When do you do presents on Christmas day?

[nessica]

Just that really?!?!...

Do you do stockings on the bed or by the fireplace - if by the fireplace are the children allowed to go down to just get the stocking and back up to your bed to open it or do you get out of bed and start the present craziness first thing?!?!

What about the rest of the presents?!? Do you just let the kids let rip with everything and open it all first thing or do you space out FC presents and your own presents throughout the day?

Stockings in our bed, mostly so that when dd was little we could crack one eye open at dawn and lie there while she opened and played with the contents.

Then presents downstairs once we have come round and have a cup of tea in our hands.

Have never let rip though. I hate it when kids just tear through presents at high speed with no appreciation.

We don't do stockings but the DC still get a stocking at the end of their beds with magazine, new toothbrush, hair bobbles, chocolate coins etc which they bring into our bed to open.

Then downstairs, breakfast, upstairs to get dressed and then out to 9am Mass (I'll have been to midnight Mass as well but DC are too young).

Once back from Mass, say 10ish, I get lunch started then all into living room to open presents from under the tree.

I start putting them under the tree over a couple of days as I wrap them, the DC get very excited at the pile growing and growing!

Stockings in bed with us
Then to lounge for main presents. Then we get dressed and go down to the beach for brekki .

stockings (from Father Christmas) when everyone gets up (but at an arranged and negotiated time as all DC are adult/teen/nearly teen), then breakfast/get washed/dressed, then presents under the tree. FC fills stockings for adults as well as DC in our house, so everyone has stuff first thing, then the actual present opening can be done a bit slower, so that I can make a list of who gave what to whom, for the thankyou letters.

Stockings from Santa when they wake-we listen to them opening them but pretend we're asleep. When we've 'woken up' they tell us what they got and we pretend to be amazed. This gets harder now they are nearly all teens then we open our own stockings.

Then breakfast, everybody dresses, then a Christmas music performance from dcs- they started it when little and it has carried on.

Then presents, usually about 10 or 11ish which are not from Santa, he only does stocking stuff.

My son is only 15 months but we plan to get up, have breakfast first and gradually open the presents throughout the day.

Stockings are filled with little things like a magazine, piece of fruit, a sweet and one other. (Notepad and crayons for dd1, bath book for dd2, stupid expensive, probably won't stop hair loss shampoo for dh and eyeshadow for me.
These stocking and the presents the kids asked Santa for are opened first thing. They only get to ask Santa for one big expensive thing and 2 smaller things.
All other presents are opened after lunch.
Last year, the kids got so many gifts from people that we held some back for Boxing Day. It sounds ungrateful but they really don't need a massive sack of gifts from each of dh's extended family. I may well wrap some nappies for dd2 this year. This is what she really needs.

Stocking hung on their bedroom doors for when they wake up, keeps them busy whilst dh and I wake up, then they go downstairs and open bigger presents, we are usually finished by 8am then we have a posh breakfast before building lego and putting things together. Boxing Day they get a couple more presents from their half siblings, the next day they get presents from grandparents so it's pretty spread out.

I do arrange them artfully WhereDidTheYearsGo but in a plié is perhaps going a bit far.

Stockings (we all get one in our bedrooms), in our bed (they have to wait until we have made a mug of tea). This may change as they get older (youngest is only 3), and they can open their stockings in their own beds and we can get more kip! Stockings are the only things from FC in our house.

Then breakfast and then I stick on Hely-Hutchinson's Carol Symphony and we start on the presents from under the tree. One at a time, in rotation (I keep lists of who get what from whom, and then write my thank-you cards as we go along, which also spreads out the pleasure). As the dc get so, so many, we tend to have breaks so they can actually appreciate what they have been given. In the past they have still been opening presents on Boxing Day.

Should have added, presents start in pyjamas, but we will get dressed during a break late morning.

This year I'm trying a new thing with Xmas dinner - first course around 1-2, main course after HM's speech and pudding around Doctor Who time and cheese later if room. So we'll definitely be dressed by mid-day this year!

Stockings in our bed with DH while I make the tea, put the tree lights on and do a bit of faffing in the kitchen and put my bra on, brush my hair and wash my face so I don't look quite so saggy and half asleep in the photos
Then we go down to open the rest of the Presents FC has left in their sacks and DH and I exchange gifts.
The family and friends presents which are under the tree get opened on Boxing Day.
PIL and other in laws call in too bloody early at about 9 and we open those presents then.
Presents from my family are exchanged when we see each other, which is on Christmas Day this year as they're coming for dinner.

stocking on doorknob opened in bed. then down to see what else santa has left. play with toys, eat brekkie, nice long shower and get ready for me. help a bit with lunch. lunch, play, walk, tv and snooze, feed ds again then hopefully get him to sleep at 7ish. driiiiink! stockings so I can lay in a little bit.

We open presents from family after tea on Christmas Eve (a tradition from my family) and then have a big stocking for 3yo DS on Christmas morning. We don't really do Santa, so the stocking's meant to be lots of fun little things to compliment the 'big' presents he gets on Christmas Eve. He gets it downstairs before breakfast. I loved opening family presents on Christmas Eve as a child, as did my mother, aunt and uncle when they were little. You get to spread the excitement over two days and its less overwhelmingly for smaller children.

Stockings on end of beds. Kids wake up ridiculously early but not allowed to open anything or get up until 7 00! Then they all pile in our bed to open (dh and I have stockings too). FC also brings presents under the tree. Door to sitting room stays closed until everyone had breakfast. Then we all go in together to see what has been left. The anticipation nearly kills them but I love it!

We have to fit in Christmas and DC1's birthday on Christmas day, so stockings on the doors first thing - opened in our bed and any edible treats in it are scoffed while I say "darling, save that until after breakfast" in a halfhearted way while DH encourages chocolate for breakfast. Then downstairs, open big main gift, get a brew and slowly open the others. Let DCs play while I cook, get everyone ready before family arrive.

Then at around 4pm we declare it DC1's birthday, bring out cake and candles and sing, then he gets his birthday pressies.

We sort of need gifts to be opened straight away to have christmas 'done' by 4ish. Everything is opened by 9, had a few hours of playing before lunch, then a few more hours after lunch before birthday - giving a little more time to appriciate it all.

Just like Happy said - Santa presents in the morning, family presents under the tree after lunch & the Queens speech. As kids then we knew which parcels were from friends & family & had more time to appreciate them

We have Christmas in my house, all 5 children and their children plus any visiting friend or relative. Some stay over on Christmas Eve in their childhood bedrooms whilst others stay at home due to work patterns. Everyone is here though on Christmas Day by 7am and we have a buffet breakfast laid out in the dining room which people go back and forward to and eat in the family hall where we open the presents. There's no such thing as controlled opening in this house, the grandchildren just get stuck in and open one thing seconds before opening another. Once every thing is opened they then go back to each present and oh and ah over them properly.

As soon as we wake up we go downstairs and the children open their Santa sacks. Then we have breakfast and get dressed and then open the presents under the tree.

Tree lights are switched on, Christmas music on, then watch the dc open their presents. Next we open ours. then off to my dp's to see all the family and open more presents- mainly dc and dn's. Back for quiet lunch- just us 4 then dil's come round about 2pm and more present opening!

I'm normally up at about 5am and sit and wait for DS to wake up about 8.30am, so he comes down stairs and opens his stocking and then eats his tangerine and chocolate whilst he opens the rest of his presents.

We spend the whole day at home, so his Dad comes round about 11am and I disappear for a shower whilst they have some time together.

DS will walk down to Grandparents house after lunch for an hour.

Stockings on the end of their beds which they open when they wake up. Then downstairs for bacon sandwiches and the children discover the presents that have been magically left under the tree overnight. No opening them until after lunch though. DH takes the DCs to his sister's on Christmas morning for a couple of hours to deliver their presents and the children can play with their cousins. It gives me time time to get on with lunch and get started on the wine

Stockings at the end of bed usually opened in our bed while we try to wake up - neither dh or i are morning people - and the contents are from FC. Then it is breakfast, wash and dress. Usually around 10 we open the main presents from family and us. It is usually about 6 to open - dh's family don't do Christmas

oh and i have pen and paper at the ready so we can write thank you letters to family