Christmas Dinner or Christmas Eve Dinner?

As a product of divorced parents w/ in-laws too (all who live within a 30 mile radious of us!) we do a big dinner both days and one family gets Christmas breakfast. I don't cook all of them, only one. It just depends on whose "year" it is between my parents. I am actually relieved that my Mom & SD are going to my sister's in another state this year for Christmas....I only have to run between 2 houses now ! Woo Hoo!
As far as dinner suggestions, I ahve done both. A nice spiral/glazed ham is nice and fairly easy to prepare as well as a Roast with vegetables and potatoes. The chef Tyler Florence had a killer recipe for a horseradish (sp?) encrusted roast with veggies...yummy!

We tend to change things up slightly each year :-) This year we are doing a Christmas dinner on the 22nd with my dad's family, then Christmas Eve dinner with my mom's family. Christmas day will be at my house and the day after Christmas will be at my in laws. So yes, 4 Christmases. Fun!
We're having:
1. Filet mignon on the 22nd
2. Italian feast - lasagna, chicken parm etc on the 24th
3. bagel brunch on the 25th and nothing special later on - something easy!
4. Prime rib on the 26th.

We have a blended family. We get our kids Christmas Eve every year until Christmas Day at 9am when they go to their other parents house. We always have tacos on Christmas Eve and I cook for my husband, mom and I on Christmas Day. This year my ex decided he was going to celebrate on the weekend he has the kids so I'm keeping my kids all week. I say you should cook on whatever day you have the most people. The food and day doesn't matter, the time with your family does.

We have been lucky to host my family (small, less than ten people) for Christmas Eve brunch, from like noon to 4, and then day after Christmas dinner with my husband's family (large, over 40 people.)
This way we all get our Christmas Eve and Christmas morning and day at home with our kids, relaxing in our PJs and getting covered with wrapping paper :-)
ETA: brunch food is usually mimosa, quiche, ham, pastries, etc. and day after Christmas dinner is a potluck with Prime Rib, turkey and all the fixings!

We have it on Christmas Day.
I like it better that way as we are all together, nobody going to another
person's house.
It, also, gives you something to look foward to & do after all of the gift
unwrapping/toy playing hub-bub.
We have a ton big, filling appetizers on Christmas Eve.
Then on Christmas Day we either have ham or turkey & all the trimmings
(mashed potatoes, rolls, asparagus, salad, sparkling cider, wine etc.).

The last few years I have been cooking a ham dinner on Christmas Eve, a prime rib dinner on Christmas day and joining my brothers family for turkey dinner on boxing day. This year we have made reservations to eat at a hotel buffet on Christmas day.

We do ours (ham) on Christmas Day. We have pizza Christmas Eve. :)

I have a friend whose tradition is Christmas Chimichangas.

Both.. We do Mexican Food on Christmas Eve, sometimes, chowder.. Long story..

On Christmas Day we make a nice Standing Rib Roast or a Smoked Turkey. This year it will be a standing rib roast..

Christmas morning I make my famous Bloody Mary's.. They are so good!

It is what ever day we can all get together. This year it will be on the Sunday before Christmas (my family) and New Years Day (his family) just because that's the way everyone's schedule ended up.

Growing up my family always had and still has a big seafood feast on Christmas Eve, not the seven fishes, but close enough! (We'd then open our presents later in the night.) Then we'd go to my grandmother's on Christmas day and have a Thanksgiving repeat meal. But since I've been married, we spend that day with my husband's family and it is usually a buffet with meatballs, ham, roast pork. Everyone brings something and it is lots of fun. But I do make a big breakfast for Christmas morning.

Ours completely depends on who's traveling where. We've had Christmas in January at times. My family all live in the same town but my sister in law's family does not. When my sister in law and brother travel to be with her family we wait until they get back.
When my husband's parents lived in town we'd do my family on Christmas Eve and his family on Christmas day (unless of course my brother and sister in law weren't here). My husband's brother was only able to drive down on Christmas Day so we were locked in to when he was free.
The calendar day means far less to us then they actual getting together.
As for meals. One of our favorites is sukiyaki. It's a very labor intensive Japanese dish that the family loves. My mom doesn't make it often because it is labor intensive so we like to have it for special meals now and again. Christmas dinner can be whatever you love. It doesn't have to be ham, roast or turkey. What is something you love but don't like to make often because it's a lot of work or a little pricier than you would normally have for dinner? Pick that if you want to :)

Christmas Eve we have the big dinner. We change it up, but lately it's been prime rib cooked on our rotisserie. Christmas day is a laid back affair. No one wants to slave away in the kitchen. So we do tamales and left overs. Here in Texas you can get tamales delivered on Christmas eve. So we steam those up with a few sides and call it good.

We do both because someone is always staying from out of town. Typically prime rib for one and lasagna for the other. Yes were Italian!

I usually have to work Christmas Eve so we do something simple Christmas Eve. Christmas Day we always have a huge brunch laid out. My mom always did this and anyone living nearby would drop by. I have continued the tradition and everyone comes by my place now. We have a huge assortment of appetizers, salads, pastries and dips that get nibbled on all day rather than a sit down dinner.

Both and neither.
I don't cook for Christmas. A good friend of mine does Christmas Eve dinner and always invites us over for dinner.
My extended family does either Christmas Eve or Christmas Day, depending on my bil's work schedule. He usually works either Christmas Day or Christmas Eve, occasionally both. We just do finger foods, not a sit-down dinner.

We visit with my family for gifts, a meal, presents and church on Christmas Eve. The meal is buffet style. One year was ham and fixings, one year turkey, one year Costco sandwiches, one year breakfast (since we weren't there for Christmas breakfast)

We then visit with our inlaws for gifts, a meal, presents on Christmas Day, afternoon. Most years it is turkey. One year we went to Golden Corral (10 people, was NOT fun. we were crammed in like sardines!)
This year we will probably just do sandwiches.

Christmas Eve is at my parents house doing gifts and taco's. Christmas Day is at my house and it's typically a Thanksgiving dinner repeat. A few years ago we did an amazing steak, twice baked potatoes, and a few veggie sides. This year we are doing my dad's amazing beef stroganoff. So excited!!

Lucky you, you can attend both without conflict! I normally host dinner on Christmas Eve and it's usually a little more casual than the Christmas Day dinner that my mother makes. I might do a turkey some years for my dinner, but with only a few sides and desserts, not like a Thanksgiving meal. Next year I'll do lasagne and salad to keep things simple. This year, my sister is hosting us in her hotel suite (it has a big conference room with a table included) so we're just getting Chinese take-out and bringing apps and desserts. My mom's dinner is pretty traditional...usually a roast beef or prime rib, sometimes with a small ham or lamb as well, a million sides, lots of desserts. Then we go to my aunt's house later on Christmas day for sandwiches and (more) desserts. Husband's family is Jewish so we have no conflicts.

Xmas eve is usually at one relative's house and Xmas day at a different relative.
Usually X-mas eve is casual, buffet style, sandwiches, beverages, side dishes and definitely not a sit down dinner. Xmas day is more formal.

Our "tradition" is to do whatever makes sense for us, that year, with what else is going on. I used to do the big dinner as an event on Christmas Eve, and then have the day off to chill and visit people on Christmas day. But now, the way our life is, that's not what we're doing. We will be going to doing last minute preps and games that we'd like to do while husband is off work also, we're going to ICE (a seasonal event here), we will have a casual but delicious dinner (seafood gumbo and a figgy pudding) with a friend and her son, we will go to church for a candlelight service, communion, singing, etc. We will come home, have some snacks, wassail for adults and cocoa for kids, and open gifts from friends/family. We're too busy to have a proper big meal without being a little stressed on time, keeping an eye on the clock while we're at ICE or before we go to church.
Christmas day we'll a breakfast casserole to minimize any effort or time cooking in the morning, yet still getting some good food. Lunch will be leftover gumbo. By late afternoon I'll be ready and happy to cook after most of the day to laze around and hang with the family. We're doing a beef tenderloin and roasted veg, blueberry pie, and mince pie, and 6 guests joining us for dinner (each bringing a side).
Your dinner could be whatever makes YOUR family happy. Nobody says it has to be a ham/roast, it could be whatever is a treat for you! Something that speaks of home, family/friends together, something comforting, and / or something that you don't eat just any old time so it feels festive. I have friends that make homemade tamales, I have other friends that always make a special lasagna (not their all the time lasagna but one from a grandma's recipe box), etc. I very often love to get a crawfish stuffed chicken, sweet potatoes souffle, a special recipe for green beans, a bread pudding with extra rum for my Christmas dinner but wasn't able to make a trip "home" to get a stuffed chicken this year. I usually make that because it's not something sold locally and I pick one up when visiting my mom and freeze it until Christmas or other special occasion, so it's "special", rare, delicious, and something from "back home". It could literally be anything. You could even have a tradition to try a new meal every year, lol. :)

Christmas Eve we are baking tons of cookies/treats and going to look at xmas lights. So we end up eating cookies for dinner on Christmas Eve, lol.... Christmas Day dinner we make Italian... Ziti, lasagna, Chicken Alfredo, etc....