To hate the idea of Christmas Eve hampers?

[leobear]

I know, I know.....Scrooge! But surely the magic of Christmas Eve is the simplicity of it, and the anticipation of what is to come. A hamper is really a big box of presents, and feels to me like overkill. But maybe I'm just a misery guts!

Or is this one of those MN things, were new pj's (like clothes) are only bought once every 3 years, along with feeding a family on a sparrow sized bird?

Rudolph Pie is lovely. I make it at the beginning of December and freeze so no cooking on Christmas eve. I do some prep in the afternoon (if not working) on my own in the kitchen with the Festival of Nine lessons and carols on the radio.
When Kids were little, Dh was always working (retail) and didn't get home until 7ish so they were ready for bed by then. I always tried to keep it low key so they weren't over excited and up at stupid o'clock and very grumpy by lunchtime. It's all much more exciting now I don't have that to worry about.

Tesco are doing bags of cider toffee, that look like coal, mine will get that, as well on Christmas Eve, this year ( they are all over 16).

I think a Christmas Eve hamper is slightly overkill personally, but no objection to anyone else doing them. No to bath bombs, the treat for my DCs is NOT to have a bath, one of them doesn't like hot chocolate or wear pyjamas.

However there are a few things that we like to do from the start of December (if they only came out on Christmas Eve they would only get used for a couple of days). So, from 1st December, Christmas music is allowed on Ipods, Advent Calendar (obviously) and a basket of Christmassy replacements for normal things comes out of the loft (eg Christmas mugs and teatowels, also our Christmas story books). We also get a new Christmas film DVD so we can watch it a few times in the run-up. So, a sort of hamper.

No, it's not that, but genuinely I have never heard of anyone buying new pyjamas for Christmas Eve. But then, I never bought the DCs those 'baby's first Christmas' vests either.

no i dont buy the babys first things either,i think they area bit tacky,sorry anyone who loves them,im not keen on anything like that,even things like "strong like my daddy" and "my mummy is gorgeous" or even a simple "i love mum and dad" they annoy me.

The new pyjamas idea came about for us because my ds has AS and wears his pretty much 24/7 when home, so all his pyjamas always look tatty and washed to death. I wanted him to look nice for present opening photos, so engineered him to be wearing nice new ones by giving him them after his bath on Christmas Eve.

All three of mine now get new PJs and if nothing else, I find it really useful to help me identify which year is which by them when I'm going through my rather chaotic photograph archive.

Ahhh Christmas Eve traditions.

My kids get some PJ's and marshmallows.

It builds up the excitement of what's to come to such an infuriating level that it makes my gin consumption all the more worthy.

Am I the only one who doesn't photograph present opening? At least not since DD was nearly 1. I always had good intentions.......
They'll all have to be dressed and in their right minds by present opening this year as there is a PUPPY to be walked and I will be too busy chivvying the turkey into the roasting tin so will need early peace and quiet.

I used to get new pyjamas on Xmas Day and looked forward to wearing them on Christmas night after my matey bubble bath! I also give my kids pjs on Xmas day (only if they need them) so they can wear them on Boxing Day - that's when you need to really chill out. On Xmas eve I am busy cooking, going to church and having a massive fish pie with my family to even think of additional gifts. That is for Christmas Day! Christmas Eve is the day of anticipation - waiting, surely that's the excitement.......

DS (16) has insisted on a reindeer onesie....

DD (6) is insisting on a onesie with snowflakes...

We will be having a carpet picnic of party food on Xmas Eve - I'm not slaving over a hot stove for long.

We will be watching It's a Wonderful Life; The Muppets Christmas Carol and probably a very old video tape of Disney's "Mickey's Magical Christmas" or something along those lines.

DD will be putting carrots out for the reindeer and a mince pie and a glass of Bailey's out for Santa.

i love christmas i am in such a tight budget but i want to make memories like my parents made for me i dont go overboard her exmas eve hamper consists of new pjs christmas cookie dough and a new christmas book and dvd the elf will leave it on chritmas eve IF shes been a good girl i do think people can take it abit far

I don't photograph present opening.

Ok, so no new pyjamas, no photographing present opening, no bubble baths. What else am I missing that Everyone Else Does?

We usually do go to church on Christmas Eve, and I normally to to midnight mass (and then we go again on Christmas morning -- I really love that service). We have mince pies and carols, and I quite often listen to some of the nine lessons. I write a letter to the children from Father Christmas. And we often have a fishy dinner. But that's about it.

I always get a bit low on Christmas Eve just before I go to bed, Christmas Day is lovely but I love the preparation that goes on for up to 2 months before hand.

My husband and I love Christmas Eve, the children are so excited, Santa is on his way and Christmas Day itself seems over in a flash

What is Rudolph pie NCISaddict?
Photographing everything is an obsession of my DH. I long to just 'be' without pausing to pose at the right angle

I love midnight mass (and gin ) but they don't fit well with having small DCs, so my habits and traditions have changed for them.

Lifeisontheup, it should be fine. My Mum once sent one to my hubby when he was working in India. Cadburys chocolate from the UK was very coveted!

NCIS, we don't photograph every present, but like to catch one or two - particularly if there's something they're not expecting, but we know they're going to love.

My dcs tend to stay in their pjs till just before lunch too (ds1 would stay in them all day if I'd let him) so it's kind of hard to avoid pj wearing photos. Trying to get ds1 dressed before present opening would be a meltdown waiting to happen.

We're veggie, so luckily I don't have to wrestle a turkey and the dogs get walked after lunch on Christmas Day.

niminy
I have never indulged in "baby's 1st ....." items, either

"What is wrong with the pjs you already have"

Well I can't speak for anyone else on this thread but my child certainly grows - rendering PJs too small after an amount of time. Hence new PJs are necessary, hence we buy something she needs and its a special tradition.

Aren't we awful!

I don't do a hamper as such for DS, but he gets new jim jams on Christmas Eve (primarily to look vair naice as he opens his stocking and we maybe take a couple of photos), a Christmas film (this year, Nightmare Before Christmas) we read the Robert Sabuda architectural pop up version of The Night Before Christmas. Not especially an overdose of more pressies, just a nice tradition that we've started to really get us in the mood. I hate Christmas being centred on one day. The actual hampers I do are for the women in the family, as we're the ones that make Christmas happen. I hand them out on Dec 1st, and they contain; a Christmas smelling Yankee Candle, some gingerbread and hot choc, some peppermint foot soak, and muscle relax bath salts (for when shopping has beaten you), something like a Swarovski keyring shaped like a snowflake, an advent calendar, and some Christmas socks. The idea is, it is a little gesture to get us all in the festive mood, spread the Christmas sparkle that little longer :) I love doing them and don't see them as present overkill at all, it's a month before, and everyone adores them.

My kids have loads of PJs due to my pj obsession but they have always received a new pair on Christmas Eve, I agree that a hamper is slightly ott, but each to their own.

As for snuggling up and watching Christmas movies, that happens frequently from the beginning of December in this house, DS1 is 12 and we must have accumulated every Christmas film known to man.......we also have two birthdays in December, there is an obscene amount of gift giving going on without the need for a hamper ;)

No, I've never bought Baby's 1st .... either. Not sure how they're related to new pyjamas

We don't buy christmassy pyjamas/onesies, just new ones

My kids also choose a new christmas tree decoration each every year. Over the years we've built up lots of mis-matched decs but I love them all when they're on the tree. They remind me of each Christmas

We do take photos, but not millions, I don't make them pose artfully for a tasteful black and white shots. Just a few snaps as they're opening presents

I have no problem with the pj, hot chocolate, DVD but I feel uneasy about them being gifts or hampers. It's party bags all over again start with a piece of cake and have ended up as something to be admired or sneered at by others.

A new decoration is something we do. I have baubles going back to when my mum was a child. One year DS2 picked a sparkly cartman from South Park for the tree, he hadn't seen South Park but liked the look of it so I bought it for him and it still goes on the tree at the back