Christmas traditions that you'll be starting in your house.

[Tippychoocks]

Should that be traditions of the future?!

I just remembered on we started last year and I will do again I think. My DD was 3.3 last Christmas and we were staying at my mothers. We wrapped mini stocking presents for everyone (about 4-5 each) in different paper for each person and hid them around the house. She had to go and treasure-hunt them (it's a verb now) and bring it to the right person. She quickly caught on to who had which wrapping paper and it was a brilliant way to keep her busy while we were having grown up drinks and cooking.

If you're doing a mini second Christmas at a Granny's house, it's a good way of doing stockings without spending a fortune. Typical gifts were a chocolate (sardines, orange, santa etc), scented candle, scarf, face pack. Under a pound for the most part.
The only thing to remember is that someone has to buy for whoever is organising it or they are left out .

Anyone starting anything new this year?

This will be our first Christmas with a DC and I really want some nice traditions. I'll be continuing the one from my family of reading "The Night Before Christmas" and leaving out a mince pie, brandy and a carrot - although I tried that last year and forgot to explain it to French dh, and was absurdly disappointed that for the first time in my life it was all untouched the next morning

I also love the ones where people get new pjs on xmas eve, seems lovely to think of Christmas morning in new togs. Might start that this year.

Dh and I really need to iron it all out though, as the french do presents/main meal on the 24th, so we need to reach a compromise. Last year we had a gastronomic blowout and had huge meals on the 24th and 25th it was fab though.

Oh, and I think I'm going to start a moving creche this year as well.

I'll be looking out for others though. The treasure hunt sounds great for littlies.

What's a moving creche?
I buy an ornament for my DD every year as my mum did for me, that's a nice one to start at a first Christmas. It means that everything on our tree means something to us

HAHHAHAHAHAH NO FUCKING WAY THIS FUCKING THREAD AGAIN

KILLS SELF

A moving creche is when you move/add the bits of the nativity at different times.

E.g. you start the kings somewhere else in the house and don't have them arrive until Jan 6th. Mary and Joseph don't get to the stable until Christmas Eve, and Jesus isn't put in there until Christmas Day etc. The shepherds and sheep are off somewhere else and follow a moving star. Admittedly, I tried it last year and they got stuck a lot when I forgot to move them :o but this year I WILL be better.

JuanMoreTime, some of us weren't looking the last time it was done, but thanks for bumping all the old threads :)

I think I'll do the ornament one, it's really simple, but lovely. Thanks :)

this year we have a real fireplace to hang stockings on

oo, a real fire. I have a potential fire (just a hole in the wall at the moment

Juan, do fuck off. This is the Christmas topic and we will talk about christmas and christmas traditions as often as we please. I couldn't give an arse if it's been done before - most things have after all.

I did as a child, I miss it so much!

this year i will be starting threads about what crafts and traditions to start, fantasize about my apple cheeked family kicking through holly and decorating pinecones with crochet. then i will realise i have wasted the past two months on here and then go to asda and buy lots of tinsel and aspartame filled mince pies

cereal. Ah well, tis the interweb, not real life. I could be having an Iceland meal for one and three tins of celebrations and tell people on here that i'm basting the Kelly Bronze at midnight.

With you on that one Cereal.

This will be the first Christmas that we spend at least some of Christmas Day at our own home, and our first house at that, with our month-old (thereabouts) DC1. Just looking forward to that. May leave the mince-pie and sherry tradition until next year...

i shall be stealing the xmas pressie treasure-hunt one i think.

we get ds new pj's and a book from jack frost for xmas eve. jack frost usually comes either while we are out on a walk so its waiting on the doorstep when we get home or while ds is in the bath. then while ds in in bed, dh and i drink hot mulled wine, and watch love actually while wrapping last minute pressies/putting out stockings.

we do the pyjama tradition. i make sure that i keep track of which presents contain the pyjamas and usually slipper socks in there too. we open them just after bath time on christmas eve, and we all wear them to bed. (obviousely we dont all bath together, but open them after the kids have their baths, and i put my pyjamas on too)

We do the pj one and the night before xmas story but last year I introduced a new one for youngest dd shes 3.5 now my eldest is 19 so all the others thought i was mad. We had a magic elf come to stay he was sent from santa to make sure we where good. Although he did get up to some mischief like hanging from tree etc loads of this but he also brought a snowman dvd and so other little things to do before christmas like colouring pages etc. Anyway she is currently waiting for magic elf to arrive again and everytime the doorbell rings she thinks its him arriving. I can't wait for it again

we do pjs and new dvd means i get some peace and quiet

im liking the hiding of stockings to

the moving creche lol that happens here anyway we lose bits every year

The tradition we inadvertently started the year before last was having good champagne out of lead crystal champagne flutes with Christmas dinner :D I see no problem with continuing this!

We started with the new pj's and putting reindeer food on the path last year so plan to carry that on.

We also gave DS a new bath toy on Christmas Eve (he goes through stages of hating his bath and a new toy guarantees a relatively smooth bathtime) and will do that again.

We'll definitely leave out food and drink for Santa and Rudolph.

We will also plan for DH and I to have a really lovely meal and some wine once DS is in bed on Christmas Eve, but will no doubt carry on with our existing tradition of doing housework till about 9pm before building any Christmas toys and fitting in a takeaway and a beer at some point.

We visit family on Christmas Day but always have nice cheese and champagne to have when we get home that night in front of Dr Who or whatever else we've recorded.

hot choc with whipped cream and edible glitter/stars on top on xmas eve whilst we are watching xmas film, usually polar express
party type food for tea, baths and new pjs !love it !!!

were having curry again this year dis it last year so much easier no stress at all.

One jar of curry sauce , one ready cooked chicken pull said chicken of night before pen jar of curry sauce , pour

2 bags of microwave rice voila xmas dinner in 5 minutes

dh makes kedgeree for xmas eve/morning. tis v yummy with hot bread.

We do the new PJs after bath and read The Night before Christmas.

We also sprinkle reindeer dust (glitter & oats) and put out Santa's magic key (we don't have a chimney you see )

On Xmas eve me and DS (DD too young really) watch The Polar Express.

Ooh and I nearly forgot we track Santa online too

So lovely.
Maybe the moving creche will be my new one for this year then. But my nativity is an old family one with plaster figures and some of them are worse for wear. JOseph's head has been glued on wonky too many times really I'm not sure they are up to the travelling.

ooo i love norad, we also get a video from santa sent to my email address for ds to watch. i get more excited than him!

yes norad thats it, I forgot the name

Think DD might be old enough to appreciate it this year.

DS (5) has already told me we have to get our new kitties a Christmas stocking this year