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Original poster

Stockings - why do people make it hard for themselves?!

91 replies

christmaslover88 · 25/12/2022 05:24

I've read so many posts tonight about people having to stay up crazy late for their kids to fall asleep to do stockings, their kids hearing them in their rooms and sussing Santa isn't real, people with duplicate stockings to speed up the process etc

Why do you all do this to yourselves?!

Stockings have never gone in bedrooms here, hung up on the mantelpiece before bed and then laid on the floor in front of the fire once filled. Santa comes down the chimney so surely it makes sense to have the stockings close at hand?

I genuinely didn't know stockings in bedrooms was a thing but it just seems to be a way to make your own life harder on Christmas Eve!

OP posts:
WhiteFire · 25/12/2022 08:27

One in the bedroom, one downstairs.

Putting it into the room was never the issue, it is getting them out of the loft unheard that is.

luxxlisbon · 25/12/2022 08:30

Agree. DH told me he used to be up from 3am opening the stocking at the end of his bed and the in-laws complained about how early they woke as children on Christmas. I mean yeah if there are presents at the end of the bed and you are an excited 6 year old alone with them of course you aren’t going to be able to sleep!
Stockings go on the fireplace/ at least in the living room.

StealingYourWiFi · 25/12/2022 08:31

im Terrible at remembering anything from childhood but I absolutely remember the feeling of the heavy stocking weight on my feet when I woke up Christmas morning and carrying our stockings into each others rooms before finally being allowed into our parents room to open them

bridgetreilly · 25/12/2022 08:42
  1. It’s all made up, so you can make it up the way that suits you.
  2. It doesn’t have to make sense.
  3. It can change from year to year.
  4. When they are ready to start questioning, they’re ready to work out it’s not real.
  5. You do not have to tie yourself in knots to keep them believing a myth for as long as possible. Much better that they work it out than have to be told at some point.

So, absolutely I’m with the OP, don’t make it difficult for yourself,

NewDogOwner · 25/12/2022 08:50

Ponderingwindow · 25/12/2022 05:28

It seems crazy to me too.
”the stockings were hung by the chimney with care”

it’s right there in the poem.

we have really good stocking holders that will hold even the heaviest stockings so ours stay up after being filled, but always in the main living area, by the fireplace if you have one.

Can you link to these?

TiredandLate · 25/12/2022 08:58

You're not wrong! Dd is a teenager now but I did the stocking on the bed game every year she believed, hands down the hardest, most stressful bit! I tell everyone with young kids to keep the bloody thing downstairs 😅

Currently in bed with a brew as dd doesn't want to go downstairs until the heating has warmed up.. times change so fast so try and enjoy the days when it's still magical for them.

Original poster
christmaslover88 · 25/12/2022 09:14

Gosh, those saying they do it so they don't have to wake up makes me so sad. I can't imagine not wanting to watch my children's faces when they open their stockings

Lots talking about it being the most magical part of Christmas. My parents always had stockings downstairs and my Christmases were incredibly magical so I'm not buying that Christmas isn't magical unless your stocking is on your bed

And those saying they don't have a fireplace, how do you tell your kids Santa gets in? If you're doing the magic key then again, surely it makes sense to have stockings downstairs near to where Santa enters the house? Unless you tell your kids he climbs in their bedroom window!

OP posts:
ladygindiva · 25/12/2022 09:42

Newsflash : many houses esp new builds , don't have a fireplace
Also, some little gits like to wake at 3am Xmas day ( looking at you dB) so a stocking in bed to unwrap delays the time they wake the household up. DM did this.

Testina · 25/12/2022 09:49

CuriousSIL · 25/12/2022 05:40

I've just put the kids ones in their rooms. It is the hardest part of Christmas. However, my absolute favourite memory of Christmas that I can never have again as an adult is the feeling of reaching out with my toes to check if Santa had been and the eventual heavy crinkle of presents when he had. Most magical bit for me, so I have decided to do that for my children. Kick myself every year though, it's a pain in the arse!

Ah, you’ve captured it perfectly!
Thats my memory too, and why I wanted to do it for my children.
And yes, I have a good swear that they still want me to sneak it in - aged 15 and 17 🤣
Which just goes to show that they liked / like it too.

AtomicBlondeRose · 25/12/2022 09:51

I agree - feeling the weight of the full stocking is so exciting! And then trying to get back to sleep as it’s too early. Lovely stuff.

NEmama · 25/12/2022 09:51

Mine open stockings and then go back to sleep.

Game changer tip on another thread. 2 x identical stockings so you can just replace empty with full .

Testina · 25/12/2022 09:56

@christmaslover88 “Lots talking about it being the most magical part of Christmas. “

Just because it is not your most magical part doesn’t mean it isn’t someone else’s. And yes, if they didn’t do it, something else would be the most magical part. But still - it is a lovely part for some of us. I’m in my 50s now, and when I do it (for my teens!) it makes me think how my dad managed to get in without waking me every single time. He wasn’t that great a father… his own issues, mental health complications… he rarely showed that he cared, honestly sometimes he didn’t. But there are a few small things that make me know that somewhere inside he did. One of those things is that he cared enough to stay up late a creep around carefully to do something nice for me. Even if there were other easier ways he could have done it 🤷🏻‍♀️

Stressedmum2017 · 25/12/2022 09:58

Aww man if you never got to experience that initial moment of waking up to the feel of a heavy stocking at your feet as a child I feel sorry for you!! Its one of the most magical moments of christmas, no way would my kids be missing out on that.
My kids go to sleep earlier on christmas eve than they do any other night even my eldest 2 who are in secondary school and are non believers were asleep by 9 last night. I've always instilled in them that if Santa comes and they arent asleep he will just move on to the next house.

LittleRedTomato · 25/12/2022 10:00

Ponderingwindow · 25/12/2022 05:28

It seems crazy to me too.
”the stockings were hung by the chimney with care”

it’s right there in the poem.

we have really good stocking holders that will hold even the heaviest stockings so ours stay up after being filled, but always in the main living area, by the fireplace if you have one.

Er, when this poem was written, every bedroom had a fireplace! It was how they were heated.
The bedroom mantelpiece is the traditional place for stockings!

CrapBucket · 25/12/2022 10:04

For the kids, because the weight and feel of the filled stocking is the most amazing feeling. He Has Been! You Are On The Nice List! CHRISTMAS STARTS NOW!

For me as a parent, we made the habit that the kids brought their stocking into our bed and unwrapped it, so we had a nice time but didn't get up.

Then down to the tree and presents from each other.

Figgypudding123 · 25/12/2022 10:04

As a kid, there was nothing more exciting that waking up and finding a stocking at the foot of your bed. I want to replicate that for my DS and, if it means staying up a bit late Christmas Eve, that's a trade I'm willing to make.

It's not stressful. It's not a bother. Each to their own.

Choconuttolata · 25/12/2022 10:08

They are meant to make your life easier by giving the kids something to open and play with so that they don't wake you as early on Christmas morning.

Plan failed. DS came down at 4am complaining that his woke him up when he rolled on it and it was uncomfortable 🤦.

Mangogogogo · 25/12/2022 10:10

I don’t really understand a lot of the stressful thing people do. We never had a full Santa story we don’t wrap things separately we don’t specifically say which gifts are from Santa etc etc we just let all 3 kids believe however they wanted to believe. Gifts from family are clearly labelled who they’re from. We just go with the flow of everything. Stockings are downstairs this year? Ok. Stocking are in your rooms this year? Ok

Autumnisclose · 25/12/2022 10:15

One of my childhood memories is the excitement of feeling my full stocking at the bottom of my bed,so that's why I do it. My two are teens now and wide awake when I put them in their room. So I try and 'subtely' drop them whilst making an excuse to talk to them. I've no idea why as they obviously don't believe in Santa 😳

Colourinsidethelines · 25/12/2022 10:15

I never had a stocking when I was young. Ours hang on the fireplace in the living room as my DC would open them at 2am given half a chance. If I didn’t have the fireplace I probably wouldn’t do them to be honest. And all we put in them in consumables so nothing goes to waste!

Someo · 25/12/2022 10:15

We always had the stockings at the end of our bed as children so it's just something I/we've continued. Can't say I find it all that stressful tbh.

My DC usually open stockings together and come in to our bedroom as well.

Mouldyfoodhelp · 25/12/2022 10:25

When I was a child my parents put the stockings on the doorknob of my room, us children me being the youngest played with the stockings with my siblings who were 7 years older whilst my mum shouted " NOT YET GO TO SLEEP!" But we didn't we just went abit quieter until like 6:30-7am where we spent time in their room for a bit playing with stockings and showing them what we got. I loved that as a child and I don't think it would work as well if children had to sneak downstairs or wait until it's later and everyone was up

DesertSolitaire · 25/12/2022 10:29

Our stockings were random pillowcases placed on the sofa in the lounge. We had no fireplace of any description. Nothing was wrapped. It was all still perfectly magical to me as a child.

Stockings were only ever small things so we were always allowed to get up and open on our own. Main presents were from family and appeared wrapped under the tree overnight but we didn't open them until after breakfast.

JusteanBiscuits · 25/12/2022 10:29

When they were younger it gave us a bit longer in bed.. they knew when the woke up they could open stocking presents without us.

Now they're teens they still have a sleep over sharing one bedroom, and they open then at 00:01 🤣 it's a nice tradition we have that I love. Never been any stress - certainly less than the tooth fairy!!

wonkylegs · 25/12/2022 10:33

Ours are outside bedroom doors as we have a big square hallway so there's lots of room.
It helps as I usually store wrapped stocking presents in our bedroom so I don't have to take them far.
They then bring them into our room to open them even the hulking great big teenager, who is really too big to sit on our bed too.
Most of our presents are under the tree FC only brings small things.

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