I did that once!  Salt instead of sugar!

 

When I was in high school, I spent the night at a friend's house and she taught me how to fry tortillas into taco shells.  She would then sprinkle a little flour over them as they drained.  I got home, enthusiastic to make these for my family.  I did great frying the shells... but they had such a strange taste.  Turns out I'd used powdered sugar instead of flour...  

[Monica_in_Switzerland]

12 hours ago, lynn said:

DIL said she wanted to host Christmas day at her house.  Okay, I'll bring a dessert and an appetizer.   Last week, can we move it back to your house, I'll bring ham and potatoes.  Okay, still no problem with me.  Then Christmas Eve.....son texted at 9pm "we didn't know Wal-Mart closed at 6 and we didn't get the ham or potAtoes".  Okay fine, whatever come over anyways so I made bacon wrapped smokies which I had planned, then had to think what I had so I came up with toasted ravioli and I had a box of bagel bites.  I already mAde dessert and my neighbor gifted us with a mix of something sweet and yummy and I had a few other things to put out.  It was what it was and all went well.  Gotta have a talk with that girl about etiquette.  Bailing on a holiday dinner last minute....Not cool.....  Luckily Navy kid was home and I had extra appetizer food on hand to make.

 

As frustrating as it is, isn't it wonderful that everyone in the family was able to put a brave face on it and just be happy to be together?  I think that's beautiful and special and worth more than a SIL with organizational skills.  This will be one of those special holidays everyone remembers- "Remember when our Christmas dinner was bagel bites and dessert?"

[Mrs. Darinski]

Can Christmas drama be included here?  So tired of it.  Not sure I want to spell out or bore you with every detail, but so much non-communication and miscommunication from narcissistic and toxic individuals....  We're still dealing with the fallout from it, especially from those who won't deal with those individuals.  😩

[Excelsior! Academy]

No mishaps here, fortunately, just illness.  Christmas is not as fun when everyone is sick.

[Tenaj]

One adult person's stocking was completely forgotten and in trying to fill it, I accidentally put in a word search puzzle book that I thought was new that had one puzzle already filled in!  Aunt had a merry laugh over it and worked on the next puzzle 🤣

[catz]

I had an emergency root canal a few days before Christmas after struggling for about a week and a half. I could whine about that for an hour.  Needless to say, I kept things simple!

[Tap]

My  daughter was in the hospital for the week before Christmas with endocarditis (heart infection). My life is already a balancing act and this hospitalization was a tipping point into chaos. So, my prepping for Christmas was set aside.  Most of the presents were wrapped so I just stopped thinking about them.  Ooops.  I have since found 5 more presents, the stocking items (I gave the stocking presents but not the stuffers), and worst of all......I forgot my in-laws gift.   Normally I wouldn't think it would be a big deal,  but my MIL  has been have a major tantrum these past 2 years, and is feeling like we don't appreciate her. I  am sure she took this slight very personally.  Oh Well.... 😞  Her presents to us, were passive aggressive. Our family members each got a 2.2lb box of chocolate truffles covered in cocoa powder. Each person in our house got their own box.  That is 6 boxes, or 13lbs of truffles.  Ha ha! Only one person in our family even likes them. OY! The boxes don't even fit in the pantry. No kidding, including the gifts from other people and leftovers from our party, we have 20lbs of chocolates right now. I'll give them away, but for now they are just a funny reminder of her being ridiculous. 

Edited December 29, 2019 by Tap

[Katy]

No mishaps here, but someone I follow on social media's infant son wasn't breathing when she went in to check on his nap.  I've never met her, but there have been so many prayers and tears for her family.  She had 4 little boys.  Last I knew they were waiting at the hospital on tests to see which organs could be donated.  So devastating.  One of my sons was taken to the hospital multiple times for stopping breathing, we just happened to have had monitors on him so it's been hitting me really hard.

[athena1277]

We had planned a big family picture while everyone in dh’s family was together Friday.  Bil and will have a nice camera with a tripod.  It rained the night before, so it was wet and muddy where they had planned the picture, but we got it done.  Or so we thought.  When they pulled the pictures up on their laptop later, the camera had focused on some people, leaving some blurry.  We had change clothes to go back later in the day to redo the picture.  With bil’s phone camera.  🤔📸📱