To think Christmas Eve boxes are absolutely ridiculous and unnecessary?

[dressinggownwearer]

Just that really. Do children not get enough at Christmas without giving them even more the day before?! What are Christmas Eve boxes even for/full of that can't wait until Christmas Day?! Am I being mean and a grinch or do people agree?

I hate them, the principle. And that fucking elf!?

Yeah we don't have an Christmas Eve box. We have an advent box which contains 2 new themed Christmas books for my DS, new pjs. My DH and I get a new Christmas wasjig which we then have to complete by Xmas eve. I stopped advent calenders last year as they were a waste of money. I also hate elf on the shelf and block anyone on FB who does it for December. Just think its a way for parents to show off

We don’t do a Christmas Eve box, but we do celebrate St Nicholas day in early December. It makes way more sense to give things like Christmas PJs/slippers/cocoa mugs at the beginning of the season, and it’s so fun for the children to break up the fun. We usually decorate our tree and the house the weekend before.

I agree with the OP.

In these unprecedented times and with so many families about to or already having reduced income from shorter hours or job losses, stopping so-called traditions like this will help to educate children that not all are as fortunate as they are. One step towards this.

We do pjs, hot chocolate stuff, Xmas socks, some chocolate coins for a Xmas movie. All very basic. You sound fun

Oh, a Christmas Eve box thread .

Lovely to see that these are here again despite the pandemic!

I agree it's a silly gimmick and just resonates of the tat sold on Facebook.
My mum always let us open a new pair of xmas themed pjs on xmas eve and that's something I do with my ds. Something special and exciting and great for the photos in the morning.
Elf on the shelf , easter bunny, decorating the inside of your house 2 weeks before Halloween, it's all social media driven , its not for me .

Oh the elf can get in the sea.

Mine get pyjamas on Xmas eve - so that they can wake up in them. But nothing else.

Perhaps you are assuming that they are filled with extra presents but that's not the case with us. We store the stockings and Santa's plate in there plus reindeer food and The Night Before Christmas. The only extra expense is a nice hot chocolate "kit" and a festive Lush bath bomb to be used that evening. It's a lovely ritual to open the box and take out these special items each year.

We always do The Kindness Elves for the 12 days of Christmas. This year I'll be doing a North Pole Breakfast on 1st December too. I LOVE Christmas /Yule.

Wholeheartedly agree
I'm assuming it's another thing adopted from the US mummy bloggers?
I have enough trouble these days working out what to buy two DCs who are older now without this crap.

@Pelleas

Oh, a Christmas Eve box thread .

Lovely to see that these are here again despite the pandemic!

Ohh ha ha. A dose of normality...how comforting.

They can be really ridiculous, but you can also make it lovely. We only do a hot chocolate and some Christmas craft in ours and maybe a bath bomb. Just helps for a relaxing evening to get them to bed to be honest.

I also stopped the Xmas pjs on Xmas eve because felt like a waste. Now they get Xmas pj's in November!

Ah but it's making memories for the kiddiwinks, innit hun? And what would you post on Instagram without the boxes and the fucking elf?

So glad my kids are too old for that shit. Even if they were still small, I would be refusing to get caught up in consumerist tat.

@bumblingbovine49

It's good to see we are getting back to all the old chestnuts after so much coronavirus obsession. Christmas Eve boxes, right on cue

I am not sure is my considered opinion in this after around after several threads in several years. I tried one a few years with pyjamas , hot chocolate and popcorn fyir a Christmas Eve movie but DS hasn't been that keen in Christmas Eve films ( or any films really) since he was about 6 and pyjamas seemed pointless after a couple of years so they seem superfluous to me.

Then again ,some people have them as an integral part of their Christmas. routine and for me Christmas Eve is always nicer than Christmas day anyway. so if you are not religious and don't go to midnight mass and you don't have other Christmasmas Eve rituals, I can see the appeal. On the other hand I also see the point about more pointless consumerism if it is just more presents

I haven't been on MN long so forgive me for the same old topics!!

@puddlemuddles

FFS not this again, and - YABU - it's ONLY OCTOBER!

If you don't like Christmas Eve boxes, don't do Christmas Eve boxes. It's not hard.

Personally, I don't like elf in the shelf so I don't do it, but I don't go round having a go at people who do! If people enjoy doing self on the shelf I'm pleased for them.

Everyone is free to create their own family Christmas traditions, that's the beauty of it.

Our Christmas eve box contains PJs and hot chocolate for the kids, booze for the grownups and sweet treat for everyone (christmas biscuits of something like that) and possibly a Christmas DVD.

It's got things to wind-down with, the evening before Christmas, basically.

One of us puts it on the doorstep, rings the bell then legs it round the back of the house before the kids answer the door. There's a note on it saying it's from the elves.

It's a bit of fun. We enjoy it.

YOU DON'T HAVE TO DO IT!

Why do people feel the need to police / criticise other family's ways of enjoying ourselves?

I wasn't aware I was 'having a go', I was just asking for people opinion. Is that not the point of MN? If it annoyed you that much, why click on the thread?

I didn't think Christmas could get even more commercialised. I was wrong.

I got new pyjamas and some bubble bath on Christmas Eve when I was a girl and I'm in my 30s now.

We do similar with our kids and it smoothes the bedtime over on Christmas Eve. In fact my kids only tend to have their Christmas Eve pjs and and perhaps one other set each year. It's nice and it works for us.

One of my children was very scared that Santa wouldn't come (although we have never, ever threatened them with no presents when behaviour is bad) so it reassured her that she's going to get something on Christmas morning.

People actually appear to attach moral significance to not doing a Christmas Eve box brilliant.

I would shout Merry Christmas to you but I'm not sure if you'll hear me away up there

YANBU - they are a ridiculous thing. Christmas Eve is exciting enough without having to add presents to. It's sad that people think things
can only be exciting when presents are involved

These threads get earlier every year.

It's sad that people think things can only be exciting when presents are involved

No one thinks that. HTH.

I do them, I do pj’s, hot chocolate, a colouring book to keep them quiet, a Christmas film we already have and a book we already have. I’ll maybe do a bath bomb, it doesn’t cost much but it makes them settle down easier on Christmas Eve

I'm less irritated by people choosing to stick a DVD and pyjamas in a box on Christmas Eve than I am with the fact that you've kicked this one off in bloody October. I know this particular moralistic castigation is irresistible, but why couldn't you at least do it in season?