And the stockings were hung

When I do the stocking thing, I stuff them with biscuits and catnip, maybe a squeeky and a little mouse. I just have pets. However, my parents have continued to do stockings for us (we're all in our 30s). We usually get some nuts and chocolate, some little nick-nacks. One year Dad gave us all condoms.

That's great, littlek. What a progressive Dad you have (I can't imagine my hubby ever doing that for my kids (he had enough trouble just accepting their moving in with someone of the opposite sex let alone giving them condoms).

We do give Jenny presents, but no stocking (poor thing). She loves unwrapping her presents. With our last Golden, we actually wrapped up a shoebox full of empty cardboard toilet paper rolls cause she loved to chew on them. Jenny is bored with cardboard though, so she'll get a nylabone or two and a rubber ball.

Yeah, progressive and worried about AIDS. He got us the multi-packs. I still laugh when I think of it.

I rarely buy the pets toys. Bootsie keeps her squeekies in excellent condition and the rest of my family buys her new ones before she needs them. All the cat wants to play with is wadded up paper.

I stillmake sure the godkids have stocking stuffers, even though they already have two housholds with stockings...isnt that funny? And I actually bought them today..fabulous idea...little net stocking with all types of candy in them...works for me!
I usually put out my own stocking and fill it with silly things I buy for myself...Im just funny like that Or if theres a small wrapped gift that I get in the mail, that will go in there as well...most of the time, Mom will send a little something like that, I think she knows, afterall she is a Mom no matter how old I am.
The cats usually get a stockings worth of stuff but, now Im at the point that they got enough stuff...they're getting paper this year. They'll probably be really happy about that too, which is really good.

I can't give myself a stocking, I already bought myself some xmas presents.

As the Mom in this household, I get to buy for everybody (that includes the Dad, the kids and the kids' significant others plus Grandma). For a long time I even filled my own, but when my daughter got a little older she decided that wasn't fair so she bought my stuff (with my money, of course -- she was just a little kid still). Now that she's not home much, hubby took the hint and he does mine.

My biggest problem is that I always think the stocking will hold more than it will, i.e. I buy too much. Could never hang them up filled -- they'd rip.

Good Mom, you are.

I'd be happy with a couple of bowls of nuts and some assorted chocolates on the coffee table.

Well, here are some chocolates for you (I'll add the nuts later):

Here ya go:

And, voila, I'm happy! Uhoh, another online Ma? Hahahaha

We never did stockings when I was a kid. I guess with 8 kids my folks had enough problems worrying about presents under teh tree as it was.

I always had one for my daughter though. Usually just filled it with little stuffs. When she was little it was yo-yos and colored pencils and stuff. As she got older it was usually CDs, film, Gift Certificates for movies, etc..

What'll it be this year?

bandylu that was SO sweet of you
to come up with both the nuts
AND the chocolate on such short
notice.
We ALWAYS had a few HUGE oranges
in an old sock. Mom grew up in
depression. I do think that my
father managed to escape that in
some way. His family were some
very unusual people, as a whole, they
were 100% English folks who migrated
down from Canada to upstate New York.
There is little doubt that he highly
disappointed them by marrying mom,
(just a mutt)while he, carried a genuine
pedigree...
*Now MY girls got fun stocking stuffer
toys, and candy, and a new toothbrush,
(try to make up for one, by giving the
other) and little toy make up, and Barbi
doll clothes, then as they got
older, real Clinique makeup.
It got rather expensive & then POOF!
where did they go? ALL grown up
now?.... or at least as much as they
can be. It's hard to think that I may
have been as immature as they are
when I was their age. After all, I had
3 children by the time I was 21 years
old. I wasn't thinking about drinking!
I was planning better birth control!!

babs -- I know what you mean when you say the stockings got pretty expensive the older they got. Clinique makeup is expensive, for one (and my daughter gets some of that, too). Even though both of my kids are fully grown and out on their own, they still come home for Christmas and they still get their stockings filled with lots of neat stuff (it's just harder now -- especially for my son).

Christmas stockings are a tradition in our family. When I was a kid, our stockings contained some candy, fruit and a small toy or two. As we grew up, the family still got together at Christmas (usually most of us are there), and my mom continued with it. Now there are four generations of us and we each have our own stocking that we get year after year. I'm not sure where my mom gets them, but each one is somewhat different, fairly large and can hold quite a few things (and does). And each has the recipient's name on it.

My dad died about 10 years ago, but his stocking still gets hung up and we put silk poinsettias in it. I always have mixed feelings every year when all the stockings have been opened and that one is still there. It leaves a bit of a void inside me, but it also brightens up the room with his spirit.

As my son gets older his stocking stuffers change along with his age. Usually I just fill it with candy and a bunch of small stuff. The older he gets, the more expensive it gets because I can't get away with putting in the match boxs cars and cheap little stuff like that. This years I'll be putting in some blank cassette tapes and video tapes since he likes to record stuff. The candy will always work as well. Since he loves to do models, I think I'll throw some model paint in there as well.

LOL on the condoms Littlek. Since my son will be getting his license soon and will be out and about, maybe that wouldn't be a bad idea.

Stockings are a tradition that I grew up with and continue now with my Family.

I too remember the apples, oranges and walnuts of the lean years, but hey, when you're a kid, it's all good.

Sounds like some pretty healthy stocking stuffing, max. Although now they are proving that chocolate is really good for you -- even Dr. Andrew Weil recommends dark chocolate. It's just the sugar but I whipped up some chocolate pecan fudge with the Equal and it's delicious.

Lil K

What did you buy for yourself? I'm looking for ideas. I've been good - sorta!?