For those with children,a question about presents

Hello all,

I have 3 kids and as they are getting older (11,8,7) I have been wondering if I should still wait till after they go to bed on christmas eve to put out the gifts.

My other family members put out all of their gifts before christmas,even their stockings are filled early.

I like the ritual of leaving cookies and milk out and having an empty spot under the tree as they go off to sleep and seeing their faces on christmas morning when that space is filled. But the reason why I am asking this is for the fact that if everyone else has their's out,should I do it too?

Take care and have a happy holiday season.

I still wait until mine are in bed. They are 11 and 7. I also, love seeing that "look" on Christmas morning.

I say put out the gifts that are from you and leave the "Santa stuff" for when they go to bed. That's how it works here.

I don't know tho if any of yours believe in Santa.

lovetoread said:

I like the ritual of leaving cookies and milk out and having an empty spot under the tree as they go off to sleep and seeing their faces on christmas morning when that space is filled.

Click to expand...

It's your house, and your family tradition. Who ares what everyone else does. If you like to wait, then wait. Let the scrooges and grinches destroy the magic of gifts "magically" appearing if they want.

My son is 9, but we wait until Christmas Eve to put out the presents. It is fun to see his face in the morning as he rifles through his stack of goodies.

I wait for them to go to bed. My little girl doesn't let me build a fire in the woodstove on christmas eve because she doesn't want santa to get burned. If she still believes like that I figure I have to play along.

Elizabeth said:

I still wait until mine are in bed. They are 11 and 7. I also, love seeing that "look" on Christmas morning.

Click to expand...

LTR~~

I agree! I have a few smaller things under the tree now, but we saved the majority to put under the tree on Chirstmas eve after we put out Santas milk and cookies and my daughter goes to bed! I CAN'T WAIT to see the look on her face Christmas morning when she comes down stairs and see's that Santa came! (She's 2, and that's all she's talked about for 2 weeks, that Santa's coming and he's gonna bring her some presents!" *smile*)

Just because everyone else has theirs out, doesn't mean you have to. Make your own traditions!

*hugs*
~~Mystic

Having two young children, we wait until they're both in bed (and sound asleep) to put out the presents. That way we get everything put together and taken care of. I don't know what it is but my partner thinks he needs to test the Playstation on Christmas Eve

Re: Re: For those with children,a question about presents

Weird Harold said:

It's your house, and your family tradition. Who ares what everyone else does. If you like to wait, then wait. Let the scrooges and grinches destroy the magic of gifts "magically" appearing if they want.

Click to expand...

That is exactly my feelings! It is your house, do what you want.

We never did the santa thing with our kids, but I made sure that my kids never ruined santa for the day care kids either. Cause you don't mess with other families traditions.

Well, hell, my parents and grandparents STILL don't fill the tree till after everyone has left for the night on Christmas eve, so no one can see the stuff.

I don't leave any presants out at all yet, since the kids would get into them, but what I plan to do when they are old enough to stay out of them (like when they are 25 or 30 ) is to leave out the presants from each other. Santa gifts wait till christmas eve, as do stockings.

In our family, stockings were the only thing we were allowed to get into in the morning, until an adult woke up. I loved that, because we could get into something, but the parents were still up and around for the actual gifts.

I am wrapping presents now..

and putting them under the tree for my two. One 17, daughter and my son who is 7.

Some go under the tree before Christmas, but we usually reserve a few special gifts for Christmas morning. We never raised our kids to believe in Santa, although we do the cookie and milk thing too.

I agree with those that say, whatever tradition you want to keep running in your family. What puts smiles on your children's faces

Cassidy

tradition

lovetoread--

I think ritual and traditions are the things that keep us grounded. When I was growing up, Santa didn't wrap our gifts. My sister and I would go to bed and every year we'd get up about 4am and sneak into the living room. Our toys would be laid out in separate piles. My parents did that till we went off to college.

Santa doesn't wrap in my house either. Gifts to friends and family are under the tree, but my children's gifts(16 and 6) are not put out till my children go to bed. I wrap one or two now for the oldest, and the youngest gets a gift from her dad wrapped, but everything else is laid out for their surprise in the morning.

In other words, my children have to wait for Santa to deliver.

My siblings and I never joked about Santa and neither does my eldest. Santa has(dread)locks in my house, but my daughter will never tell.

Some of my fondest memories are about the holidays. Allow your children to suspend belief until they decide otherwise. We never changed our tradition and I'm glad.

Peace,

daughter

Personally

I think you have made that your tradition and should stick with it if you are comfortable! I am 29 years old and my youngest sibling is 16 and my parents still wait till be are in bed to set out presents! And as a tradition all of my brothers and sisters and their SO and children spend the night at my parents, so we can wake on Christmas morning at my parents!

That is one of the things I love about Christmas the same old Christmas traditions!

Happy Holidays
DOLL

lovetoread,

I would remain true to your convictions. Weird Harold and the others summed it up just wonderfully. It's all about tradition and what is best for your family.

Holidays are such family oriented times. These are times we don't want to change. It's all about comfort and what makes us feel good inside.

No matter how old your children get, no matter what changes take place in the family from year to year, tradition will remain the glue that keeps you all together. It's what we look forward to each year.

I love going home to visit my family and knowing that things will be exactly the same as they were last year. I find that so very comforting and pleasurable.

Merry Christmas to you and your family.