Am I the only person who doesn't do stockings?

[Whatthequack]

As a child I've never had a stocking and Santa always delivered my presents unwrapped on the sofa. Presents from family members were always under the tree. So for Ds 1 & 2, their presents from Santa are wrapped and laid out on a sofa each. I thought this was perfectly normal until I read Mumsnet. Am I the only one who does this?

I'm in my mid-40's and I can still feel the bubble of excitement at giving the knitted stocking (my dad's walking sock) at the end of my bed a squeeze in the early hours of Christmas morning and feeling all the lumps and bumps of the presents.

I use knitted stockings for my DCs for the same reason, I only wish I had my mothers foresight of doubling them up to switch a full one for the empty one.

I was confused too as to what should go in a stocking. Ours are hung on the DDs doors and they open them in out bed when they first wake up, gives us chance to get up and dressed. Usually some sweets and little presents.

Small gifts (never anything more than a fiver), practical stuff they need anyway (toothbrushes, glue sticks, pants) a tree decoration, tissues, lip balm, a flannel.

Sweetie trail from bedroom to tree, fairy lights all on timers, no presents under tree until last thing Christmas Eve so they get the full effect on Christmas morning. Santa and our presents before lunch, family presents after.

It's all for the kids, of course. Not for me. No sireeeee! Not at all!

DH and I don't have stockings. The DC have a basket each with half a dozen wrapped smaller presents and then one main present. They know (well the 3.10 yr old not so much the 12 week old!!) that they're all from us. They do appear on Christmas morning in the lounge.
We don't really 'do' Santa in the sense of him actually coming to our house etc etc.

SageSeymour You'd be surprised. Present arrangement and alignment can be a form of art! Previous years I've always took special care in the way I arrange Santa's presents. Almost like a shop window display!

I think the excitement of Christmas is to do with the anticipation. So it doesn't matter how you do it - stockings or not, wrapped or unwrapped etc. It's more that something exciting is going to happen and as you build your traditions, the kids look forward to them.

For me, it was beyond exciting to anticipate my stocking, then wake up and feel the bumpy weight of it on my feet. All the presents in it were wrapped, which added to the fun, and I could hardly ever guess what they were before I unwrapped them. The stocking was from Father Christmas (can't remember when I realised it was my mum and dad but I played along as I grew up and it was never mentioned). Everything else went under the tree and was from whoever it was from.

Because the way we did Christmas was magical for me, that's what I did for my own children and I guess most people will do for their children what was special for them. DP's family didn't do stockings, surprises or Santa - their Christmas was mostly about special food - so we went with my traditions.

There's no right or wrong about it (although I don't think I could bring myself to put out unwrapped presents, in a stocking or otherwise!)

We don't do them either, tried once but it was hard to find decent items that fit so never bothered again. We don't do clothes or essentials for Christmas so only party bag type toys seem to fit.

We put presents under the tree from family as they arrive and the rest come out Christmas Eve and cover an area of the room so DS can easily see his from ours.

I didn't do them for years, then when the kids were teenagers for some reason I started, maybe they wanted one? there is wrapped stuff in them, just smelly stuff , sweets and silly things, used to be the odd CD before they downloaded everything, to be honest its a waste of money but they still like them so I do them.

I only started doing stockings when my oldest DC was 11. Before then I did as DH and I both experienced as children and put everything big and small in a sack downstairs.
It was seeing threads on here that persuaded me to do them and I'm so happy I did.
They contain smallish presents, the DC open them with DH in our bed while I make tea, get the turkey on and put on all the fairy lights downstairs. Then I take up tea and hot chocolate and the DC show me all their treasures. Then we all go down properly woken up to open the bigger presents.

I can't imagine not opening presents, just seeing them. I suppose if you've never opened any then it's odd to think of opening them.
I do love hearing about other people's traditions

Is the stocking business a particularly British thing?

I don't think I ever knew anyone in Ireland or in the US whose gifts came in a stocking.

I also don't know how children would thank family or friends who had sent gifts if all gifts are alleged to come from Santa.

I'm (Northern) Irish, and we always had stockings, as did most people I knew, although some had pillowcases instead.

The stockings had things like a satsuma, chocolate orange, soap and always had a fortune telling fish.

The only place I heard of stockings as a child was Christmas movies! We never had them.

I started doing them with DC last year, incidentally it was also the first year I bothered wrapping the presents. The years before that we just had big felt santa sacks that I just filled with gifts for them. They were too young to understand Christmas all together, wrapping paper just seemed like a total waste- especially considering up until last year none of them could really unwrap a present without assistance!

This year I'm going all out with separate santa wrapping paper. I've actually considered wrapping in fabric that can be reused because I hate the massive paper wasteage and I think fabric looks so pretty but dunno yet, will have to see.

Stocking gifts are the boring but useful ones generally in this house or the small toys that would look fairly lame wrapped up under the tree.

Ok, well I have decided to give it a go. Here are my stockings, now how on Earth do I attach them to my mantelpiece?

You need a set of stocking hooks (ornament with hook attached to hang stocking) to display them until Christmas eve and then they can go where ever after they are filled. DH told the DSD's (22,19) that they were now too old for stockings and nearly started WW3

Our stockings usually have silly things like yoyo's and kalidescopes. This year they are all getting wind up toys for the toy race on Christmas day. DSD's get make up and chocolate in theirs, DS(17) will be getting thermal socks, wind up toys and lego minifigures and Turkish delight (blugh). DD(7) will have bath toys (thanks to the Christmas thread) Led lights for her bike,Barbie dresses and shoes and chocolate. I enjoy buying silly things for them although I still have to get a mini bat signal for DD

No stockings here. We had pillowcases as a child left on the end of the bed so you woke up to the wonderful bulging sack filled with small and medium size (wrapped) gifts, choc coins, satsuma and selection box. I remember waking up at 3/4am thrilled with anticipation and just fondling the presents and feeling excited about opening them I might peek at one or two but would leave the rest for morning. For my DDs they have a personalized santa sack each - I haven't left on their beds yet (too scared we would wake them up!) we usually leave them by the fireplace with the plate of cookies and a drink for Santa. one of their main gifts under the tree is also from Santa (something they have asked for) but the rest are from us/family.

When I was growing up, St. Nick brought stockings and Santa brought bigger presents. I had no intention of doing stocking from Santa with DD but she had other ideas, having watched many a Christmas show by the time she was old enough to understand Santa. "But Mom, I have to hang my stocking!"

I will be giving my 38 yo neice her first christmas stocking this year. She was brought up in a very strict christian family and my sister belived that stockings, trees and santa were pagan and to be avoided.
My niece will be coming on WEdnesday from abroad and staying 3 weeks, she is already excited about her christmas stocking- and to see our real tree (they are seldom seen in her country because of the climate)

I love a stocking, it's the first thing the kids dive into when they wake. I love the theatre and magic of hanging a stocking on christmas eve and the little traditions of finding a satsuma or an apple, a coin a the bottom.

I have never had a stocking. My Irish husband did as a child. This is our first Christmas with a child (5 months so won't have a clue what is going on) and this thread has made us decide to do stockings from next year!

When I was young, stocking came from Father Christmas. All other presents were from parents/relatives (and thank you letters had to be sent to all relatives).

The best bit about Christmas was waking up to the stocking on my bed. We were allowed to open the stocking before we woke our parents. The presents under the tree were opened once parents had woken.

Stocking had satsuma at the bottom, small things like pretty wrapped soap, the balloon stuff that was like a putty that you put on the end of a straw - just stocking fillers. About 5/6 things in a stocking.

Everything was wrapped.