Wife and two sons - best part of the holiday. The whole damn rest of our families (except for my sister, who I actually like but is a couple thousand miles away) not so much. My parents, her parents, her bro and sis-in-law, her sis-in-laws mother, sister and sisters wife.
We had about three hours of family time (just the four of us) opening gifts from each other and having a grand ol’ time between marathon visits with relatives.
I used to enjoy this time of year.
Since Saturday I’ve had an orgy of family. Saturday I drove over to my parent’s house, home base for Christmas. My two brothers and their wives were there and so were two of my sisters. Add in my Aunt and Uncle and my three nieces and two nephews and it was a crowd.
So Saturday we opened presents with my older brother and his family. They left at dark.
Christmas Eve we opened presents with my oldest sister and her kids. We had pancakes for breakfast and turkey for dinner. They left around dark.
Christmas Day my sister from New Orleans came, and we opened all our presents. Eggs Benedict for breakfast and Chateaubriand
I’m home now. I love my family, but that was a bit much.
-Lil
My parents, my mother-in-law, my sister, my brother-in-law, my brother, and my friend. It was my first time ever hosting Christmas dinner, but with my sister 8 months pregnant and my parents leaving on vacation in a couple days, it seemed like a good thing to volunteer.
And it all turned out well; the food was excellent, if I do say so myself; the company was congenial and convivial; and we all had a great time. My house does look like it’s been through the wars, though…
Mom and brother for early dinner (2 pm, like every year – at the Tradewinds on the beach this year); Dad, Thirdwife, and brother for evening visit; brother and friend for late-night diner food. Pretty much the same every year – sometimes there are more people at the diner, sometimes fewer, but other than that, a straight-up normal Christmas for me.
Christmas Eve we went to church with my baby sister and her new husband. Sis and I giggled over one thing, my husband and son giggled over another and my new BIL was a bit of a lump,but okay. There was communion and he’d never heard of it, but that was fine. Then they came back for snacks and a game and a little gift exchange. My mom was at my house too, with her new puppy. She’s not baby sis’s mom, but it’s all good. Christmas morning we did Santa and then my twin and her husband and two sons came from Long Island. We had the nicest Christmas ever. We played Karaoke Revolution on my son’s new PS2 (he’s only almost 8 - we don’t need PS3!) and my twin won handily and yelled at my snoring mom “Hey MOM! Wake UP! I got a perfect score!” She’s 43. Then the boys played Guitar Hero II and I was so excited to see that my workstudy student IS the default high score as she thought she might be(she did an internship at the company that made it.). She’s very dear to me and has spent Thanksgiving with us in the past, but went home to Japan for Christmas, but was with us on our TV right here in Rhode Island. Awesome.
Christmas Eve - Mom, stepdad, and little sister in Oklahoma.
Christmas Day - Still in Oklahoma with the aforementioned, plus stepdad’s sister plus husband and kids, stepdad’s mom and stepdad, and my stepgrandfather (my real grandmother’s widower). For a one floor house, that’s a lot of steps!
Today - At home with roommate.
Tomorrow - Back to the hometown with dad and stepmom.
Spent most of the day with my wife’s mother’s family–my wife’s younger sister & her family, her mom & step-dad, aunts & uncles, nieces, and grandparents. And amazingly, my crazy mother-in-law acted generally sane, if somewhat asocial. 
Spent Christmas evening with my immediate family, and, to my great surprise, both my cats . 
(Sorry, I just can’t stop doing that. )
Christmas Eve - Worked.
Christmas Day - Early dinner ( 3ish ) with my mother at my place, late dinner ( 7ish ) with four friends at one of theirs.
Yep, two multi-course dinners in one day ( I cooked the first one ). No, I’m not proud ;). And yes, despite attempting to be careful not to overindulge at the second one, I was indeed in mild gastric distress by the end of the evening :p.
But, what the hell. You only live once ( though not for long if you try that stunt more than once a year ).
I spent it with me. Much better than the medical drama and control problems at “home”: three alpha females fighting, and of course none of them face to face, and two actually have the bollocks to use me for a confidant, and I’d love to throttle them but aparently I’m over-eddycated or something because I still haven’t and…
Aaaah yes, peace!
Oh, I also spent it with the ladies of Wysteria Lane. Season One was on sale and I’d never been able to watch a whole episode. That plumber’s hot.
Packed up the furball (a 12 year old lab/golden mix) and spent Christmas Eve and most of Christmas Day with a couple of very dear friends who have helped me get through a really crappy seven months.
On Christmas Day evening, I took a drive out to SFO (sorry, San Francisco Airport) to pick up some other good friends coming back from the east coast.
This was the first year it’s just been me and my wife (and the kitties). We already had family Xmas with her family on Nov 30th, as her brother won’t be in this part of the country again until spring. I chatted briefly with my brother in Vancouver on IM, and that was it. I was sick, too. Some rat bastid at work gave me this cold just in time for Xmas. It’s a good thing I didn’t have to go be around a lot of people.
I had xmas with my son, but we didn’t do anything. My daughter didn’t do anything either, but she stayed home to not do it 
Day before Christmas Eve - My cousins, parents, aunts, uncles, sisters, and neices/nephews.
Christmas Eve - Mrs. Small, her parents, her sisters, and her brothers. Then I came to the apartment and ate McDonalds all by myself.
Christmas Day - Mrs. Small, my parents, my sisters, and the nieces/nephews…
I guess I’m a family guy…heh
Brendon
I spent Christmas Day with: Myself, my sister, my half-brother, my mother, my step-father, my father, my step-mother, my paternal grandmother, my paternal grandfather, my paternal uncles, aunts, niece, and nephew.
Christmas Day was spent in three parts:
Morning: 4 (plus 2 kids) close friends came over for traditional breakfast (smoked ham, cheese & tomatoes) with my husband and I.
Lunch: At my parents house, with said parents, brother, my mother-in-law, paternal aunt and uncle and my 2 disinterested cousins.
Dinner: My mother-in-law’s place, with my husband’s kiwi Aunt & Uncle surprise visitors, my MIL’s on-off boyfriend and my brother-in-law (briefly, before he went to work).
Overall, it was a pretty good (albeit tiring) day.
Christmas Eve- brother came in from L.A. the night before, he & Mom & I go to church in the morning, after eating at Bob Evans, he & Mom go out to drive around town while I sleep (I worked that night), I get up later to join them, watch TV & wrap presents till we all go to sleep
C’mas Day- we all spend day together & my galpal comes over to exchange gifts & watch one of her gifts to me- the DVD of SWEENY TODD.
Another orgy of family. My sister and brother-in-law are the confluence of two families: hers (and mine) and his. We all get together for X-mas, at my sister’s for X-mas Eve, and then at his sister’s for X-mas day. So, on both days, we had:
My parents
Me
My brother
His two small children (of whom he has sole custody)
My sister and BIL
Their two small children
BIL’s sister and husband
Their three small children
BIL’s father
BIL’s mother and mother’s new husband
BIL’s mother’s new husband’s mother
That’s 20 people, seven under the age of 8.
It was fun, in a “this is completely nuts” sort of way. I drank a lot, by necessity. Now I’m back home, at work, ALONE. Ahh, bliss.
The thousands of other people spending Xmas in NYC in the rain.
That is one depressing sentence.
Mum, Dad, Stepdad (the two can buy beers for each other these days rather than fistfight ), sister, brother-in-law, nephew, five day old ultra-cute niece.
We always spend Christmas with family, and New Year’s with friends. It strikes a nice balance, I think.
Saturday afternoon we went to my aunt’s to see grandma #1 and aunts, uncles and cousins on that side of the family.
Christmas Eve dinner was at grandma #2’s with aunt, uncle, and cousins. This was also my Christmas with my dad.
Christmas morning breakfast at my mom’s preceded by gift opening. All three of my sisters, their husbands, and children were there. Lazy afternoon spent toying with presents, watching movies, and playing board games. Was supposed to go to dad’s but didn’t want to leave mom alone. We’d already had Christmas with him anyway. My mom, my sister, my dog and I went for a nice walk in the late afternoon and drove around to look at Christmas lights when it got dark. During the evening my husband and I ordered a pizza for supper and watched a movie.
We still have Christmas to do with my husband’s parents, sisters, etc. tomororw night.
Sounds like New Year’s Eve will be spent at home, with as many friends who’d like to join us. I’ll make my always popular shredded beef sandwiches and we’ll eat, drink, play cards, listen to music, and sit in the hot tub. I’m thinking of firing up the fondue pot if
I can find a good recipe.