What do you do on Christmas Eve / Day? (A restful Christmas)

[strawb]

i love this thread and reading all the traditions!

christmas eve

• morning: the most important part we get up early, get all glammed up, best dress, heels, coat, etc. and head into the old town for drinking. it's a huge tradition in the city i live in and the whole city does the same thing. it's lovely because you see all the people you haven't seen in a long time. we'll try to go earlier than usual this year to get a spot in a good pub! oh and before that a quick but filling breakfast
• lunch: at my parents' place, a lovely lunch with a roast but usually just trying to survive it because you're drunk from the morning
• afternoon: watching movies, this year at our place with my sister and her bf, starting our harry potter marathon
• evening: exchanging presents with my bf as it's traditional in his family to do so on christmas eve. and probably a board game!

christmas day

• morning: sleeping in a bit longer, probably sobering up a bit, getting ready
• lunch: a big lunch with the whole family. cold starters first then soup then roast then various desserts. i'm bringing lots of cookies this year
• afternoon: opening all the family presents, hanging out, talking over coffee, drinks and food
• evening: drinking more baileys, eating more chocolate, board games. sometimes we go out but not this year

boxing day

• morning: huge breakfast with allll the leftovers and lots of cheese tv, christmas movies, board games, reading, whatever we feel like
• lunch: my bf makes a roast for us and this year it's duck. i make the potatoes and sides
• afternoon: my sister and her bf will join us to continue our harry potter marathon
• evening: bf and i settle down alone for a bit after all the socializing and usually talk about the year and look through all the presents

mine is not changing much this year but i thought i'd bump this up for this year

what are everyone's plans?

 

[peppermintmartini]

Ours changes as my husband is RAF so we’re away from family and sometimes they come and visit, sometimes we go back home. But this year he’s working over Christmas so we’ll go home for New Year instead!

Christmas Eve- open christmas eve boxes, have a cosy day and maybe go on a walk, usually get a takeaway too!

Christmas Day- Wake up, open our stockings and main present, have breakfast, get ready for the day, have Christmas roast, play games, watch Kings speech then open the presents from under the tree and chill for the rest of the evening! However it’ll be different this year working around husbands shift so me and my daughter will play it by ear

 

[Katienana]

Christmas Eve my ideal is to prep dinner (butter and herbs on the turkey, make stock from giblets, make pigs in blankets, peel veg) then go for a walk. Come home, have buffet tea then get kids bathed, watch something nice on TV, put the mince pie and carrot out and then read The Night Before Christmas.
Last year this got disrupted because the dog ate the mince pie and had to go to the vets! So will try and avoid that this year

 

[prozacprincess]

We would normally go on holiday for Xmas but we are heading to England this year to spend it with friends. I’m kind of looking forward to it but I’ve got a lot going on right now and I’m not enjoying having to sort out travel etc. Plus I’ve grown accustomed to not buying presents and now I’ve got to actually go Xmas shopping

 

[Sickofinstacrap]

I used to either fly home for Christmas or worked in a&e. No longer a shift worker thank god.
But my family traditions are:
Christmas Eve: wake up, either cook a fry up or go for breakfast with my dad. Visit my mams grave. Last minute Christmas shopping with my dad. Then we collect the Christmas meat and buy loads of alcohol. Home and best outfit and makeup. We go to Christmas Eve mass, then home to my home house, all my cousins, their kids, aunts and uncles come over and we drink and tell stories all night.
Christmas Day: a full Irish. My dad starts cooking the meat, my brother and sister come with their kids and my dad’s friend who’s a bachelor, comes for dinner. We spend the whole day watching tv and talking. Have a few drinks in the night, then off to bed.
Boxing Day: usually a trip into town for when shops open if we can get anything good in the sales. My dad or sister will cook the dinner. And then to go the pub to drink
This year I will be due my baby. So hopefully will have my baby and an m&s meal deal

 

[grannypants]

I used to either fly home for Christmas or worked in a&e. No longer a shift worker thank god.
But my family traditions are:
Christmas Eve: wake up, either cook a fry up or go for breakfast with my dad. Visit my mams grave. Last minute Christmas shopping with my dad. Then we collect the Christmas meat and buy loads of alcohol. Home and best outfit and makeup. We go to Christmas Eve mass, then home to my home house, all my cousins, their kids, aunts and uncles come over and we drink and tell stories all night.
Christmas Day: a full Irish. My dad starts cooking the meat, my brother and sister come with their kids and my dad’s friend who’s a bachelor, comes for dinner. We spend the whole day watching tv and talking. Have a few drinks in the night, then off to bed.
Boxing Day: usually a trip into town for when shops open if we can get anything good in the sales. My dad or sister will cook the dinner. And then to go the pub to drink
This year I will be due my baby. So hopefully will have my baby and an m&s meal deal

Thanks for sharing! Your Christmas Eve sounds so lovely - the perfect combination of peaceful and family-orientated whilst being fun and festive.

 

[Reality_tv_lover]

Christmas eve husbands working so it's my job to do the goodbye message from the elf who also brings the Christmas Eve box with him so the kids get new xmas eve pjs and so do I. Sweets and making cakes with the kids. Last day of advent calendar
We will take a walk down the shop we work at because they close Christmas day so they will have a few bargains going out of date.
Then watch films and get the presents out

Christmas day
Wrapping paper everywhere kids open everything including our presents, have to chuck wrapping paper in the spare room because there's not enough room in the bin.
Mr 5s laptop will go on charge mr 4s tablet will go on charge and everything will get set up. Husband starts meat joints in the air fryer and uncle and auntie come over for dinner. Then they have the kids while we have a nap and vice versa and we have our and then they leave and we relax as a family and I cry over my very messy living room

 

[Emsie]

We have a new addition this year with our adopted baby and my stepdaughter is with us Christmas day along with our 2 boys so it's gonna be carnage and I can't wait. Feeling very content and complete this year
Christmas eve - slow morning, bacon sandwiches, nice coffees, then we will get the bikes out and go for a long dog walk. Mum and dad will get a costa to see us through, collect my stepdaughter on the way home, Christmas eve box that the elves have left, little one will nap, SD will colour with her brothers and play whilst we sort out food, pork baguettes for an early tea, get the kids bathed and santa stuff, watch elf story and drink hot choc and put the kids to bed, prepare my meat, get the kids presents out, drink gin, eat cheese, have a bath, send sd to bed so we can sort her presents (she doesn't believe anymore but still don't want her around when the presents come down)
Christmas morning - sneak down at 5am to put the turkey in, wait for the kids to wake up, carnage, try and force non hungry people to eat, every gets dressed then I have 90 minutes break "doing lunch" whilst hubby takes over the kids, my mum comes for lunch, eat around 2pm, spend the afternoon playing. Sd will go to her mums about 5pm, calm down kids, put not tired children to bed and relax. Watch call the midwife eat turkey sandwiches, eat kids selection boxes.
Boxing day chill morning, take the dog out to get us some fresh air, go to mother in laws, eat my body weight, let the kids run wild with their cousins, come home, put untired children to bed.
Cannot waitttt!