h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I found last Christmas, and the one before that, that it was incredibly hectic and found the whole thing a bit of a let down (and got quite sad).

I loved Christmas as a child: then between 12 and 25 I hated it: and now, with 4 children, I accept and quite enjoy it.

I love that we all come together - the big extended family. Although my wife and I aren't religious ,in the church sense, we bring the children to the Christmas Mass at the local church ... they don't learn religion at school, instead they learn ethics and norms - which is great!

But what I'm not happy with is the opening up of the present. As we live in Germany, they/we celebrate Christmas proper on the 24th - in the evening. It is a very family originated day.

I guess my main problem is that my children get too many presents ... all under the Christmas tree! We did try to cool things down, by putting names in a hat, and then taking turns opening up the present ... but with 50 or so presents to be opened by 4 children and 8 adults ... this causes no end of problems.

We did think about dividing the presents up - half under the English Christmas Tree* and the rest under the German Christmas Tree. See what happens this year ... any ideas would be welcome.

* - The English Christmas Trees arrive into the house about the first Sunday in December (Advent). The children help me decorate it ... with lots of tinsel and bright fairy lights. Even the neighbours kids come around to help -- that mad English fellow!!

The German Christmas Tree, comes into the house on the 24th ... with proper candles --- discretely decorated. The children only can see if in the evening after the evening meal ... after Father Christmas has brought the presents!

(This is probably because it is a long way between Germany and England, and that is why the children in England get their present the day after on Christmas morning!!)

What my parents used to do, I am English, is give us the main presents early on Christmas morning and then smaller presents from Christmas tree (one for each child/adult) after Christmas lunch and the Christmas evening meal. Basically this carried on through Boxing day, again presents after the main meals, until all the presants had gone, sometimes there were even some presents after Boxing day still on Christmas tree for us to have. Doing this actually made it better as rather than everything being given at once you still had the other presents to look forward too, a little like Christmas all over again!
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I still do this for presents to me even now as although not so many it is nice to still have presents to open over the two main days of Cristmas.

well, traditionally we exchange a small gift to each other over relaxing mulled wine and some nice easy food while we put away working and stressing in the run-up and prepare for the onslaught of the day to come, for me it's like opening the door (change the dates for me, we do it at the solstice, but it's all the same!) to the pleasant time coming and putting the run-up away.

On the day itself, we usually meet up, get dinner going (we all chip in and help out, a few of us doing a dish or two each, helping and doing as needed) and then once things are going, we settle down with wine etc and start opening presents, we run on a one person opens a present at a time system... Apart from that we leave it fairly open and try to make sure no-one runs out ages before everyone else, usually leaving a 'big' or 'main' present till last for everyone...

We've been doing it like that since I was about nine or ten, and I started being old enough to enjoy other people's reactions as much as getting stuff!

when my children were small, they had a stocking with a few goodies and chocs and an orange, to be opened upstairs before going downstairs to the main presents.

my aunt who comes to stay every year, decided that she wanted one too(bearing in mind that she was over 50 at the time. now 86.)
there were some restrictions put on what was to be allowed in the adults stockings. she does one for me and one for my partner and i do one for her.

shiny money.(about £1 in small change)
a satsuma.
a small chocolate bar.
nuts.
and 4 things for no more than 50p.

it takes more time, effort and brainpower trying to find something original for such a small amount.

ive had slug pellets, soap, ornaments, postage stamps, brillo type pads, and all manner of things over the years.

Thanks for all your answers:

Hello STRANGELY STRANGE,
I love the idea of slowly handing out the present over the whole holiday period ... love it. Now I just need to convince my wife ... I do something similar on my birthday.

Hi Robyn Hoode,
although being fond of the whole Wicca celebrations, I'm not sure what my wife would say and her relatives ... but to move our Christmas to the solstice? I don't know ... do kids accept the wicca way? What do they tell the other children at school.

Hi serenity,
our kids get a plate of fruit with little sweeties around the side of the plate. Like the idea of having a spending limit ... not sure about the brilo pads.

Oh, I didnt mean you should, I just meant that's when we do it but the tradition's much the same, the night before, we exchange presents and on 'the' day, whichever you choose to celebrate, we do the one-at-a-time present etiquette

when i used to help out in the local playgroup. there used to be one jehovahs witness family.

they used to buy everything that we would buy our children, but do it during the weeks before our christmas day. it was as if december was one long party with loads of presents all shown off and it then made it look as if us other parents didnt care about getting anything for our children.

im not kncoking their religion, but a bit more thought or consideration to others would have helped. its not nice trying to explain to 3-4 year olds that they will get the same things on the 25th after santa has been.

Having a religious celebration, be it Christmas or Easter, I think it is really hard for the children of non-Christian families. I spoke to a nice Muslim woman at work and asked about her children ... they don't get a Christmas present and I thought that this is not fair ... but perhaps they get presents/a present before hand ... I'll have to ask.

another 'tradition' that we have is to go out on boxing day.

when we had children in the house, we always went to the seaside, unless it was really bad weather. where we live, we have a selection to choose from.
we used to take a picnic as in those days (about 25 years ago) there werent any pubs/restaurants/cafes/shops open.
but over the years, quite a few establishments are open now.

as its just the elder element of the family now, we just go for a drive and walk around any open shops and then for a meal.