Santa......

[aimee-lou]

Santa is a nice magical man who brings presents to children who are 'good'. I.e. they get good reports, are helpful and kind and all the stuff you'd expect. I don't use him as a threat as lets face it, i for one would never follow through and i would just feel horrid leaving them with coal!!

The elf is also supposed to do mischievous things and bring gifts. Its not supposed to be creepy or threatening, its additional magic. Its just a lot of effort and money fore i cant manage.

I tell my 5yo that i can contact Santa on the phone. He gets to put 2/3 things on his list and if he's good Santa will bring them. He know that the good rule applies to presents from us and other relatives too.

I am trying not to build santa up too much but at the same time i know that the more vague i make it, the longer he'll believe. I concentrate on the magic of Christmas eve etc. We watch NORAD Santa to track him. I use icing sugar to make footprints. Last year i even got some little bells and as earl had seen polar express i left 1 outside the back door (we leave it open for Santa as no chimney) and he was blown away that he had a Santa bell off his sleigh.

Growing up i used to play along, even as a teenager. If you don't believe you don't get presents. For me, shamming belief in Santa became part if the fun and belief in Christmas as a whole was still magical. I would never deny my children those memories. When that day comes when they're all too old and no longer believe I'll still carry on.....keep that doubt going lol. And it should be a natural organic part of growing up to acknowledge that Santa himself isn't 'real' (i still think maybe lol) but what he represents and Christmas as a whole is still a wonderful time if magic and generosity.

 

[Natsku]

I'm going to do it just as a fun tradition. So she knows the presents come from me and OH and that the whole Father Christmas thing is just a game for children but we'll have someone dress up as Father Christmas and come round on Christmas Eve to bring her the presents so she doesn't miss out on that as all the other kids will have him come visit.

But she'll know its not real so there won't be any naughty or nice stuff or creepy elf on a shelf

 

[Quartz]

Naughty/nice list, absolutely no way, I find that abhorrent. Some kids don't get anything for Christmas, and I'm teaching LO this is because they're 'bad' kids?!

I'm telling LO that Santa brings just one special present, the rest is from mummy and daddy. We're not making a huge deal of it though and it's more of a game than a real thing IYKWIM?

We do this. I have never liked the idea that Santa brings all the presents as it should also be about family sharing gifts - particularly now DD is older and wants to do gifts herself.

DD will be getting two gifts from Santa and she has sent of the list. She has asked if he is real (she is quite precocious for her age) and I have told her that Santa is part of what makes Christmas so magical as that is what I think. He is something that does make Christmas magical and special but should not be used as a means of trying to stop bad behaviour

 

[steele]

I think people think too much into the whole Santa thing and I will be keeping the magic going in my house as long as possible

 

[kazzzzy]

I love the magic of Santa bringing presents & will be keeping up the tradition here, Emily is not really grasping it yet this year, she knows she will be getting new toys soon but the whole Santa thing is going over her head a bit, hopefully next year she will understand more! We will keep in light hearted & fun, I love Christmas & its even better now since I had Emily

 

[_jellybean_]

Oh...I LOVE Christmas. I'm very excited to decorate the house and put up our tree. We will be doing Santa, but we'll also tell them that mommy and daddy get them presents as well. So we'll have presents labeled from Santa, mommy, daddy, etc.

I think I will probably go buy an elf soon, but won't make a huge deal of it b/c as a pp said, if he misbehaves, I'm not going to not give him his gifts, so it'll just be a fun thing that we do. We also make sure that he understands why we celebrate Christmas--that it is Jesus' birthday, and dh and I will make sure to have him donate some toys, and do some good deeds as well.

 

[sequeena]

He can point santa out but doesn't understand what Christmas is so we're not telling him anything yet. When I was little santa brought all the toys. I'm not sure what route we are going down yet.

 

[JessyG]

We will be doing Santa. It was magical and if I get my way I will never admit that he isn't real (although I will have to come up with something to tell her before she goes to high school!)

Bella and I are doing weekly visits to the foodbank to drop of food for those less fortunate. Bella is also donating one of her presents (I bought two of the same) to a little girl who otherwise wouldn't get anything.

In our house Santa brings one big special gift and all other gifts are from family and friends. I am trying to encourage not asking for too much and appreciating the thought.

The elf idea freaked me a little. I think saying no presents if you are bad is just a hollow threat and pretty meaningless.

 

[Sarah lo]

We have an elf in our house

He's just there to do fun things for Christmas, like he appeared in the kitchen when our Christmas cake was cooking last week because he liked the smell

Olivia left her Christmas list and a few paintings beside him the other day for him to take to santa and the next day he delivered a letter from santa thanking her for her letter and paintings.

closer to Christmas he will start to decorate things and bring little presents now and again.

 

[Equreuil]

We will be doing the santa thing. I think it's a big part of childhood, having those things to believe in. And so is the realization that maybe he's not real.

My mom still writes "from Santa" on gifts to me and my brother, even though I realized long ago that "santa's" handwriting was the same as my mom's.

The elf on the shelf creeps me out, and I refuse to ever have one in my home.

 

[Button#]

We'll be treating santa as a game rather than him being real. We'll do all the fun things involved but all presents will be from family and friends, unless he sees santa at a grotto.

 

[Hopefulk]

As a child, we received a big gift and little bits from Santa but he was mostly a delivery guy for gifts from family and friends (I would send things to sabra at the post office with my parents for him to deliver to my relatives, too... I obviously never got to read the addresses!)

My lg will send a gift for her daddy and her favourite dolly to Santa and we'll go to the post office to send it to the North Pole (my mum and dad's house for them to bring over at Christmas and leave under the tree with all the other gifts!)

 

[Aidan's Mummy]

We have told our boys about Santa My 5 year old belives and so does my two year old. Yes I was upset when I found out he wasn't real but while I did believe it made it so magical and exciting Once they ask me point blank if he is real I will tell them. But until then this house belives in Santa x

 

[Equreuil]

The elf is also supposed to do mischievous things and bring gifts. Its not supposed to be creepy or threatening, its additional magic. Its just a lot of effort and money fore i cant manage.

It's not the concept that creeps me out, really, so much as the design of the face. He looks more like the kind of doll that'd star in a slasher film to me.

And like you, I can't manage to put in that much effort/money on on thing for christmas. There's plenty of other holiday activities that can be done leading up to the big day.

 

[AngelofTroy]

Micah knows who Father Christmas is and is very excited about Christmas in general. He knows from books that you can write a letter asking for presents, and he's told us he wants jelly beans we've tried to sway him towards gifts that he'd enjoy but jelly beans is all he wants! I'm wondering whether to put them from Father Christmas and the rest from us/family?

 

[aimee-lou]

Micah knows who Father Christmas is and is very excited about Christmas in general. He knows from books that you can write a letter asking for presents, and he's told us he wants jelly beans we've tried to sway him towards gifts that he'd enjoy but jelly beans is all he wants! I'm wondering whether to put them from Father Christmas and the rest from us/family?

I only mark presents that are specifically requested in their letter as from Santa. They go in different paper and i get hubby to write the tags whereas i do the rest.

 

[jd83]

The elf is also supposed to do mischievous things and bring gifts. Its not supposed to be creepy or threatening, its additional magic. Its just a lot of effort and money fore i cant manage.

It's not the concept that creeps me out, really, so much as the design of the face. He looks more like the kind of doll that'd star in a slasher film to me.

And like you, I can't manage to put in that much effort/money on on thing for christmas. There's plenty of other holiday activities that can be done leading up to the big day.

Have you seen the movie Dead Silence about that creepy ventriloquist doll? That's what the elf reminds me of, lol. So no, we will not ever get one of those creepy things.

 

[jd83]

We definitely do the Santa thing in our house, in-laws, and my family are all into the Santa thing. I remember how magical it was growing up going to see Santa, believing it was really him, setting things out for him, believing he brought the gifts, etc. I wasn't upset when I found out he wasn't real. I think it was just a natural progression. I just got to the age where I figured it out, and that was okay because I knew how much I enjoyed all the years I had believed in him.

It was kind of a hard decision when we had kids, though, I will admit. I had a hard time coming to terms with something that is basically lying to them. But remembering how much I enjoyed it as a young kid, and then seeing how much they enjoy it now that we decided to do the Santa thing, I'm glad we chose to do it.

 

[Midnight_Fairy]

Very very light hearted in this house. Santa brings a special pressie but they know we get most. Its not for thanks but they have worked this out with age. So much easier!

 

[SillyMoo1983]

You mean Santa isn't real??!

Seriously though, yes we will be doing Santa. My DD is starting to talk about him. In fact yesterday she found a gift that I hadn't hidden very well and said she wanted it. I just told her Santa needed to wrap it first and he'd bring it back on Christmas eve and leave it under the tree for her be ause she's been a good girl this year. I later heard her telling her baby brother all about it.

I'm a big kid at Christmas and love the magic, especially now we get to share it with our children Santa will get a mince pie and glass of wine