Mustachey Christmas Café

[Anatidae V]

The café is open for the holiday! Drop in and out, stay all day, chat and yell and scream with joy or tuck yourself into one of our quiet corners. There's a pool and hot sun out door 3B for those of us in the Southern Hemisphere and tropical climes.

The party is Festivus/Christmas/Early Kwanzaa/Belated Solstice/Nothing/Post Hanukkah/A Day/December 25th.

A link to the original invitation:
http://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/ask-a-mustachian/we're-partying-(or-growling)-here-on-the-25th!/

This café is run by Friends With Mustaches.

[Middlesbrough]

It's not that time yet here, but I will be leaving for festivities soon.

Middles is checked in.

[NinetyFour]

Happy Christmas, mustachian friends down under!!!

[pachnik]

I am heading out soon for a Christmas Eve smorgasbord with Mr. Pachnik's family.  But I just wanted to drop in here for a bit. 

I felt a little (okay, a lot) overwhelmed with the gift giving in my office.  I just brought in some home-made oatmeal cookies and a few chocolates since we are a small office.  My co-worker gave me a gift bag full of expensive goodies.  And then my bosses gave me a bonus.  I will have to do more next year.  I feel kind of badly about this. 

Okay, off I go.  Everybody in MMM land have fun and I'll check in again later. 
Cheers!
Pachnik

[senecando]

To begin my list of things for sale in Los Angeles:

"Flavored oxygen"

[Breaker]

Merry Christmas or Happy Christmas to all.  I picked up a Pecan Pie and a Chocolate Cream Pie to take to dinner tomorrow.  It's a real battle not to have a piece of the Pecan.  Oh well, perhaps there will be some left over to bring home.

Hope that everyone has nice Holidays.  Please don't drive if you are drinking.  A taxi will always be cheaper than a hospital bill.

Breaker (No. Calif.)

[RMD]

Very Merry Christmas to all! Making cookies with DS for Santa, of course. :)

[Primm]

I'm working. My uncle died yesterday morning and nobody bothered to tell me until today, 24 hours later. And the starter motor in my car died. We took it off and it's full of oil. No idea why, but it's not going to be as simple as a new starter motor (which we already have).

So yeah, feeling a bit Grinchy today. Maybe if I hang out here for a bit I'll get into the spirit.

[NinetyFour]

Primm--sorry to hear about your uncle!  And bad luck regarding the car trouble.  A bit of Grinchiness is understood!

[G-dog]

I'm working. My uncle died yesterday morning and nobody bothered to tell me until today, 24 hours later. And the starter motor in my car died. We took it off and it's full of oil. No idea why, but it's not going to be as simple as a new starter motor (which we already have).

So yeah, feeling a bit Grinchy today. Maybe if I hang out here for a bit I'll get into the spirit.

Sorry for your loss. I hope things get better soon. Own the grinchiness during your mourning and other troubles. It is OK, really.

[1967mama]

Just made an appetizer dinner for my family and we are off to Christmas Eve service at church shortly. One of my favourite nights of the whole year. Its been a challenging year for our family, and I feel very thankful that we've made it through :-)

[Rural]

I have influenza but can't infect anyone here, so wishing the best to all, and I promise not to cough on you.


Bleargh.

[happy]

I'm working. My uncle died yesterday morning and nobody bothered to tell me until today, 24 hours later. And the starter motor in my car died. We took it off and it's full of oil. No idea why, but it's not going to be as simple as a new starter motor (which we already have).

So yeah, feeling a bit Grinchy today. Maybe if I hang out here for a bit I'll get into the spirit.

Sorry to hear this Primm. I've been grinchy for the last 3 days, but improving today lucky for my family. Just have to keep saying to my self "do not shout at your mother".

Parents not arrived, stuck in traffic due to a car accident, must be bad coz the police are only letting cars by one at a time.  So some other families are having a crappy time.

However, all the veges etc are peeled, roast will go in oven when parents arrive. Otherwise looking organised which improves my mood. Have even had time to make banana bread with the overripe bananas. So the house smells good. Aircon is on in respect of the elders - they don't do heat well these days.

[scrubbyfish]

So yeah, feeling a bit Grinchy today. Maybe if I hang out here for a bit I'll get into the spirit.

Ah, but that IS the spirit of this all-welcoming Fest! It was inspired by sadness, so sadness, crabbiness, heartbreak, heartache, loneliness, anger, etc, are all JUST AS WELCOME as happiness, togetherness, and anything else!

I'm sorry about your uncle, and also the sadness in not being told for that long.

[NinetyFour]

...sadness, crabbiness, heartbreak, heartache, loneliness, anger, etc, are all JUST AS WELCOME as happiness, togetherness, and anything else!

How about pain???  Rotator cuff and biceps tendon repair aftermath--nasty pain!!  But, so far, I am enjoying this café!

[scrubbyfish]

The café is open for the holiday! Drop in and out, stay all day, chat and yell and scream with joy or tuck yourself into one of our quiet corners. [...] This café is run by Friends With Mustaches.

Love all of this invite! Thank you so much, anatidaev!!!

Boy, was I keen to find the cafe! I was NOT giving up... After several hours drive, I landed to find no internet at the place I'm staying! (It's broken.) Was dismayed, but ultimately decided to head to a coffee shop to at least be able to say hi.

Attached is my first gift. As you can see, it is a Mustachioed kiss, for Wolfe_Stache, for my other lovely friends, and for anyone else who is quirky, unconventional, introverted, queer, feeling alone, heartbroken, or completely forgetting HOW LOVED YOU ARE. ::mwah::

[Primm]

And a big fat ::mwah:: right back at you, scrubby!

[scrubbyfish]

Its been a challenging year for our family, and I feel very thankful that we've made it through :-)

I, too, am very thankful your family made it through! Truly. It has been incredible and inspiring and emotional to witness the journeys of so many individuals and families, and I'm honestly so grateful that those of us who are here, still together at the end of an MMM year, are here at all. We all "done good." Some of us had gains, some of us had slips, some of us had some of each. We've listened to each other, cared deeply, supported each other. I've been not only a very grateful recipient of such support, but also a very grateful witness of others' endurance, tenacity, and gains big or small.

How about pain???

Absolutely! :)    You bring your pain to the gathering, yes, please! May you have a restful night, NinetyFour, a sleep conducive to recovery.

My wifi access closes in 9 minutes, so I will sign off here to poke around the other rooms for a bit before heading home again. I will, though, first note the mini-anxiety attack I had when I saw the stack of gifts the other kid in the house is receiving at his third-of-three Christmasses. Ack! We had discussed...! It was all I could do to not run out and shop for moremoremore! But my head came back, and I realized I truly am satisfied with what I've committed to giving my son for Christmas. It's awesome, it's enough, the end :)

If I can get wifi tomorrow, I will see you all here again then! Hugs to all of you!!

[HappierAtHome]

I'm here! It's almost midday for me, so my family festivities are over and I'm about to make nachos for my happy, solitary lunch. And watch a DVD from the library.

Who else thinks it's not Christmas day if you don't get a nap?

[HappierAtHome]

I'm working. My uncle died yesterday morning and nobody bothered to tell me until today, 24 hours later. And the starter motor in my car died. We took it off and it's full of oil. No idea why, but it's not going to be as simple as a new starter motor (which we already have).

So yeah, feeling a bit Grinchy today. Maybe if I hang out here for a bit I'll get into the spirit.

I'm sorry for your loss, Primm. You be as grinchy as you need to be. And don't forget you've got friends here.

[UnleashHell]

happy boxing day eve everyone!!

enjoy the day and find time to take care for yourselves at some point.

[happy]

10.30pm Xmas day here now.

Just reflecting. It was a pretty relaxed day. My folks finally arrived and we had a baked dinner with beef ( beef, potatoes, pumpkin, carrots turnips broccoli and beans.).  Dessert was plum pudding and ice-cream. We put too much OP rum on the pudding (ahem accidentally on purpose)…the pudding stayed lit for ages, and started sizzling then slightly charring on the outside. We giggled hysterically like little kids as it continued to burn - tried to blow it out and it relit itself. Then success - anyhow it tasted good.

The late afternoon saw rain and a thunderstorm. So after opening presents it was nap time. My kids bought me 2 chairs and a little table for my balcony so we can sit outside. It was a surprise and they newspapered up the doors and windows so I couldn't see what it was. The most fun was had when I pretended to  keep trying to peek through any cracks.

Note to self: simple is better. I love cooking and I usually get carried away at Xmas trying to keep everyone happy by cooking their favourite dishes and now I can see just how much it adds to the stress. So simple is better..

[pipercat]

Merry Christmas everyone!  I'm so sorry to hear about the troubles some of you are facing today.  Personally, I am enjoying the afterglow of Santa's visit, and I'm preparing for the blood sugar spike that will be coming later today.  It's only 7:30am here, so I won't actually be doing the "getting hammered" part until later.  Once I get to the in-laws house :)

[Thegoblinchief]

Kids are up, eating breakfast. About to roust the Alchemist so the presents insanity can begin.

Been having a challenging time on this trip. Hopefully it will get better. Otherwise, down to the last week!

Primm - weird, the starter on our van just failed last night. Too late to call any parts shops or anything. Will have to wait a whole day before I can get the part and the tools I'd normally have in my garage at home (FIL is not exactly handy). Hoping the car doesn't get towed away in the interim, as it died in a 2-hour limit parking lot.

[Primm]

Must be something in the air!

[boy_bye]

Hi friends! Merry Christmas! NinetyFour, I hope you got some good rest. Prim, I'm sorry for your loss but glad you are here with us!

I have a small Christmas miracle to report. The last two days I have been hardly able to breathe due to a truly wicked, fast-moving head cold. A my family's celebration yesterday, my ears were rattling from fluid and all the noise (lots of excited toddlers). Really painful.

I came home last night and asked my husband if he had ever tried a Neti pot. Turns out he had, but didn't like it, so he gave it to me last night. I tried it out and it didn't seem to help much at first, but within an hour things were moving and I could breathe a little. Did it again this morning and I feel like 50% normal in my sinuses now.

Hooray! I'm getting on a five hour flight day after tomorrow and have every confidence that my new Neti pot and I will be ready to go. So happy!

Now I hear my husband getting up, so we'll be eating bacon rolls and drinking Buck's Fizzes within a matter of minutes. :)

Love to you all! Furry mustache kisses!

[Primm]

I love my Netti pot. Actually mine's a cheap knock-off, but it works amazingly. I get hayfever that starts in the spring and goes through until - well, the next spring, pretty much. Between pollen in the spring, mold in the summer and dust in the autumn and winter my nose pretty much continuously used to drip until I started using my pot every day. Now I can't remember the last time I took a hayfever tablet.

[boy_bye]

That's great to hear! I am definitely going to use it every day now! It feels weird but also really good.

[thedayisbrave]

Merry Christmas everyone!!!

Spending the day by myself and determined not to wallow in self pity while friends post to Facebook with their perfect family and pet photos.  It was my choice anyway... went home this past weekend for "Christmas" since home is 3 hours away... but ever since my Father passed when I was little, our family has always felt a tad fractured, especially during the holidays.  I've found it's a lot happier for me when I just spend the day by myself instead of fake going through the motions, so here I am.  Watching TV shows surrounded by Oreos, chocolate mini muffins, Hershey's special dark nuggets with almonds and texts from beloved friends.  It could be worse :) Plus, I got exactly what I wanted, just in time for Christmas... a new job back home.  Things just didn't feel right in this new city, mostly because the decision to move was spurred on by a relationship that had already failed but that I was foolish enough to try to patch up slash hang onto... so it's an interesting mix of emotion but glad to be going home soon, back to my beloved city and friends who have turned into my family :)

[dandeliongirl75]

Merry Christmas!

Also spending the day mostly by myself - first Christmas since my husband left 3 months ago. He decided he is stopping by mid morning for brunch  - which is possibly worse than being alone - we are still sort of friends but it is still really kind of raw.

Also determined not to wallow today. I did have invitations to go to several places but am not a big Christmas person...

It is a really pretty day out there and I will go for a walk this afternoon.....that will be good. Also the cats and rabbit are pretty cheery today :)

[mm1970]

Merry Christmas!  Having my second cup of coffee, thinking of switching to mimosas after a short workout.

The boys have opened their presents and are very excited.  Maybe heading to a friend's house for dinner later (maybe because my little guy has a runny nose, not sure if we want it to spread, or even if it's spreadable).

For years we used to travel from CA to the East Coast for the holidays.  I miss the extended family but it's way  more relaxing at home.  Not even 7:30 am yet.

[Exhale]

The café is open for the holiday! Drop in and out, stay all day, chat and yell and scream with joy or tuck yourself into one of our quiet corners. [...] This café is run by Friends With Mustaches.

Attached is my first gift... for anyone else who is quirky, unconventional, introverted, queer, feeling alone, heartbroken, or completely forgetting HOW LOVED YOU ARE. ::mwah::

Thanks for the gift - needed it today!

[DeepEllumStache]

Merry Christmas all!

I'm at my parents' place in San Antonio, so breakfast this morning was my father's excellent sausage, biscuits, and gravy all from scratch (my parents grew up in the Deep South) while we wait for my sister who will drive in sometime around midday. 

My brother had the fun experience of driving with his two dogs from Austin without his wife as backup.  Apparently he was 15 minutes from the house when the first dog threw up in the back seat.  Then when he got to the house, the second dog immediately found some neighbor's dog's poo in the yard and rolled in it.  His wife drove in later yesterday and missed the fun.

[SuperSaver]

Happy Holidays Mustached Ones.

It's 11:33am here and my families Christmas is going well. Everyone woke up, I made quiches (spinach and cheese & bacon and cheese) and started on laundry. All the gifts are unwrapped. My fiance is coming by tomorrow to have a mini Christmas celebration with my family since his relatives are coming into town tonight. Watching the Christmas Story on television now after eating delicious quiche.

I am making most of dinner for tonight (deviled eggs, ham, roasted asparagus, green bean casserole, beans, rolls. Mashed potatoes/turnips & some kind of red cabbage by my dad). My sister is a vegetarian so we try to make a lot of vegetarian dishes for her; plus we love our veggies. After our dinner I'll drive over to my fiance's house and visit with the rest of my future in laws. I am finally meeting his one uncle after over 8 years together!!!! So excited since every other year the uncle has been traveling the globe on holidays I visit.

This is our first Christmas without our mother and its going well so far. Since she was so sick last year I had taken over the holiday shopping and cooking & my sister took over the holiday decorating. This year my dad's helping out a lot more (last year he was taking care of her) so its easier this year.  It would be a ton better this year except my father and sister are EXTREMELY ill with nasty winter colds. Hopefully they get well before I head back to the city in a week.

Extra mustachey hugs to Primm: I'm sorry for your loss and that you found out like that.
Feel better NinetyFour and Rural!

[Travis]

It's 8pm here.  I've been Skyping with my wife and son for the last hour watching them open gifts and now watching him assemble a new lego toy.  The lunch they served was so filling I only ate the one meal today.  The rest of the evening will be spent cleaning my room and doing laundry because I'm going home in 2 weeks!

[The_path_less_taken]

Merry Xmas/etc to all.

[melalvai]

Happy day everyone! I wanted to be sure to check in on here and see how it was going. Hugs and warm feelings to everyone, struggling with the holidays or enjoying the celebrations or both!

Scrubbyfish, I LOVE your kissy lips!

I felt a little (okay, a lot) overwhelmed with the gift giving in my office.  I just brought in some home-made oatmeal cookies and a few chocolates since we are a small office.  My co-worker gave me a gift bag full of expensive goodies.  And then my bosses gave me a bonus.  I will have to do more next year.  I feel kind of badly about this. 

I often feel guilty when I receive a gift and I didn't get something for that person. Then I thought, it doesn't bother me one bit if I give a gift and don't get one in return from that person. Why should I think it bothers them? It only bothers me, and that takes away from the gift I just received. The giver is giving me a gift to make me feel good. She is not giving me something to make me feel bad. She would be upset if she knew that her gift made me feel bad. I don't want to make her feel bad.

Now I just appreciate the gift and don't worry about reciprocity.

Gift giving can get so totally out of control and I've never in my life been so lush with cash or time or energy that I could give stuff to everyone. Trying to give to everyone who might give something to me is expensive or time consuming or stressful (or all three).

New Fellow's sisters & daughter game me little things and I didn't get them stuff. I appreciated it because it was their way of telling New Fellow that they love him and are happy that he is happy.

[MayDay]

Hi all! It's 12:30 here, the kids are playing with their gifts (DS is sharpening every pencil in the house with his new electric pencil sharpener!), and the grown ups are chilling. This has been super chill and relaxed as we only have one family member here. Usually we either visit family or a bunch come here.

Almost all gifts were reasonable and practical except my MIL bought DS 4 frozen shirts, and DD got 5 pairs of frozen socks. Bizarre. They each picked one to keep, and the rest are getting returned.

[KeeKat]

Merry Christmas!

MMM is such an amazing place with such camaraderie. The idea of this thread is what helped bring me out of lurkerdom :P

I'm hanging out with my parents and cats today. I received all practical things, which makes me super happy. It took a while to convince my Mom there wasn't more that I needed. Got some work pants and a pair of boots. My cats are also enjoying the box my boots came out of. These are $20 replacement boots for the pair I've worn into the ground over the last four or five years! I'm so excited - the old ones would get my feet SOAKED in the rain!

Hope you each receive exactly what you were hoping for today!

[4alpacas]

Happy holidays!

We've had a fantastic holiday so far.  We started the day by making chocolate croissants (frozen food aisle at Trader Joe's) and tea.  We've taken the ddog for a walk, and now we're relaxing . 

[Breaker]

Merry Christmas.  It is a cold morning and I just had a late Breakfast of Steel Cut Oatmeal.  Now I'm off to walk the puppy around the neighborhood.

Later I will go to a friend's house for Dinner.

DeepEllumStash,  I would definitely rather be you SIL than your Brother today.

[Wolf_Stache]

Just chiming in to say hi. My mom gave me an itunes gift card, so I bought two albums and three songs that I've had on my wishlist forever. now rocking out to awesome music. Got invited to a friends house for Christmas lunch/dinner, they are even letting me bring my dog!, so that should be fun. We are going to cook and play the card game Gloom.

[Mrs. Frugalwoods]

Merry Christmas!

MMM is such an amazing place with such camaraderie. The idea of this thread is what helped bring me out of lurkerdom :P

I'm hanging out with my parents and cats today. I received all practical things, which makes me super happy. It took a while to convince my Mom there wasn't more that I needed. Got some work pants and a pair of boots. My cats are also enjoying the box my boots came out of. These are $20 replacement boots for the pair I've worn into the ground over the last four or five years! I'm so excited - the old ones would get my feet SOAKED in the rain!

Hope you each receive exactly what you were hoping for today!

Hey welcome to the world of commenting! Glad you were tempted out of lurkerdom by Christmassy tidings ;).

We also received wonderful practical gifts from our sweet families: a mattress pad (woot! been wanting one for 2 years), a measuring cup, a pair of shoes (for me), a measuring tape (for my husband), and a chalk line (also for my hubs). Woo hoo! So grateful to our generous families and thankful for the fact that they understand this is the stuff we really do want! Also, we gave our dog a stuffed toucan, which is proving hilarious.

In general, we're just enjoying all of our homemade food and a relaxing time together at home today. Took a walk earlier and hoping to take a hike tomorrow.

Days like this remind me that the simple life really is the best life.

[scrubbyfish]

The idea of this thread is what helped bring me out of lurkerdom :P

Hoorah!!!!!!! I'm glad for it! Welcome, KeeKat!

*

For me, Christmas so far has been a bit stressful. First I learned that the "Christmas-lite" a Christmas roommate was providing for the only other kid was actually much bigger. I felt so sad for my kid for: not having as big a pile of presents as other kids, not having a dad, not having even a split-custody family with the double-Christmas of two households... It's just a lot of "less" and "not have", and I felt sad. My brother tried to talk me out of my sadness, which didn't help. My kid is missing some things, and I'm sad for him about that sometimes.

Kid couldn't fall asleep last night, which left me exhausted and stressed trying to get his presents set out.

Christmas morning, my brother took off to watch the neighbour's kid open their presents. ?!?!?!?!?!?!!?!?!? So, all told, out of my son's large extended family, only me and my older sister -who makes fun of him- were there during his happiness. I felt sad about that.

I'm writing this in hopes it helps some people feel better about their families :)

HOWEVER... When my kid woke, he lay quietly and said softly, "I hope you're feeling GREAT, Mummy...because it's Christmas!" Aw. Then he continued to lay there -no thought of presents- and said, "We should sing carols now. I'll start with one." Then he sang several verses of a song from his school Christmas concert. It seems he had zero expectations, because when he exited the bedroom and found the start of a treasure hunt for gifts, he was surprised and thrilled :)   He LOVED his stack of gifts, including the four used books with the library tag cut out of them.

Alas, his ipad won't go. Some sort of bug, apparently. Sigh. Dealing with tech is one of my least favourite things to do. (For those that don't know, he received the ipad from an autism program because his school feels he will benefit from some of the apps.)

So, here's to everyone whose family members didn't come, or took off, and to those who gave presents that didn't work, and to those who, like me, somewhat envy those who got to stay home like we really wanted.

Christmas goes on for another 30 hours for our family, so maybe it will pick up yet.

My great happiness is that, except for the ipad frustration, my kid is PERFECTLY HAPPY and having a lot of fun. And despite the letdowns, I mostly feel mellow and peaceful and happy.

[happy]

Big hug Scrubby fish ((((( ))))))

[scrubbyfish]

Thanks, Happy!!!

*

Attached is my next gift for all of you (I think there's enough for everyone).

[Rezdent]

Merry Christmas to all the Mustachians!

It's the first year I can ever remember just staying home without hosting.
It is very bittersweet.  I'm missing my dad and my MIL.  I'm sad that the kids are all grown.
DH and I slept in.  We exchanged very mustachian gifts, and have just hung out all day together.  (And I just realized this has been the best Christmas ever.  No pressure and zero stress).

Sending out huge hugs to all of you.  May you all be blessed with good health and happy times ahead.

Scrubbyfish:
I always felt bad for my kids at Christmas.  Just always.  So I hear what you're saying and want to give you an extra hug.

For me, I think the anticipation of Christmas never lives up to reality.  Or so it seems, because I feel guilty every year.  Today I feel bad for not buying more, not cooking more, not being more.  Plus I feel guilty because I had such a great day!

[fidgiegirl]

I always felt bad for my kids at Christmas.  Just always.  So I hear what you're saying and want to give you an extra hug.

For me, I think the anticipation of Christmas never lives up to reality.

I think there is big wisdom here.  Thank you for sharing that thought.

I am wishing all of you on this thread peace tonight, whether your day was outstanding or terrible.

[melalvai]

I'm thinking part of growing our mustaches is coming to terms with the guilt we feel over not giving enough presents, not giving nice enough presents, not having enough presents for our kids, etc.

I want to eradicate all that guilt for everyone. I want all of you to feel happy about the things that you gave and happy about the things you received and just feel happy and not guilty.

That's what I want to give all of you for Christmas!

(((hugs)))

[SingleMomDebt]

Ah I just found the cafe! I was notified of the original!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

I ranted on my journal earlier. Lol @dandiliongirl75 I am with you in somewhat similar fashion.

But I've been having a wonderful day with DD!