Why Don't You...Prep Presents Before You Wrap?

A simple tip to make Christmas morning run a little smoother is to really prep your gifts before you wrap them. Less frustration = happier kids = happier parents.

Take a minute to evaluate what each gift needs before the wrapping begins. Charge toys that need charged, don't just buy enough batteries - put them in each toy, and release each toy from it's packaging. I have never been so close to meltdown as the Christmas I realized AFTER the kids had opened their gifts that a screwdriver was needed to unscrew the toy from the cardboard backing. The kids were crying, I was digging through the junk drawer, and The Big Guy was rubbing his head in frustration.

Snip the plastic ties, untwist the metal bands and let the toy sit in the box. The kids will slip off the paper and the toy will slip right into their hands!

And, really, aren't we all so happy to see how simple it is to open Santa's gifts since they don't come in boxes like the ones at the store? Except that one time when he forgot...but you know what I mean.

To read a little more about the insanity of Christmas gift wrapping at my house, including Santa's Sack, click HERE.

Don't forget to check out Tutorial Tuesday for some great ideas or to link up your own projects!
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Santa's Sack, My Anal-Retentive Gift Wrapping, and a Guest Feature!

Okay, now I'll share with you my super anal-retentive method of wrapping gifts...but only if you promise not to mock me. Okay, you can mock me...and laugh...and point...Just do it quietly.

First, all (two) gifts from Santa arrive wrapped in red and white striped paper (ala Polar Express). They can be found in the fireplace in "Santa's Sack". This tradition began years ago because #1 son was super afraid each Christmas at the thought of a strange man tip toeing around our home in the dark of night. Really...it IS kind of creepy! He used to sit on Santa's lap and ask him to take the gifts to Daddy's work instead of coming to the house.

So, since that time, Santa has agreed to stay OUT, per our request, and simply drops the sack down the chimney and continues on his way to prowl through other unsuspecting children's homes. They still expect him to eat the cookies, though...go figure...

My kids sit down and write a thank you note before they leave for Mimi's house and Santa sends an elf to retrieve the sack left by the fireplace after we leave. This whole scenario has cut down on a lot of nightmares!



Sometimes this isn't possible, but I try to remember to release all items from their boxes before I wrap gifts from Mom and Dad. It saves lots of tears and bad words on Christmas morning if we aren't trying to unscrew a truck from a cardboard box. Either way, have wire cutters and a screwdriver handy just in case.

I try to give each child the same number of gifts. So, then I need to have that number of wrapping papers. Listen, you'll understand!

I arrange the piles into items that are similar and wrap them in the same paper. All DVD's get snowman paper, all cars get Christmas tree paper, all Legos get Santa paper, all books get gold paper, etc... So, then when it's time to open, I let each child choose a gift and the other two need to find the same paper in their pile and they unwrap all together. This way, no one's surprise is ruined when they watch their brother unwrapping and they know what that item is by it's shape in their own pile.

Make sense? It also slows down the process and turns it into a bit of a scavenger hunt. I sit and rub my eyes a lot during this whole process since it all goes down at around 6 a.m.

So, that's how we do it...what do YOU do Christmas morning?

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