What's your family christmas traditions?

[mumchie]

This year will be our first on our own and in our own house. I'm a bit worried it might be dull as I come from a huge family but I'm also really excited for the kids and hopefully start some nice traditons of our own.

So feel free to share yours...and if you don't mind I might steel a few

Think of it as a time to enjoy any old traditions that you could carry on in a new house and invent new ones of your own. Do you have any family coming to you this year?
There is a thread here about this www.mumsnet.com/Talk/5318/624131

My DC's first christmas might be this year or next ... Due Xmas day so it could go either way and suspect we'll be a bit too preoccupied this year to start any traditions but I'm really looking forward to this in the future.

Here are some from my childhood anyway ...

Decorating the tree together putting cards up and making paper chains.

Tinsel, home made mince pies and peppermint creams mmmmm!

We got stockings which we could open as early as we liked. Stockings always had a Lego toy in them which was a very cunning move by my parents I think as it kept us occupied for a while, delaying the inevitable early morning wakeup call by overvexcited children by at least half an hour or so.

Opening presents after breakfast and always having so wait what seemed like FOREVER for my dad to finish eating. Sure he did it on purpose!

The kids going for a walk after Christmas lunch with my dad. It was strange to see the streets so quiet like we'd entered some kind of wired twighlight zone.

I mean wierd not wired!

new pjs and a book on xmas eve (presents fromjack frost) dh and i wrap any outstanding pressies that night over a glass of wine. then kedgeree for breakfastalong with tea (from a tea pot and in tea cups) then open pressies. this year we are hosting and have both dhs parents and my mum and sd coming, but we always go to my dads at about 5.30 xmas night and see my brothers and sister. then boxing day we go to pils and spend the day there with sil, bil and their dc.

I always cook the gammon on xmas eve and we have that with chips for tea, kids have new pjs (always delivered by elves who are making their final naughty/nice checks into their pj drawers whilst they are in the bath) it has never occurred to them that its me - daft kids! Milk, mince pies and 9 carrots left for santa and reindeer. Oh and daddy always has to check the lounge before the dks go in (in case any reindeer got left behind) or is he just turning on the camcorder?........ This year am going to start new thing of having a small stocking to open on boxing day and am also working on plan to have a present for each child on the roof of the house in a fell out of the sleigh way (got the idea from here last year from someone who does presents on the lawn)

arfur

how does the presnt on the oof of the house work?

do you climb up with a ladder... also what about if it rains?

Am still working on this - I reckon Id have to double wrap them i.e. box within a box in case it takes a beating on the way up or down and the waxyest (sp) wrapping paper I can find so as waterproofish. I am planning to try and fling it out of the bathroom window so that it catches in the guttering iyswim but a ladder is probably more sensible. I just thought it would be fun as dd is 9 this year and I guess we are heading into non-believer age territory - might prolong the magic for another year?! Or could just be the and finally on the news on christmas day - man falls off ladder etc ....

You will, inevitably, spend Christmas in A&E.

Hmmm not me dh . Now if dh was in hospital surely his parents couldnt still come for boxing day .....

Why don't you just put the present on the lawn ?

Roast a lush ham on Christmas Eve and have a Christmas Eve buffet thing with homemade chutneys and the like whilst watching its a wonderful life

Leaving Santa a glass of Glenmorrangie and Coke and a glass of Baileys for Mrs Claus -ahem!

Having table presents - £5 gifts for everbody there for Christmas Dinner, used as a placesetting tag thing (whats the word? - Can't think - am hungry!)

dvd dropped down chimney on Xmas eve by FC on his way past to other countries, watch dvd in new pj's, in between watching out for fc on radar, sprinkle reindeer dust on lawn so reindeer know where to land, sherry etc left for fc
xmas day - stockings on their beds - with playmobil/lego toy to make up, then open presents after I have a cup of tea, breakfast waits!!!
Play with toys, phone/video conference all the family in uk
lunch mid afternoon
collapse

On Christmas Eve, put wellies on and go down drive and garden and sprinkle reindeer food by torchlight. Put Stones ginger wine (mummy likes it , mince pie and carrot out for FC and Rudolph, read one of the Usborne Christmas books that the elves left whilst checking if being good boys and put on special Christmas pj's (John Lewis fab for these). Eldest ds (5) likes to look out window and check if Santa on his way, which we all completely go along with for about 5 minutes but then too much needs doing and he needs to be asleep!! One of my friends does footprints on the floor from the fireplace, but guess this only works if got wooden floors!

Oh I like the reindeer food one .
Christmas eve, bath, new pjs, put milk mincepie for FC and carrot for Rudolf and a special key on front doorstep for Santa to get in. (We don't have a chimney!) Small present under pillow along with key so dd knows Santa been in the morning.

The girls always decorate the tree. They did it with DH when they were little but have done it them selves since the eldest was about 14.
Stockings are opened in thier rooms and they then come and sit on our bed and show us what they have got. Yes they still do this even though they are 16, 18 and 21.
Presents round the tree are opened midmorning.
Have lunch out with MIL on Christmas eve.
We usually have a takeway ( bought on Christmas eve) or go out for Christmas Dinner
as Dh says he does not want anyone to be spending time slaving over a stove on Christmas day.
Have a big family get togehter at my parents usually on the boxing day or 27th December wbere the children get more presents.

We always have a takeaway on xmas eve to save the cooking and washing up. DS gets new pj's and a xmas dvd left on his bed for xmas eve night.

We sprinkle reindeer food on the drive before bed and leave a cookie, bottle of coke and a carrot out for santa and rudolph.

Xmas morning I get up early and make the coffee and put the fire on. Dont worry about breakfast and tend to get a box of biscuits to have with the coffee. We open pressies and then I do the lunch and make calls whilst it cooks. Anybody can pop over and visit but we stay put. MIL may pop over for 20 mins and FIL tends to come for lunch boxing day.

Xmas night is spent watching tv and chilling out with chocolates and a new book.

We roast a gammon on Christmas eve, which we can then eat cold on Boxing day, too.

We always watch Muppet Christmas Carol on Christmas Eve, too.

My personal tradition is to think of ways I can avoid my MIL

If it was up to me, it would be mummy and daddy getting sloshed and not going outside for a few days. However, we can't do that anymore, so our only thing is opening our presents in our bed (which I always did with my mum and dad).

We don't do FC.

each year buy a new decoration for the christmas tree from each child, tag it with their name, and then they can have their collection when they leave home.

new pjs on christmas eve for the children

really nice box of biscuits to eat while opening presents, for the children

carluccios christmas panettone lightly grilled with fresh coffee

Nativity mass /play at local church on Christmas Eve ... home for mulled wine etc..

we put reindeer food and a bucket of water outside ... when DD & DS have gone to bed I chuck the water away & sprinkle LOTS of glitter where the sleigh has landed!

We also have a special 'Santa's Magic Key' which we leave outside so he can get in.. he can't use the fireplace as we have a gas fire! (Got it a couple of years ago from a garden centre, can let you have the rhyme that's on the tag if you want to make one of your own)

We have loads, but for us Christmas is a very special time of year.

When the tree comes out, one present will be wrapped for each person and each day everyone is allowed one guess as to what this present is. If they guess correctly, they are allowed to open that present. However, to avoid that, these presents are wrapped in all sorts of weird and wonderful guises and in 3?? years, I have never yet guessed a present - but it all adds to the excitement!

Christmas eve has a little present for each person to get Christmas started - and PJs for the kids. We also watch a christmas movie together in the afternoon and make macaroni cheese for tea.

Christmas day - FC presents in our bedroom, then special breakfast and our presents under the tree. Then we go round my folks and do presents again! Usually one present is wrapped up bizarrely, with clues etc and you are not allowed to open it up until you have worked out what the present is... can sometimes take all day guessing (especially with my father's odd clues!) It helps to make Christmas fun.

Presents from other people after lunch. Then family time playing games with the new toys.

Tea time, family buffet and games. Usually Newmarket (card game) or some other game. Usual rule, no-one goes to their room and no-one watches TV on christmas day. Yes, there is a lot of presents involved, but it the main thing is that it is about spending time together.

Over the next week, we then proceed to take turns within the family to host a 'tea' - buffet and games for a family get together. Each time, there will be small presents under the three (really cheap stuff usually).

Just before new year, its the pantomine and a curry. Then Christmas ends on new year, with a party with friends. This sees the last of the tree presents.

The tree comes down on 1st jan.

Yes, there is a lot of present giving, but it is always cheap stuff - max budget for any gift (except Christmas day) is £5 and really, it is about spending time together as a family.

I love this but said I would do my chores I'll come back later if I've been good

I think i'll do the pjs and dvd on xmas eve too with hot chocolate round the fire, and the little stockings in the bedroom with main pressies downstairs.
I was thinking of just having santas prensents in the morning and leaving the family ones til after Christams dinner....something else to look forward too.
As a child baby Jesus was always placed in the crib by the yougest person in the house on christams day...supposedly for good luck.
Maybe a champagne breakfast for the Mums and Dads, just to start the day off nicely!
Letting the kids pick one special tree decoration each year and dating it for when thery are older.

Oh it's so magical I could burst with excitment...7 weeks to go!!!!