We aren't traveling for Christmas, and we'll be seeing family on Christmas day, so would love to do something fun together as a family on Christmas Eve. We're not religious so we won't be attending church. I'd love to do something charitable, but not sure if LO is a little too young for that this Christmas (she's 16 months).
Any other fun ideas? What do you do on Christmas Eve?
squash / 13208 posts
We stay home-
We have waffles and milkshakes for dinner
Bake cookies for Santa
My kids exchange gifts
Watch a Christmas movie
Leave out cookies and milk and a note for Santa
Off to bed!
pomegranate / 3032 posts
We're italian so we do the feast of the seven fishes at my aunts house and do presents with my dad's side of the family.
grapefruit / 4085 posts
Well this year we're having family over but once they've gone we plan to take a drive to see the lights around town then come home and watch A Christmas Story.
apricot / 375 posts
I am Italian like @Chillybear: , so we do the seven fishes. I actually consider Christmas Eve much more of our celebration than Christmas Day - that is always very quiet and relaxing for us.
Its new for DH though, when he grew up they watched A Christmas Story (like @fancyfunction: !) and his grandparents came for dinner, but they didn't do presents then as he saw them the next day too. His grandparents lived down the street, so they saw them a lot!
honeydew / 7295 posts
We eat special snacks , open one present each, watch Christmas Vacation and generals enjoy the warmth of family.
GOLD / wonderful coconut / 33402 posts
We are with family and go to church and then the whole family comes over to my parents for the night.
What about:
Decorating cookies (for Santa or not)
Make a gingerbread house ( you can buy a kit premade)
PJ's and Movie night
persimmon / 1328 posts
This isn't a regular thing, but this year we are going to the zoo with LO. Pretty random but we thought it would be a cool thing to do as we are staying in the city for Christmas this year .
hostess / wonderful persimmon / 25556 posts
Go to church (probably...)
Go see Christmas lights.
Play Christmas music.
Bake something.
Play games.
pomelo / 5084 posts
Commenting to follow. Not TTC just yet but looking for new traditions to start 
GOLD / watermelon / 14076 posts
@Smurfette: I definitely want to do a movie night when she's older...tv just doesn't hold her attention now. Maybe next year!
@Bubbles: I actually really wanted to do the zoo, but turns out they're closed that day. Though I did just check and the aquarium is having breakfast with Santa that day (and LO loves the aquarium), so I'm going to call and see if they still have space on Christmas Eve!
persimmon / 1328 posts
@lawbee11: Sounds good! We've never taken LO before so hopefully he likes it!
pomegranate / 3580 posts
Movie night is a great idea!
DH grew doing family presents on Christmas Eve and Santa's presents Christmas morning, so we do gifts and a dinner that night with them. I'm trying to make games a regular thing with his family on holidays, too.
apricot / 364 posts
We do early dinner if all appetizer foods and cookies for dessert, open gifts (we do stockings on Christmas morning), watch a Christmas movie and hang out. It's always been super casual and fun and my DH enjoys it so much that now that's one of my family traditions we're adopting even if we're not at my parents' house.
persimmon / 1461 posts
we have christmas eve dinner at my in laws, starts early afternoon so the kids can play and enjoy themselves. christmas day we enjoy quietly at home and then have parents/in laws over later in the afternoon for a visit. For the last few years I've decided to stay in my own home on christmas day, and anybody who wants to come over is welcome to.
GOLD / watermelon / 14076 posts
@Bubbles: They were booked Christmas Eve but had a spot open on the 23rd so we're taking her then...she's going to love it. Will have to remember to book earlier next year!
watermelon / 14467 posts
We read "The Night Before Christmas" and I want to start baking cookies for Santa. Santa has requested Oreos this year though, so we'll see.
GOLD / wonderful olive / 19030 posts
I usually work, but this year took it off. So I plan on doing something fun with LO in the morning, doing a nice breakfast & maybe a outing during the day. We will attend church when DH gets home and then head to my parents for dinner.
blogger / wonderful cherry / 21628 posts
DH and my tradition is to load up the car (dogs included), pick up some hot chocolate, and drive around and look at Christmas lights once it gets dark.
pomegranate / 3759 posts
I work until noon. Then we might go to inlaws. I want to be home though for xmas morning. If we are home, we will probably watch xmas movies and put out milk and cookies.
cantaloupe / 6885 posts
Mrs Claus comes the night of the 23rd and brings matching PJs, so on the 24th we wake up, pile on our bed, and see what she brought.
We then spend the rest of the day baking and last minute wrapping.... We take dd to the 4pm church service, go to my parents' for supper afterwards and head home to get dd to bed early !
GOLD / watermelon / 14076 posts
@avivoca: Oooh good idea. Need to get that book!
@Leialou: No cats?? 
hostess / papaya / 10219 posts
I am Italian and Swedish and Christmas Eve is much more of a big deal than Christmas day. So we get together with family for a big dinner (either 7 Fishes or Smorgasbord depending on the year) and open presents. I love opening presents at night. It seems so magical front of the fire place with the tree lit etc. Christmas morning we just do stockings and maybe a present. And then we fly to DH's parents and have Christmas there!
@lawbee11: The zoo is closed on Christmas eve? Bummer! The aquarium would be nice. Sometimes Old Town Spring does festive things for the holidays. I bet there are things in the Woodlands too since it is so family oriented...
GOLD / papaya / 10206 posts
We always have fondue for dinner then Christmas jammies and 1 present
pomegranate / 3272 posts
Christmas Eve was always spent with just my immediate family. We would make a big dinner and then go to midnight mass. Now that we're all grown and have married, my brothers are with their wives and families. But we still do the big dinner with my parents. We have it at our house so that we're not out too late and DS can wake up in his own bed on Christmas morning. We just go to a much earlier mass.
cantaloupe / 6634 posts
Watch "It's a Wonderful Life" in my jammies with the tree all lit up.
persimmon / 1404 posts
If we stay home then it's fondue night. When we're out of town it's whatever is going on there.
pomelo / 5678 posts
I hope to volunteer at a kitchen with her when she is older. Another idea I had was sledding. (We can walk to a couple hills.) I love all of these ideas! Especially hot chocolate and snacks. Normally we go with my dad to his brother's house and have dinner and games with all of his siblings and our cousins. I think that might grieve me out this year so we might be doing something else.
There is a huge drive through light display by the lake that might be fun to check out. Otherwise I love being home and playing Christmas music, dancing, knitting, enjoying our little family.
clementine / 812 posts
We go to Christmas Eve mass (an earlier one) and then come home and have appetizers for dinner, including fondue. We all sit around the dining room table (adults and kids alike) and talk for several hours.
honeydew / 7622 posts
We do Christmas Eve with my Moms siblings and my cousins and everyone's kids and spouses (about 25 people) it's always been tradition. If we did not do that I would totally do a fresh crab feed, I'm thinking about getting it going the day after Christmas. You could also drive to a street that puts up a bunch of lights and drive through just after dark with how cocoa in a thermos then do a fancy dinner after. Sometimes when it works out we go to a fancy dress up dinner on the 23rd and I love that.
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