Christmas Eve Box Ideas for Babies to Pre-schoolers
Christmas Eve Box Ideas for Babies to Pre-schoolers
A Christmas Eve box is a small box of cosy things opened on the evening of 24 December: fresh pyjamas, a book, a warm drink and often one quiet gift. For babies, toddlers and pre-schoolers it turns a long, fizzy day into a slow evening, and it gives the night before Christmas a little ritual of its own.
This guide covers Christmas Eve box ideas by age, from babies to 4 year olds, the classic fillers that work for most families, and a few wooden toys that suit a calm night in. Most of what goes into a good box is already in your cupboards. You don't need to buy anything from us to make one that works.
What is a Christmas Eve box and why do families make one?
A Christmas Eve box is a box of cosy evening things that a child opens on Christmas Eve, usually after tea and before bath and bed. There are no fixed rules. Some families bring out the same wooden crate every year, others use a shoebox their toddler decorated in December.
The real job of the box is to slow the evening down. Opening it says "now it's pyjamas, a story and bed" without you having to say it. It also gives a toddler something to open on the 24th, which can help the wait for Christmas morning feel a little shorter.
It's also a handy home for things you'd buy anyway. Winter pyjamas and a new book count as gifts in a Christmas Eve box, and nobody under five will argue with that.
Christmas Eve box ideas: what to put in it
These are the Christmas Eve box fillers and essentials that suit most families with young children. Pick four or five and leave the rest.
Pyjamas for tonight
New or freshly washed pyjamas are the heart of most boxes. Put them on top so they can go straight on after bath.
A Christmas story to read in bed
A new picture book, or an old favourite wrapped up again. Read it together as the last thing before lights out.
One quiet toy for the evening
Choose something calm to play with on the floor, not something loud or fast. Simple wooden toys suit the wind-down hour well.
A mug and a warm drink
Warm milk or a hot chocolate in their own mug feels very grown up. Let it cool well before a little one holds it, and stay close.
Treats for Father Christmas
A carrot for the reindeer and a treat on a plate for Father Christmas. Toddlers love laying them out by the tree.
A blanket for songs or a film
A soft blanket for a short Christmas film, or for singing carols together on the sofa before bed.
Christmas Eve box ideas by age
The best box matches what your child can do right now. Here is what we would put in at each age, from babies to 4 year olds, with the same simple shape: pyjamas, a book, something warm or tasty, and one quiet thing to do.
Christmas Eve box ideas for babies
A baby won't know it's Christmas Eve, so the box is as much for you as for them, and that's fine. Fresh sleepwear, a soft book with bold pictures and a new muslin or comforter make a lovely first box. Skip anything small enough to go in a mouth.
For babies from around 6 months, our ball drop is a calm game to share on the floor before bath. You drop a ball, it disappears, and it rolls back out. Ten minutes of that is a gentle end to a busy day.
Christmas Eve box ideas for 1 year old
One-year-olds often enjoy the unwrapping more than what's inside, so wrap each thing separately in tissue paper and keep an eye on the paper so it doesn't end up in mouths. A board book with flaps, cosy pyjamas and their own cup for warm milk are plenty. A favourite toy from earlier in the year, wrapped again, can feel brand new.
Christmas Eve box ideas for 2 year old
Two-year-olds love a job, so give them one. Put the carrot for the reindeer in the box and let them carry it to the tree. A lift-the-flap Christmas book, a small mug of their own and new pyjamas round it off.
For a quiet toy, the sensory play set is made for toddlers and pre-schoolers and comes with a tray, so the play stays in one tidy spot on the floor. Ask "Which piece feels the smoothest?" and let them show you.
Christmas Eve box ideas for 3 year old
Three-year-olds can make something for Father Christmas, which keeps excited hands busy. Add chunky crayons and a sheet of paper so they can draw him a picture to leave with his treat. A small torch for looking at the Christmas lights from the window is another simple, calm idea.
Christmas Eve box ideas for 4 year old
Pre-schoolers can follow a longer story, so a Christmas Eve picture book with a bit more to it works well. They also love acting the night out: who goes to bed, who comes down the chimney, who eats the carrot. A small world set, a few blocks and a tea towel for a sleigh are enough to play it through before bath.
Wooden toys for a Christmas Eve box
If you'd like one toy in the box, choose something calm that works on the floor, needs no batteries and will still be played with in January. All our toys are tested to EN71 parts 1, 2 and 3.
Object Permanence Ball Drop
For babies from around 6 months, with three balls included. Watching each ball drop out of sight and roll back out is a slow, absorbing game, and this toy can take a while to master, which is half the fun.
Wooden Sensory Play Set
Made for toddlers and pre-schoolers, and it comes complete with a tray. These pieces suit the quiet hour between tea and bath, when hands want something to do but nobody needs more noise.
Peg People
Twelve painted wooden peg dolls with no faces, including three baby-style figures, so your child decides who is who. Use these dolls to act out Christmas Eve: the family going to bed and Father Christmas arriving.
Tor's First Musical Instruments
A tambourine, xylophone, bells and guiro (the basket isn't included). Bells and a tambourine were made for a round of Jingle Bells, and this set turns carols into a family band.
Wooden Rainbow Stacker
A large 12 piece set made from basswood (lime wood). If the box is the main gift of the evening, this one builds tunnels for a sleigh to pass under and keeps working long after Christmas.
How do you make a Christmas Eve box without overspending?
Use a box you can keep, count the things you'd buy anyway as the gifts, and add an activity rather than more stuff. A Christmas Eve box looks generous because it's opened slowly, not because it's full.
- Pick a box you can reuse. A wooden crate, a basket or a shoebox your toddler decorates. Bring the same one out every year.
- Let the essentials be the gifts. Pyjamas, a book and a mug are the Christmas Eve box contents most families need anyway.
- Wrap things one at a time. Four small parcels last longer than one big one, and unwrapping is half the fun at this age.
- Add something to do together. Sing carols with bells, a tambourine or a pan and a wooden spoon. Or wrap up warm for a short walk to see the neighbours' lights, holding hands near roads.
- Open it after tea. Starting early leaves time for the box, the story and a warm drink without rushing bedtime.
Frequently asked questions
When should you give a Christmas Eve box?
Most families give a Christmas Eve box after tea on 24 December, before bath and bed. That leaves time to open it slowly, put the new pyjamas on, lay out the treats for Father Christmas and read the book together. Opening it too early in the day can mean the pyjamas are covered in lunch by bedtime, and the box loses its job of winding the evening down.
Do you need to put a toy in a Christmas Eve box?
No, a Christmas Eve box works perfectly well without a toy. Pyjamas, a book, a warm drink and a treat for Father Christmas are enough for most babies, toddlers and pre-schoolers. If you do add a toy, choose something calm that can be played with on the floor before bed, like a simple wooden toy, rather than anything loud, fast or with lots of pieces to tidy away.
Is a Christmas Eve box worth it for a baby?
A Christmas Eve box for a baby is more for the family than the baby, and that's a perfectly good reason to make one. Fresh sleepwear, a soft book and a first-Christmas comforter are useful anyway. Keep it small, avoid anything little enough to go in a mouth, and keep the box itself. It can become the same crate you bring out every year as they grow.
Should siblings share one Christmas Eve box?
Siblings can share one Christmas Eve box, as long as each child has something of their own inside. Matching pyjamas, one shared book to read together and a single activity, like a plate of treats to lay out for Father Christmas, work well for mixed ages. Keep any toy suitable for the youngest child in the house, or give the older child their toy separately.
Can you reuse a Christmas Eve box every year?
Yes, and reusing the same box is what turns it into a family tradition. A sturdy wooden crate or basket lasts for years, and you only change what goes inside as your child grows. Some families add a small tag each Christmas with the year written on it. By the time your toddler is at school, the box itself will be part of the excitement.