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Christmas

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

Your Christmas morning traditions

42 replies

Winterfellismyhome · 20/11/2019 16:08

I love threads like this --because im nosy

What are your Christmas morning routines?

When i was a kid we opened one present in the morning then had to wait until after dinner for the rest. It took hours as we were a big family.

Now as an adult, we do breakfast, then presents and spend the rest of the day being lazy Grin

OP posts:
linentowel · 20/11/2019 19:01

Straight into presents. In my opinion (and it’s just that), I’d hate to see kids waiting for hours to open gifts.

Then chocolate, champers, breakfast, tv on. Chill out. May be go for a walk.

We don’t eat until nearly dinner time so 5 ish.

Brooksey5 · 20/11/2019 19:05

When I was growing up it was always you can open one present from your stocking in your room and then (when It was after about 7) we all sat in my parents bed opening our stocking presents.

Dad would go down and make some drinks but apart from that we couldn’t go downstairs until we were all dressed.

Then it was breakfast followed by Christmas three presents and visits to/by friends and family before lunch.

After a late lunch we’d just chill for the rest of the day

TeenPlusTwenties · 20/11/2019 19:09

I get up, bung turkey in the oven (~7:15), turn on tree lights, make myself and DH a cup of tea, go back to bed.
DDs come in when both awake and do their stockings.
Then downstairs, see living room with lights & presents.
Breakfast, dress, teeth.

A few presents including a new DVD.
DD1 plays on phone, DD2 watches DVD
I do bits of food
GPs arrive around time DVD finishes.
More presents
more food prep
more presents
lunch 1pm.
washing up
Queens speech
optionalish walk
more presents
afternoon tea

kalinkafoxtrot45 · 20/11/2019 19:12

Straight into pressies, in jammies! Then brekky, then get dressed. Granny and grandpa would arrive for Christmas dinner. Afterwards we’d phone aunties and uncles and our other grandparents to say happy Christmas and thank you. Then settle doen with chocs and the Bond movie.
These days DP and I have friends over, we cook Christmas lunch, and then party i to the evening. It’s open house to any chums in town who fancy coming over, especially if they’re alone over the festive period and would like to celebrate in company.

HPandTheNeverEndingBedtime · 20/11/2019 19:13

When I was younger we opened the stockings on mum and dad's bed, dad went down to put the heating on and make mum and him a tea then we opened our presents in our pj's.

Now, if Dd is spending Christmas with me, she comes in my room opens her stocking then we get showered and dressed and go to my parents house. Sausage / bacon roll for breakfast whilst my dad and brother get ready (mum has undoubtedly been up Prepping dinner) then presents, we still take it in turns and only allowed to open one at a time. Then scoff chocolate, have Christmas lunch, play whatever new board game we've bought.

If Dd is at her dad's, then I have a layin then rock up at my parents we spend the day eating chocolate, a few drinks and watching Christmas movies and /or online shopping snapping up bargains that normally arrive for us to have our proper Christmas with Dd when she's back.

stucknoue · 20/11/2019 19:15

Young adults, crawl out of bed (after several knocks) with 5 mins to get to church (they are in the choir) stockings when they get home, dinner then bigger presents

Ffsnosexallowed · 20/11/2019 19:18

Presents as soon as we're up. Dmil likes to see the DC open their present, so deal is we call her when we get up (she's 5 miss away). Last year she woke us at 6 ringing the doorbell. Think we'll need to have a word this year....

Acunningruse · 20/11/2019 19:22

Stockings in bed
Downstairs for all presents from Father Christmas/us
Play with new toys/get ready/prep food
Family arrive 11ish
We give them their gifts with drinks and canapés
Lunch
Their gifts to us/DCs after lunch

SweetPeaPods · 20/11/2019 19:48

Wake up and everyone on our bed for stockings. DC wake up to theirs on the ends of their beds and bring them through.
Then me or DH head downstairs to put tree lights on and make a cup of tea before dc come down to open presents from Santa (me and DH). Then breakfast - Buck’s Fizz, fresh coffee and bake in oven pastries.
Then dc can play with their presents or open some from relatives.
We have had busy Christmas days for years that we have now stepped back and have a chilled day, dinner is ready when it’s ready rather than having to rush to MILs house for a set time.

Natsku · 20/11/2019 19:56

When I was a child we would eat breakfast first then stockings and one present that mum picked out for each of us, then church. Didn't get to open the rest of the presents until after lunch.

Nowadays we have stockings and a few presents first thing in the morning, then breakfast, then listen to the declaration of christmas peace (Finnish tradition). Rest of the presents are hand delivered by Joulupukki (grandma's boyfriend in a Father Christmas outfit) after dinner.

Spied · 20/11/2019 20:01

Wake up around 6. DC come running in our bedroom with their stockings which they open on our bed.
We then all go downstairs in our PJs to see if Santa's been.
Dc open presents and I send a message to pils to say the children are up. ( Pils live locally) Usually they arrive as DC are finishing off opening their presents and come armed with their gifts ( stay for about an hour )
We eat whatever we want for breakfast ( usually chocolate) and DC play with their presents while do and I open our gifts.
Around 11am we get dressed and go to my dm and df ( about an hour away) for our Christmas dinner that we eat 1pm.
4pm-ish we come back home and spend the rest of the day/evening watching TV while DC play and watch TV too. We eat party-style snacks and chocs.

Morgan12 · 20/11/2019 20:02

I get up before the DC to go put the tree lights on.

We lay out the presents in the living room. No wrapping. So DC come down and see everything they have straight away.

Then we have breakfast and go to inlaws. Then to my family for dinner.

Bluewavescrashing · 20/11/2019 20:05

Kids can have stockings in bed and fiddle around with the contents, eat the sweets etc until we get up at 7 ish.

We go downstairs and make a coffee while they twitch around the tree. Open presents in one go.

Make and eat breakfast, they play with new stuff for a bit then get dressed.

Drive 45 mins to ILs, open presents from their side of the family, eat Christmas Dinner about 1pm, watch TV / adults doze whilst kids play with new toys.

MIL insists we watch the speech.

More TV, maybe a walk or a board game

Breakfast

highheelsandweathercocks · 20/11/2019 20:15

When I was a child, my DB and I would open our stockings in our own beds alone when we were older, but I think we did them with parents when we were younger, then we'd like downstairs in our PJ's and get stuck straight into the gifts that had magically appeared overnight.

Now, DCs stockings are filled and left at the end of their beds. They bring them into us and open them on our beds.
I pop downstairs, put the tree lights on, shut the living room door and make a cup of tea for both DH and I, then go back upstairs. We all come down together.
DH and I don't do gifts to each other anymore so the DC take turns opening theirs while we watch.
Then it's a lazy day of inevitably building whichever Lego and Playmobil sets they've got that year, them playing with them, some TV and dinner around 3ish. My newest tradition appears to be falling asleep in front of the new Julia Donaldson adaptation. I really want to watch it, but I just crash, every single time. The last three years neither DH or the DC have even gotten dressed. We just put the DC in fresh PJ's to go to bed.
We used to hike all round the country at Christmas visiting family but this is our fourth Christmas since we put a stop to it and we adore doing absolutely nothing. The furthest we get is putting the cardboard out to the recycling bin.

ScouseQueen · 20/11/2019 20:17

We open presents straight away, though DH likes to get a pot of coffee on asap to accompany things. Breakfast either afterwards or, in the days of towering mountains of DC presents, as a break in the middle - usually bacon sandwiches. Then mix of cooking, drinking champagne or prosecco, and watching Christmas telly.

BoneAppleTeeth · 20/11/2019 20:24

The children bring their stockings from the ends of their beds to our room and open the contents. While they play with their stocking gifts I go downstairs, put on the tree lights and make a cup of tea. We all come downstairs together to see if Santa has been, and the children open a few more presents. We have a quick breakfast (usually Buck's Fizz and a smoked salmon bagel) and then get ready for church, if there's time DH and I will exchange gifts with each other. We walk down to church and enjoy the service and then head home to open a few more presents and get Christmas dinner started. Parents/in laws arrive around 1pm for dinner at 2pm-ish and they play with the children while we finish the dinner and serve it up. After dinner the children open yet more presents from my parents & in laws and we get ourselves ready for an afternoon of lazing on the couch and playing a new board game. Christmas Day is so much more enjoyable now we've put an end to putting ourselves under immense pressure to visit everyone and stick to a strict timetable all day.

Fevertree · 20/11/2019 20:47

Our daughter (and son this year though hes only just one so a little young yet) opens stockings in our bed. One of us will.go down and put the tree lights on, put the Kettle on and maybe the oven depending on what we have for breakfast. We'll all.come.down together and open presents. Dd quite likes to play with them as she goes along so it's quite leisurely. We don't do dinner on xmas day so breakfast is maybe bacon rolls and hash browns and fruit and yoghurt. Dps and Dbros will come over in the morning for presents. That's about it really we just chill, play and eat

Maxineputyourredshoeson · 20/11/2019 21:50

We get woken by DD’s and head into their room - MIL stays with us and is in their room also - to watch them, including MIL open stockings. They then follow their present trail - DH started this when DD1 was little, I’m not sure why he did but we’ve continued with it.

Open presents all in out pyjamas normally someone has made coffee. My dad and his wife are normally on FaceTime or Skype watching, they live in Canada and we’ve only spent one Christmas with them in 10yrs.

We then go to my DM’s for more presents and breakfast, MIL usually stays at home, she likes to have a shower and usually has a quick tidy up whilst we’re gone.

When we get home it’s more presents from MIL and then it’s time to relax. We end up playing games, putting toys together, helping with Lego. Watching TV/movies.

We eat late around 6ish and the it’s more relaxing. It’s a very chilled day. Apart from going to DM’s and the FaceTime from dad we go with the flow.

BridgetJonesDaiquiri · 20/11/2019 23:01

Love these threads!

Our two daughters are only 2.5 and newborn, so we're still finding our own traditions. When I was a kid we used to spend the morning until just after lunch at home and then travel up to see grandparents and family for our annual Christmas Day party, staying until the 27th. It was exciting, but as an adult I'd much prefer to stay at home rather than schlepping all over.

DM/DF and PILs come to stay with us from Christmas morning until 27th. Last year looked like this:
-- coffee and stockings in bed (DH exchange our main gifts on Christmas Eve), down for brekkie (sausage sarnies and champagne!), tree presents from us and FC afterwards
-- get dressed and ready for family arriving about 11:30
-- picky lunch around 1pm of party nibbles and more bubbles
-- afternoon - exchanging gifts, playing with toys, maybe a walk for those who are keen
-- we had our adults Christmas dinner around 8pm

This year will be similar but we'll do Christmas dinner around 5pm so DD1 can get involved this year and then we'll have cheese, games and nightcaps for the adults when she's gone to bed. DD2 will probably just sleep through all the festivities!

BridgetJonesDaiquiri · 20/11/2019 23:02

Haha phantom strikethrough. Not intentional!

Whoops75 · 20/11/2019 23:11

All up together straight down to see what Santa left.
He’s always in a hurry at our house so leaves everything in a big pile.
While kids rummage for their gifts dh makes me a baileys coffee.
Selection boxes for breakfast followed by pancakes.
Grandparents arrive for dinner at 2pm and after that we’re on the sofa for the day.

Hoolajerry · 20/11/2019 23:23

Kids are allowed to open one present each from their stockings before we wake up. They are allowed into our room after 7 when we all open stockings together.
Everyone downstairs together and they have to wait whilst I make coffee and we feed animals. Then we are all allowed into the sitting room to see if Father Christmas has been. Open those presents and then get dressed. This year in laws coming to us for breakfast - champagne, smoked salmon and scrambled eggs then we'll all go for a big walk. SIL hosting dinner this year so we'll spend the afternoon chilling out before heading to their house for dinner around 5. Evening will be spent playing games, watching TV until everyone collapses.

recklessgran · 20/11/2019 23:32

All adults here so we get up around 9ish and open stockings. Breakfast is champagne and chocolate biscuits. We go out for Christmas dinner [12 of us] for 2.00pm. After that we have champagne in front of an open fire at the venue. Get home about 5 for the main present opening after which we have cocktails, a massive cheese board and play games.

BiddyPop · 21/11/2019 10:17

Coffee on, oven on, tree lights on, DD allowed in to open stocking.

Once that has been upended and explored, all back to the kitchen where pastries go into the oven and juice is squeezed, radio turned on at some point (first thing or whenever we remember!). More coffee made and breakfast enjoyed. That tends to be a relatively relaxed affair, and DD may head off to do something with a new toy/activity, or may just sit and chat with us.

Clean up, showers and nice clothes, out to mass (usually 11am, occasionally 12 noon).

Couple of extended-family "drink and mince pie" visits en route home (we used to call home before the last one to turn on turkey, but now don't have that final one to do, I go to the cemetary another time in December instead).

Home early afternoon, turn on music again and tree lights, turn on oven, throw in some M&S nibbles, get stuffing in turkeys' bum, chuck that in the oven, get fire and candles lit, organise kitchen so it's just throwing things into the oven at various points (we have prepped things on 24th like peeling potatoes and veg, making stuffing, making flavoured butter etc), take out nibbles, open drinks, head to sitting room to open presents with drinks and nibbles.

Various interludes of someone wandering into the kitchen to baste turkey or throw something else into the oven, or refresh glasses. Eventually this includes setting the table etc too. We might also have the tv on once presents are finished, or just enjoy the music and fire and chat.

We tend to aim to eat the turkey about 6 or so.

Mumtobe193 · 21/11/2019 10:24

When I was a kid it was just straight downstairs, wait for mum to get her cup of tea, then me and my sister would take it in turns to open our pressies (mum and dad didn’t usually get much, if anything at all). At some point dad would go and make us all a bacon sandwich or we would just eat the contents of our selection boxes for breakfast. Stockings were hung on the fireplace and usually opened last.

Our DD is only 4 so we’ve really only had a particular ‘routine’ for the last couple of years. I love a lie in every other day of the year but I’m usually up first on Christmas Day as I’m a big kid 😂 I go downstairs make myself a brew, put some Christmas music on, switch tree lights on, then go upstairs to wake DP, then we both go into DD’s room to wake her. We open her stocking first in our bed, we usually have some croissants or similar (although DD is usually more interested in eating her chocolate coins for breakfast) then downstairs DD opens presents, again, me and DP don’t usually get anything for each other, any presents we do have are from the in laws which we open when we go to their house later that day. Main present for DD is usually hidden elsewhere in the house and we surprise her with it later in the morning. we go upstairs and get scrubbed up, then it’s a morning of cooking, watching crap TV, playing with DD’s new toys, followed by lunch at 2pm. Walk up to in-laws at 4pm for an evening of more present opening, more food, and more booze.

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