Christmas Eve Box

[CazMcD]

Anyone doing Christmas Eve boxes? If so, what’s in them?

I've been doing Christmas eve box for dd since she was 5. She's 21 now.
Original meaning was to encourage a nice sleepy bedtime routine after late afternoon /eve with school mum friends and their kids. One little boy was so sweet ...he always said he wanted to go home early...so he could go to sleep earlier...and Christmas day would come sooner.

We do them, I had it as a kid as did my mam and I think her mam would have had too (she wasn't creative so would just be copying what she knew).

Originally it was a tradition for giving books, it started in WW2 a combination of refugee bringing their culture (where Christmas is celebrated on the 24th) and rationing (paper wasn't heavily rationed so books where one of the most readily available presents).

New PJs are another strong classic item. Probably just because people wanted their kids in nice fresh new PJs for Christmas morning, the photos/videos, guests or family coming to see them open presents etc...

After that people seem to diverge in what they do and have their own traditions. For us we do PJs, a book, a fun supper food, new toothbrush, hot chocolate, ginger bread and a small teddy.

Some people also have reusable items like the same book and a special Santa plate or key.

My mam had them, she was born in the 60s... except no boxes just a book and new PJs on the foot of your bed.

She kept her childhood 'eve' books and gave them too me when I was little. Lots of old Bunty's from the 70s mostly.

I had them from the 80s on wards and my kids have always had them and my oldest is 17.

This

same with Halloween ones

We do but it's the same things every year, a nice mug (same one not a new one each year) with hot chocolate stirrer and a few marshmallows, winter PJs, I bought him a few pairs a few weeks ago as he had grown out of the old ones but kept a pair back - not Christmas themed, a copy of the night before Christmas that we've had since he was born, a lush bath bomb (the only new thing each year) for his Christmas eve bath. It's simple but it's just his Christmas eve bedtime routine, we usually go out for dinner after lunchtime panto, then church, after church home for a light supper, then Christmas eve box, bath, hot chocolate while reading together in his new PJs, teeth brushed, mince pies, carrot and brandy left out , bed.
ETA the Santa plate is also kept in there, again same one every year.

Tbh this is just my own childhood traditions in a box, we always did, bath, hot chocolate, new PJs, night before Christmas then off to bed having left out the Santa et al snacks. His is the same it's just in a box.

I’ve been doing one since my dd was young however Christmas Eve is busy and then come Christmas Day she gets all her new stuff. This year on the 1st I gave her a December box instead. Means she can wear her PJs throughout the month, have time doing Christmas crafts and colouring which is keeping her entertained!

Is it mandatory to put pyjamas in Christmas Eve boxes? 😆

We do them! Not doing pyjamas this year as they have loads but pyjamas do usually feature. This year they have a personalised story book, ovaltine, crazy soap, chocolate reindeer, Christmas socks.

No I don’t get the point. Sure give them Christmas jammies to wear if you want but that’s it.

Mine just wear them whenever - they are just PJs, no one outside the house sees them so I'm (and they are) not too bothered what's on the pjs x

My DD wears Christmas pjs all year round.
M&S have done a fine range for a few years but have been disappointing this year so new ones.

yep my kids are rocking orange PJs with bats and pumpkins on at the moment lol.

Yes, I will!

I have pjs (plain tartan so they can be used all year), slippers, a Christmas jelly bean box, choc santas and the same old copy of The Night Before Christmas that we have every year.

I'd like to add something nice for a shower, but haven't found something yet. Used to have a bath bomb, but neither dc takes baths much any more.

When the dc were little the point of the box was to keep them busy while we prepped food for Christmas day and then encourage them to have a bath and settle down. So we often had pjs because they were keen to put them on and it avoided a fight about getting ready for bed.

But I don't think there's a rule!

No, December 1st. New PJs not necessarily Christmas, fluffy socks. A Christmas themed book to read, maybe some crafts (paper chains, home made Christmas card kit etc.) Sometimes random tat we have picked up in the charity shop and will use in December then donate back in January.

I am, for my 5 year old DS
so far we have ..
• personalised letter from Santa
• santas plate for milk and cookies (we reuse the same one each year and pop it back in the box)
• reindeer ‘food’ (just some little seeds+nuts)
• santas magic key (again, reuse the same thing to put out on Christmas Eve night)
• paint your own snowman
• Christmas Eve pjs (always gets new pjs on Xmas Eve however they don’t go to waste as he’ll wear them for the rest of the winter!)

going to add in a story book, some fluffy socks, a Christmas themed bath bomb and maybe a little Christmas style mug :)

Oh yes forgot santas magic key

I put the following in our boxes:

Hot chocolate bomb
Snowman marshmallow on a stick
Christmas PJ’s (reusing last years as they still fit)
Reindeer food
Christmas book
Stocking
Christmas plate and cup

It’s fairly low cost as I reuse some of the contents each year.

Just pjs for my teenagers. Hot chocolate they drink all the time and make it themselves.

We do; they are shoe box size and contain:

new PJs; red check or similar but no Christmas specific designs so they can be worn all winter, not matching

Christmas book

bath bomb

hot Chocolate (older child only)

sometimes:
theatre or train tickets for that day
cookie mix

We've got new PJs (Christmas but they will wear them year round), a DVD, small selection boxes and some popcorn, we have a generic wooden crate thing that it all goes into rather than individual boxes

I will have:

• PJs/onsies. Not xmas themed, but matching and themed around DC's favourite book of the year.
• A craft kit to make a tree decoration each.
• Crazy soap
• A popcorn set, for our Xmas eve movie

They may be in a special box, or they may appear on the stairs in a neat pile, depending on whether the box i usually use is still full of xmas crafts or not.

I am considering also adding one stocking toy each on xmas eve too, as I don't think it will fit in the stocking.

We don’t do a box as such, but when the elves leave, they leave behind:
pyjamas for all of us
a copy of the night before christmas (the same copy every year)
a tree decoration for each of the children
a chocolate lolly or treat of some kind

We do pyjamas, cosy socks, a mug with hot chocolate, a orchard games Christmas game, Santas key and reindeer food