Christmas is about spending time with family, sharing in long standing traditions and making... only kidding; it's about presents! Presents are what make children happy until they realize the disappointing inevitability of adult life, so why not let them get excited. Unfortunately, this excitement can lead to impatience, so keeping those gifts unopened until the 25th can be tricky. This is especially the case if your little ones are particularly nosy. With the amount of stuff you already have stocking up your cupboards and cubbyholes, finding good spots for hiding Christmas presents can be hard. This is why oneHOWTO has some great advice on where to hide Christmas presents so they can learn that good things come to those who wait.
Obvious places to hide Christmas presents
We're going to lump these obvious Christmas present hiding spots together, so you can consider and then reject them. This is of course unless your kids are very young. They may not yet quite know the adrenaline rush shaking boxes and tearing off paper can provide.
If your kids are small, but are happy to sneak round the house looking for presents, then hiding presents under the bed is a no-no. It's not only the first place they'll look, but it will be practically at eye level for them. Remember, if you're hiding presents from kids you can use this to your advantage. Find high places they can't reach and keep away from places which they'll be able to see all too well.
Kids are very observant, it's their job to learn from the world around them. This means they probably already know where you put the good stuff - cookies in cupboards, R rated movies on the top shelf, etc. Hiding Christmas presents in these places is likely the first place they'll look.
Do you have storage?
With the amount of non-perishable commercial items we buy over a lifetime, we may need some extra space. Perhaps we have a woodshed or storage unit to house tools and items which will clutter up the house. If it has a lock on it, then all the better to hide Christmas presents. If it is windowless, they won't even be able to see inside. If it doesn't have a lock on it, it could still be a good place to hide presents as it is a place children need to stay away from. If you have young kids and a shed which has dangerous tools, but no locks, you should invest in one.
If you have a storage locker which isn't even on your property, this could be the best idea for a present hiding spot. However, remember you'll need to collect them on Christmas eve, so bear this in mind if it is far away.
Grandparent's or relative's house
If you have family which lives nearby, this could be the best option for hiding Christmas presents. However, there are a few considerations to make. If you leave them at your parent's house, then all the same rules apply if your kids are round visiting. If their grandparents leave them in obvious spots, you might as well find a better place in your own home.
If you leave them at another relative's house then make sure they don't have kids the same age, they will also be likely on the lookout. They may even be in cahoots on the snooping front.
At your work
Leaving presents at your parent's or a family members house might mean you don't visit as much out of fear your kids will tear through the place like a raccoon stuck in a wet paper bag. It's perhaps better that you keep family ties together, so a better hiding place is somewhere your kids will never go, nor want to go - your place of work.
Of course, this depends on where your work is. Places like restaurants are notorious for having little space, so the manager might not like the meat store being packed with Moana costumes and Teddy Ruxpins peeking out behind the crockery. If you work in an office, you might have space under your desk or in the stationery cupboard. Just make sure the other people in the office are cool with it.
In your car
This is a difficult one, but also one which might be perfect if done right. Depending on how spoiled your kids are, they probably won't want to help with taking the groceries out of the trunk. Car trunks are adult spaces, usually used to keep boring objects like jacks and spare tires. This makes them great places to hide presents especially as you can hide them under blankets and such. Besides, unless your four year old is very precocious, you'll have the keys, so they don't have access. Just make sure it's not something which can be damaged in cold temperatures.
Hidden in plain view
One of the best places to hide Christmas presents is in plain view. Your kids might be devious enough to hunt through your closets or search through your drawers, but this is because they are looking for hiding places. They may not yet be clever enough to realize they are right under their nose.
You can disguise boxes of old clothes, keep them behind bookshelves or anywhere kids aren't particularly interested in. Making your hiding place as mundane as possible means kids won't even think to look there. Just make sure it is not near places they will think to explore or use boxes which they will want to play with.
Wrap empty boxes
Another great way to stop your kids finding presents is to give them a red herring. If your kids are impatient enough to go looking for presents which they should be waiting for, then you can trick them by wrapping up empty boxes or boxes with junk items in them. Put them somewhere hidden, but obvious like in a kitchen cupboard. Then, you can hide the actual presents somewhere else, safe in the knowledge that your kids think they have outsmarted you when really you've had the upper hand the whole time.
Suitcases or holdalls
One of the best places to hide presents is not just hide them in storage, but hide them in the things you keep in storage. Suitcases might only get used once a year for holidays (not even as much for some). You might also have old holdalls or cases which you are keeping for times like these. Packing presents for kids in here is a great idea because they are double hidden. If they are kept in places which are dusty and unkempt, then your kids might not think to look there.
Maybe your kids looking for presents is a game you guys play and you'll be happy that your little tykes have been clever enough to outsmart you this holiday season. However, if you really don't want your kids to find the presents, perhaps you should instil in them respect and patience, letting them know that you work hard all year for them to have nice things and their ravenous desire for commodified pleasure will be fleeting and of no real benefit to them in the long run. Also, if you really don't want your kids to find presents, you could always not get them any. Then they're guaranteed not to find them.
If you are a kid reading this article to see if you can find out where your parents have hidden presents, then well done! Your Googling skills are paying off. If you want some more advice on where those presents might be hidden, take a look at this article on how to find hidden Christmas presents.
If you want to read similar articles to Where To Hide Christmas Presents, we recommend you visit our Festivities & Celebrations category.
- If a member of your family has previous experience in present hunting make it difficult for them. Don't allow them to find them.
- No matter how high or deep your closet or wardrobe is there's always a tendency to look in these places so avoid them even though they seem perfect for this purpose.