This post may contain affiliate links and CorporetteMoms may earn commissions for purchases made through links in this post. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.
I don’t often go for a sweater dress, but this one passes my very exacting standards for this type of item. First, it’s not too clingy and seems to drape nicely. Clingy sweater dresses are a no for me. Also, it’s not too thick — thick sweaters tend to add bulk, which is also not what you want in a dress. I like how the cable knit is only on the sleeves, so that also cuts down on the bulk. The length is nice, too — right at the top or middle of the knee — and the color option of “sour cherry red” is wintry and beautiful. The dress is $139 full price at Banana Republic but comes down to $69.50 when you add it to your cart (no code needed). It’s available in regular sizes XXS–XXL, tall sizes S–XL, and petite sizes XXS–L. Cable-Knit Sweater Dress Eloquii has a sweater dress that comes in four colors in sizes 14/16 to 26/28. This post contains affiliate links and CorporetteMoms may earn commissions for purchases made through links in this post. For more details see here. Thank you so much for your support!Sales of note for 4.18.24
(See all of the latest workwear sales at Corporette!)
- Ann Taylor – 50% off full-price dresses, jackets & shoes; $30 off pants & skirts; extra 50% off sale styles
- Banana Republic Factory – Up to 50% off everything; extra 20% off purchase
- Eloquii – 50% off select styles; 60% off swim; up to 40% off everything else
- J.Crew – Mid-Season Sale: Extra 60% off sale styles; up to 50% off spring-to-summer styles
- Lands’ End – 30% off full-price styles
- Loft – Spring Mid-Season Sale: Up to 50% off 100s of styles
- Nordstrom: Free 2-day shipping for a limited time (eligible items)
- Talbots – Spring Sale: 40% off + extra 15% off all markdowns; 30% off new T by Talbots
- Zappos – 29,000+ women’s sale items! (check out these reader-favorite workwear brands on sale, and some of our favorite kids’ shoe brands on sale)
Kid/Family Sales
- Carter’s – Up to 70% off baby items; 50% off toddler & kid deals & 40% off everything else
- Hanna Andersson – Up to 50% off spring faves; 25% off new arrivals; up to 30% off spring
- J.Crew Crewcuts – Up to 60% off sale styles; up to 50% off kids’ spring-to-summer styles
- Old Navy – 30% off your purchase; up to 75% off clearance
- Target – Car Seat Trade-In Event (ends 4/27); BOGO 25% off select skincare products; up to 40% off indoor furniture; up to 20% off laptops & printers
See some of our latest articles on CorporetteMoms:
Click here to see our top posts!
And — here are some of our latest threadjacks of interest – working mom questions asked by the commenters!
- If you’re a working parent of an infant with low sleep needs, how do you function at work when you’re in the throes of baby’s sleep regression?
- Should I cut my childcare down to 12 hours a month if I work from home?
- Will my baby have speech delays if we raise her bilingual?
- Has anyone given birth in a teaching hospital?
- My child eats everything, and my friends’ kids do not – how should I handle? In general, what is the best way to handle when your child has some skill/ability and your friend’s child doesn’t have that skill/ability?
- ADHD moms, give me your tips to help with things like behavior in the classroom, attention to detail, etc?
- I think I suffer from mom rage…
- My husband and kids are gone this weekend – how should I enjoy my free time?
- I’m struggling to be compassionate with a SAHM friend who complains she doesn’t have enough hours of childcare.
- If you exclusively formula fed, what tips do you have for in the hospital and coming home?
- Could I take my 4-yo and 8-yo on a 7-8 day trip to Paris, Lyon, and Madrid?
Anonymous says
Hi all, does anyone have any fun Christmas Eve day traditions? Daycare/schools are closed, and I’m not sure what to do with the actual day. My girls aren’t yet old enough to enjoy a Christmas movie marathon. My memories growing up are of watching my mom vacuum and speculating if I had been good enough for Santa to bring me any presents.
Go for it says
Bake easy sugar cookies ahead of time (without them) & have them decorate them. It’s a lot to bake & decorate in one day.
potato says
I’m going to take mine to a small petting zoo which I *think* is open.
Anonymous says
Wrap presents? Honestly, it started as me needing to get the wrapping finished and keep an eye on them at the same time but they found it fun to participate. I set up a wrapping station at the dining room table and let them help with picking out how to wrap things. We’ve switched to wrapping stuff for the people in our house with Christmas fabric and real ribbons which we bought together last weekend so they are extra excited to wrap this year. Still use the disposable stuff for gifting to others.
Jeffiner says
I let my 4 yo wrap presents this year. She went through two rolls of tape, and cut and taped so many pieces of wrapping paper the packages looked like collages…but it kept her busy for a long time and was adorable.
Anonymous says
The last few years we’ve ended up taking a morning trip to Starbucks for festive drinks. Our kiddo still naps. After nap time, we often watch a Christmas movie and have an early meal or heavy appetizers in the late afternoon to make it to church by 6.
Anon says
Let them open one present on Christmas Eve Eve – new pajamas and a book. Then spend the morning snuggling in parents’ bed (make a make-ahead breakfast casserole that you can just throw in the oven that morning) and reading together, maybe watch a movie if there’s a TV in the room. If the kids are younger, bring a Barbie/Superhero for each person and play pretend in bed. Leisurely get up and dressed, then go somewhere active after lunch. Like bowling or roller skating or indoor mini golf. Then after dinner, get back in PJs, make some mugs of hot chocolate, and drive around the neighborhood looking at Christmas lights and listening to Christmas songs.
anne-on says
We spend time that afternoon to cut out/decorate cookies for Santa (I make dough ahead of time), ‘help’ set the table (now old enough to actually set the table) for our fancy-ish Xmas Eve meal, open up one present from under the tree, and watch a christmas movie together as a family that evening. My parents are usually up that day and help with entertaining the kiddo/burning off energy outside while I do the cooking/house cleaning.
Anonymous says
My In laws live across the country and send presents up. We let the kids open their gifs on Christmas Eve day and do a video call.
My parents and siblings come on Christmas Day and the kids are inundated with gifts (plus a morning of Santa and family gifts) so this way they get to focus on the IL gifts!
Then we pack up and do a 2 hour drive to my grandma’s (92 and rocking it), do a big formal Christmas Eve dinner, and the kids get to open gifts from my grandma and small little trinkets from my aunts and uncles (my kids are the only little kids). Then we drive back, the kids fall asleep and DH and I stay up past midnight prepping.
Butter says
In recent years Michael’s had giant coloring gingerbread houses (like fort size) that went on sale for $10 a few days before Christmas. Hoping they will again. That, plus decorating cookies and watching movies/listening to music gets us through the afternoon, when it’s time for the local lessons & carols service (we’re not religious, but I love the carols), then tamales for dinner.
Anonymous says
I think that sale may be happening; at least similar color in playhouses are on sale right now.
Emily S. says
I’m going to try dropping off treats and playing with our neighbor. I saw on Buzzfeed that someone’s parents made it a tradition that kids cleaned up the house for Santa while the parents took an afternoon nap — I might have to try that!
Anonymous says
Decorate a gingerbread house from a kit.
Audrey III says
Hi all – we took my 5-year-old (Pre-K) to a choral concert last night and he loved it. He asked if he could join a choir. We live in Arlington and my son goes to a small religious school that has great academics but no choir. Does anyone have experience with any of the children’s choirs in the NOVA or DC area? Google tells me there are a lot of them.
Anonymous says
Do you go to a church with a choir? Or could you?
Anon For This says
I had a bit of a mental breakdown last night. I’m at my highest weight ever right now after being a my lowest while TTC/in fertility treatments for #1. I gained a ton during my pregnancy and never shook it. DD is now 20 months. We are about to start treatments for #2, which is something I very badly want, but pregnancy #1 was physically very challenging (sciatica is no joke). I’m in my head about how much worse this pregnancy will be seeing as I’m 30 lbs heavier than I was when I got pregnant with #1. I’m also just dying to have my body back – which feels so selfish to say outloud, but I do. I hated breastfeeding. I hated pregnancy.
I have PCOS, among other fertility issues, and I’m a person that unless I’m actively trying to lose, I’m actively gaining. I just feel so out of control, insecure and but I still don’t see any reason to do anything differently because “I’m just going to get pregnant and gain it all over again”. FWIW we expect fertility treatments to be successful. Nothing is a sure thing, trust me we know that from our efforts for #1, but since #1 was successful doctor feels like we’ve cracked the code and #2 shouldn’t be more than 1-2 attempts (IUI).
I literally sobbed to my husband last night that I don’t want to be pregnant again and that I want by body back, and I think that was a lot for me to admit out loud. I’m not sure what I’m asking. I just don’t know how to get through this head space.
Anonymous says
Sciatica can be treated with physical therapy. My second pregnancy was way easier than my first after I got treatment. My doctor on my first pregnancy was basically useless on this point. It was a huge difference on my second pregnancy.
That said, it’s okay to be one and done, or use a surrogate, or be pregnant again but not love it. Chose the route that’s right for you.
Depending on your current weight, you may not need to gain much during pregnancy. Start an exercise routine now that you can continue through pregnancy like walking, yoga, pilates or working out with a personal trainer. Building muscle will also help with the sciatica.
One of the lawyers I work with has PCOS and stays on track but she uses a whole team to do it – personal trainer, dietician, phyiscian, and phyiscal therapist to address injuries so she can stay active. Don’t try to do it alone.
Anon for this says
Hugs. I’m just going to share my personal experience. I know that what I do is not for everyone. I had a lot of health issues that come up for me after a I got a bad virus while (unknowingly) living in toxic mold that had invaded inside our bedroom walls. Suddenly, it was like I had a new body. I gained weight like never before, and just generally felt like cr*p all the time. I’ve done a lot of things to get on the road to regaining my health, but one of them was trying the Bulletproof Diet. It went against a lot of things I had been taught were “healthy” but it is an extremely well researched diet (I started with the book by Dave Asprey). I believe it is evidence based, even if it is contrary to conventional wisdom. Our food is very different than it was 50 (or even 20) years ago. Some people are very sensitive to the pesticides and things in food. Some people get sensitive after they have a health crisis like mine. When you are eating foods that are setting off your immune system all the time, it can make it very difficult to lose weight, get pregnant, or feel good, even if you think you are eating “healthy” and otherwise living a healthy lifestyle.
First things first. It sounds like you aren’t ready to get pregnant again. Listen to that! Take a break. You can decide to revisit the issue in 3 months, 6 months, 12 months, whatever sounds good to you. Don’t let external expectations like timing or your spouse or whatever make you push your body into something that it (sounds like) you know it is not ready for.
Second, consider doing some program to help you feel better. I have a bias towards the Bulletproof diet because it has helped me so much. The author provides specific guidelines for pregnant women and TTC women in the book. He also wrote a book, The Better Baby Book, for pre-pregnant and pregnant women with his wife, Dr. Lana Asprey. Lana actually runs a fertility practice and conceived her two children after other doctors told her she would never be able to. But I don’t think you have to do the Bulletproof Diet. Take a look at different options available to you and pick something that you think sounds like a good fit for you to try so that you feel better about things. This could be anything from therapy, to acupuncture, to Weight Watchers, to whatever. But it sounds like you want to be in a better headspace before going forward with #2 and you absolutely deserve that. I’d encourage you to map out a plan to get there. You don’t just have to dive into it.
Anon says
It’s not selfish to want your body for yourself. Pregnancy, breastfeeding, and weaning can be incredibly taxing, especially while having to maintain everything else in your life.
I think it’s worth working with a therapist for a bit before deciding when/if to get pregnant again. For me, lots got harder with #2 for quite a long time. I think it’s that much harder on your kids and you when you’re not starting from an ok place.
Anon says
If you can afford it, why not work with a registered dietician? Make a plan and get accountability and support so you don’t feel out of control. This is a lot to deal with at once. Don’t put the burden solely on your shoulders (the American, self-help default is crap). Also, physical therapy can help a lot with sciatica. Did you go to PT last time? I was amazed by how much a few simple exercises helped me and reduced my pain. I get not wanting to be pregnant again. Best of luck to you and don’t beat yourself up – just get more support.
Seafinch says
Oh, commiserations. I have a nine month old and am always at my heaviest at this point (also am 11 weeks pregnant and am miscarrying and so extremely bloated and swollen). I feel like garbage too. Not looking forward to going out at Xmas. A few things: I have had horrific sciatica and SPD with two pregnancies and prenatal chiro entirely eradicated the sciatica. Definitely find a good one. Also, I have a twenty pound range and when I get pregnant at the top of it, I just don’t gain any weight. My third child was conceived after two, back to back, late miscarriages (one was twins) and I was at my absolute biggest and I gained 0 lbs the entire pregnancy. My last pregnancy I was a few pounds heavier than ideal and gained only 8 lbs. So it is possible the outcome isn’t dire. Hang in there. The sacrifices of this stage of life can take a toll.
Anon says
so i think there are a few ways to approach this. you can decide that you want to start trying for baby #2 asap and that this is a season of life, in which your body truthfully is not fully yours. there are moments i miss being pregnant (mostly bc i’ve always carried my weight in my stomach and sometimes look pregnant even though i’m not), but i do not miss having to think about all the food, medicine, beverages, lotions, etc. to make sure they wouldn’t harm the baby and then that continued during pumping. i think you need to decide if you want to try to lose some weight first or try for #2 first – both from an emotional standpoint and a logistical standpoint. there is no right answer to this question, but something that only you, DH and your doctors can decide, with you having the ultimate decision. does your fertility doc think your weight will impact your chances of success with an IUI? you cannot and should not try to lose weight while pregnant, but as others have suggested, you can try to work with a registered dietitian (try to find someone good – i was pregnant with twins and seeing a dietician was part of the standard of care for twin pregnancies at my practice and the person i saw gave me absolutely no useful information). you could even try to come up with a plan now (while you have more time/energy) for how you might ultimately lose the weight after you are done with baby #2 even though you won’t be implementing this plan for a while. psychologically that might make a difference for you. hang in there and good luck!
Anon says
I am so with you. I’m currently pregnant with #2 and I am not ready in a way – I just don’t enjoy being pregnant. I want this child, but pregnancy and the newborn days are something I feel like I have to get through.
I guess my point is it’s okay to want to have a child but not enjoy being pregnant. Honestly, being pregnant kind of sucks in my opinion.
Anon says
Adding to the chorus of those saying you do not have to do this, and you don’t have to do this right now.
My recommendation is to postpone the IUI until the summer. Between now and then, find a good therapist to talk about your feelings surrounding your body. Find a nutritionist and a personal trainer, and get into an exercise routine that you can keep up during pregnancy.
Being physically healthy during my pregnancy really only feels like it paid off around month 7. (I’m 8 months along now.) I was in amazing shape before pregnancy, and it was an emotional roller coaster – sometimes I would feel good about the fact that I was pregnant and still doing the stuff I loved, and most of the time, I just want my body back.
I dealt with some really vicious body-shaming right around week 10, which did a number on me – I feel trapped in my body and on display for people to take their issues out on, which does not do great things for me (childhood abuse survivor). Therapy is helping. Knowing that we are near the finish line is helping. Kicking the body-shamers out of my life helped.
PT says
So I did preemptive PT for my pregnancies at it was amazing. I started seeing a PT at around three months and went until the end of the eighth month and has LESS back problems than I do while not pregnant. Make sure you see someone who really targets to your issues, not just gives the same generic exercises to everyone, but honestly with good PT you may have a totally different pregnancy. I would also recommend hiring a doula for the birth and a night nurse for your first week – basically if you’re going to do this, line up a ton of extra physical and emotional support for yourself.
AnotherAnon says
It’s Wednesday (god it’s only Wednesday) – can we do cute thing your kid(s) did lately? This morning I gave kiddo (2.5) a small piece of gingerbread as a treat with his breakfast. He took one bite of gingerbread, chewed, then very solemnly asked me “Mama…me spit this in trash?” Guess he’s not into gingerbread.
Anonymous says
My almost 3 year old has abruptly quit napping most days. But yesterday afternoon she passed out laying in My bed watching the iPad. She doesn’t ever sleep anywhere but the crib including car/stroller/couch/etc…so getting to see her sleep like a little Angel was adorable
Anonymous says
My 4 yo is obsessed with rhyming. My husband jokes that he will become a free style rapper some day. Yesterday he wrapped a baby blanket around his shoulders and said, “My royalty cape! I’ve been looking for this all dape!”
ElisaR says
that’s so cute
Anon says
Adorable!!
ElisaR says
my 2 year old keeps singing his version of baa baa black sheep with great vigor over and over.
“Baa Baa Baa Baa ANY WOOL?”
Anon. says
We have a constant chorus here of “OLD MCDONALD HAD A FARM” sometimes remixed with Row Row Row your Boat.
Pogo says
Same, but in our house the medley now includes Jingle Bells for a festive twist!
Anonymous says
Same — ours is “Baa baa black sheep… l-m-n-o-p!”
AwayEmily says
3.5yo is just learning about Santa (we are not a super Santa-y family but it’s hard to avoid) and has a lot of concerns about the reindeer.
Her: “Do the reindeer have wings?”
Me: “Um…no, I don’t think so.”
Her: “OH NO! Then they will FALL DOWN FROM THE SKY!”
lsw says
Love all of these. We are not doing Santa, but my 3.5 – like yours – is obsessed with Santa. He’s also obsessed with babies. I hate the song Santa Baby, but he heard it on the radio and is obsessed with it because he thinks it’s about a baby Santa. He will hold his Santa Playmobil toy (from the advent calendar) and just croon, “Santa baby! Santa baby!” at it.
AwayEmily says
This made me laugh out loud. My 2yo is obsessed with babies (feeding them, putting them to bed, etc) right now also. I’ve been thinking about trying to make him a doll bed out of…I don’t know, a cardboard box and an old swaddling cloth? I like the idea that when he inevitably gets tired of it we can just recycle it. Unfortunately I am deeply non-crafty so doubt if I’ll actually be able to make this happen.
Anon says
one of my 19 month old twins is obsessed with saying “oops” and “oh no.” we have this thing where when she says “oh no,” i say “oh yes” and she thinks it is the most hilarious thing ever. she also wakes up from her nap and says “head. meow. oops.” three things which have absolutely nothing to do with one another. the other one started talking a bit later, but now knows how to say and sign more, and seems to really enjoy when you ask her to show you body parts, and as soon as your done asking, signs/says more, which can easily go on for 10 rounds.
Pogo says
This morning mine said “oopsy-daisy!” which I have literally never said in my life. Must be from daycare? It was too cute though!
Anonymous says
DD (2) was fussy while getting her diaper changed this morning and. Her brother (4) climbed up next to her on the dresser and just as we were about to tell him to get down, he looked at her and said, “It’s OK, [sister’s name], I’m here for you.” (all the heart-eye emojis)
Anon says
My kid isn’t born yet, so the only cute things he does are to kick and flutter and such. :)
My cat, however, is beyond adorable. She loves her treat ball, and will do this thing when it’s empty: she sits looking solemnly at it, and then takes a paw and halfheartedly and dejectedly bats at it. Then she looks at us with huge eyes, and gives it this “dying kitty has no energy” swipe again. When we go to open the bag of treats to empty them into her toy, she prances and cruises our legs. We’re trying to figure out if we can audition her for cat commercials and retire off the proceeds.
AwayEmily says
Thanks for sharing…my cat died a few months ago and I love hearing other people’s adorable cat stories. This one is extra cute.
CHL says
My co-worker’s 3 year old only wants a toaster for Christmas. Dream big, kid!
SC says
Ha! Last year, my 3 year old only wanted a lawnmower.
This year, the only thing he could think of was grip socks.
Anon says
a real one or a toy one? i actually think that is great. maybe this means the kid will grow up to find joy in life’s simple pleasures
Anonymous says
My son (3) told me that he didn’t want a birthday party when he’s 4, because there are “too many parties.” Some kids are just different.
anon says
Do you ever feel like you’re not living up to expectations as a daughter-in-law? I don’t know why I’m being so sensitive to this, but I was talking to MIL about Christmas plans last night and felt totally guilt-tripped about stating how I’d prefer to celebrate Christmas Eve.
MIL/FIL are hosting Christmas Eve. DH is an only child, so it’s just us to plan around.
MIL: What do you want to do for Christmas Eve?
Me: Since you’re hosting, what works best for you?
MIL: Oh, whatever works best for you guys.
Me: OK, I’d like to make sure we get to a Christmas Eve service. We can go to church at either 3, 5 or 7. So we could celebrate early in the day, like last year? That was nice.
MIL: So you just want to have lunch at our house? Are you sure you don’t want to come over for dinner instead?
Me: Hmm, that could get pretty late for the kids, if we don’t come over until church is over. I’d like to be home by early evening if we can.
MIL: *looks hurt and disappointed, uses the “I’m gonna weep” tone of voice* Well, I understand if that’s what works best for the kids.
So we settled on going over in the late morning and staying at their house until the 5:00 service, which is still a long-a** day by my standards. For 10+ years, before they lived in our town, I missed Christmas Eve services every single year because MIL thought evening celebrations were more special. Except that the kids would be melting down by 6:30 p.m. and we’d essentially be trapped in their house with over-tired kids and really didn’t get to form our *own* Christmas Eve traditions.
Don’t say you want to accommodate us, then act all hurt when I gently assert our preferences AFTER YOU ASKED ME TO. It was the weirdest conversation, made even stranger by the fact that DH was literally sitting in between us.
Anonymous says
I’d be most annoyed by DH in this scenario. It’s going to come up every year so better to game plan in advance. 3pm church, dinner at 5pm and home by 6:30-7pm would be my best case scenario. 4 hours total but only like 2-2.5 hours at the in laws.
If that timing appeals to you, you could always do a “DH and I discussed it further and thought 3pm church, dinner at 5pm and heading home to tuck the kids in around 6:30 or 7pm might be the best.”
FWIW, we do Christmas day at my parents (11am-4pm) so we only see them at church on Christmas eve.
anon says
Hmm, that timeline could work. I am crap at coming up with this on the spot, particularly when I feel cornered. (And yeah, I’m totally annoyed with DH.)
Anonymous says
I usually sit DH down the first week of December, run through the holidays events and figure out a timeline for Christmas Eve/Day. My parents are local but we have to schedule facetiming with my sister and his mom who are each like 2 time zones in opposite directions.
DLC says
I agree that I would be annoyed at DH. But if he is like my husband he might have had an entire lifetime growing up with passive aggressive manipulative conversations, so he might not see how one can gently push back. My husband always gave in to his mother because it was just what everyone in the family did for 35 years. Would it be within within the family dynamic to say “Oh we haven’t discussed it yet. We’ll talk about it tonight and let you know.”
Also my suggestions would be to put a calendar reminder in your phone for December 10, 2020 that says “Discuss Christmas Eve plans”, and send an invite to your husband. I send calendar invites to my husband for things like this all the time- we work such different schedules that this stuff gets lost in the cracks if I don’t schedule reminders to discuss it with him. (There was literally a calendar reminder last year this time that said, “Ask DH if we need to buy new snow shovels.”)
Anonymous says
A festive meal that starts promptly at 5 and you’re out the door at 6:30 would not remotely be an option in my house. How old are your kids that they are still melting down?
NYCer says
How old are your kids? If you initially offered 7pm church as an option, I assume that service wouldn’t be over until 8, which means your kids could stay up at least that late?
As another posted suggested, could you do the 3pm service and then dinner at your in-law’s place after? In that scenario, a 5-630 dinner would be challenging (i.e., 1.5 hours for a celebratory dinner/gathering seems short), but leaving by 730 or 8 would be doable.
NYCer says
Oops, I meant a 1.5 hour celebratory dinner wouldn’t be possible with my family (full of lingerers!!), not as a universal statement about the length of a dinner.
anon says
Well … they are past melting down age, but they are not past the age of getting downright crabby after being forced to be on their very best behavior for hours on end. To be blunt: They are much more flexible and better behaved in other settings than at the in-laws’ house. Despite visiting there fairly often, they just aren’t super comfortable there, for a variety of reasons.
Anonymous says
I would agree ahead of time with your husband on what you will offer to MIL. I’d say, “We’re going to the 7:00 church service. We’d love to celebrate with you before that. We’ll have to leave your house no later than 6:15 to get a parking spot at church–Christmas Eve is crazy.” Then you leave at 6:15 no matter what.
I wouldn’t go to an earlier service and then to the in-laws’ because (1) Christmas Eve services seem more special when it’s dark outside; (2) at our church, the choir only sings at the last service; and (3) I wouldn’t want to get stuck at the in-laws’ house later than planned. Your preferences may vary.
Anon says
You’re me, except DH has siblings who live much closer than we do. After a ton of pushing back and enforcing boundaries, etc, we’ve landed on a Thanksgiving-like schedule:
We get there around 2
Early dinner around 4
We leave at 6 to make a service near our own house
Service is done by 8, so we head home and keep the kids up a little later than usual to open our stockings and do a few short traditions of our own.
We also don’t travel on the day of Christmas, which was another fight that I think they’re still not happy with. But we just spent the entire afternoon with them, and need some time for our nuclear family as well. Boxing Day is then for my side of the family, with a similar Thanksgiving-ish setup.
Anonymous says
This happened a few years back with my mother. We always do Christmas Eve at her house. She wanted us there for dinner and then kept stalling for everyone to finish eating (my baby niece!) before opening the presents. My three year old at the time was going nuclear and I kinda lost my temper at her to get the show on the road already my child has to go home and sleep are you crazy!!! After that, she has been much more accommodating when we say we are skipping church/dinner/whatever. Two years ago we left half way through the service because I just could not deal with two squirming boys. This year we are going to attempt it again (with three!) and I am honestly dreading it.
Anon says
This is (one of the many reasons) why I host even though my ILs are local. Then I get to be in control of the schedule. I insisted on it when kiddo was little (she’ll be more comfortable at home, colic, etc.) and have not given up that ground since. We do our own church thing (I drag kiddo to the candlelight 11PM service and it’s just a special evening nap and stay up late night) on Christmas Eve and then I have the inlaws over for max 4 hours for Christmas Dinner – we prefer to start around 4 because then we can have a leisurely morning and I don’t have to rush into the cooking.
When we used to do Christmas Eve away from home growing up, we always did dinner before a late church service, so that there was a hard stop to the festivities that prevented the lingering always dragging on nonsense.