Do you have an 'order' to present opening?

[LajesticVantrashell]

Not with kids, I understand that's a rabid free for all, but with partners?

DH has 10 gifts this year, ranging from welly socks to new Vans trainers. I like him to open them in a specific order so he gets the less good (read: crappy) ones first and the better (more expensive) ones last.

Am I the only one who does this?!

I love turn taking, DH gets twitchy about the order and wants best to be last, I don't mind this.

I do this. I arrange them so the the not so exciting ones are in the front and the exciting ones are right in the back of the tree. It's impossible to get to the back without moving the ones in the front. I do this with the kids ones too. No one gets to arrange the gifts bar me (apart from the ones that are for me obviously, thats DP's job)

When I was a child, my parents never seen us open a present because we would sneak downstairs at 3am and open our presents.

So when mine were younger, they were allowed to go downstairs to see if he'd been, and open their stockings while we followed and made a cuppa. Then it was a free for all. The only problem was, in the mad rush, we would miss their reactions in the commotion.

So as they got older we changed it up a bit. So now it's still stockings first, followed by me handing out gifts. But not one as a time more one each at a time. I don't do cheap to expensive but I do like to leave main gifts to the end then mix up the cheap/medium gifts.

Dc tend to start with the largest present and this year their main presents are the biggest in size. There isn't any order afterwards either

Our main presents are opened after lunch - about 5:30 ish - usually there is DS13, DH, MIL, DF, DB &hus girlfriend . I have bought &wrapoed 90% of gifts so have a good idea of what's what - everyone gets something in turn in a relaxed way with drinks and chocs on the go, DS obviously has the most to unwrap and all us adults love seeing his joy at the gifts,. I usually engineer it so that the large special gifts come near the end . Last year DS much wanted AirPods from DF @ DB was last and I wrapped them as a cracker hidden on the tree - no one noticed them

I'd prefer no order, but a paced opening rather than free for all. So kids have one each at a time. If they have a gift that's the same need them to open at same time. Put main presents at the back.
OH is very controlling and likes to be the one doing the handing out. He also doesn't use labels so has to spend time trying to remember what the present is and who it's for. The rest of us find this behaviour very annoying but he just wants to build excitement.

No unless what you have what we call a 'combination present'

It's essentially a two parter wrapped up separately, ie new wellies and new wellie socks. Or a cook book and a wok. Then they have to be opened together.

We don’t do presents all in one go, we like to spread it throughout the day.
Stockings on our bed when they wake up.
Presents from us when they have had breakfast/got dressed, Main will be held back until last but otherwise they can open in whatever order they like. Though this year both the youngest have lots of small presents which make up a main, so I have numbered them and hidden them in a massive box full of packing peanuts! Can’t wait to see their faces.
Presents from each other before lunch.
In the afternoon grandparents come round and then we do a big take it in turns with presents from them and we have ours.
We quite often hold back presents from in-laws until 27th or 28th to drag it out even further.
We used to do Boxing Day presents as well, but that is now solely for dd’s birthday!

No, I've never done this. We join the kids in a rabid free for all and then soak up the bedraggled ambience with a bucks fizz and bacon sarnie.

No order but we hand them out one at a time and do try to make sure it’s not just one person opening lots without others getting a turn. The only time there’d be an order is if part two of the present makes no sense without opening part one (although that can be funny watching them go why the hell have I been given this??)

I hate being watched opening a gift. I feel like my reaction is personal to me and having to perform for the giver pisses me off. My sister will watch me intently and expect tears of gratitude. 😕

Stockings when we wake up
Present under the tree after dinner
DC are in charge of distributing presents and they have to make sure everyone has something to open before they open one.

Dh and I number gifts for each other. There is a build up to the main gift.

Someone sits by the tree and hands them out.

No order particularly, just how they come, but if I notice someone hasn’t had anything for a while I’ll fish them one out.

I give the kids their main present last

They have a stocking each (they’re 16 and 19 so not littlies) which they open with breakfast

Santa presents first, then family presents after. They receive a lot of gifts and they’re young, so it takes a few days as they play as they open. I think books etc don’t get much attention, as they’re more boring than toys. Actually I wish we had a Christmas week of spreading out the presents, more boring ones first, as then they’d appreciate them more 😂

Always done that. Sometimes we number them, sometimes, if it’s practical given the size/type of gift we do like a giant pass the parcel with a gift in each layer, or boxes inside each other. Or colour coded ribbons, green first then yellow, red, silver, gold etc.

Yes, youngest to oldest for everyone. Including children.

Our Christmas Day present routine.

Stockings in the morning

Gifts from other people after breakfast

Have Christmas Day lunch

Gifts from me and DH after lunch

Main gifts get opened last and are kept out the way until the other Presents have been opened.

Then any random ones I find that I have hidden and forgotten about.

We all done one gift at a time. when I did a free for all, presents had got lost or accidentally binned during the chaos.

Do not done!

We do stockings in our bed (daft wee things), kids bring theirs through. This gives Dh and I time to adjust to being awake at 6am.
Then tree presents - mixture of Santa presents and any others that they have been given by friends/family ahead of time. The kids go first but take turns - it helps us keep track of what's been opened/whos got what from who. The turn taking can be quite funny, especially when the "Main" presents get kept for last and this year DS will likely have opened his pad set before he opens his skateboard .

DH and I open ours at some point I guess! Probably when the kids are looking at their things.

@livingthegoodlife

One at a time here so we can all watch.

I remember my first ever Christmas away from home at my boyfriend's family home. It was a free for all with nieces and nephews just opening everything. Even adults diving in. I was so shocked. I just sat there frozen. It was horrible!!

Just to add, im sure it was lovely if that's what you're used to but I wasn't at all. Traumatised!!

In my family there are no frenzied gift openings. One at a time to savor the enjoyment.

No particular rules, I usually watch dd open hers then open mine, DP will probably arrive later and open his.

I need to repack DPs stocking because the present in the top is the main one at the moment (because it was delivered last and I've been wrapping as I've bought this year), DDs stocking will have the best thing in the toe as well.

There aren't many of us so we go slow and one at a time.

DSS is Master of Ceremonies so he passes out the gifts, and we give him a nudge in one direction or another when it comes to his own gifts, to roughly follow the 'little stuff' to 'main present' rule.

He officially stopped believing in Father Christmas last year, so we've replaced some of the magic with power as he knows what both DP and my presents are and takes great pleasure in the secret

If we were to pile in, it'd all be over in 5 minutes and he wouldn't get the fun of being the boss.

Nup, I’ve usually got 1 or 2 that randomly get opened (if not already by the kids), I usually do it as I’m walking round with my trusty rubbish bag. Same with DH. We never worry about presents for each other, everything goes into the kids, we get a few token gifts for the kids to give us.