does your family open christmas gifts on christmas eve or christmas day?
 

we have always opened gifts on christmas morning-unless we had festive christmas pj.'s under the tree that would look great in the christmas morning photos!!

We open one on Christmas Eve when we get home from church.

Growing up it was always 5:00 Mass and then on to Grandma's to open "extended family" gifts on Christmas Eve. Christmas morning we opened gifts at our own house.

Now it is so complicated with my family, my husband's family, and Church. This year we will open gifts with my big family on the morning of the 24th, then I sing at the Masses Christmas Eve, then open gifts with our own little kids on Christmas morning, and then on to my husband's parents to open gifts there later Christmas day. I am tired just thinking about it.

Both!!!!!!!:D

We always did some from our extended family on Christmas Eve and the ones from our immediate family on Christmas Day.

I am militant about opening them on Christmas. Ya cant open them on christmas eve. Ya dont open your birthday presents on your birthday eve. You didint hunt the easter eggs on easter eve. Christmas Eve is not a holiday. There is nothting wrong with doing the extended family thing on Christmas Eve, or even opening a gift on the eve. But all of them, no way. Exercise some self control and wait till the next day.

Plus, how on earth would you ever get the kids to bed if they got to open all their toys.

I've noticed that this is about the closest parallel to an argument about political parties. People are just as fervent, including myself.

We do it on Christmas Day. My dad's side of the family always did theirs on Christmas Eve, though.

Christmas Eve! Family dinner, then presents. When I was a kid, Santa would come at night and bring MORE presents, so we got to open stuff then too. Best way to go!!!!! :D

Now, Christmas day is pretty much a just the big family dinner and playing with everything you got the night before.

THANK YOU!!!!! None of this, "Oh, they just couldn't wait" nonsense. This is how it's supposed to be, if we did it the night before, where would the magic be?

We open ours on Christmas Day in the afternoon. Dad's gotten militant about that. We used to open them late night Christmas Eve, but that tradition died out as my sisters and I got older.

I guess a lot has to do with Married Situations.

Two Sets of Familys.

My Ex Wife and I had Christmas at Thanksgiving as Her Parents left town to go South.

My Folks were Next and that was Christmas Weekend.

So, the best of Both worlds!:)

When You are Poor as My Family was, You did not get anything But From Santa Claus. That Morning, the Stocking was hung on the Chest in the living room with just Hard Candy, Orange, Apple and maybe a toy!

Under The Tree was Presents, - 1 or 2. They were From Santa and was a Total Surprise.:D

Mom And Dad were Setting on the Couch watching with Big Grins as they were as Happy as I and My Brother Were With What We got.

Long time ago when values were wearth something!

Depends on when the family can get together.

Because of my deal with my ex, my kids sleep here on the night of the 23rd and Santa comes to my house that night, so they open on Christmas Eve morning here. Then they have all day to mess with their new stuff and go to their dad's house that night. Santa comes to his house that night and they open gifts again on Christmas morning.

Who says divorced kids have it rough?

As a family we open presents Christmas day. Although as a child, since my birthday is on Christmas, my parents would let me open a birthday gift on Christmas eve. :)

That is because You are Special, just not from living In Gods Country=Kansas!:D

No kidding. The high on Christmas is going to be 60 degrees here! :eek: Can't beat that with a stick.

We make them stretch throughout Christmas Day. We have this ritual in which the kids get up on Christmas morning and then when Mr. Carnation and I are ready, they line up, oldest first, and go into the family room where the gifts are grouped under their stockings. Then in the late morning, we go to the grandparents' house and open presents there. In the evening, we open our Secret Santa presents to each other.

This is the first Christmas where all the kids won't be here on Christmas morning, ASLFRose having gotten married, and they won't be here until Christmas afternoon. :( We understand since they were here the last 2 Christmas mornings, but still...

OH but it IS, it's my birthday ;) My family has never opened gifts on X-mas eve for this reason, I do however get to open B-day gifts, which I happily accept. :D

Since I have all older sisters w/their own families, we get together on Christmas Eve to let the "kids" open their presents. That way, everyone is w/their own little family on Christmas Day :)

It's ALWAYS been Christmas Day in my family.

When I was little, I would be given one gift to open on Christmas Eve: my Christmas nightdress. This was a flannel nightdress or pajamas, usually with a Christmasy design - or at least red and white. I would warm it by the fire and sleep in it that night. On Christmas morning, after Mass, we'd eat a big breakfast and then open all the other gifts.

These days, we usually spend Christmas with my family, and open gifts on Christmas morning. We exchange gifts with my in-laws whenever we happen to get together with them during the holiday season. My husband and I tend to open our gifts to each other whenever they happen to arrive, rather than waiting for a particular date.

When my brother lived with us, we opened them up on Christmas eve, because he simply cannot wait. You know "Calvin & Hobbes"? I'm convinced he was the original Calvin!

We open our presents on Christmas morning now - the way it's supposed to be. Isn't the whole gift part all about anticipation? :)

I don't think that is always the case. Many traditions surround Christmas Eve, and many cultures celebrate Christmas differently. For many Christmas Eve is often celebrated just as much as Christmas Day.

Christmas Eve

Thank you!

Just because people don't do things exactly the way you do it, doesn't mean they are WRONG. :)

This year will be Christmas Eve at my parents, Christmas Day at his. I was planning to be with my family Christmas day, but his threw such a fit that my mom being the peacemaker agreed to take Christmas eve.

As a kid, we would go to my grandparents and open presents there. My dad would pick me up later in the evening. I would go to his house and we would open presents Christmas morning. A few hours after opening gifts he would drive me to my mom's where my mom and I had our Christmas. So Santa came to my dad's house and my mom's house.

Since getting married and having kids we use to try to cram- my mom, his parents, and my dad all in the same night. That lasted until we had our first kid and I decided that was crazy. We went to my dad's on Christmas eve and opened gifts there. On Christmas day my mom and my husbands parents would come to our house for breakfast, gifts and then Christmas dinner.

This year is completely different as well. Since we won't be going to my dads we are going to dinner with firends and opening our gifts on Christmas day. I have NOTHING under the tree right now. There is nothing from us or to other people. I don't want to listen to two little boys beg to open presents so I put everything out after they go to sleep on Christmas Eve.

We go to Christmas eve candlelight services ( i sing in the choir) and we open one gift when we get home. we have a traditional christmas eve dinner of lasagna, go to church coem home and open the one gift and have egg nog and cookies. open the rest christmas morning

Christmas Day. We'd never get everyone to sleep if we did it otherwise. However, there have been times where one gift was opened on Christmas Eve, especially if we were traveling the next day and the gift would come in handy to keep the kids happy :)

Ha ha...that's funny, because when I was little, I thought everyone else was "wrong" for celebrating on Christmas Day.... :) Now, it's like, woo hoo, I get 2 days of Christmas: Dec 24 and 25. :D

We open ours on Christmas Day!

we havent "celebrated" christmas in 2 years, so the kids (well, my siblings) opened theirs at midnite. what ever happened to waiting til the AM? i fought hard to wait til morning, but i got overruled.

i guess when youre older (the youngest is 14) it doesnt matter too much. i mean, we opened stuff at midnite, and here it is 3am and everyone is sleeping. no wrapping paper everywhere, looking around for batteries and watching xmas movies.

I'll disagree on that one! :) My oldest (16) has apparently been up since 1:30am in anticipation for today. Of course, the rest of the house will probably be sleeping for hours.

the long standing tradition in our family has been candlelight christmas eve svcs at 9 pm at church , lasagna dinner and 1 present before services. The one present is usually the matching PJs we all wear and take pictures of in the morning. Then the next day ,christmas day, is the big turkey dinner get up early for presents.


These last few yrs has been revised since we have to travel to family on christmas day since my stubborn borther and his wife refuse to travel with twins. So we ( me and my 7 yr old) go to my mom and dads ,spend the night, open all gifts on christmas eve and have our own christmas dinner after church and get up early and travel to the selfish brothers house and do more presents from each other down there and feast all day long on the traditional ham and turkey feast!



Though i do agree as well as my parents that christmas presents should be open the morning of christmas. Though to keep family harmony we re arrange for the selfish and stubbornish of other family members!:( lol Though, i agree with who said do you open your birthday presents on your birthday eve....NO ! on the day of!

Things changed for us this year with the ex-husband thing going on. The kids were at his house this weekend, Santa came on the night of the 23rd over there and they opened the presents on the 24th.
The kids cam home last night at 11pm, and Santa came here last night. As soon as the boys wake up this morning we will open presents. Since they got home at 11 last night they are still asleep-- so I am getting some quiet time all to myself before the present madness begins!

We do the reverse. The kids were here the night of the 23rd and opened their presents here yesterday morning. Then we headed to my mom's for Christmas with her. After that, I dropped them off at their dad's house and they opened presents with him. I like it this way because Christmas morning is peaceful for me after a few very busy days (We had Christmas with my dad on the 23rd). This afternoon, my brother and I are heading to my mom's for a quiet Christmas dinner, which I should start cooking soon.

When I was a little girl, we would open them on Christmas Day.

Nowadays, we do not exchange presents anymore. It is better that way.

My parents had this rule which was awful as a kid but makes a lot of sense now that we're grown.
Everyone had to be up, showered and dressed, and no one could open presents before my dad was ready. And holy shit he takes forever! He still does take forever, but it's less important when you're grown up.
At least I had my stocking to placate me. Every year, we got two things-chocolate coins and a book.

Happy christmas to all!

Our schedule:

Christmas Eve-church at 6, ride around to look at the lights, come back to a clam chowder diner

Christmas morning about 8 (the kids aren't allowed in the living room sooner because my husband and I have been up until 3 playing Santa Claus for all 13 plus a son-in-law)-the kids come in to get their Santa Claus stuff

Christmas afternoon-we go to my mother-in-law's to open presents there

Christmas night-we gather around the tree and open all our presents to each other. Stretching out Christmas works better for us with the kids being all different ages.

It's always been Christmas Eve for my family. My dad explained, when I was little, that Santa hits the west coast while everyone's at church and the east coast while everyone's asleep. He claimed that's how his parents explained it to him. Though, when we moved back east for a while we still opened on the 24th.

I never really understood waiting till morning. Jesus was born at NIGHT. So either he was born it the wee hours or late in the evening on the 24th. So you're either opening the presents late or early it you wait till Christmas morning.