Stockings for 18+ children - nuts

[deedee176]

Help me understand how this is a thing. My (25yr old) daughter’s boyfriend (31yrs old!) still gets a ‘stocking’ from his mum, even tho he lives with my daughter and won’t see his mum until a few days after. I buy all three of my children lovely presents, including fancy KC boxers etc. that others might consider stocking presents. But the stocking thing, full of tat, we haven’t done since they weren’t children. Is it just me that thinks only children should get stocking presents from Father Christmas?

Families have their own Christmas traditions, just because you don’t do it doesn’t mean it’s wrong or nuts! You are being very rude.

Is she telling her 32 year old son that the stocking is from Santa? If so, yes that's obviously weird.

Otherwise, I think this is such a non-event that I'm struggling to understand why it's even on your radar, let alone has irked you enough to start a thread about it. Me and DH do stockings for each other, from each other (obviously not from Santa). We don't buy "tat". Maybe that's where you're going wrong. In our house, stockings contain physically smaller and lower value items. Bigger and/or more expensive items are separately wrapped. We just do it this way because we like it 🤷 And because we already owned Christmas stockings and we like to use them.

33 and my mum is out there doing stockings every year for me, my two siblings, my husband, db’s gf, and the DGC…and then my dad when she realised he was the only one not getting one! (We all collab on one for her)

It’s the same, and yes, always include nuts.

@deedee176 your biggest issue here seems to be age 25 and 31. Personally can’t see why you are even mentioning it. You need to deal with that before being concerned about anything else

I do a stocking for my son & it's from me, we don't & never have given gifts from 'Father Christmas'.

I'm 40 and my dad still sends me a "stocking" box every year! 😆 All useful stuff mostly, some little snacks, little art supplies. It's one of my favourite parts of Christmas day - my husband and I open it in bed before the kids come in and chaos starts!

We still have stockings as adults but as we've never claimed they were FC I don't care what anyone thinks 🙂 it's a bit of fun that we love. Everyone who is staying at our house would get one.

You must realise your reaction is OTT though?

Even to start a thread about it is bonkers.

It’s something that we do and brings us joy on Christmas Day. Clearly my grown up children know it’s not from Santa but who cares. 😂

I don’t judge someone who doesn’t do it so find it a bit extreme for you to be saying ‘grow up’ to those who do.

Maybe someone needs to make you a stocking!

I don’t have any nostalgia for stockings, it wasn’t part of my childhood Christmas, so when I read about them on here or hear people talking about them I’m always a bit bemused.
I can’t imagine opening merrily opening a sock full of jam, pants, tissues or any of the other random items people seem to have in them.
I know it’s a huge part of Christmas for a lot of people though.

We get stockings from my parents, and me and DH do stockings

I don’t get why people find it so strange. Some people don’t do stockings, that’s fine. For others stockings are the best bit of Christmas! I’m 44 I will have a stocking (from dh and my mum.) I will do one for dh and for my mum and stepdad. Obviously my teenage children will have them. My and my siblings stockings were hand made by a grandparent, my mum made my children’s stockings. They have enormous sentimental value, it would not be Christmas without the stockings being filled. I love buying stocking presents, I love everything about Christmas stockings!!

I absolutely understand that others don’t do them, doesn’t bother me at all. Yet some non stocking people seem to be offended by the very existence of stockings? I don’t understand why? Different families have different Christmas traditions, why do people find that so confusing?

Why are the comments 'hilarious'? Because some people are explaining that it makes them happy to carry on with the silliness/magic/joyfulness of a stocking - even above a certain age? Does that make you feel superior and rather disdainful? Because there is nothing particularly 'funny' about the answers.

You sound miserable, superior and a bit of an arse to be honest.

DC - 18 and 20 will get stockings. So will DH and I (early 50s). We won't pretend they are from Father Christmas because... AGE, but we will still all be in agreement that getting into our bed together on Christmas morning to open our stockings, is one of our favourite Christmas moments every year.

Why would the adult stop receiving stocking presents just because children come along?

Because they’re adults and should buy their own underwear and socks during the year instead of waiting for others to buy it for them at Christmas.

I guess they don’t put tat in them? My kids stockings aren’t all tat, maybe some but lots of small things I know they will love. We all agree stockings are the best bit. I just had my 37yr old sister as my secret Santa and did her a stocking. It’s just a vehicle to give an assortment of wee gifts!

DHs parents give us all presents in a stocking at Christmas- adults, kids etc. It's just a nice Christmas thing to do. Not seeing the issue.

Who are you, the Festivity Police? How joyless do you have to be to get cross about other people’s enjoyment of Christmas?

Not all families are the same. In your family stockings are for children. In some other families people like to do stockings for adults simply because they find it fun. What does it matter to you? It affects you in no way whatsoever.

I’ve done a stocking for my mum this year. She’s 81. Also one for my partner, who is 57. They’re both getting a ‘main’ present but I tend to get a few smaller bits too so why not have a stocking?

Mum’s contains a jar of her favourite sweets, a posh moisturiser, a new phone case, a coffee shop gift card, an eyeliner pencil and a small cuddly toy of her favourite animal at the local zoo.

DP’s contains some weird Japanese snacks, a Rough Guide book to a country we’re travelling to next year, a tea towel with a quote and image from his favourite book on it, a Kindle case and some beer-mats related to his football team.

Can you tell me why these gifts would be acceptable if wrapped and placed under the tree, but are inappropriate in your eyes simply because they’re being placed into a sock?

We don’t do them for adults in the house on Christmas Day besides our dc, they are 21, 20 and 14 - the youngest believed in FC until he was about 10 and his bigger siblings had stockings until then obviously to keep up the pretence. But they enjoy all the little bits and bobs so much, not tat, just presents that are sized to fit in the stocking.
We could just sprinkle the smaller things under the tree but they all decorated their own stockings when they were toddlers so we continue to reuse them for the nostalgia. Of course they are a lot more expensive to fill these days!
I wouldn’t do them for the other adults at Christmas because i tend to spend the money on one or two more expensive presents rather than putting little token gifts like hand cream and miniature booze etc into a stocking - i think the money is better spent on something more substantial personally plus I could do without the extra shopping of getting tonnes of little ‘bits’ that probably aren’t wanted but people can do whatever they want if it makes them happy!

Why, though?

What difference does it make to you if someone’s nice new knickers happen to be a Christmas present rather than something they bought themselves? Of course adults can buy themselves socks - but people can also buy themselves books, perfume, jewellery, chocolates and literally anything else they might receive at Christmas, and nobody’s cross about them getting given those. Why can’t someone get some socks as a present sometimes too?

Agree with @Anxietybummer ! I still do stockings for my kids and the eldest is 24! It keeps our Christmas traditions alive and they love going through their stocking to see what they've got 😁 I also get them a present for later in the day, but where's the fun in opening a present? My DP and I also do a stocking for each other. I enjoy both making and receiving stockings.

Nobody who does a stocking for an adult - or indeed any child over the age of about 9 - is expecting them to believe it’s from Father Christmas.

Why is this making you so cross? I’m really, really not seeing why someone else’s Christmas presents are this much of an issue for you.

It’s true everyone does things differently. I find the concept of stockings so pointless. I never had them when I was younger and haven’t done them for my kids. It’s interesting to see that a lot of people do them though. In our house everything is from Santa and it’s all set out downstairs ready for waking up.

Why are you calling people ‘nuts’, accusing them of buying ‘tat’ and telling them to ‘grow up’, then?