How quickly are all the presents open in your family?

vikki_louise

I'm interested to know how people do present opening. In our family (even when I was little) we would take it in turns and slowly spread it out over the whole day and then a few little tree/low cost presents like nuts or something handmade on Boxing Day

elsien

Couldn't spread it out over the whole day, we're a rip 'em all open family.
Santa's sack for the kids on the bed when they wake up so they have something to keep them going while the rest of us attempt a bit of a lie-in.
Cooked breakfast then everyone piles in to open all the family prezzies and see what Santa brought that wouldn't fit into the sack.
Then after dinner and at tea time there's the santa prezzies for everyone - these are the small gifts that cost a couple of quid that are joke type ones or just seem suited to the person. Everyone gets one adult and kids alike.
Keeping them to spread out over the day is just a form of torture as far as I'm concerned - not only do I want to see what I've got, I like to see people's reactions to what I've bought them. Plus when you're doing the rounds of phone calls which is usually in the morning, it's polite to thank people for what they bought you.

(My mad SIL went one further and kept the kids prezzies for them to open one a day for the next few weeks. I always thought that was way OTT).

mummybearx

When I was young, the presents were set out in piles, and we all just got stuck in and opened everything!

Open one, show it to everyone, maybe have a wee play with it, then open the next. Everything from Santa was opened before breakfast!

Now as adults, me and dh open one present each just at midnight. That was his family tradition, one present before bedtime. Its not one I will be doing when we have kids though, Christmas presents are for the morning, not the night before!

IrishRose12

Santa's gifts aren't wrapped in this house, just a few are, and they are opened in our house ASAP lol.

Gifts under the tree from family and friends (plus me and daddy) are opened during the course of the day. Just after we have Starters for Xmas dinner we open one present each, then after the main Xmas dinner the rest are opened
All but the 2 or 3 I manage to hide away from the kids for after dessert. We don't open any on Xmas Eve as it was always drummed into me you're not allowed to open any before Xmas day or it's bad luck/Santa won't come. Plus kiddies are in bed by that stage lol

dibuzz

When the kids were little they each had their own pile and opened them at their own pace. Eldest liked to examine everything carefully but son no 2 was more likely to open one, squeal in delight and straight onto the next as if it was a race.
Many years ago I was given a toy typewriter and my parents couldn't get me to open anything else once I'd seen it. The rest of the presents had to wait till Boxing Day.

[Deleted User]

When I was young my mum used to work on christmas morning (she was a nurse) so we used to open our stockings from Santa early before she went off to work then we would open our family presents under the tree once she was home and we'd had christmas lunch.
I continued that with my children and we still do it now even though they are adults. I still do stockings for christmas morning (although they don't get opened so early these days thank goodness) then we have family time and christmas lunch which we linger over then eventually we sit down to open presents from each other about 4pm. Its really nice because it makes the whole day special and we're not in a rush to put the tv on etc. Someone gives out the presents one at a time and we all wait while they open it before we move on to the next. It makes everyone appreciative of what they've been given

Sharon87

Well when I was a kid I'd always be the first to open all my presents. So maybe less than an hour, depending on how many presents I had.

These days with all adults - no kids about anywhere, we tend to open them after breakfast (which is usually a bacon sandwich) and we take it in turn. Takes longer than an hour, but we always tidy up the wrapping papera we go along.

notanewuser

We don't have presents.

pinknfluffy28

We try and spread it out! Dd's (age 13 & 6 this year) open stockings, and then we all go into the kitchen for breakfast. We also check santa has drunk his milk & eaten his mince pie! We then go through to the lounge and they open the majority of their gifts which are under the tree. They are really very good and they take turns so they can see what each other has, they dont have to do this, they choose to (usually its me trying to hurry them up lol!). Mid morning grandparents come and there are more gifts to open. We have our xmas lunch around 3pm, and 2 years ago i started the tradition of "santa's treasure hunt" so in one of the crackers is the first clue, after lunch they follow the clues to find their main gift that santa has left for each of them! We then have a walk into the village for a nice pint! And then by the evening all the packaging is off and we can settle down and watch tv whilst the kids enjoy their pressies! And then we do a mini xmas boxing day (as my stepdd's join us) just a few gifts under the tree, and we always hold a couple back for dd's too. I wouldnt change our routine for anything, its what works for us x

twinmom04

My childhood christmas

when I was a child we put our stocking (sock from the drawer!) and santa would fill this with fruit, sweets playing cards tube of sweets and a small bottle of pop. santa would leave our presents in a santa sack with our name on these were not wrapped, then after lunch we would open family presents etc.

My husbands christmas

stocking on the bed filled with the above and small toys. then they opened all the presents under the tree, which santa wrapped. then straight after family presents. finished by 10am.

Our christmas.

overfilled stockings in the hope this keeps the kids in bed a bit longer, hasn't worked yet lol.
then into the livingroom where santa wraps all presents and all are put under the tree. gifts are then handed out one by one. we then have lunch at 12.30 and after open family presents from my side. we then go to dh mums for 4pm when all the presents are handed out one by one from everyone. this lasts for 2hrs. we then go to my mums where we eat drink and relaxxxxx.

We have taken the best of both of our childhood christmases, hopefully this is prolonging the day for our children.

DigForVictory

As a child (eldest of three) we had Stockings on our beds & heaps in the front room. After breakfast, we were allowed into the room with the presents & picked one off the heap. Went round the family unwrapping (& recording!) one present at a time. We got the odd steer (all from one relative, for example) but it was a paced free for all.

I have not managed to sell all this to my lot. They do understand that a stocking is a bribe to leave the parents a bit longer to snooze. However, as soon as "breakfast" (I must suggest bacon butties) is devoured, it's leap on & rip the paper off time. Makes sorting lists for thankyou letters the devils other job after making the little dears write thankyous Of Any Kind...