Christmas Eve

[tvguy]

I have known a lot of families that do their Christmas on Christmas Eve. We have always done Christmas on Christmas. Christmas Eve is the day to rest up for the flurry of activity that is Christmas. As for Christmas music, we will turn it on today, and it is welcome until the end of Christmas Season, which is officially the Epiphany on January 6th. I have to admit that people who take all the Christmas decorations down on December 26th do drive me a little crazy.

 

[indimom]

Growing up, Christmas Eve meant going to our church Christmas program, followed by the large family Christmas party with all my cousins/aunts/uncles/grandparents at my grandparents' house. Most of the extended family came to our church on Christmas Eve because it was so close to the house, and we enjoyed crowding in to the small church with all our family.
As the family expanded and grew, and the grandparents passed away, that faded off. But, Christmas Eve has always been close to my heart.
My husband and I (and our children when they are in town) have recreated a version of this by going with my parents to their church on Christmas Eve (the same country church we attended when I was a child), then having a quiet evening at their house with simple appetizers/snacks/sweets. It's still my favorite part of our Christmas traditions.
This year my sister, BIL, and nephew will be here (from their home in Florida) so we'll have a bigger group for Christmas Eve.

Christmas Day has always been very quiet. Just our own family unit at home. Our big meal is breakfast, followed by gifts, then just some sort of simple comfort food for a late lunch/early dinner. When the kids were small, the grandparents would sometimes pop in for a few minutes to see what Santa brought. But no parties or elaborate meals.

 

[JimMIA]

For a number of years, we celebrated Christmas Eve by taking Grandma to dinner at Seasons 52 in Coral Gables. Grandma died last May after a long and very full life, and we weren't able to go to Seasons because of Covid. So Friday will be our first actual "Christmas Eve" celebration dinner without GM.

I'm sure it will be bittersweet, but I guess that's part of the process.

 

[robinb]

I no longer celebrate Christmas, but I liked Christmas Eve better than Christmas itself. We would celebrate with my mom and sisters family. Our tradition was to open one present on Christmas Eve, watch movies and then the WGN “Santa Tracker”. At midnight we would place the baby Jesus into the full sized light up blow mold nativity scene, pop a bottle of champagne and sing Happy Birthday to him.

 

[E&Cmom]

Growing up my parents would invite some of our friends and neighbours before or after Christmas Eve mass. We would have a table full of appy type things. We stayed up late and were able to open up our family gifts after midnight. On a Christmas Day we opened Santa Gifts and had our turkey dinner. It did not have an extended family in the country so it was just our family.

Now Christmas Eve is just the 4 of us. We have done different things that day depending on my work schedule. Some times we drive around looking at lights and come home and do family things at home, some years we go to the movies, the last few years we have done dinner out. Not sure yet what we are doing this year as my husband is recovering from hernia surgery which he had on Friday. I finish work at 330pm so it just depends if he is up to going out. If not we will do take out or just appies

Christmas Day is generally with our families except last year due to Covid and this year due Not only Covid but a few other reasons. Hopefully next year we can all get together gain. I don’t mind a quiet Christmas Day of just the 4 of us though.

 

[Luv Bunnies]

We celebrate for two days straight! Christmas Eve is usually 5:00 p.m. mass followed by a lasagna dinner at my sister's house. My family (DH, 2 DS's and me) get up and open our presents on Christmas morning. Before my dad passed away two years ago, we would then go to my parent's house and open presents with them, my brother and sister. We decided it was too sad to sit around their living room without our dad, and our mom no longer wants to deal with a tree. So, Mom, my brother and sister go out for breakfast together, then come over to our house later in the afternoon. We open presents with them, then everyone stays for Christmas dinner.

This year, DS23 has been invited to spend Christmas Eve with his GF's family. They live about an hour away and we don't really want him driving home late that night. He's going to stay with them and come home early on Christmas morning. We will wait for him to open our presents together. His GF is going to come to our house for Christmas dinner. They've been dating for almost three years. It will be nice to have her with us.

 

[Micca]

The grandkids got out of school at Noon on Thursday, DD arrived from out-of-town on Friday, pretty sure the whole thing is a blur until the 27th or so. I don't know that Eve/Day is much different that any of these days except the the gifts on Christmas morning.

 

[Meriweather]

We did Christmas with my family and Eve with DH's family.....if they made plans, which wasn't always.

And sorry, tvguy, our decorations come day starting the 26th, maybe the 27th this year. We leave on vacation the 9th and I need it all down, stored and time to pack

 

[amcnj]

Growing up Christmas Eve was immediate family only. As adults we made it the celebration for one side of the family, and Christmas Day for the other.

 

[tcufrog]

We do have a few Christmas Eve traditions. We always have pasta carbonara and the kids get to open 2 gifts, Christmas pjs and a special book inscribed by my DH and I. They'd then drink some hot cocoa and read their new books by the Christmas tree or fireplace. The pjs have become so popular that everyone gets a pair, including the dogs. The kids used to also make cookies for Santa and set out water and carrots for the reindeer. Since the Santa jig is up, I'm not sure what we'll do. They may decide to do it anyway since their toddler step-cousin will be there.

Christmas Day is pretty chill. The kids are allowed to open their stockings while we sleep in. The kids then make sausage rolls for everyone to eat for breakfast. Usually, after that, we start prepping for our Christmas meal. This year, we're doing a brunch. After that, we open gifts and then relax. Sometimes we go to a movie in the evening.

 

[disykat]

What?? I do get that most people concentrate Christmas into those two days. I also get that people don't want to do the whole "12 days of Christmas," but the idea that people don't want Christmas music on the 2nd day of the traditional Christmas stymies me.

We do immediate family and close friends stuff on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day and celebrate with extended family during the week between Christmas and New Years.

 

[kdonnel]

Christmas Eve is both fun and a chore.

We go down to my wife’s brothers on the 23rd for their big Christmas Eve party. Then drive home, getting there just after midnight.

It was hard to do when the kids were small. We do still end up having to do Santa stuff once we get home though.

This year we are hosting the street Christmas morning breakfast. Another family used to do it but moved away before Covid and last year no one wanted to because of Covid. Should be interesting.

 

[Kathryn Merteuil]

Growing up Christmas Eve was a pretty big deal at my grandparents house. We would have lunch there and open some gifts after lunch. I remember many times I would actually spend a couple days with them up to Christmas Eve and then go home w/my parents that afternoon.

My grandparents would also usually come over on Christmas day for lunch.

 

[cjlong88]

Christmas Eve is the big day for us. Dinner, family time, presents, staying up late. Christmas Day is low key. Sleep in, leftovers, celebrating aunt’s birthday. Usually traveling elsewhere later in the day because tickets are cheaper on the 25th.

 

[sjrec]

My grandparents were from Germany and Norway and Christmas Eve was always the bigger event. My German grandparents would wait to decorate the tree Christmas Eve. My Norwegian grandparents had a huge smorgasbord. We would open gifts that night as well. Now we have a small family get together Christmas Eve, go to church and open gifts Christmas morning. The most important thing I believe is to make memories and traditions with your own family.

 

[disneychrista]

We have only really celebrated on Christmas Day. Christmas Eve we would get to open one gift that was always that years Christmas PJ's. We'd also always have spaghetti for dinner because my Uncle (my dad's brother) & Grandma (my mom's mom) always stayed with us.

Christmas Day was always the gift opening celebration. We'd have a big dinner with my aunt, uncle & cousins.

 

[soccerdad72]

Christmas Eve, in recent years, has become the bigger night, at least as far as family and meals go. In the morning, our neighbor hosts a brunch for all the neighbors. At night, we usually go to a late afternoon mass, then have a prime rib dinner with my wife's family and settle in for the night. Christmas morning is more relaxed. We open some presents, have brunch, and just chill out most of the rest of the day. We do a turkey dinner that night, but nothing really fancy. It's usually just the four of us plus my MIL for Christmas Day. Occasionally, we'll have other families over - anyone who doesn't have anywhere else to go is always welcome at our house.

The weekend after Christmas is always reserved to travel to my side of the family for Christmas 2.0.

As a kid, we would go to Mass on Christmas Eve as well, then go to an aunt and uncle's house for a big Italian feast for dinner, then go to my Grandmother's house on Christmas Day for dinner.

 

[MamaMermaid]

After presents are opened, Christmas day is very lacking for me. It's such a massive build up and then when it's over, it's got a very empty feeling to it. I love Christmas Eve - feels so magical and exciting. After Christmas morning, I'm ready for the decorations to go, etc.

 

[Moliphino]

Christmas Eve was always the big day for the Polish side of my family (dad's side). Nobody else took it on after my grandmother died, though. Lately it's been low key at home, then "midnight" mass (our church moved it to 10pm a while ago, which is annoying).
Christmas Day is the big day with my mom's side.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

We have dinner over at mother-in-law and step-father-in-law's place for Christmas Eve but that doesn't make Christmas any less big for them. In the very early days that's when they would give me my gifts because I spent Christmas day over at my family's but soon after we started dating we just split up our time.

Christmas morning we go early out for breakfast with in-laws then do gifts then go over to my mom's family then most of the time end back over at in-laws often going to the movies (depends on the year if there's a good one to see). I'm not sure if we have a movie planned this year or not.

Christmas day is chaotic and busy and Christmas Eve not necessarily low-key because the timing and getting everything ready for dinner can be chaotic but there's less rush rush rush feel.

We do my father-in-law's Christmas separately. We actually just had his Christmas thing yesterday.