Midnight Mass with little babies?

  • Thread starter Thread starter mizznicole
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
M

mizznicole

Guest
I’m a real smells ‘n’ bells kinda Catholic. I love vigil masses especially. We went to Easter vigil when DS was 4 months. He slept the whole time. Now he’s 11 mo and I wonder if we can make it to/through midnight mass. Do any of you take little ones to it?
 
I’ve never brought the kids to midnight Mass.

Why not play it by ear…if you can’t manage it, you can aways go on Christmas Day.
 
I say give it a whirl, if he gets fussy take him to the cry room. Are we the only parish that has one nowdays?
 
BamaRider said:
I say give it a whirl, if he gets fussy take him to the cry room. Are we the only parish that has one nowdays?
Click to expand...
Nope, we have one too. But we don’t have a mass at midnight.

I also say go for it. Chances are, he will fall asleep. And other than maybe a snore or two, you won’t hear him.
 
Midnight Mass is a tradition in our family. There’s something very peaceful and romantic about it.

I am hoping the baby enjoys it too. Her bedtime has always been midnight (not quite sure why, DH and I don’t stay up that late. We’ve tried to back up her bedtime, but she simply wakes up and is ready to play until 3am 🤷 )
 
We will be taking them to mignight Mass this year, though we don’t go to Midnight Mass every year. Actually I think this Mass ends around midnight, but we have things before Mass and after Mass there is a party.
 
I would give it a try. Could start a beautiful tradition.

I last tried it about 13 years ago, when DS was about 3 – he threw up hugely just at the stroke of midnight, in a massively crowded church - standing room only – luckily I caught most of it in my coat. The folks around me were wonderfully kind – brought me paper towels, etc. Still, it’s been 13 years and I think we might try it again this year.
 
DH and I were just talking about this. He wants to go, I don’t. That’s because I’m the one usually managing Zack. :rolleyes: He suggested that we leave him with one of the grandparents, I said heck no because I want my baby on Christmas morning! This thread makes me feel a little better though, maybe it is doable. I just don’t want him to be cranky the next day when my in-laws are at my house for breakfast.
 
I’m debating the same thing - 14 month old twins and I would like to take them to midnight mass. They go to sleep usually around 7:30 though, and they sleep right through til 6:30 the next morning. I don’t want to go and have two crying screaming twinfants…still, they LOVE church. They’re rather enchanted by all the lights and stuff. But they HATE to be woken up - I can’t blame them really. 🙂

I might end up skipping the midnight mass, (skipping mass today cuz my Porcupine has been spiking fevers since last night!) though it is something I would SO like to take them to.
Will you be sure to post to let us know how it went? I’ll be curious. 🙂
 
BamaRider said:
I say give it a whirl, if he gets fussy take him to the cry room. Are we the only parish that has one nowdays?
Click to expand...
We have a lovely one with one way glass wall that gives straight onto the sanctuary so Moms and kids are still part of the whole Mass - it has pews just like the rest of the church so kids get used to the feel of church.

Take the babies to Midnight Mass, take the toddlers to Midnight Mass, take the kids to Midnight Mass!

I guess you can see I love Midnight Mass and little people being in church at all! At least try it, I think its the most beautiful Mass of the Christmas season.
 
My family always went to Midnight Mass. When we arrived home, we opened Christmas presents, including the Santa presents that came while we were out.
 
mizznicole said:
I’m a real smells ‘n’ bells kinda Catholic. I love vigil masses especially. We went to Easter vigil when DS was 4 months. He slept the whole time. Now he’s 11 mo and I wonder if we can make it to/through midnight mass. Do any of you take little ones to it?
Click to expand...
Does he get more cranky when he’s tired or less? At this point with my 21 mo. old, it wouldn’t matter which Mass we went to. He’d still end up yelling, “Bye, Jesus!” half-way through and I’d end up with him in the cry room or the narthex, depending on which was available!
 
I think I stopped going to midnight mass between the ages 6-11 only… which actually lasted for about 12 yrs since it started when the first one turned 6 and the last one turned 11…
 
When I was little, my parents, grnadparents, aunts and uncles all celebrated Christmas together at my grandparents 2nd home in the mountains. When we were small we would open family presents on Christmas Eve, and then we would all go to bed, and one person, usually one of my uncles…would stay with the sleeping kids and everyone else went to 11:00 services (we are Lutheran). Being considred old enough and mature enough to go to the 11 o clock service was a big deal to us as we got older.

Now we go to the 7 oclock service with my mom when we are visiting her at her house for Christmas.
 
I took my tiny kids to Masses long and short, early and late, as long as they were more interested in nursing than hiding under the pews. That was considerably longer for my son than my daughter. Now she’s 4.5yo and I’ll be taking her to midnight Mass Wednesday. I’m not signing up to help with anything, and she tells me that if she wakes up she’ll just cuddle the whole time. It’s only an hour-ish, so I bet we’ll make it. She often chooses to come to daily Mass.

I wonder how old my kids will have to be before I can take them to the 3 hour Easter Vigil??
 
mizznicole said:
I’m a real smells ‘n’ bells kinda Catholic. I love vigil masses especially. We went to Easter vigil when DS was 4 months. He slept the whole time. Now he’s 11 mo and I wonder if we can make it to/through midnight mass. Do any of you take little ones to it?
Click to expand...
Only comment I’d like to add is how does your son go with incense (did he notice it at Easter?) Just get him out as soon as you can if you think he doesn’t like it or sit as far way from where it will be most intense, if possible.
 
We brought our daughter to midnight mass last year… she was almost 3 years old and usually very good in Mass. For some reason she decided to start fussing in the middle of the priest’s homily, and while DH and I were trying to calm her down, he actually stopped his homily and said, “I love the sound of children in church. It’s an especially nice reminder at Christmas, when you think that the Christ child was a little one too” and then he continued on. It made us feel better! (And luckily my daughter quieted down and made it through the rest of mass!)

We’re taking her and her little brother to midnight mass this year… pray for us. 😃
 
How did it go, everyone? My 2 yr. old would’ve been fine if my mother wouldn’t have unilaterally decided he needed to be taken to the narthex to run around after about .5 seconds of noise. He then knew that it was possible to run around back there and was extremely mad the rest of the Mass when I made him come back inside. And this was only at 9:00pm!
 
My husband and I wanted to go to Midnight Mass. But after presents at mom’s, traveling to pick up brother earlier in the day, and Dad getting home off the road late, the 8 month had a meltdown and we did not go.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top