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Original poster

To ask if anyone else's parents did this?

360 replies

Storm4star · 04/12/2018 12:10

All the Christmas threads have got me thinking! I grew up in the 70's and obviously parenting was different then so I'm wondering if it's that or if my dad was just mean! (He was mean in general so it wouldn't be surprising!). Basically, he would never let us open our presents on Christmas day until after the Queen's speech (which I believe was on about 3pm). If we asked in the meantime then half an hour would be added on to this time, for every time we asked. I honestly used to dream of being like other families and sit round the tree in our dressing gowns in the morning and opening gifts then. Needless to say with my own children, we've always opened presents first thing! So I'm curious if anyone else was subject to these kinds of rules?

OP posts:
bakingdemon · 04/12/2018 15:31

We still only open our presents after the Queen! Though we open stockings in the morning

Panapan · 04/12/2018 15:48

Clearly different families have different traditions and most people are very attached to their own way of doing things, but do people really think it's "cruel" to make children wait for presents? There are sadly a lot of ways in which parents can be cruel to children, but is making them wait until Christmas afternoon to open their presents actually one of them?!!

FluffyMcCloud · 04/12/2018 15:50

Stockings in the morning. Presents after lunch, which would have been about 2-3pm. I do the same with my kids now.

Troels · 04/12/2018 15:54

We had stockings (well it was a pillowcase) in the morning.
The presents were opened after we'd eaten and the washing up was done, usually by the men, as the older women in the family had done all the prep and cooking. No presents till everyone was in the front room and Grandma had a glass of something in her hand. We still have presents later in the day after eating.

anniehm · 04/12/2018 15:54

No, growing up gifts first thing BUT with my kids it's stockings only first thing (and Santa is particularly mean, or rather was ell beyond that now) and other gifts after church before lunch with Buck's Fizz/champagne (obviously juice when they were young, now they guzzle the fizzy wine big time).

skippy67 · 04/12/2018 15:59

We were allowed to open all of our presents first thing. With my own DC, it's stockings first thing. Tree presents are opened after dinner, so at about 5pm. We've done it like this since they were about 5yo, and it's always worked well for us.

Mia1415 · 04/12/2018 16:01

No, Stocking presents first thing and then the rest after breakfast when my Grandparents arrived (normally about 11am).

I follow the same rule now with DS (apart from sadly there are no grandparents to wait for).

lily2403 · 04/12/2018 16:18

My parents used to insist on breakfast then we got to sing jingle bells on our way to open our presents...was always the crack of dawn. I think its cruel to do that to a child, would defiantly temper their excitement

Fridaydreamer · 04/12/2018 16:19

Always a presents first thing here. Just like it was when I was a child. If I get a coffee made first that’s rare. It’s so exciting waking up and racing to the living room to see the presents though.

Sorry you have negative Christmas memories OP but good that you’re making better ones with your DC Flowers

PumpkinKitty82 · 04/12/2018 16:23

We have to wait till after lunch at my outlaws but at home and also when I was younger with my parents in the 80’s, it’s open stocking presents on our bed then downstairs for a cup of tea while we open the presents and then we all get washed/ dressed ready to go to family for the day

fussychica · 04/12/2018 16:25

No. Child of 60s. Big presents as soon as you got up on Christmas Day provided that was after 7am and he had been! Tree presents after breakfast as Christmas lunch was quite late in the afternoon.
Didn't have all this ridiculous Christmas Eve box stuff either.

Omzlas · 04/12/2018 16:25

It's always been presents when you wake up for us, even as kids

I carried on the same when our kids were born (DH grew up in a household that didn't / doesn't celebrate Xmas so any traditions etc come from me)

Thebookswereherfriends · 04/12/2018 16:26

We were allowed to have our stocking gifts first thing and then allowed our under the tree presents after the queens speech. I was never bothered by it because it meant you spread the fun out all day, although I would have preferred not to have to watch the speech as it was boring.

ScreamingValenta · 04/12/2018 16:26

No, we used to open them as soon as we got up (70s/80s).

Dieu · 04/12/2018 16:28

It is absolutely bizarre to me that parents would make their children wait!
Anyway, Scotland here, so the queen's speech isn't really a thing.

Howdoyoudoit31 · 04/12/2018 16:28

Never watched the queens speech.

All presents opened first thing as a kid at whatever time we got up. Same with my kids.

I don’t get why you would make the kids wait until after lunch. Stupid idea

Oldraver · 04/12/2018 16:29

I think it's mean.To know you have presents and hold them vback form being opened is cruel

chocolatecoveredraisons · 04/12/2018 16:31

Stockings first thing (I wrap them individually 🙈 to make it last longer) then we breakfast and I try and wake up a bit. Coffee then Buck's Fizz and then it's present time. Usually about 10am. Our children are 5 and 3

I used to wait as a child but as we got older the rule slacked and became much more enjoyable.

The only rule I have is wait until at least 7am for stocking presents

Ariela · 04/12/2018 16:31

We had plenty in our stockings to keep us occupied (usually a couple of books) , but like you first present was after The Queen. Then it was a long wait till the next present. They spun out aunt and uncle presents till almost the day before we went back to school.

CoffeeWithMyOxygen · 04/12/2018 16:33

Ours made us open them gradually over all 12 days. If you didn’t have 12 things to open you had to skip a day so you’d still have something left on Epiphany. I hated it and eventually staged a revolt in my late teens.

90mammasophie · 04/12/2018 16:33

Stockings first thing here. Always. Other gifts after breakfast / brunch.

SweetheartNeckline · 04/12/2018 16:36

Whaaaaaaaaat?! No, that must have been hell! We weren't allowed up until 5.30am though. Stockings were opened upstairs so we'd have chocolate Santa and a mini can of pop for breakfast. We had amazing Christmases.

Parky04 · 04/12/2018 16:36

All presents were opened as soon as we got up! Too excited to wait.

MilkTrayLimeBarrel · 04/12/2018 16:48

I used to wake up early and was allowed to choose one present from under the tree - usually an annual - and take it back to bed until getting up time! Family presents were opened after breakfast and after opening the Champagne! We always used to open in turn so we knew what everybody else had, and it was nice to see reactions to the presents I had given.

TheOrigFV45 · 04/12/2018 16:53

Howdoyoudoit31
Not very broad minded are you? Stupid idea? Not really.
I presume you buy the presents for your children before the 25th, so you make them wait until the 25th to open them. Why?
Tradition? It's what your family have always done? Fine.

During the day we played with our stocking presents, or helped younger siblings set their presents up, or we played board games while drinking Babycham and eating Quality St.