Christmas: Do you open presents on Christmas Eve or Christmas Morning usually?

Morning

I didn’t grow up doing Christmas, but my most significant SO’s (I’ve only had two) in my life had families who did or do. Both of them do Christmas on Christmas Eve, the dinner and the gifts. Christmas morning on the 25th was Santa when they were small children.

My husband still can’t keep straight the American use of Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, to him Christmas is the 24th.

Sometimes my husband’s family does Christmas early to accommodate schedules. Also, when his niece and nephew were little and their parents divorced, Christmas was most years done early with their mom here in America, and then again with their dad, and then Santa was Christmas Day (the 25th) morning. You can’t change Santa, think about it. He has probably a hard enough getting all the toys organized and getting to every house as it is.

Blow out candles on my birthday.
Shoot off firecrackers on July 4th.
Hunt Easter eggs on Easter Sunday.
Open presents on Christmas Day.

Life is complicated enough without trying to make it so.

Both and then some.

Christmas morning. Christmas Eve iis for going to Christmas Mass.

It has always been on the 24th. It is the law.

Morning, a family custom.

Presents?
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As I young child I remember the excitement of Christmas morning. We were allowed to open one present on Christmas Eve. But the selection was limited. Father Christmas didn’t come until we were in bed and left the majority of the gifts for all good little boys and girls that night for our delight in the morning. We had a vague understanding that there were two separate and distinct sets of presents; one from other family members that we had a hand in selecting most time, and one from the mysterious Jolly Old Elf. Christmas dinner was a family affair, usually at grandmas, where all the relatives would gather and cousins would all compare gifts and moon over what the others had received. The gathering would go on into the evening with the adults eating, laughing, drinking and having a good time while the kids nodded off one by one. That changed when we moved to the US. We were our family but we kept the same holiday schedule.

My wife, who grew up in Texas, always opened gifts on Christmas Eve then went to midnight mass. They slept late, or as late as kids would allow, then everyone loaded the car with gifts for others, plus a few new toys for the kids to play with on the trip, and took the 1–½ hour drive to grandmas house where she and the maiden aunt had been preparing food for days. A grand feast for all the family with neighbors dropping in all day long.

When we married we did it their way for a while until grandma passed away then the mantle fell on my Mother-in-law to prepare the meal. She would prepare the meal and all four kids with their families would come over that afternoon. Since we lived in town we reverted to having gifts opened back on Christmas morning the way I had grown up experiencing, and then went to our In-laws for dinner.

Both my in-laws and my wife’s grandma were teetotallers by nature so there was not the extended parties after the meal; just a little socializing and then home.

These days, due to family dynamics (read drama) our family celebrations are limited to immediate (sons, daughters, grandchildren etc. and grandma takes turns alternating between the two daughters who are at least back on speaking terms. We open gifts Christmas morning, try to make an early lunch meal so that my son and daughter can then visit the spouses family and have dinner with them.

The Chieftains had a song called: St. Stephens Day Murders that so reminds me of my early Christmas memories. Whenever I hear it I get nostalgic and long for those simpler days.

Opening on xmas eve is tantamount to premature ejaculation, so anyone that does…seek help.

When the kids were home we opened on Christmas morning.

Now, we open when we get the chance, but neither of us ever get anything from any one other than each other (sometimes) and something from my Dad’s wife. We open hers after we get back from Rick’s dad’s on Christmas day.