What do you do on christmas eve?

[mrsSmurf]

I really love christmas eve but it always seems to go in a blur...last minute shopping, wrapping presents etc.

So this year im planning to be more organised in the hope that we can do something nice or just relax at home with some mulled wine .

So what do you do?

Work til 4pm

Morning - either mooching around at home, or breakfast at the local organic cafe.

Lunch - if we didn't go out for breakfast, we'd go for pancakes (me and the dds) and bacon doorsteps (dp) as above.

Afternoon - either the cinema (walking distance, along the river) or mooching around.

Prepare most of a 'snacky' tea, which HAS to involve veggie sausage rolls, cucumber in vinegar, meringues and raspberries, amongst other things.

Leave tea set out and covered, then put on wellies and go carol singing on the green.

Home for tea - then open the chocolates!

Evening - a film, if there is one and we didn't go to the cinema or a board game.

This year DH is not working xmas eve so we plan to....

Have family nosh-up out at the local Italian at lunch time

Go to Christingle at local church (hope DD age 2 doesn't set light to anything!)

Watch Christmassy film, probably Polar Express if I can darn find it!

DCs have light dinner

Put out carrots, mince pie and whisky in the hearth

Give DCs new xmas pjs and annuals.

DCs to bed at half 7ish

Me and DH have yummy supper of oysters, HUGE prawns and champagne

Get the flour out and make Father Christmas's footsteps from hearth to bedrooms (something my Dad always did when I was wee)

Watch some telly then bed to prepare for early start.
There are some lovely ideas on here, will defo try the Track Santa website this year.

Ooh yes - had forgotten the Track Santa thing. We still do it, even though the girls are teenagers now.

we do icing sugar and footprints on the hearth too - again, if though they KNOW it's icing sugar - they'd be cross if we forgot it!

DP is usually working until lunchtime on christmas eve. We have a special supper with my parents, at their house, but I do the catering and the washing up.

DD gets to open one present early - usually new PJs and maybe a book to read with Grandma at bedtime.

Then I stuff the stockings and try to get an earlyish night!

I am up for some new traditions and there are some great ones to copy here!

We have my family over (my grandparents, mum, cousins, aunties) for a light tea for a couple of hours in the afternoon. Prior to this is a normal day tbh, park etc to try and wear them out so they're not too hyper!

Then we all get new PJs and read Christmassy stories before bed, when I get manic getting presents ready!

This is a lovely thread, it's interesting to see what families do. Sometimes I prefer Christmas Eve to Christmas Day because there's such a buzz of anticipation and excitement in the air.

Apart from last minute running around, we seem to usually do the following:

Bake a ham and eat with slow baked potatoes and red cabbage for supper.

Go to the early evening Christingle service in the village church.

Pre-roast potatoes and root veg in Aga due to space issues once the turkey is in the next day.

Go out for drinks / have friends round. We have moved back the area that we grew up in so a lot of friends come back for Christmas and seem to enjoy hanging out in a (grand)parent-free zone!

Wrap presents and fill stockings once the girls are in bed.

Leave out a glass of sherry, a carrot and a mince pie for FC and his reindeer.

Light a fire, watch TV on and off throughout the day.

Drink Drambuie and Baileys on ice. Mmmm...

We are normally at my parents already, but if we aren't then we drive down there in the morning.

Otherwise morning is spent wrapping, going to the farm for vegetables, peeling potatoes and other veg for the next day.

Lunch is just bread and cheese and fruit, maybe soup.

In the afternoon Mum and I make the stuffing and stuff the turkey, while listening to the carols from Kings. There is often some last minute shopping for beer, and my Dad will invariably have failed to buy my Mum anything so will 'sneak' off to the shops.

Whole poached salmon and new potatoes for dinner.

Often a trip to the pub after dinner, usually meet up with old friends who are also 'back home' for Christmas! I may not bother this year though, I'll be 6 months pregnant and I can't face waddling along the beach sober at 11pm.

Then stockings, and presents out. DS is only 2 and doesn't really grasp Father Christmas yet so I think we have one more year until we are doing the whole mince pie, sherry, carrot thing :)

Its our wedding anniversary but we do often have to work but always go to church at 4 folowed by drinks in the local then home for snacky or special tea veg prep if not done and cosy xmas tv before stocking hang up.
When we got married 2 yrs ago we kept it quiet and then went to church in posh frocks(me and dd) could tell the locals were muttering "trust ledkr to overdo it" didnt tell them till after xmas.It was so exciting announcing it to family on xmas day.

allibaba i will aslo be pg this yr (36 wks) so am sure it will be quiet and sober if nothing else!!

Last year we did a Santa Special steam train trip which was very festive. This year we are going on a canal trip to a woodland grotto, but on 23rd which is the last date the boats run before the big day :).

Always go to local church for a nativity service in the afternoon and have new pyjamas in the evening.

This year am also planning to boil some ham (get me!) - Christmas dinner is just the 4 of us so hopefully a lot less prep than normal - whole family descending for tea though...