We didn't get involved with the organization until out kids were past that stage of their lives, or rather out youngest was just beginning to think about it...but twiggers at the time weren't legal yet.
I don't think either of ours sufferred any trauma as the result of us lieing to them!
I do remember when I started questioning myself...when I was a kid but I don't know how old I was. My dad asked me to play along for my brother's sake and I did because if was fun - being let in on a "grownup" secret. But he did tell me that there would always be a Santa Clause...and that if I thought about it, I could figure out why. I did understand immediately, that when younger kids first get introduced to the idea, it is real for them...and so as younger kids go through all the phases, some newer ones always enter the cycle...so in that way, there will always be one. (I hope I wrote that in some meaningful way!?)
I loved him for how he put it. I never felt lied to...and I always loved to oblige the younger ones with their dreams.
[hey guys - - I don't type as well as I used to...and my eyes aren't as good as they used to be. I try cleaning up the posts, but don't always catch stuff...so you'll have to forgive the mistakes for a while.....sorry 'bout that]
I was out of TWI when my first kid was still a toddler, so I had time to decide what I wanted to do. First husband and I loved the idea of Santa (the guy who gives secretly, without needing to be thanked), so that is what we did with our daughters.
And in AZ, there was a wonderful actor who did the Santa bit in downtown Scottsdale and other places, who would come visit our house with his antique toys just before Christmas, so you see, we really did have a Santa. If the kids asked us questions about Santa, we just said, "It sure seems that way," until they were old enough to figure it out, then we told them that they could now be Santas for others.
Fast forward to second husband...
I explained to him everything I just said above. He nodded, which I thought meant he agreed with me. Nope, it just meant he heard what I'd said. (He did this on later occasions as well.) In a talk with our son when I was not around, he told him that Santa Claus is another name for Saint Nicholas, a Catholic so-called saint who died hundreds of years ago.
Our son took that lovely bit of information on the bus with him the next day. The first I knew about it was when I got a phone call from the school, saying kids were upset when my son told them that Santa was dead. My son was 5 years old.
So I feel kind of sad and sick about a cult, and an ex, who would want to take Santa Claus away from a little kid just to be "right."
I do not believe in Santa. I can not lie to my kids.
I have been santa i suppose but here is the scoop I told the kids . Santa is as real as mickey mouse chuckie cheese or Donald duck. Santa is a character people play . Yes I took my kids to see santa when they were small and they got gifts. My kids never asked me but they did ask who brought the gifts. I said I did or gramma or a friend who ever did.
A few christams we did get gifts from "snta" and I really didnt know who brought them so I said i do not know and they wondered. Finding out your a fool , and have been lied to by the ones you trusted the most i guess is not part of childhood for me. If they are to young to ask I do not say, sure we see the dude in the mall or at the party and he is good he gives a candy cane or a gift. If any more questions pop up I tell the truth.
If my grands ask me if santa is real I will say what I told their parents as real as mickey mouse or any other character you might imagine as real. but I do not lie to them and tell them some fat dude we do not know in red fuzzy suit breaks into the house and brings whatever they want.
That is unsafe and an outright lie to me. I tell them it is a custume someone pretending to be the character like in the storys on tv or whatever. I have been santa for many years now and the job is open for graps if you ask me.
"Do you see any chimneys around here that a fat man could jump down?"
"Do you know how many people live in Chicago? and Chicago is bigger than Florida..."
We never had to say much of anything about the veracity of Mr. Claus...this is the same kid that when the Tooth Fairy paid him his first visit he came bolting into the den to announce his good fortune...a buck for one tooth.....(light bulb over the head)..."...hey Mom, how many teeth do I have, anyway?"
The Easter Bunny never stood a chance...lol.
But there was a serious discussion about how many jelly beans a rabbit can hold in its paws ergo...the E.B. probably not being able to cover the same ground as Santa, hence, no real Easter Bunny.
But he, like his younger brother, Reid, and little sislette, Holly (these daze) lived the myth cuz it's nice and can be lucrative...lol.
We never ceased saying "Merry Christmas" or forsook any of the traditional mythage and tradition that accompanies most seasons... and no one ever breathed down our necks about it... altho I am well aware of the prevailing sentiments that started all that cow frenzy herd mentality mindless subscription.
Happy Household...eek...HaHoHol...uh-oh...danger, Will Robinson...
A pair of blue suede boots and a beard with black roots
And a face you knew way back when
A drawl in his talk and a swaggering walk
And the hips that wiggled back then
My mom and dad can barely wait to see the King again
He’s a Santa who sounds a lot like Elvis
With every ho ho ho
There’s that faint peanut butter smell
Whenever he says noel
Those lips are always twitching to and fro
There’s a Santa who looks a lot like Elvis
Soon the band will start
And the thing that would pleasure Bing
Is a carol by the King
Right here in K-mart
You ain’t nothing but a reindeer
Flying all the time
You ain’t nothing but a reindeer
Flying all the time
Well you ain’t never brought a present
And you ain’t no friend of mine
Hey, we’re here every day from 2 to 4. If you want to feed the reindeer just leave ‘em a peanut butter and ‘nanner sandwich. They’ll eat it later.
He’s a Santa who looks a lot like Elvis
Well, thank you very much. Thank you.
Signs you can’t ignore
Well, I have put on a few pounds
It’s the wackiest thing to see
Buddy Holly’s on his knee
Boy, you’re a skinny little feller aren’t you?
And I’m almost sure
Sure it’s Elvis once more
Uh, ho ho ho, ho ho ho. Thank you. Thank you very much.
quote:The first I knew about it was when I got a phone call from the school, saying kids were upset when my son told them that Santa was dead.
I'm sorry, I just recovered :D--> :D--> :D--> There's something just very Steven Wrightish about the way that reads, Shaz.
" Merry Christmas! Santa's on his way!"
(reponse)
"Uh, Santa's like...... dead, dude".
I think our kids heard about Santa Claus from TV and friends, the whole Santa thing. They liked the idea of presents. My son didn't give Santa Claus much thought but I remember my daughter got quiet when they started talking about it one year, looked concerned. They were little, about 4 and 5 years old or so. She asked "is he really going to come in our house at night when we're asleep?" I realized the idea was kind of scaring her, some guy sneaking in at night. So we explained gently that Santa wasn't a real guy, he was like an idea, a symbol, of giving and sharing and happy stuff. Like buying a present for someone and surprising them with it, yae! But no, Santa Claus wasn't a real person. It seemed to be a relief, actually.
---
I wanted to add, fast forward to when she's 16. She got a Christmas season job at the local Mall helping at the Santa display, where they have the Santa dude all dressed up and she worked for the photo company that took pictures, as one of Santa's "elves". Had the costume, all of that, really cute but it was very demanding with all the children, frustrated parents in long lines, all of that.
So at one point I asked her how it was going and she got this look...and sighed and shook her head. "One of the kids peed on Santa tonight and another one threw up when their Mom was yelling at Santa about something she was mad about. Merry Christmas". She survived. ;)-->
When my daughter got to be about "that age" and started to question the existence of Santa (some of her school friends started to deny the existence of Santa), I told her this:
quote:As long as you believe in Santa, there will be presents from Santa when you wake up in the morning. But, when you no longer believe, there won't be any more presents. Why should you get presents from Santa if you don't believe in him?
That faulty logic worked for that year. The next year, she proudly announced that she didn't believe anymore. So, the presents initially from Santa were suddenly from Mom and Dad. When she awoke on Christmas morning, guess what? No presents from Santa. Disappointed, she announced that she knew it was a fraud all along. I replied, "remember what I said? Believe in Santa, get presents from Santa. Stop believing in Santa, no more presents from Santa. You stopped believing." A while later I told her that she would start seeing Santa again when she had her own kids.
I think the loss of Santa is one of the saddest days in every child's life. Because it is one of the first signs of a loss of true innocence.
We never did "say" there was a Santa Claus....felt it would be a lie, but did give out presents from him. When our daughter asked us about Santa we told her he did not exist and we were the ones putting gifts under the tree. We told her the santa's at the store were men dressed up to look like him. She knodded her head and didn't say much after that. She is now 18 and still gets presents from Santa every year.
When my daughter was little I did tell her but she refused to believe it.
She will be 18 years old next month. If someone asks her if she believes in Santa, her response is, 'I believe in the spirit of Santa.'
Her favorite time of year is Christmas.
Now my son (who is 14 years old) I did differently and let him believe in Santa. I never told him differently. As he got older he recognized that there wasn't one. He wasn't tramautized by the whole thing. It really wasn't a big deal around here.
I was raised knowing that Santa Claus, the man, was not a real person.It is the IDEA of Santa Claus that is the important part of Christmas. (Family, giving, receiving, love, fun times, etc.) It was actually one of the very few things I've passed on to my own children from my parents examples.
My kids have known since they were old enough to ask that there is no Santa...but that isn't the focus (for us). It is so much fun to pretend there is a Santa. We've had pictures taken on Santa's lap, my children have received presents from "Santa" since they were old enough to read, we LOVE watching all the movies about Santa. We leave milk and cookies out for Santa on Christmas Eve We have all the magic of Christmas!
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krys
We didn't get involved with the organization until out kids were past that stage of their lives, or rather out youngest was just beginning to think about it...but twiggers at the time weren't legal yet.
I don't think either of ours sufferred any trauma as the result of us lieing to them!
I do remember when I started questioning myself...when I was a kid but I don't know how old I was. My dad asked me to play along for my brother's sake and I did because if was fun - being let in on a "grownup" secret. But he did tell me that there would always be a Santa Clause...and that if I thought about it, I could figure out why. I did understand immediately, that when younger kids first get introduced to the idea, it is real for them...and so as younger kids go through all the phases, some newer ones always enter the cycle...so in that way, there will always be one. (I hope I wrote that in some meaningful way!?)
I loved him for how he put it. I never felt lied to...and I always loved to oblige the younger ones with their dreams.
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krys
[hey guys - - I don't type as well as I used to...and my eyes aren't as good as they used to be. I try cleaning up the posts, but don't always catch stuff...so you'll have to forgive the mistakes for a while.....sorry 'bout that]
rock on............
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shazdancer
Mixed memories for me, Cindy...
I was out of TWI when my first kid was still a toddler, so I had time to decide what I wanted to do. First husband and I loved the idea of Santa (the guy who gives secretly, without needing to be thanked), so that is what we did with our daughters.
And in AZ, there was a wonderful actor who did the Santa bit in downtown Scottsdale and other places, who would come visit our house with his antique toys just before Christmas, so you see, we really did have a Santa. If the kids asked us questions about Santa, we just said, "It sure seems that way," until they were old enough to figure it out, then we told them that they could now be Santas for others.
Fast forward to second husband...
I explained to him everything I just said above. He nodded, which I thought meant he agreed with me. Nope, it just meant he heard what I'd said. (He did this on later occasions as well.) In a talk with our son when I was not around, he told him that Santa Claus is another name for Saint Nicholas, a Catholic so-called saint who died hundreds of years ago.
Our son took that lovely bit of information on the bus with him the next day. The first I knew about it was when I got a phone call from the school, saying kids were upset when my son told them that Santa was dead. My son was 5 years old.
So I feel kind of sad and sick about a cult, and an ex, who would want to take Santa Claus away from a little kid just to be "right."
Regards,
Shaz
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mj412
I do not believe in Santa. I can not lie to my kids.
I have been santa i suppose but here is the scoop I told the kids . Santa is as real as mickey mouse chuckie cheese or Donald duck. Santa is a character people play . Yes I took my kids to see santa when they were small and they got gifts. My kids never asked me but they did ask who brought the gifts. I said I did or gramma or a friend who ever did.
A few christams we did get gifts from "snta" and I really didnt know who brought them so I said i do not know and they wondered. Finding out your a fool , and have been lied to by the ones you trusted the most i guess is not part of childhood for me. If they are to young to ask I do not say, sure we see the dude in the mall or at the party and he is good he gives a candy cane or a gift. If any more questions pop up I tell the truth.
If my grands ask me if santa is real I will say what I told their parents as real as mickey mouse or any other character you might imagine as real. but I do not lie to them and tell them some fat dude we do not know in red fuzzy suit breaks into the house and brings whatever they want.
That is unsafe and an outright lie to me. I tell them it is a custume someone pretending to be the character like in the storys on tv or whatever. I have been santa for many years now and the job is open for graps if you ask me.
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MATILDA
Morgan was five when he did the Santa math:
"Do you see any chimneys around here that a fat man could jump down?"
"Do you know how many people live in Chicago? and Chicago is bigger than Florida..."
We never had to say much of anything about the veracity of Mr. Claus...this is the same kid that when the Tooth Fairy paid him his first visit he came bolting into the den to announce his good fortune...a buck for one tooth.....(light bulb over the head)..."...hey Mom, how many teeth do I have, anyway?"
The Easter Bunny never stood a chance...lol.
But there was a serious discussion about how many jelly beans a rabbit can hold in its paws ergo...the E.B. probably not being able to cover the same ground as Santa, hence, no real Easter Bunny.
But he, like his younger brother, Reid, and little sislette, Holly (these daze) lived the myth cuz it's nice and can be lucrative...lol.
We never ceased saying "Merry Christmas" or forsook any of the traditional mythage and tradition that accompanies most seasons... and no one ever breathed down our necks about it... altho I am well aware of the prevailing sentiments that started all that cow frenzy herd mentality mindless subscription.
Happy Household...eek...HaHoHol...uh-oh...danger, Will Robinson...
Merry Toofy Christmas, Easter Bunnies...bawk bawk!
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WhiteDove
Why of course!!!
There's a Santa Who Looks a Lot Like Elvis
http://www.bobrivers.com/pickup/index.asp?ID=169342
There’s a Santa who looks a lot like Elvis
The King of Rock and Roll
Take a look at the double chin
He’s weighing about 310
With golden chains and sequined belt below
There’s a Santa who looks a lot like Elvis
Down at the K-Mart store
But the scariest sight to see
Is that jolly VIP
In a pompadour
A pair of blue suede boots and a beard with black roots
And a face you knew way back when
A drawl in his talk and a swaggering walk
And the hips that wiggled back then
My mom and dad can barely wait to see the King again
He’s a Santa who sounds a lot like Elvis
With every ho ho ho
There’s that faint peanut butter smell
Whenever he says noel
Those lips are always twitching to and fro
There’s a Santa who looks a lot like Elvis
Soon the band will start
And the thing that would pleasure Bing
Is a carol by the King
Right here in K-mart
You ain’t nothing but a reindeer
Flying all the time
You ain’t nothing but a reindeer
Flying all the time
Well you ain’t never brought a present
And you ain’t no friend of mine
Hey, we’re here every day from 2 to 4. If you want to feed the reindeer just leave ‘em a peanut butter and ‘nanner sandwich. They’ll eat it later.
He’s a Santa who looks a lot like Elvis
Well, thank you very much. Thank you.
Signs you can’t ignore
Well, I have put on a few pounds
It’s the wackiest thing to see
Buddy Holly’s on his knee
Boy, you’re a skinny little feller aren’t you?
And I’m almost sure
Sure it’s Elvis once more
Uh, ho ho ho, ho ho ho. Thank you. Thank you very much.
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socks
I'm sorry, I just recovered
:D--> 
:D--> 
:D--> There's something just very Steven Wrightish about the way that reads, Shaz.
" Merry Christmas! Santa's on his way!"
(reponse)
"Uh, Santa's like...... dead, dude".
I think our kids heard about Santa Claus from TV and friends, the whole Santa thing. They liked the idea of presents. My son didn't give Santa Claus much thought but I remember my daughter got quiet when they started talking about it one year, looked concerned. They were little, about 4 and 5 years old or so. She asked "is he really going to come in our house at night when we're asleep?" I realized the idea was kind of scaring her, some guy sneaking in at night. So we explained gently that Santa wasn't a real guy, he was like an idea, a symbol, of giving and sharing and happy stuff. Like buying a present for someone and surprising them with it, yae! But no, Santa Claus wasn't a real person. It seemed to be a relief, actually.
---
I wanted to add, fast forward to when she's 16. She got a Christmas season job at the local Mall helping at the Santa display, where they have the Santa dude all dressed up and she worked for the photo company that took pictures, as one of Santa's "elves". Had the costume, all of that, really cute but it was very demanding with all the children, frustrated parents in long lines, all of that.
So at one point I asked her how it was going and she got this look...and sighed and shook her head. "One of the kids peed on Santa tonight and another one threw up when their Mom was yelling at Santa about something she was mad about. Merry Christmas".
She survived. 
;)-->
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excathedra
we had santa for a few years. i actually miss him....
the conversation gets really interesting now when my son talks about jesus and santa in the same breath asking for proof
:)-->
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markomalley
When my daughter got to be about "that age" and started to question the existence of Santa (some of her school friends started to deny the existence of Santa), I told her this:
That faulty logic worked for that year. The next year, she proudly announced that she didn't believe anymore. So, the presents initially from Santa were suddenly from Mom and Dad. When she awoke on Christmas morning, guess what? No presents from Santa. Disappointed, she announced that she knew it was a fraud all along. I replied, "remember what I said? Believe in Santa, get presents from Santa. Stop believing in Santa, no more presents from Santa. You stopped believing." A while later I told her that she would start seeing Santa again when she had her own kids.
I think the loss of Santa is one of the saddest days in every child's life. Because it is one of the first signs of a loss of true innocence.
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Stayed Too Long
We never did "say" there was a Santa Claus....felt it would be a lie, but did give out presents from him. When our daughter asked us about Santa we told her he did not exist and we were the ones putting gifts under the tree. We told her the santa's at the store were men dressed up to look like him. She knodded her head and didn't say much after that. She is now 18 and still gets presents from Santa every year.
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Hills Bro
I still believe in Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny.
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vickles
When my daughter was little I did tell her but she refused to believe it.
She will be 18 years old next month. If someone asks her if she believes in Santa, her response is, 'I believe in the spirit of Santa.'
Her favorite time of year is Christmas.
Now my son (who is 14 years old) I did differently and let him believe in Santa. I never told him differently. As he got older he recognized that there wasn't one. He wasn't tramautized by the whole thing. It really wasn't a big deal around here.
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Cindy!
I was raised knowing that Santa Claus, the man, was not a real person.It is the IDEA of Santa Claus that is the important part of Christmas. (Family, giving, receiving, love, fun times, etc.) It was actually one of the very few things I've passed on to my own children from my parents examples.
My kids have known since they were old enough to ask that there is no Santa...but that isn't the focus (for us). It is so much fun to pretend there is a Santa. We've had pictures taken on Santa's lap, my children have received presents from "Santa" since they were old enough to read, we LOVE watching all the movies about Santa. We leave milk and cookies out for Santa on Christmas Eve We have all the magic of Christmas!
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papajohn
my son believes in santa, and I know he's real for a face. I'm him, to scotty.
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