what do you do on christmas eve?

[cherrymonster]

my dad always used to take us kids (me, db and dsis) for a long walk up the local hill to keep us out of the way so mm could get stuff done. i would love to be able to do this with my kids, but i am a single parent, and my brother is disabled and couldnt cope on a long walk with all four kids. looking for ideas that will keep the kids either occupied upstairs, or out of the house so i can get things done.

argue with dp about mil

Write letter to Santa, bake mince pies, do the Marks and Spencers food run, chill out and try to contain dd's hysteria

Big walk in park is for Xmas Day.

we do the letter to santa at the beginning of december because if there is anything i am not expecting on there, i have time to get it before the big day. (i usually discuss the lists with the kids for a couple of weeks beforehand so i know what they want) i just ideas to keep them occupied in the daytime.

could you give them some family gifts to wrap? send them to cinema with dp? get them to make mince pies/biscuits?

There's usually good TV on Christmas Eve. That's been my approach for some years now.

DD and I go to church for the family "midnight mass " which is at 7. I usually have to work christmas Eve so DD is at my mums making place settings for christmas lunch or making me a card. I'll have christmas eve off this year so I will be keeping her busy getting the house ready for those who are coming to mine for christmas this year.

How old are they?

I usually find enough real or imagined jobs to keep them busy until my family descend for a xmas eve party.

Their rooms have to be completely tidy so Father Christmas doesn't trip and break his leg, and so they've got room for the plastic ta they hope to receive.

That would be plastic tat.

they are 11, 9, 5 and 4. church is out after last years debacle (took them to crib service and they played up the whole time). bedrooms will be tidied, thats a good idea, db can help them with that. not been with dp long enough for him to take them out, and he will probably be with his kids anyway, not sure he would want to take 6 kids under 12 to the cinema. my sister will be coming at some point, but not sure what time.

Watch the Snowman! I LOVE the Snowman & sit down to watch it every year. Think it's normally on around 4pm ish on BBC but I don't pay that much attention because I get my dp to program it into the tv to automatically switch for me!

Could set them to work peeling & chopping veggies, get 11yo to write a letter from Santa to read to the others (or the 5 &4yo) & then get them to set out mince pie & sherry or something like that.

Nice hot bath & hot choc after with a film? My dd will be watching Home Alone on video this year & I have no doubt whatsoever that I will wake up to a loo with cling film over the seat or something similar after my dp watched it last year & got very excited about teaching her some pranks!

Get plastered with my family at our local social club.
We have contests over the best hangover the next day!!

My god, we are so common!

Try another church? Crib services should be for kids to be: hyper, running around etc. Mine always were.

Thats why there should be a separate crib service to Midnight Mass (which should be at midnight).

Maybe there is something like a local Steam train which has Father Christmas?

Or send them out to gather holly and ivy and pine cones, brother just has to sit and wait while they run around. Then they can bring them back and try to make decorations (which don't have to be "Good Housekeeping" standard).

i love christmas eve ,maybe more than christmas day.its my youngest sons birthday too so its made extra special.
birthday pressies are opened before brekkies with telly on usually christmas with the kranks or deck the halls.(he will be 7 this year}endless birthday phonecalls,my sister and her kids drive down to spend the day as she lives miles away and i dont see her xmas day.my bestest friend and her family call over ,we usually do a nice tea.my parents call round, by then its prob 7ish,visitors leave and dp takes all the children up their grans while i clean up.
they come home about 9 ish ,shower and pjs on ,last year we tracked santa on the pc.ds loved it ,hope they do it this year.
youngest ds leaves out the milk ,mince pie and carrot and they all go to bed...
by now im knackered..
wait till theyre asleep to sort out pressies.theyre in my big cupboard which makes it easier.i remember dp up and down attic at 1 am...
sit down and watch tv at last,glad mine dont wake up untill 8 ish.

We go to a local water park and normally have the whole place to ourselves. Attractions are always quiet on Christmas eve. Most close at lunchtime though

I do all the Christmas wrapping in one hit once the kids are in bed.

DH goes out for a pint. He always offers to help but on this occasion I like him out of the way, kids in bed then I get the Baileys out and drink that while I wrap with a Kerrang DVD on. (Well it's my tradition now)When he gets back in he eats the mince pie and takes a bite out of the carrot that has been left for the 'reindeers'

Even though the kids are old enough to know better and roll their eyes at this ritual we carry this charade out every year!!!

One year I wrapped the presents really early and forgot where I hid them and found them at the back of the spare wardrobes months later so I stick to my usual way now!!

forgot to mention- all of my children believe in father christmas, so no good getting ds1 to write a letter from him, he still believes too (although i suspect this might be the last year he does) and i will have loads to do, dont wrap christmas eve, wouldnt get it done in time for them getting up. i am talking more in the daytime to keep them a) occupied and b) out of my way so i can get stuff done.

How about you write the letter then & kind of stick it halfway through the letter box so that it looks like it's been posted? Then he could read the letter to all of them?

Board games? I was trawling through some charity shops in town yesterday and got Mouse Trap for a couple of quid & there were loads of others on the shelf too but I didn't take enough cash with me for lots of random purchases.

Get some glitter & card & get them making decorations? I know it's a bit last minute but might occupy for a while

DVD's & munchies?

Tidy bedrooms is a good one too that someone suggested, I always used to have to do this ready for Santa coming & it kept us occupied while my dad went for a pint on xmas eve

It's all over the place now I have my own DC as we have to spread ourselves between 3 lots of family but I love the stuff we did every christmas eve when I was a child.

Grandad's for lunch with about 20 people crammed into his tiny front room. Opened tree presents (colouring books for little ones, alcohol miniture or terrys chocolate orange for anyone over 10). Watching the snowman at about 3 and all jostling for a place on grandad's lap. Then off to church for the crib service (think all the kids went).

Then the usual stuff at bedtime mince pie and diet coke for santa (my mum is recovering alcoholic so no booze at christmas) and carrot for rudolph. Oh and we always got a letter from Santa next morning. He had exact same writing as my mum...

We potter round during the day - me in the kitchen prepping the meal for the big day. DH will be cleaning the house and being my sous chef! Probably let the DCs watch DVD and play. Normally make fish pie for supper to eat when back from the crib service at Church. Bed for kids (after putting their letters and pies and drinks for Father Christmas). TV and plenty of wine in the eveing! Ooh I'm getting excited now!

tbh i prefer xmas eve to xmas day as it's just me,dh and dd [5]
we just spend the day baking,listening to xmas music,having a lovely xmas eve dinner and watching a xmas film last year it was home alone.i always have a bath with dd and do all the girly things put on new pj's and cuddle up and have a xmas story.before going to bed dd gets her little table and sets it for santa.once in bed dh makes santa footprints and we have a quiet evening watching tv and enjoying a bottle of wine.

We normally go to a local farm where we visit Father Christmas in his cabin. We then hunt the Elf pictures and buy yummy cheese and things in the farm shop. I spend the latter part of the afternoon laying the table ad peeling veg whilst listening to carols at Kings. I love christmas eve.

last minute panic shopping.

xmas music on while the dc help me wrap presents.

new pj's on then we watch a muppet xmas carol.

dp comes home from pub about 8pm then my mum comes over to help wrap dc's presents.

some type of takeaway and a bailey's hot choc or two.

dd2 is due on xmas eve this year so all of that may go out of the window this year!

i have been in work the last couple of years on xmas eve but usually it would be ...

get home at around 4ish, go and visit PIL and my mum and dad. get the stuff out for our breakfast on xmas day get DDs, DHs and my clothes for xmas day out, ironed and hung up. get DD in the bath and get a shower, DH gets a shower and heads the pub new snuggly PJs and slippers for me and DD and snuggle on the couch to watch santa claus the movie hot choc and early to bed for DD, i read 'twas the night before christmas to DD and wait til she falls asleep. glass of vino and wrap any prezzies not already done. another christmas film for me and then DH comes home for some crimbo-time lovin usually i will take DDs upstairs stocking up and put it at the end of her bed at about 12ish and then bedtime for us

hopefully i will be off this year so im going to make christmas decorations and cards with DD and a christmas cake (sponge- maybe make this the day before though)

you can buy kits in tesco to make your own crackers - maybe your dcs could do that - depending on age they could even write messages/jokes in each one.
Nice and Christmassy and keeps them occupied for a little bit.