To HATE the whole idea of Christmas Eve boxes

[TeeJay1970]

Don't kids get enough stuff on the 25th?

My nephews and niece now think it's their right to have gifts on the 24th as well.

Where does it end?

Yes I know AIBU!
Yes it's probably been done on here already in the last few weeks!

Is social media spreading this crap?

Yes! The answer is yes - no matter what the subject matter is!

Social media is spreading ALL the crap! (As well as some good stuff in between the crap, I suppose).

Ours get new pyjamas and a Christmassy storybook. I think it’s a lovely simple way to make Xmas Eve a bit more magical. Most Xmas traditions were invented by marketing bods/ the ruling classes somewhere down the line. It seems weird that people get so irate about how other people choose to treat their kids at Xmas.

I’ve always done a Xmas pjs and hot chocolate and dd is in her teens. Bizarre that people find it greedy to get new pyjamas

We’ve always had new pyjamas Christmas Eve but they aren’t wrapped or anything. Just provided by us.

My DGM had a Christmas Eve birthday so it was very much just another day at ours as Christmas wasn't allowed to encroach much. We would usually go out for a good lunch, so good food and then staying up late for church usually finished me off as a kid. DM says she never had any bother getting me to bed on xmas eve and would leave a stocking that I was allowed to open alone in my room for xmas day if I got up early, usually with a book in once I was old enough to read to myself happily. I'm not sure what I'd do instead for DC, family has never had any need to "fill" xmas eve!

I've started it for my ds. It just has his new pjs, the same film every year (Muppet's Christmas Carol ... After all there's only one more sleep til Christmas!) the same book every year (twas the night before Christmas, which my dad used to read to us) and his stocking (an old rugby sock of dps). It's all things we would do anyway but I think it's nice to pop them all together and make a bit of a thing of it. When he's a little older, I might add some snacks to eat while we watch the film but again, he would get the snacks anyway. He might also get an activity book or little craft set or something that will entertain him on Christmas Eve for a while too when he's old enough. So there's only one new thing (his pjs) which we used to get on Christmas day anyway growing up, but I think it's nice to have new pjs and make going to bed on Christmas Eve even more special! It doesn't have to be crazy consumerism if you don't want it to be.

My mother is German so we always opened all our gifts on Christmas Eve.

I give my dcs new pyjamas and a book on Christmas Eve. We have Lebkuchen too. Then all the other gifts on Christmas Day.

If they agitate for Christmas Eve gifts just give them one or two small ones.

Nope. Nope. Nope. Do not do. Will never do.

I do find it funny that people have been duped into making it a ‘tradition’ (?!) by a group of marketing execs

Considering that many people have said they have had this tradition since their own childhood, those marketing execs were working 20, 30, 40 years ago. Or maybe people just like to have a nice relaxing Christmas Eve which generally involves having a chilled out activity, warm drink, small snack and fresh pyjamas to help overexcited children to wind down on a night they're usually wound tighter than an elastic band.

You can't blame retailers for wanting to capitalise on this by turning the tradition into an "event" (much like the rest of Christmas) that they can sell more that for.

I'm 29 and my siblings and I always got new PJs on Christmas Eve so we'd look nice in the Christmas morning pictures. My mum would take us to church on Christmas eve (evening service till we were teens and could hold out till midnight mass) and my dad, who isn't religious, would stay at home and spend that time putting fresh sheets and Christmas blankets on our beds and laying out our Christmas PJs. When we got home from mass we would all have a warm bath, put on our new pjs, go down to the living room where we'd read a Christmas story in front of the fire before we set out Santa's sherry, mince pie and carrots for the reindeer. We all then hung our stockings on our doorknobs (easier for mum and dad Santa to fill without disturbing us, plus meant our bedroom doors had to be closed so he'd see them when he came upstairs and we didn't see dad hauling presents down from his attic hiding place ) and went to bed super early because "the sooner you go to bed, the sooner Santa comes".

We do it but it’s pyjamas we can wear all year, snacks we would have had anyway and drinks we would have had anyway. In a box. It starts xmas off. We all stop faffing and sit down together for muppet christmas carol
No extra consumption just reordered consumption

I'm doing a christmas eve box! My mum never did stuff like this (she's a fab mum but a bit 'bah humbug' about christmas) so I'm doing the christmas eve box, stockings, advent calendars, gaudy christmas jumpers - all the trimmings! I love it!

New pj’s, a new tooth brush, some sweets, maybe some colouring or a cupcake making kit (one of those add an egg jobs)

In some cultures the gifts being given on xmas eve is the traditional norm, I find it odd that so many people get positively riled about Christmas Eve boxes, it’s just spreading the gifts out a bit and making normal items feel a bit more magical.

I hadn't a clue what the fuss was about with Christmas Eve boxes. I've just seen a box filled with tat in Asda, being sold as Christmas eve boxes.

I wouldn't buy a box full of tat to give kids on Christmas Eve.

I'm happy to continue the tradition of Pj's, drink, nibbles and book/DVD, in a recycled Christmas bag on Christmas Eve. We always received a Christmas Eve bag, when we were kids, my children and nieces and nephews have always received one too.

The Christmas Eve box/bag isn't a new trend. A box full of tat that shops are pushing truly is a waste of money and is no way comparable to the original, traditional Christmas Eve bag

Oh I haven't seen those in the shops but then again I haven't been looking. You can't blame the shops for pushing a much tat as they can as Christmas is when some of them make the money that keeps them open for the rest of the year. But if parents are stupid enough to buy into it, that's their lookout. They're will always be people who think piles of plastic shit is what 'makes memories' for their kids, even though it may as well go directly into landfill. It's not as if it makes any difference if it's piled up on Christmas Day or some of it is piled up the night before. Most kids won't remember for long enough for it to be a cause of peer pressure at school by January so it is entirely parents wanting to show off to their Facebook friends.

Christmas stockings if children believe in Father Christmas, nothing else in my view. Seems another excuse invented to spend more money.

I never even heard of them till last year when all my friends were putting pics on Facebook, some more than others. I thought I’d try it this year see how it goes down.
I’ve put Xmas pjs, bath bomb, a mini collectible toy ( roblox for DS & l.o.l lil sister for dd) put a gingerbread house and some choc coins.
Seems nothing to some people I’ve seen. They will have to wait till I get back from work at 2pm 😊

Makes me laugh how people thing Christmas Eve boxes are a new thing. I’m 38 & my mum always did this for us at Christmas when we were kids, new pjs, chocolate coins, a Christmas book & Santa Claus the movie on vhs (which changed to the muppets Christmas carol on dvd when we were older). It was a lovely tradition that we carried on even when we were students returning from uni for Xmas, all snuggling up together as a family in our new pjs to watch a festive movie & eat chocolate is one of my favourite things about Christmas!

I have done them for the last couple of years, but I don’t buy things to specifically go in them.

I just take some items I would have given them anyway on Xmas day & give them a bit early.

I put books instead of DVDs as I simply don’t buy DVDs any more. Hot chocolate, bar of chocolate & PJ’s. doesn’t need more than that in my view.

I'm 32, my Grandma always gave us Christmas Eve presents of pyjamas, slippers, chocolate coins, a book and video. I do it for DS, who's too young to give a shit yet but I enjoy it. He has my old stocking, copy of night before Christmas etc.

I do it and remember my Grandma who died almost six years ago, just after Christmas, because she was determined to have one last one with us all.

I have Christmas pyjamas older than my relationship still in rotation, I just like new pyjamas

Im another who does them but they don't involve presents, just fresh (non-Christmas-themed) pyjamas for us all, a nice tin of hot chocolate, some spiced biscuits and T'was the Night Before Christmas book. I don't, however, follow the Christmas jumper trend, as I'm too tight to buy a jumper to wear once or twice. I wonder how many of those complaining about the horrors of Christmas Eve boxes wear Christmas jumpers?

Xmas Eve boxes? In England? First I've heard of it.

I demand one with immediate effect.

My parents always gave us new pjs and a book on Christmas Eve, we've continued the tradition with our DC. DH didn't have Christmas Eve presents growing up.

My mum is Christmas mad, she isn't British and didn't celebrate when younger so she's always gone OTT.

As kids we had Christmas Day with presents and also on 6th January, and I mean the whole lot again, she didn't do half and half. I've not continued this with DC. Presents on Christmas Day and we celebrate the 6th with lots of nice food and chocolate in shoes. I think it's easy to get caught up in it all.

@eurochick I'm a Scouser and have never heard of this before. You can't blame everything on us!

Melj1213

Your Christmas growing up sounds perfect

We always put presents under the tree from each other, my siblings and I. So we would open one of these each on Christmas Eve. I can’t remember anything else we would do every year though :(

Christmas morning is a different story. My dad and the dog would both sport a Santa costume each, and dad would ring bells and shout ho ho ho to wake us all up. This happened right up until my youngest sister left home last year at the age of 23! He would still do it if he we still lived there, I miss that.

My 3 year old gets a Christmas Eve box and an elf now. This was her first year with the elf, and she is absolutely fascinated with him and believes in him so much it’s beautiful to see. He’s leaving her Christmas Eve box before he goes back to the North Pole. It has pyjamas, festive book, a few other bits. Then we’ll go to the same garden centre we’ve been to the past 2 years as it’s empty on Christmas Eve, to see Santa and browse the Christmas shop. Then a drive to see the Christmas lights.

After that it’s home to get the wanky matching family pyjamas on, sprinkle reindeer food, watch Christmas movies and set out Santa’s treats.

I can’t wait, this is the first year of her really getting it and she’s so excited. Love the magic of Christmas

I've never heard of Christmas eve boxes till this year, but my kids always get new Pjs. We do stockings too and then they come downstairs to their presents. People have different family traditions and things they like to do and there's nothing wrong with that.