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Christmas

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Original poster

What's Santa responsible for delivering in your house?

29 replies

Dozeynoo · 04/12/2006 15:24

As a kid Father Christmas visited our house on on Christmas Eve night to fill our stockings with lots of small gifts plus the obligatory choc. coins and satusma. Stockings were opened as soon as we woke then the 'proper' presents opened after breakfast.
In hubby's house Santa brought the presents from everyone on christmas eve - i.e. like some sort of delivery service and everything was opened as soon as they woke first thing.
DS1 is now three so this year we need to get our story straight.
Over christmas we cover at least 200 miles, stopping a couple of nights at several sets of relatives. Getting all 'Santa's' deliveries into the boot of the car unnoticed and carting them round 'in secret' plus explaining why half of them are left at home until later (need to fit the travel cot in for ds2) does not fill me with that warm and fuzzy christmas feeling.
How does it work in your house?

OP posts:
Furball · 04/12/2006 16:07

father christmas comes at midnight on christmas eve to fill empty sacks/huge stockings left at the end of the bed which are opened no earlier than 6am!

In the morning we get up and dressed - after having chocolate for breakfast Then sit round the tree dishing out presents. If my mum and dad come we wait to open the presents after they arrive.

Could you not have a small case or holdall designated for fc's delivery, then you can take them home in that as well after opening.

ComeOyefaithfulVeneer · 04/12/2006 16:12

Can't you explain that he delivered the bigger toys to your house as he knew it would be difficult to take them home in the car (perhapes include amongst the presents a letter from santa with a photo of the presents waiting at home?

I have done a run down to my parents with the presents so they are already there and dd (5) won't spy us trying to smuggle them down. (A 150 mile round trip but worth it).

JessaJingleBells · 04/12/2006 16:13

Santa brings the presents in the "stocking"

Presents for under the tree appear over the few days running up to Christmas day.

Santa presents are opened on christmas morning whenever awake, the 'tree' presents are opened after christmas dinner (lunch).

paulaplumpbottom · 04/12/2006 16:13

Santa comes in the night filling stockings with chocs, sweets and small toys and leaves all DD's presents safe under the tree. We all get up together and open them first thing.

jabberwocky · 04/12/2006 16:18

Santa brings small gifts for the stocking and a few gifts for the children. These are usually the big "wow" kind of gifts IYKWIM.

Kbear · 04/12/2006 16:26

Santa brings a small stocking for the end of the bed with satsuma, a few sweets and tiny pressies like hair clips and pens.

He leaves lots of bigger pressies like colouring books, books, small stuff under the tree.

Mum and Dad buy one big pressie each.

xmasmummy · 04/12/2006 16:30

why dont you send a few by post each week before you go then wont have so much in car?

hulababy · 04/12/2006 16:34

In our house Father Christmas delivers all children's presents on Christmas Eve, leaving them around the tree (some in sacks, some not) mixed with the presents for me and DH, which are already there. All presents are opened when we all go downstairs together. In last couple of years D's present opening has taken up most of the day as she liked to stop and play with things in between opening. We have never had stockings upstairs or anything.

We spend Christmas Day at home on our own - so it works well.

kslatts · 04/12/2006 16:43

We put presents from us and reletives we are not seeing at xmas under the tree before xmas (some are already there), santa bring presents from him on xmas eve and fills the pillow cases my two dd's leave at the end of their beds. stockings are opened as soon as we get up and then we open the presents from under the tree. presents from my parents arnd sister are opened when we see them later in the day.

PinkTinsel · 04/12/2006 16:45

santa brings one big present, one or 2 smaller presents and the stockings and these are opened at the crackof dawn. the rest of the presents are opened in the afternoon

santasaltire · 04/12/2006 16:58

Santa brings a stocking which goes on the end of the bed, full of small things - pencil's etc.
Then he puts 5 or 6 presents in a sack on the sofa. On the day the last mindee finishes for Christmas we put the presents we receive from others (Grandparents etc) under the tree. they know other people give them presents, not just Santa. We also give them 2 or 3 smaller things from us. Stockings and santa sacks are opened before breakfast, then everything else is opened.
It's good to read how others do it. Dh's younger sister was always told that her mum and dad buy the presents, as do everyone else, then they post them to santa to deliver. When she was about8, she asked why they went to all the trouble of posting them.
Another friend used to get all presents from santa, everything would be labelled from him, even things given by Grandparents.

Original poster
Dozeynoo · 04/12/2006 17:14

I like the idea of a split delivery from Santa stockings / tree presents such that we can split the opening times, and if need be delivery addresses!

OP posts:
poinsettydog · 04/12/2006 17:18

contents of stockings
three presents under tree

poinsettydog · 04/12/2006 17:18

if you're lucky

robinpud · 04/12/2006 17:20

Santa brings stockings which are filled with small but nice presents. Presents from other people are put under the tree on xmas eve and opened after lunch on xmas day.

worleywinterwonderland · 04/12/2006 17:28

we have alittle stoclong upstairs that he can open when he wakes, felt tips, colouring books and sweets to keep him entertained fora nout half an hour to give us time to wake properly. then we go downstairs to open all the presents which appear overnight from santa. sometimes mil will bring presents a few days later as she gpoes away at xmas and wont leave a preent here as she wants to give it to ds. ( she wouldnt go along with the santa idea, she insists on telling him its from her) ( so we have said that santa leaves it at hers so she can see him open it)

worleywinterwonderland · 04/12/2006 17:31

i am typing in the semi dark as ds1 and dp on playstation and they insist on it being dark. last year we werent allowed a fire as ds2 was worried it would be too hot for santa to get down during the night

JollyOldSaintNikkielas · 04/12/2006 20:05

He brings the stocking stuff and a few bigger presents, rest is from family and friends.

Skyler · 04/12/2006 20:21

I remember a thread like this last year. I was really shocked that some people had ever thought that Santa delivered all the presents. Odd IMO. In our house Santa delivers smallish stocking presents (a book, choc coins, satsuma, few bits for a £1 etc) that can be opened in the morning, and all the other presents are under the tree labelled and opened after lunch. The presents are usually there for a week or so before hand (part of the decorations and fun of the build up for me) but I think we will have to forfit this this year as dd2 will be 18 months and into everything. Our Christmasses have always involved travelling. We have opened the presents from whomever we were visiting when we were there. I don't envy you all that travel. It is great to have presents to come home to as well. I know my 3 yo won't be able to keep track of everything anyway and will be overwhelmed if she gets it all at once anyway so I wouldn't worry about not having all the presents at once...

Nemoinapeartree · 04/12/2006 20:24

Santa here fills stockings and brings one main present for DC.

doormat · 04/12/2006 20:25

he delivers the whole job lot

until the kids are old enough to realise

Pixel · 04/12/2006 20:47

Father Christmas fills a small stocking left at the end of the bed with small toys/sweets/novelty socks etc. Maybe a dvd. All the other presents are from family and friends. Even though they are only cheap things in the stocking dd gets very excited and she always remembers which toys were from Father Christmas!

We are having a slight change this year because it's just too difficult to sneak into dd's room now with squeaky floorboards etc so I have persuaded her that it's much more 'traditional' to leave the stockings by the fireplace .

NorksBride · 04/12/2006 21:42

Oooh Pixel, you could be me!

I'm not sure how I'll get into all the bedrooms this year either but I'm not sure my 5yo will allow her beloved stocking to stay downstairs (even though she has the only bedroom without a fireplace)!

SlightlyMadSanta · 04/12/2006 22:20

In our house Mummy and Daddy send money to Santa which he uses to buy/make their presents. I want to buy DC a personal gift from ourselves (as a cover story) but DP won't let me.

Santa doesn't bring things for grown ups. Grandparents & aunts and uncles ect. all buy their own gifts for DC.

My mum was trying to tell DC tonight that Santa is also going to leave pressies at her house for them to open after X Mas but I am a little annoyed at that cos as far as I am concerned Santa will only be leaving gifts here for them.

Skribble · 04/12/2006 22:32

Santa only brings his own stuff which is lots of little knick knacks put in socks on the end of the bed.

Our presents go downstairs presents from relations go out when they arrive but we tend to put ours out the night before just to reduce the temptation.

Kids bring there socks through to our bedroom to open them and PIL appear and perch on the end of our bed (now have dressing gown and brush to hand .

We then all get dressed and make some attempt at tea and toast before taking turns to open the rest of the presents. Kids act as posties and wait while others open their presents. Lasts all morning with breaks for more tea and nibbles.

I find it quite shocking when kids are allowed to run downstairs and rip open all their presents with out a clue who they are from and are done by 9am. Perhaps it is the way I was brought up but I don't like that idea.