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Christmas

From present ideas to party food, find all your Christmas inspiration here.

Original poster

whats your family tradition?

71 replies

JanenEvie · 06/11/2006 22:24

Hi all
Well here to the ever fast approaching first christmas with my DD who's 20 weeks!
We have just been discussing what traditions we should start for our new family, sadly neither of us really had any
So I'm asking what your's are to steal ideas and use them as my own

Cheers all

OP posts:
wangle99 · 08/11/2006 07:43

I am so excited reading all your traditions!

Christmas Eve - finish preparing any food ie Christmas cake icing or gingerbread house. Evening we go carol singing with our neighbours culminating in visiting another neighbour who has stables with sheep and donkeys in! Walk home looking up at the sky debating if we can see Santa flying over. Of course track Santa on Norad throughout the day. Take a picture of DD and DS in their Christmas pjs.

Christmas Day - DH wakes about 4am asking me whether he can open presents yet (yes DH not children lol). Children wake up and open stockings in our room then get dressed, breakfast and open other presents. We are at home for dinner and it's fantastic.

This is the first year DS will understand a fair bit (he's 3 now) so we've been telling him about it all for months now!

pinkdolly · 08/11/2006 07:50

Hi Jane- We have 3 dd's aged 4,3 and 17 weeks.
We always leave santa some wine and cookies, and the reindeer get carrots and milk.

Also we just fill stockings for the girls for christmas day and then take them out in january for their main prezzie. Not only does it give them something else to look forward too after christmas. But also they might get a better prezzie due to the sales.

We go to church on christmas morning, all dressed v.smart

hope u fing ur tradition!

paulaplumpbottom · 08/11/2006 08:49

We have Family, Friends, and neighbors around on Christmas Eve for drinks and nibbles. My Daughter puts out cookies & coke( I don't drink milk and its the only time of year I allow myself one)for Santa. Christmas morning we open presents under the tree followed by a pancake breakfast with champagne. Then off to his mums. They have a wonderful tradition of taking a walk in the forrest or on the beach in the afternoons. It means you don't get that yucky feeling. We go back, have dinner, open presents. Then we play board games and drink alot when the kids go to bed. He has a big family so it gets hectic sometimes, but I love it.

figgypud · 08/11/2006 12:04

Hi there
(janeNEvie here) Getting all festive with my name!!!!
Loving the traditions! Really like the decoration idea think I'll def nick that one!
And the nibbled carrot! Think DD may be a bit young to understand that one yet! But it will get me excited!!!!
Keep them coming! Love reading about them all!

jura · 08/11/2006 14:50

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

yeahinaminute · 08/11/2006 15:50

Christmas Eve - big family meal always gammon, cheesy mash and veg

Sprinkle the fairy dust down the drive to light rudolphs way to our house (glitter and sawdust together DD LOVES this bit!!)and put out mince pie, whisky ( The Father Christmas who visit's our house is partial to a malt!!) and carrots for all the reindeer ...... few drinks,open some presents, midnight mass, more drink ....

Christmas day - paracetamol ..... jumping around on the bed then down to see if Father Christmas has been, breakfast .... rest of the day in an alcoholic fuzz really - pub at lunchtime ...then back to nibble on "things", DH and I take control in the kitchen,decant the wine ( savour a fair bit of it!!) drop the turkey a couple of times - wipe and return to oven, forget a veg somewhere along the line etc etc 'til the dinner is ready about 6ish

ilovecaboose · 08/11/2006 16:06

christmas eve - prepare food for next day, all have baths, put presents under tree and lay out clothes for next day.

Lodger eithr goes to his family christmas eve or early christmas morning.

Me, dp and ds open stockings in bed in morning. Get up, dressed and go downstairs. Breakfast is pain au chocolate and orange juice. Exchange presents with each other. Watch the snowman. I start putting food on.

My parents and sister arrive about 12ish, we open presents (1 at a time) and then have lunch. They leave about 3 or 4ish.

Dps parents, sister and granma come over about 5ish. We open presents (1 at a time) and all play with ds till he goes to bed. We have buffet style dinner.

They go home, lodger comes back, we watch films/telly and eat chocolate and go to bed late.

PinkTulips · 08/11/2006 16:14

xmas eve was allowed to open selection box nd one other small present

put out xmas cake, brandy and carrot for santa and rudolf

santa presents in the small hours of xmas morning (anything after 5am was acceptable as long as i didn't wake the parents or open any non-santa presents)

played with presents all morning

mass at 12ish if we hadn't gone to midnight mass the night before

christmas brunch after mass of croissaints, eggs and tea

coffee in the afternoon with the first slice of xmas cake (not counting santas slice of course) and we opened the rest of the presents

xmas dinner quite late

drinking for parents and ridiculously late tv for kids most of the night

PinkTulips · 08/11/2006 16:15

dd is only 21 months but managed to enforce my xmas trads last year so they'll be staying this year.... on the grounds that i make the xmas dinner i got the veto on what we'd do. hate the xmas morning free for all and rest of the day ignoring each othe that dps family do!

harrogatemum · 08/11/2006 16:37

yeahinaminute - I love the fairy dust idea!! How fab!

yeahinaminute · 08/11/2006 16:49

Oh it's just lovely Harrogatemum - dead easy too !!!

figgypud · 08/11/2006 19:31

Arrrhh It all sound so good!

EmmyLou · 09/11/2006 14:33

You can sprinkle glitter mixed with oats too so that Father Christmas can see where to come and the reindeer have a snack too.

figgypud · 09/11/2006 17:26

bump

smeeinit · 09/11/2006 19:26

hmmm my family tradition?..............................
get up waaay too early,eat sausage rolls for brekkie,give/recieve pressies,have glass of champagne,do not at any time enter kitchen or face the rath of my dad!, stuff yourself silly weraing ridiculous paper hat, sit on sofa watching eastenders and shovel choclates,(mostly just brazils )into already full tummy and then sit back relax and listen to dad fart for the rest of the day!
heaven! i wouldnt have it any other way!!!

mummypumpkin · 10/11/2006 11:00

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

smeeinit · 10/11/2006 11:16

yep we do that!

GirlySquare · 10/11/2006 13:35

Like Jura we watch Nine Lessons & Carols from Kings on Christmas Eve, whilst eating Asda's take away curry or whatever we fancy.

Get woken up by dsd too early, then dsd and dd unwrapping stocking pressies on our bed first thing whilst we drink coffee and wish they'd both stayed in bed a little longer

Bacon butties and Bucks Fizz for breakfast whilst opening tree presents. Try to watch "Miracle on 34th Street".

Dinner late afternoon then try to get teenage dsd to go for walk afterwards...no chance...

Collapse on sofa eat chocolates, Xmas cake and stollen until teatime...turkey sandwiches with bread sauce...yummy!

Watch crap TV until kids fall asleep.

Ellieorange · 10/11/2006 16:30

Best childhood memories of xmas...

Advent calendar - we had the same one every year and I still remember some of the pictures, no chocolates, but we would like a candle and sing a carol and open a pic

Father Christmas - writing a letter and hiding it, somehow my Mum would find it! And also 'brainwash' into asking for not too expensive things eg. 'I would like a pair of pants, please Father Christmas and some sweets'!

On xmas day itself we would choose one present to open first thing, plus our Santas. Then rest of presents after Xmas dinner and Queen's speech.

Might miss out the Queen's speech tradition for our ds though! Think it is important to retain the specialness of xmas without the materialism. My husband brought up in Sri Lanka, they used to go shopping with their parents and choose an item of clothing to wear for the year, that was their xmas present. But xmas eve, the carols and all the lights etc. are what made it magical for him.

figgypud · 10/11/2006 19:25

bump

ernest · 10/11/2006 21:40

dh tried to introduce floury (ie snow) footprints left by santa. As I spent most of Christmas morning trying to clear it up as it gradually got spread all over the bloody house, I will not be allowing that one. This is our 1st Christmas at home for 6 years(so ds2 & 3 1st one at home), so feeling a bit nervous and want it to be special. More ideas? And for boxing day too, what does everybody do?

VanillaMilkshake · 10/11/2006 22:12

We always get dressed before oming downstairs, so Christmas morning it's downstairs in PJ's, stuffing choclate for breakfast and generally doing whatever DD wants to do

Would like to make thing a bit more 'seasonal' so am going to read up on what you lot do and may adopt some ideas - if you dont mind!

doormat · 10/11/2006 22:15

we all go downstairs together

me to be the dinner lady

we get drunk as much as poss

and go to pub in evening

JanH · 10/11/2006 22:19

I am so at Pruni's Stimulant I can't think what to say!!!

mrsnoah · 10/11/2006 22:26

Christmas Eve: go to Christingle Service at the most beautiful church in the middle of nowhere dressed in best finery.
Watch all the little ones' eyes like saucers in the flickering candle light as they turn all the lights out and the choir sing an eerie hymn. Magical.

Christmas Day: kids wake at 4am and open stockings at the end of their beds, stuff their faces with chocolate, while giggling and rustling. Go back to sleep til 7am ish (if we are very lucky)
go downstairs to open big presents under tree from Santa while filming them and drinking tea.

Kids play then in afternoon, we have 20 or so family here or go to this year's frazzled host!

3pm. The Queen. Turkey. Damson Gin. washing up and snoring.