There’s a moment on Christmas Day that almost every Australian household has experienced - even if we pretend it hasn’t happened to us.
The wrapping paper is everywhere. Coffee is already going cold. Kids are buzzing with that sharp, barely-contained excitement that only exists once a year. Presents that have been sitting patiently under the Christmas tree for weeks are finally opened, boxes are tipped upside down, buttons are pressed...
And nothing happens.
You pause. You turn the box over. You scan the fine print, half-hoping you’ve missed something obvious.
Batteries not included.
Three simple words. Small font. Outsized impact.
They don’t ruin Christmas outright, but they have a remarkable ability to derail the moment just enough to be memorable. The excitement stalls. A child looks up, confused. An adult begins mentally checking the house for spare batteries - hoping that something, somewhere, will be suitable.
It’s a moment that feels far bigger than it should, largely because of when it happens.
Christmas Morning Isn’t the Time You Want to Problem-Solve
Christmas morning is meant to be a time of ease. Of traditions. Of letting the day unfold without friction. But those three words have a habit of introducing a problem that needs solving immediately.
Someone checks the junk drawer. Someone else pulls batteries out of the TV remote. A torch from the shed gets sacrificed without ceremony. Devices around the house quietly stop working later in the day, and no one is quite sure why.
It’s a familiar story, particularly leading up to Christmas, when new toys arrive and older ones are dragged out for "just one more year". The household battery ecosystem - usually invisible - suddenly comes under pressure.
What should be a seamless moment becomes a mild logistical exercise.
Why It Catches Us Out Every Single Year
What makes this scenario so persistent is that it’s rarely obvious in advance.
Packaging isn’t always clear. Online listings often bury battery requirements in specifications that are easy to overlook. Some toys include batteries, others don’t. Some include demonstration batteries that barely survive Christmas Eve, let alone Christmas Day.
Even organised parents get caught out, not because they failed to plan, but because there’s no consistency. You assume one toy will behave like the last - until it doesn’t. By the time you realise what’s missing, the moment has already passed.
It’s not carelessness. It’s ambiguity.
It’s Not Just Toys (They Just Get the Blame)
Toys take the spotlight because they’re front and centre, but they’re only part of the picture.
Christmas has a peculiar way of activating every battery-powered device in the house at once. Torches come out for backyard games and late evenings. Decorative lights get switched on after sitting untouched for eleven months. Old gadgets resurface from cupboards, suddenly relevant again. Smoke alarms, sensing peak household activity, seem to choose this exact week to announce that they’re unhappy.
Suddenly, batteries aren’t just about toys. They’re about keeping the household functioning smoothly during one of the busiest, noisiest, and most demanding times of the year.
The Battery Reality Most Homes Don’t Think About
Most people know they’ll need "some batteries". The problem is that "some" is rarely specific enough.
AA and AAA batteries quietly power the majority of toys, remotes, and small household devices. They’re used so frequently that they tend to disappear without notice. Larger batteries, like C size and D size, are used less often, which is precisely why they catch people out when they’re suddenly required. And 9V batteries tend to remain completely out of sight until a smoke alarm decides to make itself heard halfway through lunch.
It’s rarely a single device that needs power. It’s several, all at once, and almost always when shops are closed.
Why This Moment Lingers for Parents
For adults, this situation is an inconvenience. For kids, it’s something else entirely.
Children don’t understand packaging disclaimers or supply issues. They don’t see logistics. They see a toy that looked exciting and now doesn’t work. Parents find themselves apologising for something entirely outside their control, while trying to resolve the issue quickly enough that the day doesn’t lose momentum.
It’s a small interruption, but it has a way of sticking in people’s minds. Not because it’s dramatic, but because it feels unnecessary - a problem that shouldn’t exist on a day built around anticipation.
A Quiet Habit That Changes the Experience
Over time, many families quietly adopt a new Christmas tradition - not one involving carols, cards, or carefully staged photos, but something far more practical.
They stop treating batteries as something you buy reactively, and start treating them as something you keep on hand.
Not a stockpile. Not a complicated battery management system. Just a small, sensible selection of common battery types, stored somewhere accessible, so that when a toy, torch, or device needs power, it gets it immediately.
It’s not exciting. It’s not festive. And it makes an enormous difference.
Batteries Aren’t a Gift - They’re Christmas Insurance
No one is wrapping batteries and placing them under the tree. And no one is suggesting they should.
But having them tucked away means Christmas morning unfolds the way it’s meant to. Toys work straight away. Torches light up when the sun goes down. Smoke alarms remain blessedly silent. No one has to borrow batteries from something else that will mysteriously stop working later in the day.
They don’t steal attention. They quietly support everything else that matters.
Those Three Words Don’t Have to Matter
"Batteries not included" isn’t going anywhere. Manufacturers will keep printing it. Devices will continue to rely on small power sources. And Christmas will always come with a degree of chaos.
But that deflating pause - the scramble, the delay, the momentary disappointment - doesn’t need to be part of the Christmas story every year.
With a little awareness, those three words lose their power. You flick the switch. The toy comes to life. Christmas Day continues exactly as it should.
And maybe, if you’re lucky, you’ll even get to enjoy your coffee while it’s still hot.
