From what age do you leave stockings by bed?

[Wildpoppies]

My kids are 2 and 4. If I left stockings by bed I imagine everything would be broken by time I found them, with satsuma and chocolate smeared over the walls

We used to leave them next to the cot! The DCs always scramble I to our bed to open them.

There are no rules, do what you think best. Stockings have always been left outside the bedroom door here (very light sleeping children).

We started from each child's first Christmas. But they come into our room to open the presents usually. This year my DC are 5 and 2 1/2 and are sharing a room now so I expect they will amuse themselves opening their little gifts (from Santa) before we get up.

We put ours downstairs by the chimney and we all go downstairs together.

Can't remember from what age probably 2 ish but always left outside bedroom door and brought through to us to take in turns opening them.

Why on earth would your children smear chocolate on the walls??!!

I think op means one of her children is only two and so chocolate getting everywhere is distinctly possible with unsupervised chocolate opening.

we did for the first time last year when ds was 3.5. At that time he never got out of bed until we went into his room, so he called us to say he was awake & oh the delight on his face when we put the light on & he saw the stocking! He came into our room to open it. This year might be a little different as I'm not sure he'll be able to wait!

From birth here! No chocolate or satsuma smearing and and mine are 7 and 5 now they wake and find them and come into our room! Why would they smer chocolate on the wall?

Another who used to leave them by the cot.

My DCs have always brought them in to our room to open them anyway.

If you're worried about chocolate getting everywhere put chocolate buttons in as they're hard to open so they're more likely to bring them to you to open for them.

Ours have always been on the bed too. Their whoops of delight alert me that they have found the stockings and they always come pelting down the hall to show us their haul.

Never, we always had our stockings downstairs so DS does too

Since their 1st Christmas, as they've got older they've bought them into our room to open in bed with us.

We've always done them on the foot of the bed or cot without problem, our DCs aren't early risers and we had to wake them to open them until they were about 4+ years old.

from their first Christmas. i love having children scrambling to my bed to open stockings. Last year though we had to leave them by the fireplace as dd is afraid of having a fatty, bearded man in her room while she is asleep . She has already extracted a promise to do the same this year.

We never had them in our rooms, right up to teenagers. Both on the end of mum and dads bed then into their room Christmas morning to open stockings.

It is still, by far, my favourite family memory.

From birth here, hung on the bedroom door handle and then they bring them into our bed to open them.

Stockings are hung on the end of our bed and the kids come in to us to open them

We have always left them by the Chimney downstairs - as I find the idea of some strange man creeping into their rooms "weird". Its also how its seen on US TV etc.

Never. Ours go under the Christmas tree and always have. Kids have to wait until a designated hour to consult us before we all go down together (the together bit is emphasised as part of the ritual/excitement!).

From her first Christmas. However, dd is three and still shouts us to come and get her up. She opens her eyes, shouts us and does not move a muscle. Ordinarily I'd love for her to just come and get in with us but I suppose it is an advantage at Christmas.

You could do a smaller stocking with a couple of non messy / non breakable things in for the excitement of finding it when they wake up? There are no rules here, these are your traditions to make for your family so you can do whatever you please!

From the first Christmas - but DS has never woken before us on Christmas Day - perhaps because he is an only child - some years we have had to wake him .

1st Christmas for my two (4 and 1). They just bring the stockings to our bed to open. I'm torn between hanging stockings on the mantelpiece for the Ideal Homes effect or keeping them on beds so we don't have to get up at the crack of dawn.

Cot here too. Don't think we did it for DS's first Christmas when he was 3 months old, but we did for dd when she was 2 months old. DS was 3 and he made sure of that!!