Present Poll

Charlene · Post by **Charlene** » Mon Dec 24, 2007 10:29 pm

When do you open your Christmas presents?

When I was a child we (me and my parents) used to do it right after breakfast on Christmas morning. Then we started staying up until midnight, when we would open them all and then sleep in on Christmas morning. Then we started opening them earlier in the evening on Dec. 24, since it's all an arbitrary date anyway, and we would still sleep in on the 25th.

For the last 20 years, all my married life, with the exception of a couple of years when my mother-in-law lived with her daughter and my husband and his sister weren't speaking, I've had to wait until after lunch on Christmas day, since my mother-in-law wants to see us open the presents but she MUST eat lunch first.

Someday (hopefully soon) I'm going back to opening everything Christmas Eve - or I'll just buy myself what I want and not even bother with wrapping anything.

FJohnSharp · Post by **FJohnSharp** » Mon Dec 24, 2007 11:01 pm

For most of my children's lives I have run a dog and cat boarding kennel, whicn is a hundred and fifty feet from my back door. Every Christmas morning I get up early, go to the kennel, let out fifty or so dogs, feed them, clean when necessary, care for a hand full of cats, then go into the house around 10 or so, where my children would be waiting remarkably patiently. They are 15 qnd 18 now but when they were 5 and 8 they had to be entertained and pacified by their mother. I had always felt a little bad about making them wait, like I was somehow ruining a piece of their childhood, but now it's part of the family lore and they are the better for it.

So, None of the Above.

ketida · Post by **ketida** » Mon Dec 24, 2007 11:26 pm

We have opened presents when they were received, or on Christmas Eve, or on Christmas Day (first thing in the morning, in that case).

Whenever agreed upon, in other words.

It's an individual thing, that usually works out best when you don't worry about conforming to the norm, IMO.

Wanderer · Post by **Wanderer** » Tue Dec 25, 2007 12:22 am

We used to open "family" presents on christmas eve, and "Santa's" presents on christmas morning before breakfast.

When I lost my job in 2000 in the tech bubble burst, Xmases were sparse until I found steady work, and even the following year, since I was doing bill catch-up. Since there weren't many gifts to go round, we opened one christmas eve, and the rest Christmas morning.

Since that's all my son ever knew the first few years of his life, that's pretty much what we've stuck with.

pancelticpiper · Post by **pancelticpiper** » Tue Dec 25, 2007 8:45 am

In our family each child could choose one present from under the tree to open Christmas Eve after dinner. We spent much care examining the presents to decide just which would be the best to tide us over till morning. Choose wisely! One year I was sure that a certain box just had to contain some great robot or raygun or something but when I opened it I discovered that the present I had chosen with such great care was a bathrobe!

On Christmas morning us kids were anxious to get to the living room as early as possible, because while the presents from various family members were wrapped and under the tree, the presents Santa brought just appeared during the night, were unwrapped, and were fully assembled ready for play!

When I started my own family these traditions were perpetuated.
I have since occasionally run into people who also did this "one present on Christmas Eve" thing.

Lambchop · Post by **Lambchop** » Tue Dec 25, 2007 9:21 am

We did the "one present on Christmas Eve" thing, too.

My mother would wrap up anything she happened to be getting you, regardless of how mundane it might be and she'd often buy necessary things like toothbrushes, underwear, and filler paper for school, during the fall and save them until Christmas. These would be individually and festively wrapped, employing her outrageous collection of department store boxes and trimmings, resulting in a huge number of packages under the tree. She had some sort of system by which she could identify them through the particular trimming or the pattern of the paper and the position of the bow. ("Bow w/ holly Aunt Maude 1956 dental floss")

She was shamelessly coercive in promoting her cause, such as the package containing the socks or shoes for your Midnight Mass outfit, to get you to open it in time to wear them. It became a challenge for us to figure out what she wanted and do the opposite, so that you would get to open two presents on Christmas Eve.

Santa's presents would appear during the night, assembled and usually unwrapped, and we'd open the rest of them in the morning before breakfast.

falkbeer · Post by **falkbeer** » Tue Dec 25, 2007 12:07 pm

In scandinavian countries we have a different tradition. We open the presents at Christmas eve.

Redwolf · Post by **Redwolf** » Tue Dec 25, 2007 12:24 pm

I'm another one who grew up with the "one present on Christmas Eve" rule. Actually, it was a bit more specific: It couldn't be one from mom and dad. We would take our chosen present to a Christmas Eve potluck at my great granparents house and put it under their tree...then, after dinner, great grandpa would have the kids distribute all the presents (which usually included small things from/for our cousins as well).

On Christmas morning, VERY early (dad and the guy across the street used to compete to see who could get their lights on earliest), we'd get up and have our pressies from Santa (which typically were not wrapped) and our stockings, but we had to wait until my two bachelor uncles from across the street came over to open the rest of our gifts. Then it was get dressed quick and go to grandma and grandpa's house (paternal grandparents) for Christmas breakfast, and usually a gift or two from under their tree as well.

In our family now, Johanna is allowed to open one present on Christmas Eve, after we've had dinner and lit the Christ Candle on the Advent Wreath. We go to Midnight Mass, come home and go straight to bed. In the morning, sure enough...Santa has left some unwrapped goodies next to the fireplace and in the stocking. We take turns opening our presents, and then Tony makes gingerbread waffles for our breakfast.

Redwolf

djm · Post by **djm** » Tue Dec 25, 2007 2:02 pm

Red, your new avatar indicates you are down on "L". Does that mean you are now to be known as "Redwoof"?

djm

mutepointe · Post by **mutepointe** » Tue Dec 25, 2007 2:20 pm

When I was a kid, our family was mom & dad, my 4 brothers, and grandpap and me. We had to wait til Christmas morning to open presents, then we went to Christmas morning Mass. My next oldest brother would always wake me up way too early to open presents. We didn't have to wait til mom & dad were up. My brother who is now a priest had this most annoying habit his whole life. Not only would he sleep in late, he wouldn't open his presents until maybe later that day or maybe a few days later. As an adult, he has presents he hasn't opened in years. He's sick I tell you.

When we got older, us kids went to Midnight Mass and mom would put presents out while we were gone. Once year we came home from Mass and mom hadn't put presents out. We woke her up and she said, "Oh, I forgot, the presents are in the closet." The next year that happened and mom said, "Oh, I forgot to buy presents." We were in college by then so it was no big thing. I got socks and a tea towel and a check that year for Christmas.

Redwolf · Post by **Redwolf** » Tue Dec 25, 2007 2:28 pm

djm wrote:Red, your new avatar indicates you are down on "L". Does that mean you are now to be known as "Redwoof"?

djm

Sound it out, and the meaning will become clear. Think what that circle-slash symbol means: No smoking, no parking, no...L.

Redwolf

Denny · Post by **Denny** » Tue Dec 25, 2007 3:04 pm

that's "No...L". deej, not "L...no"

Jack · Post by **Jack** » Tue Dec 25, 2007 3:15 pm

It means "Noël."

falkbeer · Post by **falkbeer** » Tue Dec 25, 2007 3:23 pm

Wanderer wrote:We used to open "family" presents on christmas eve, and "Santa's" presents on christmas morning before breakfast.

So there really is a Santa Claus!

anniemcu · Post by **anniemcu** » Tue Dec 25, 2007 3:50 pm

We usually open one on Christmas Eve, and the rest on Christmas Day.