What do you do on Christmas Eve?

[byefelicia62]

Looking for ideas. In previous years I’ve booked breakfast with Santa or we’ve gone to the pantomime but haven’t been able to manage to get tickets for anything this year. In the evening we will get cosy and have a buffet tea as we do every year but I’d like to try and do something nice during the day. Both Dh and I have the day off work. Kids are 4 and 12.

When my children were young we always went to the cinema.

We love going to our local garden centre on Christmas Eve and then for a walk. The garden centre is great as they reduce all their Christmas things, so we end up buying loads of nice baubles and bits for half price. We have a festive panini and a nice cake and a big hot choc. Then in the evening we have a festive buffet, get our pjs on and watch a Christmas film. Heaven! I actually prefer Christmas Eve to Christmas Day 🥰

Work.

Actually...not this year whoop whoop!

It’s normally collect the Christmas food shop at 6am, then sometimes breakfast with Santa. We then pop into the city centre to have a look round. Then it’s chill at home and some form of takeaway

Ooh I love Christmas traditions. We are a walk into town so usually head over to costas and grab a Greggs Christmas baguette to have in afternoon and get the kids a costas hot chocolate. Then settle down to watch home alone. We’ve told our kids about Santa so this is the first time they’ve both known, but in normal years, we wait til dark, then head out to spot the lights, I conveniently, every year forget my phone and have to run back, but really I’m putting the Christmas Eve pjs by the fire. We walk for about an hour finding the brightest lights then home to surprise the kids. They get changed and bed, then time for baileys while we wait for it to be long enough for us to put the presents out 😃

We’ve never done breakfast with Santa

Sometimes we have our Christmas dinner on Christmas Eve. We always go to the crib service at our local church and then Midnight Mass. We like to spread the festivities out over all three days as it's a bit less frantic! A walk on the beach is good too, if the weather allows for it.
(Edited for an autocorrect fail)

We prepare the veg etc in the morning, then a walk at lunchtime and end up in our local pizza restaurant for a late lunch. Then home pjs on, glass of prosecco or baileys and watch Xmas films. We have a 13 year old, he has Pepsi not prosecco 🤣

This year we are hosting my husband’s parents and sisters. They are coming about 1500. I’m making a big cottage pie and some puddings. We’ll eat that, drink, and play games.

The morning will be spent doing some prep and setting up the dining room. Lots to do!

We always took the children to the Christingle service when they were younger. It’s really lovely. Now they are older my daughter helps out because she loves little ones. Then in the evening we go to midnight mass. It’s candlelit.

Otherwise, we have a festive but simple family meal and warm mince pies when we hang the stockings out before bed. We always leave a mince pie, a glass of brandy and a carrot put for Santa, even though the kids haven’t believed in Father Christmas for several years.

We always go to the cinema in the morning. Food prep in the afternoon, then takeaway for dinner.

We go to a fancy gourmet pub every year with the wider family and have a lovely meal and do secret Santa 😊 it’s been a tradition since before I was born. It makes me so happy to be able to bring my children now!

We always go out for a Chinese. Morning is last minute cleaning prep then dressed up and out for Chinese (1.30pm this year) then home for a movie

Have grandkids for the afternoon and take them to the local christmas market and then to nativity service at church to give their parents peace/chance to do last bits and then in the evening we have the whole family round for dinner. Always beef stroganoff which i bung in the slow cooker. Long held tradition

I used to do this with my two as well, they could splash and work out lots of excitement and then sleep well. They're both of an age where they're working on Christmas Eve now, so I take myself it's a nice moment to myself before the cookathon of Christmas!

We make “santas special cake” (basically just a normal cake lol) but when my eldest was 3 her elf brought a recipe for his/my favourite and we’ve made it every year since & always have some christmas eve then the rest is for santa.

my husband is often working so we to to my grans (she’s 95 & only family i have left &i’ve gone since i was a girl) then home for baths, new pjs & dominos! Bit gutted this year as my twins are 11 & one believes & one doesn’t & it’s the first year my “believer” hasn’t fully believed i think its more that she is reluctant to let go of the idea / scared not to believe just in case so i’ll still do the elves & santa etc but gutted it’s my final year of “magic” so will need to start some new traditions next year.

We have picky tea and watch Christmas movies (usually The Shop Around the Corner and It’s A Wonderful Life) ❤️

I usually head to the shops first thing as I panic I haven’t bought the kids enough things for their stockings (the kids in question are 21 and 20 😂 there’s also a 14 yo).
Dh spends most of the day in the kitchen, his happy place, prepping while watching Christmas films. The dc help with any last minute tidying and maybe sorting the table and chairs out. The older ones may also be dispatched to various shops for forgotten items.
In the evening we like a walk to the pub, have a couple of festive drinks (just regular drinks but it feels festive!) and then home for a quick and easy non messy dinner.
Film, fire and bed.

Genius! 👏 👏 👏

Go to the Christingle service at our local church. We are not religious or regular church goers in any way shape or form, but it is lovely, really family friendly and gives all the Christmas feels.

We go to waitrose ten minutes before closing to get any good reductions. Last year was a £95 rib of beef reduced to £25. Absolute bargain. Then home to drink gin and watch a Xmas film.

Now that's my idea of a good Christmas eve ☺️

Have a relaxed morning
Walk the dogs somewhere nice
Meet friends at the pub and those who fancy it pop across the road to the christingle service

Prep all the veg.

Nativity service at church. Bake cookies for Santa. Make a gingerbread house. DC get new Xmas pyjamas in the evening ‘from the elves’ and we watch a Christmas film with hot choc and cream, followed by The Night Before Christmas.