Order of opening presents...

[user137473]

Just curious how other people do things. My kids usually have accessories that go with other presents and opening them in the wrong order would give the surprise away. Say, games to go with a console, dolls clothes to go with a doll, that kind of thing.

Also curious, do you hand out presents one by one or do you do a free for all? One person at a time or do you all compare after?

I used to wrap my kids presents in their own different paper, but I felt it took a lot of the mystery away and the excitement of looking at the labels and handing them out. I also think everything in the same paper looks too uniform, so I always choose about 5 different designs and everyone has a mix. I tend to strategically place certain presents like mains towards the back of the tree. We all take it in turns to unwrap a present, I think it helps to stretch it out so it's not all done in 5 minutes.

I also don't like the same paper thing....I see people with 20 gifts under the tree, all in the same paper! Weird!

Re the accessories thing...I've tried to put the "giveaway" gifts at the back of the pile or low down but DD2 always seems to go for the smaller, more hidden gifts first. Now I'm more likely to wrap accessories with whatever they go with.

Stockings first, breakfast, then main gifts. I hide the main gifts under the tree skirt (pretend that was it then surprise!). Used to be same wrapping paper but it’s mixed this year. Looks better and more exciting I think. They open methodically and we wait turns. I stack things up in order already so they just open from top down. I’m leaving a present for Boxing Day this year.

New pyjamas on Christmas Eve after dinner. Stockings first thing with Bucks Fizz and chocolate biscuits. Presents from under the tree after dinner followed by themed hampers. All adults here and we go out for Christmas lunch so the opening isn't normally finished much before 7.00pm. When DD's were younger we still followed this format with the girls taking it in turns to don the Santa hat and give out the presents from under the tree. Items that "go together" are wrapped together or made into a themed hamper with cellophane, shred, bows and all that jazz.

DCs are with their father this Christmas so they won't be home until 4pm. That's when we will do gift opening. But when they are with me on Christmas we do gifts from santa first thing then breakfast and get changed and then we do gifts from everyone else

We have a mix of wrapping paper for everyone too.

We come down at stupid o clock (around 6 in the morning, I have very excitable little ones) and the kids dive under the tree.
They pass out presents, then open them in turns, youngest to oldest. Me and their dad open ours once they've finished.

Then we have breakfast and set up new toys, then the rest of the day is spent playing and eating Christmas dinner.

We have a mix of paper and take it in turns (once dressed and had breakfast - stockings in our bed before we get up). I number presents if it matters what order they are opened in (Ie doll 1, clothes 2).

We have a two and four year old. We do stockings and one present (the stuff that comes from Father Christmas) first thing. Those are easy to identify as they are at the fireplace rather than under the tree like everyone else's presents. Then we have breakfast.

After breakfast we open presents from anyone who is present, so immediate family only, this year. Each gift giver gives their gifts out how they please, so could give one at a time while everyone watches; one to each person to open together; all out at once; or just keep certain things aside to give after others. Then they have time to play with the new presents.

We have a small lunch, short naps and then presents from anyone not present (extended family) often with a video call. My mum likes to direct which ones to open, e.g. "look for two flat square ones of about six inches and get the boys to open them together." Then I make dinner while they play with those toys.

As a child we always opened stockings in bed when we woke up, whatever time that might be. We did the same for our dcs - stocking presents always carefully chosen to include quiet toys, a book etc, so if they got opened at 4 am, so what? Inevitably, after opening them the dcs always went back to sleep until a more reasonable time. Then, once we were all downstairs, Father Christmas presents from under the tree and presents 'from mummy and daddy ' in another, smaller pike. Father Christmas presents, including stockings, always wrapped in one design for each child - prevented labels falling off and, as they got older, recognising our handwriting. Still do similar now they are adults. Each dc, their partner and out dgc has their own design to find under the tree. Everybody else has a mixture.
We open one thing at a time and take frequent breaks for plating, reading, etc as well as sorting out food. We often ended up saving a few presents for Boxing Day. Amazingly, we never spent a lot on the dcs, probably around £50 each, but bargain hunting during the year meant they always had loads to open!

Santa doesn't wrap his presents for our house, they are just set out in the living room, away from the tree.
Only presents from family and friends are under the tree, which we open one by one.

Santa stuff in the stocking on their beds. They wake up at ridiculous o'clock, and like pp they fall back to sleep.
Breakfast and then open presents which are wrapped in whatever. Have about 10 different rolls on the go, and don't do the matched paper.

Unless it's something shared, the big stuff like consols etc they get on their birthdays.

Stockings
Breakfast
Main present
Tree present

I have wrapped in about 5 different papers, don’t like the all being in the same paper, doesn’t look as fun.

My kids are older now (early 20s) but still get excited. But we've always done presents in turn. It's nice to see what others have been given and see the reactions from things you've given them. You also then know who to thank for what.
It has always struck me as a horrible way to do it when people report that their kids race downstairs at the crack of dawn and open everything before anyone else is even up.

We do stockings first thing. Then presents spread through the day so 1 after breakfast, 1 before lunch etc. Each person has a gift to open. Open them at the same time. It’s been this way since I can remember. DH used to do the whole open them all in one go as a child. He says he prefers my way as he used to get overwhelmed by it all when he was younger. In terms of order, I might ensure a big present is opened before a little one if I know the little one is an accessory to big one.

Stockings and other small gifts from us first thing. (We don’t do Santa but I guess this is the equivalent of the santa presents) They are in 4 distinct piles each with their own wrapping paper. This is a bit of a free for all with lots of “look! I got this!” Or “did you get one of these?”

Then we present the DC with their main gift each and they open one at a time.

That’s it until after lunch. We eat breakfast, go to church then come back (or go to relative’s house) and enjoy the gifts already opened before lunch. Then it’s dinner and the Queen and only then do the presents under the tree start.

Someone sits by the tree and distributes one by one. Usually FaceTime is involved as we have family who live overseas.

Finally, after a buffet/dessert tea we do a family game of mean santa.

This year we are actually saving all the gifts from DH’s family (his parents & siblings etc) until Boxing Day and doing them in the morning first thing. We won’t have time on Christmas Day as we are travelling further to family, and we don’t want to rush past the gifts from us in the morning, just to squeeze in more gifts which will overwhelm everyone!

Stockings first (everyone in the house gets one) opened upstairs in DD1’s bedroom. It’s a bit of a free for all.

Then downstairs to open pillowcases - a full one for each child. They take a while over this while the adults watch.

After lunch it’s presents under the tree which are passed out to all the recipients by me; one by one.

We don't put presents under the tree (started when we had our old destructive cat but has just carried on that way) so everyone has their pile in front of a spot on the sofa. Mixed paper designs for everyone. When DC were little it was a bit of a free for all but now it's calmed down they take it in turns, usually youngest to oldest. These days even me and DH get included When they were little there was no hope of us opening anything until DC had finished!

I use all the same paper and then go onto the next design. I don't care if it looks uniform, I don't like having several half-used rolls of paper.

Same with Christmas cards. My husband likes to use several different designs, I prefer to use up one box and then move onto the next (although I didn't send many this year).

My son has his stocking in his bedroom. I do parkrun and my mum likes a walk so we don't get Buck's Fizz and onto present opening until about 10.30. We take it in turns.

After dinner, which we have around 2pm, we also have "table presents" which are small things like a bar of chocolate etc - tradition started by mum about 10 years ago although it's got a bit out of hand and we seem to almost have as many presents as we do under the tree!

Stockings first thing in our bed. Unwrapped but they each take out one gift at a time

Presents once everyone is dressed and we’ve had breakfast

Mixed paper and presents handed out one at a time from a big mixed up pile under the tree

Ds has his stocking and then tree present from me.

I have 3 different papers usually. But I'm a little sad and it colour coordinates with my tree that matches my lounge decor

Then we have breakfast.

Go to my parents for lunch and sibling, aunts and parents presents are there. Mum hands them out to us one at a time but we all get one at same time iyswim? She usually cant even remember what's in them so doubt they come in an order.

But we are adults and ds is 15 and nephew 8 so it's only really my nether that hets sets of anything now.

Kids have a soft toy wrapped from Santa in their bed. Then downstairs to a pile each in their own paper. Only allowed to open stocking whilst adults grab coffee, camera, slippers etc. Then they open their Santa pile. Once done they get their "main" gift from mummy and daddy and we get a breather to open our own gifts from each other whilst they play. Finally then onto that red gifts from relatives and friends handed out one by one