When your child asks...

[CaptainMummy]

'is that the real santa?'

Paige is 4 1/2 and is a smart cookie. She doesnt just accept and believe that things are real. Like at parties when there are mascots (peppa pig, minnie mouse etc) she immediately says 'that's just someone dressed up' and isnt excited by it, whereas all of the other children are thrilled to be meeting them!
She isn't daft. She would look at two different Santas and say 'thats a different person' and the other day she was watching a film (I think one of the Home alone movies) and when a really crap Santa came on, she asked me if it was the real santa.

I told her that I didnt know. Santa is far too busy but he sends lots of his helpers to speak to the boys and girls and they can tell Santa what they have asked for. But, sometimes it is the real Santa who is there, and we dont know when! So we always have to believe that it could indeed be him'

She seemed to accept it... But ugh, she is way too 'with it' for my liking. Wish she would just be like 'Omg its santa, yay!'

What do you tell your kiddos?

 

[DCS]

I'm dreading this conversation. DS doesn't like the mascot type people. He met Peppa pig and restaurants mouse once and just screamed. He has only been to see Santa once. And that was only because he was too young to protest. He refuses to see Santa and just asks if I can txt him instead. But he did ask if it was the real Santa last year and a simple I'm not sure was enough. But I'm sure this year he will be wanting more. So I'm going to steal your idea and say what you did.

 

[motherofboys]

There are so many films out there that have store Santas who are not the real Santa, that I ted to go with the 'helper' line too.

 

[Kate&Lucas]

Lucas is exactly the same!
If it's a good Father Christmas I tell him it's the real one, if he's rubbish then it's a helper

 

[LoraLoo]

We use the helper line here too!

 

[Lilicat]

I don't have this situation as such because both boys are autistic, they don't have sufficient verbal skills to have a conversation. I know William notices though because there is only one real Father Christmas, the one at the library.

Anyone in a Father Christmas costume he will respond to as he does any other adult (so pretty much ignore them) but Father Christmas at the library gets cuddles and smiles and is just adored. Even Thomas who doesn't like strangers and hides from most people who try to talk to him loves him.

He is a wonderful man who is amazing with children and had got me half convinced he is the real thing!

Is there any way you could convince your daughter one of them is the real thing? Places like libraries are more likely to have the same person each year because they use a staff member rather than shopping centres and similar where they hire an actor.

Every Father Christmas other than that one could be a helper.

 

[oliv]

My mam used to explain it by saying santa is so busy coming up to Christmas that he can't always be there so he sends some helpers to report back to him but we never know if it is the real santa or not and that's why they all dress like santa so we never know if it's him or not. Well something along them lines anyway

 

[CarlyP]

My 8 year old said the other day that he knows it's me and dad that do it all, I just said do you honestly think that I have the time/energy to buy everything, wrap everything and then put it all under the tree? And where do you think I store it all?

He then thought about it and agreed with me, phew, was close, I'm dreading the day they 'know'

 

[liz1985]

I remember going to a villiage fair type thing when i was younger. We went to visit santa and half way through i realised the 'santa' was my grandad. I was overjoyed and thought my grandad was father christmas, id never been so excited in my entire life. On the way home i told my mum i knew that santa was grandad, and she told me not to tell my sister because she still believed he was the real santa!! I was gutted lol.


I wanted to try and only see one Father Christmas a year with Noah and Esmé and make sure it was a good one so it was more real and hopfully more exciting but the 'Santas' are everywhere so its hard to do that. If they ask ill go with the helper line.

 

[Midnight_Fairy]

Ive explained it as yes I do pressies but santa is the spirit of christmas,the sharing, the laughter, the giving.

Tbh I feel much better saying the truth and not having months filled with 'santa' they are understanding more about giving selflessly.

 

[sequeena]

I think the helper explanation is a really good one

I don't have to deal with this yet because Thomas is still trying to wrap his head around Santa (he totally gets presents) but I will remember this for when the time comes.

 

[dizzy65]

Pretty much the same as you, That Santa has lots of helpers because he is really busy in his work shop getting all the toys ready..

 

[Tattoo]

Santa has hundreds of human helpers. The helpers are men who love Christmas and embody the spirit of Santa, so Santa recruits them. They work the grottos (though, of course, the real one does pop in from time to time). This is what I was told as a child.
My dad plays Santa at a local school fayre every year, and I can well believe that Santa would have recruited him!

 

[Kate&Lucas]

I remember going to a villiage fair type thing when i was younger. We went to visit santa and half way through i realised the 'santa' was my grandad. I was overjoyed and thought my grandad was father christmas, id never been so excited in my entire life. On the way home i told my mum i knew that santa was grandad, and she told me not to tell my sister because she still believed he was the real santa!! I was gutted lol.

Noooo that broke my heart a little!

 

[jd83]

I don't have this situation as such because both boys are autistic, they don't have sufficient verbal skills to have a conversation. I know William notices though because there is only one real Father Christmas, the one at the library.

Anyone in a Father Christmas costume he will respond to as he does any other adult (so pretty much ignore them) but Father Christmas at the library gets cuddles and smiles and is just adored. Even Thomas who doesn't like strangers and hides from most people who try to talk to him loves him.

He is a wonderful man who is amazing with children and had got me half convinced he is the real thing!

Is there any way you could convince your daughter one of them is the real thing? Places like libraries are more likely to have the same person each year because they use a staff member rather than shopping centres and similar where they hire an actor.

Every Father Christmas other than that one could be a helper.

One of my son's friends thinks the library Santa is the real one, too, so funny I remember last year, every time we were together at Christmas doing holiday activities, he would point out the Santas that were at events and say, that's not the real one, that's his helper. The real one's at the library. LOL

 

[motherofboys]

I don't have this situation as such because both boys are autistic, they don't have sufficient verbal skills to have a conversation. I know William notices though because there is only one real Father Christmas, the one at the library.

Anyone in a Father Christmas costume he will respond to as he does any other adult (so pretty much ignore them) but Father Christmas at the library gets cuddles and smiles and is just adored. Even Thomas who doesn't like strangers and hides from most people who try to talk to him loves him.

He is a wonderful man who is amazing with children and had got me half convinced he is the real thing!

Is there any way you could convince your daughter one of them is the real thing? Places like libraries are more likely to have the same person each year because they use a staff member rather than shopping centres and similar where they hire an actor.

Every Father Christmas other than that one could be a helper.

I remember you talking about that santa last year, I'm pretty sure he may actually be the real santa

 

[motherofboys]

I remember going to a villiage fair type thing when i was younger. We went to visit santa and half way through i realised the 'santa' was my grandad. I was overjoyed and thought my grandad was father christmas, id never been so excited in my entire life. On the way home i told my mum i knew that santa was grandad, and she told me not to tell my sister because she still believed he was the real santa!! I was gutted lol.

Noooo that broke my heart a little!

Aww that broke my heart a little too. My husband grandad used to be their village santa.
I remember my nan telling me she had a direct phone line to santa and regularly had tea with him and told him if we had behaved lol