I’m not even apologising for saying the C word in November, I’ve been in Christmas mode for months. I have already finished all of my Christmas shopping, I have bought some new tree decorations and my Christmas Eve pyjamas are waiting patiently in my wardrobe. In summary, I am ready for you, Christmas. I’m not even ashamed of how ready for Christmas I am.
I am not a last-minute kind of woman when it comes to the festive period, I can’t handle the stress of trudging round overcrowded overheated shops in December, it is not for me. I need to know I have everything ready well in advance.
Personalised Gifts Shop has put together a PDF full of ideas for how you can add a little extra magic to your Christmas Eve. I thought I’d share a few of our family Christmas Eve traditions with you:
1. A trip to the theatre
We started this when Ebony was younger, every Christmas Eve we go to see a matinee Christmas show in Manchester. I love going to the theatre and it’s an experience I love sharing with Ebony. This year, we’re going to see Elf The Musical at The Lowry. Elf is one of my favourite Christmas films so there is really no way of accurately explaining my excitement to you.
2. Sushi for dinner
This isn’t exactly a standard Christmas Eve tradition, but it’s something we’ve been doing since Ebony was born. Laurie is chief sushi maker in this house but it takes ages. This means he’s usually pretty reluctant to the idea of making it. So, I made it a tradition that we eat sushi for dinner on Christmas Eve and now he has to make it at least once a year. Ebony loves sushi so it’s something she really looks forward to as well.
3. A soak in the tub
When I was little, a bath was a prerequisite for getting your special Christmas Eve pyjamas. They would be waiting for us on the stairs as soon as we climbed out the bath. I can still remember it really well, the excitement building, it always seemed like that was the moment the Christmas magic started in our house. I do the same for my family now, Christmas Eve baths followed by new pyjamas and a new book waiting outside the bathroom door.
4. Christmas Eve boxes
In recent years, I’ve just put the pyjamas and book at the top of the stairs, but this year, I’ve invested in some Christmas Eve boxes. I bought plain ones so that I can decorate them and personalise them. Hopefully I will actually get around to doing that, otherwise, it will be weird that there are plain wooden boxes outside the bathroom. The boxes will contain new pyjamas, a new book, some hot chocolate, some marshmallows and something to watch on TV. Then it will be time to drink our hot chocolates cuddled up on the sofa, watching whatever it is on TV (probably something short because by this point excitement levels will be painfully high) before bed.
5. The magic
Then it will be time to leave things out for Santa. A mince pie, some amaretto (what? That’s definitely what Santa drinks) and a carrot for the reindeer. Ebony usually takes her stocking upstairs and pops it on the end of the bed, but this was very stressful last year when she woke up as I was trying to fill it at 1am. I ended up having to lie in bed with her for hours waiting for her to fall asleep. By the time I’d sorted her stocking and gone to bed, I had about two hours of sleep before it was time to get up. I can’t do that again. So this year I’m hoping to convince her to leave the stocking downstairs.
Once all that is done, it’ll be time to read their new Christmas Eve books in bed. Then hopefully everyone will be ready for bed.
This is a collaborative post.
