My ex husband and I split when my son was only two and a half.  It was just before Christmas.  That first Christmas was horrible.  I sat and watched my son open his presents with nothing to do until we went to my father's house later on.  I decided then that was never going to happen again.  This should be a shared holiday, not a spectator sport.  So, I would buy one present for me for every present I got for my son.  I wrapped them up and made them from the cats.  That caused a lot of laughter and had my son wondering where the cats got money to buy presents.  I always made a few of his from the cats as well.  One year we got a DVD player from all the cats.  We had a lot of fun imagining the cats selling their dry food and going shopping.  He's 21 now and I still do it.  I think he just plays along with me but the idea made a depressing holiday so much better.