Whats your Christmas day like?

[BabyDubsEverywhere]

Particulary the present routine?

When we were kids, we woke to a mound of small pressies, stocking presents really, in the bedroom. This was designed to keep us in our rooms a little longer, this never worked We would then scramble to the living room to a room full of gifts. Almost everything was from santa, but we had a few gifts under the tree from mom and dad, then gifts from other people were from other people iyswim.

Im trying to work out what to do with my two and start a 'routine' of my own i spose, was wondering what you all do?

We had lovely stretchy stockings (mum's old baked beanies) on the end of our bed. All intriguingly lumpy, all filled with things, like yours, designed to keep us quiet till a reasonable hour.( Didn't work)

The downstairs to the hall (huge hall, galleried staircase, twenty foot tree. God I loved that house!) for sacks of presents. 1 sack each (there were six of us) plus spillovers under the tree. It was luvverly. I don't recall having gifts from anyone other than mum and dad and Father Christmas. Oh except my brothers and sister, obviously.

My mum also used to get a big puzzle, game or one year a football table for Boxing Day, left in the dining room.

I do stockings for my two but they insist on coming into our bed really early to open them.

The girls wake up to stockings which they bring in to our room. We then try to wake up while they squeal with excitement and empty them all over our bed. Once we are awake (ish) we go downstairs to see if Santa has been. Oddly enough, the girls always check if the food and drink they left has been touched before they look under the tree!

We take it in turns to pick a present from under the tree and read the name, stopping for breakfast at some point.

Some presents are from Father Christmas, but we like to take the credit for the bigger gifts ourselves. Presents from family and friends tend to be placed under the tree in the run up to Christmas but the girls are very good at leaving them there untouched.

I was thinking of spreading the gifts out a bit, my two were so overwhelmed last year, so much so Im halving my budget and trying to spread their excitment so they dont burn out in half hour!

I was thinking of a large hamper on Christmas eve with lots of goodies, Christmas morn into the living room for stockings and a sack each from santa (small sack this year as they dont need much and very young anyway). Then breakfast, then after that tree presents, (from other people) then christmas dinner, then after into the play room for their big present each from us, (Train table and kitchen) then off to Dsis, for yet more pressies!

Does that sound to contrived though?