Does anyone not 'do' stockings?

[Stressfordays]

I'm wondering if I'm the strange one but we've never done stockings? No one I know does them either? Presents get wrapped and put under the tree. I didn't have them as a kid and my parents didn't either. We call the cheaper bits you buy stocking fillers but don't actually put them in a stocking. Am I doing Christmas wrong? 🤣

I never had a stocking as a child but I do them for my children
One of my favourite parts of Christmas is all the kids on the end of our bed first thing with their bed head and tired eyes looking through stockings ☺️

Theres litrally a thread right here where almost every responder has said they don't and their families didn't... why on earth do you think everyone is lying?

Its perfectly common, equally as common as doing them its just that those who don't do them dont talk about them because why would they?

The reason doing them seems common here is simply because people are regularly asking for ideas and those that don't obviously don't have any reason too keep bringing up something they don't do.

Just because something is 'louder' doesn't mean its the only or right or most common option.

We do stockings but don't do presents under the tree from Santa. Santa gifts are in a pile on the sofa and the smallest ones in the stocking with an orange, chocolate coins and a pound coin 😀

Presents under the tree are either from us, waiting to go to someone else, or from neighbours/friends etc.

DH and I are from pretty different backgrounds and locations and we both did it this way growing up.

For those who put stockings on beds, do you hang them on the fireplace? And then Santa fills them and brings them to their bedrooms?

We hang out stockings on the fireplace and santa fills them and leaves them there. I think my kids would hate the idea of him in their bedrooms 😄

Always had stockings (or pillowcases) and always did them for dds. Gdcs now the same.
Finding that so-excitingly bulging stocking or pillowcase at the end of the bed first thing on Christmas morning - usually when it was still dark - was one of the very best bits of my childhood Christmases, so I wanted dds to enjoy the same.

And one of the very best bits when dds were small was having them excitedly bringing their stockings to open on our bed - usually with Ddog and DCat also present and very interested to see what was going on.

I'm amazed at this. Everyone I know does stockings! I shall have to quiz my friends to check! I've moved north from a southern childhood and as far as I know everyone did and does do stockings or pillowcases which would be the same in my eyes.

In my mind they're "holder" presents because we don't allow the children to dive straight into tree presents. Everyone has to be up, dressed and the adults need champagne.

Who allows children to open everything straight away? Our Christmas would be over by 8am if that were the case!

Mine laid their sacks under the tree and put the mincepie and alcoholic beverage/milk on the table ready for his visit.
I had a stocking by the fireplace/ at the end of my bed depending where we spent Christmas

I'malso shocked at the number of people who dont do stockings, I thought everyone did!

But there you go OP, not remotely in the minority.

As kids my siblings and never had stockings and our presents were laid out on chairs unwrapped.

I've got stockings this year for my kids but only because my youngest has mentioned it several times to me after learning a verse of just jingle bells at nursery

I tend to think of stockings and Christmas wreaths as 1970s revivals of Victorian/Edwardian customs. Not that they completely died out but I feel Christmas started to involve a lot more compulsory elements in the seventies and eighties and ever since.

@uuser58202018484482910ugog19293843910

I don't wrap presents either. Each DC gets a little pile and I put their tiny stockings with candy inside with each pile. The stockings have their names embroidered on them.

Avoiding wrapping saves so much time and effort and paper.

Oh stockings are my favourite bit of Christmas. That and hearing small children sing songs. Oh and drinking in the daytime and it not being frowned upon

We don’t do stockings either, OP. It wasn’t a thing in my childhood and so I’ve never done it with my children.

We didn't have any wrapped gifts as kids either.

I have added in most traditions I come across so we now have some wrapped gifts under the tree and stockings (although only cheap stuff) and even santa sacks... but half the gifts (all the big ones) are still unwrapped for easy and effect (it looks magical seeing all the toys set up like santas workshop imo).

There is something memorable about seeing an impressive unwrapped present such as a dolls house.

I was far from thinking it was magical the year I stayed up til about 3am putting a big, pink dolls' house together for the youngest DDs, but about an hour after I had finally crawled off to bed with my eyes actually hurting from tiredness, I heard the squeaking and tiptoeing and Sshhhh-ing of DCs creeping downstairs to see if Santa had come, and heard the OOoooooo!!! when they saw it. At about 8 am I got up and found them asleep on the wooden floor under the tree.

That’s sweet, @mathanxiety ! Building a toy in time for morning must be a nightmare!

We don't do stockings but it's me and my husband - his parents still do us one though!

Know that feeling well but wouldn't have changed it for the world. Those childhood memories are so precious.

Who allows children to open everything straight away? Our Christmas would be over by 8am if that were the case!

I would say opening presents first thing on Christmas morning is by far the most common way of opening presents in the UK!

I’m glad you think so. I really don’t know, but that’s what we always did: no stockings, no pillow cases, no tree presents - something I’ve only heard of on Mumsnet - we just got up and ripped everything apart before dawn, then we played with our toys while the adults made dinner or did whatever adults do on Christmas Day.
My husband’s family are much more civilised but I’ve always just assumed that’s a Germanic thing.

That was to @Dreamwhisper. I seem to have accidentally cleared the quote.

I didn't have stockings as a child, we had a pillowcase either downstairs or at the foot of the bed depending on where we were. We just got up whenever and opened everything regardless of whether our parents were up, often we went back to sleep afterwards. Gifts from family were more formally opened after Christmas dinner.

My DC have stockings but I haven't always done them, I started them the year I was due to have a Christmas baby so if I was in hospital we had some small gifts packed for the children to open, as it happened DC3 was early and the stockings were just a welcome distraction while I was feeding and attempting to feel just a little bit awake!

Is it a middle class/working class thing?

We were all about Santa - so big Santa sacks left out by the fireplace. The excitement of getting up at 6am and waiting to be allowed to burst in to the room to see the overflowing sacks! No presents under the tree really. Northern, working class Christmas. All presents open by about 7am!!

DH hated it when I tried to recreate this for my kids when they were young. He only wanted a few presents from Santa - the rest out under the tree before Christmas- but then where’s the excitement in that? Then his parents drag the present opening thing out for hours and hours whilst we all watch each other open them (and the kids have had to wait). Awful. One year I got told off for getting on with the Christmas lunch prep (we were in an open plan kitchen so I could still watch the endless present opening) I had to ‘sit down and watch’

We've always done Santa sacks with the DC. All our presents go in them and then presents from grandparents etc go under the tree. DD is desperate for a stocking this year, but I haven't bought any and I can't be fagged to make any which was my plan. The Santa sacks are bloomin' enormous I made them when they were little and was trying to make them big enough for more bulky toddler toys. They will look a bit sad and flat without a tuck or two.