What makes stockings good?

[disco123]

We never got them as DC and haven't done them so far with ours.

However I've seen people on here saying they are the best bit of Christmas, and I'm wondering what it is that made them so exciting? Was it that these were the "Santa"presents, so magical and fun? Was it that they were at the end of your bed and you could open them before the rest of the house got up? Or something about the contents?

I'm a keen lover of all things Christmas so wondering if I should get on board but not really sure what I'm missing

I still have my stocking from when I was a kid. My dad ceremonially handed it over to my husband the first Christmas after we got married.
DH didn't have a stocking growing up so didn't know what to put in it.
The joy on my kids faces when they are Santa has filled the stocking left on the end of their bed in the morning is priceless and matches the memories I have as a kid.
Stocking is filled with chocolate/sweets, a funny pair of pants, Christmas socks and what ever I've been able to find that will fit.
Anyone who stays Christmas Eve gets one.

For me as a child... One of dad's socks all lumpy and crinkly at the end of the bed. You wake up and feel it's there and know he's been. There wasn't anything expensive or particularly special in them, little toys and a few regular items that we didn't have the rest of the year (toothbrush and novelty sponge for example). Matey was great, it was colour changing and I think the bottles were different each year. I don't think matey do that anymore which is a shame.

I can't speak for my own kids but I try to do the same as my parents as that was the most exciting bit of Christmas as a child. I guess time will tell whether they find them as exciting as I did. My parents never went overboard at Christmas, I suspect we probably do more than they did so maybe the stocking magic will be lost amongst the other stuff?

We always did Santa Sacks. Pillowcases in my day, but my kids have named sacks. In our house, they don't contain the main presents but are filled with things the children need along with some luxury items / toys etc.

When they were little, they always got things they weren't allowed every day. The biggest box of Coco pops and some Hubba Bubba. My teens still say these were the best gifts.

Other than that, there were practical items like character vests and pants (these days replaced by Victoria Secrets undies), bubble Bath became lush Bath bombs and the toys have been replaced by clothes and make up.

Generally, items can vary from a couple of quid (chocolate Santa, selection box, hair bobbles etc) to about a tenner, unless it's something that's needed that costs more (like they need a new dressing gown etc).

Main presents come from us / family members and are placed under the tree.

They are just so magical. My parents used to do them to tide us over until opening presents as a family as the rule in our house was that everyone had to be showered, dressed and have breakfast which meant presents didn't get opened till 11am ish.
Ours used to contain little things. Normally a dvd/video, magazine, book, colouring pencils, sweets, chocolate coins, satsuma, socks, Terry's chocolate orange, smelly bath stuff. So nothing expensive but still fun to receive and play with until parents woke up.

It was the excitement of FC coming, and waking up to find that exciting bulging thing on the end of your bed.

We never had anything expensive in them as kids, but it was always magically exciting.

Not to mention the excitement of putting a tot of something warming and a mince pie out for FC, plus carrots for the reindeer - and checking for an empty glass and crumbs in the morning!

What makes them magical for parents:
Two identical stockings. Leave one out, fill the other, swap them in seconds.

@MrsBertBibby

Everyone gets a stocking in this house, if they sleep here Christmas Eve. The kids are nearly grown now, so they get a lot less than as kiddies. The Steps get stocking on Boxing day as they usually aren't here Xmas eve.

Socks (funky ones, from Thought or similar)
Chocs
Toiletries
Pens etc
A book
Cool playing cards
Little mad things. Last year they all got a smooth pebble of bog oak, from a tree that was growing when Stonehenge was built. A year before they got some bits of geode.

My main plan is stuff that they will enjoy using, or stuff that will make them laugh. Plus snacks.

Love the idea of little mad things @MrsBertBibby that sounds brilliant!!

The name ‘Santa Claus’ is just a version of Saint Nicholas, or Sinter Klaas (sp?) as I think he’s known in the Netherlands.

In this house he’s Father Christmas anyway, and very welcome to his tot of brandy and mince pie or two. BTW, please NB he does not want a glass of cold milk on a perishing cold winter’s night! - not in the U.K. anyway.

Ohhhh, just reading these gave me such lovely Christmas feels.

As others have said, it was the excitement of knowing 'he'd been'! The thought that he had magically sneaked in and filled it without making me, that he got round the world in one night, that I had been good enough to get a visit (and there would be presents downstairs) was thrilling.

Part of it was because I grew up in a lower working class family and so getting presents/toys throughout the year just didn't happen. We would visit the giant toy floor in the local department store for a day trip and look at the toys, but we NEVER bought anything. Birthdays were modest, and so when we had stocking, followed by numerous presents under the tree, well we knew that MUST be Santa, because our parents could/would never spend that much.

I used to get some nice little toys linked to what I liked (e.g. Care Bear stickers, skipping rope, scrunchie etc-I was a child of the 80s). However, every year there was always a clementine, a few chocolate gold coins and a few coins 10p/50p wtc dated that year that were super shiny. I do similar with my kiddos and...

...I still get one, as does my brother and our partners. I make my parents one, and any relatives we see on the day (normally 2 uncles and an aunt) get one too! I still love mine and have already started buying bits for my parent's ones. So far my dad has a bamboo travel mug, a tub of tiger balm and a mini sewing kit, my mum has a French olive soap, a mini pack of blank cards from a local artist, a tiny perfume and a whiskey miniature.

We did try the sacks, but I prefer doing a stocking, wrapping individual gifts and spreading them out under the tree for the 'wow' factor when they walk in. Probably because it gave me such a thrill as a child to have it like that.

@disco123 magic came from a little gift your parent would never usually spend money on. Dc2 got a Santa which stuck out his tongue last year which was declared hilarious while I eyerolled disapprovingly Another thing that was and is special is being allowed to eat chocolate (coins or chocolate Santa) before breakfast! On no other day was I (or now my DC) allowed to eat sweets or chocolate before breakfast. There is also something special in the moment that you open them only you know what is in there.

I make a note of things my DC say throughout the year and they usually forget most and then the special part of being a parent is hearing the gasps of wow he knew and I didn't even put it in my letter!!! I don't spend a lot at all. I.e. dc1 loves a certain animal. I got a necklace of it from Claire's accessories. Took the tags off and put in a little jewellery box. It is treasured.

@morerainthananyyet Thank you!!! That is a genius suggestion. I always stress and panic that they will wake up in the 5 -10 minutes it takes me to stuff them and they will discover nothing on their bed!

For me it’s all the little things, I’ve always loved little bits and bobs, cute lip balm, hair bands, stationery etc. I try to buy things that my dc will enjoy and can use for a while or things they eat or things s like bath bombs/cool shower gels rather than some of the tat that you see marketed as stocking fillers.

I got a stocking from Santa well into my 20s

I still love them and so do my DC. Lots of small, inexpensive (but non tat) gifts they can open in their rooms at silly o'clock. And a £1 coin and an orange.

DS2 and I have a lovely time last year with his stocking.

He woke up much too early (DS2 is now a teen and would have been miserable :o) so we snuggled up eating his Chocolate orange whispering and laughing quietly, just me and him.

Oh and I taught him how to blow bubbles with the special chewing gum he got.

It was the best start to Christmas morning.

As a kid we used my mums old tights! They were good actually as very stretchy. They had little toys, toiletries (always a toothbrush) fruit, nuts and sweets. The nuts is what I remember most as we used to sneak a nutcracker upstairs on Christmas Eve so we could crack the nuts first thing! My dc ones are similar but they have big novelty stockings, they get stuff like a hit wheels car, slime, bubbles, magic flannel, funny soap, Bath bombs, magnifying glass, lego blind bag, plus fruit nuts and sweets. It's from santa but so are the presents downstairs....tree presents are family ones if we have them in advance and mine and dhs.
Last year our new dog had a stocking too.
It gives me an extra 30 mins in bed so I can get a cup of tea down before we go downstairs.